Well, I've got a little break here, and rather than continue my SLC novel, I thought I'd break it up with a top 5 list. So my first SLC top 5 list is my 5 favorite interviews.

1) Caroline Hallisey. I think she's one of the few people who actually emailed us back saying that they would do an interview, and who actually came up to us to do it. She was really great, and I would have to say that she was a lot prettier in person. Those helmets just don't do a lady any justice. She's known Rusty for a whie, and she was such a sweetheart to talk to. She definitely got a lot of cheers from me when she was racing.

2) Noelle and Todd. For once, Dorothy and the Wizard of OZ are on the receiving end of the interview. It was great to talk to them and hear their views on how the internet has kept short track and its stars in the public eyes since the Olympics.

3) Andy Gabel. He's the president of US Speedskating and a legend of short track in his own right. He's been in 3 Olympic games, and competed in his last one when he was in his 30's, something you wouldn't really see much of in short track. He's a hero to most of the skaters, and he's got a lot of ideas for the future of skating. I have to admit I was a bit intimidated to interview him at first, but he was very easygoing during our talk and he really put me at ease.

4) Steven Bradbury. I wasn't prepared for him to be there. I had no questions ready. I had heard he was doing the commentary for NBC, and I thought it was a great idea. He was really open with doing a one on one interview (he had actually joined in on an interview I was doing with Jack Mortell). So with him, I really just made up questions as I went along. And he was SO cool and really laid back. Rod had told me that I was acting very much like a fan during this interview, probably because I was gushing a bit. Seriously, I don't even remember what I asked him. But this guy is cool. Can't wait to hear his comments on NBC.

5) Alex Izykowski. I had seen Alex off and on all weekend, largely due to the fact that he was Rusty's roommate. He was pretty shy. And for the first couple days, he probably said about 10 words out loud. But the last day, we were getting ready for the interview and the mic was broken, I had a chance to do an off camera mock interview, (you could almost call it a conversation, but I was the one asking him all the questions) and it was a lot of fun. He answered most of my questions, and he was pretty open and candid. And he's a funny guy, too. Girls, make sure to give this guy a lot of attention - ask him for an autograph, ask him for a hug. He likes that.

For those of you wondering about the video, we'll probably be promoting it through Rusty's website. It will probably take a while to edit, but it'll probably be available on DVD when it does come out. Thanks for all the interest, and I'm glad you all are enjoying my story!

And the blog goes on, even after SLC. I've been working at a client site, and I swear, the place is as quiet as a tomb. It's in this big room with just the netilation pipes and tubing and stuff as the ceiling. I don't hear anyone talking. Just the white noise of the air being pumped into the room. It's so lonely and quiet I want to scream. I can't work in a place where it's this quiet. I would crack. I need noise. I need distractions. It keeps me awake!

I went to Walgreens to go shopping for a Valentine's card (Dave is coming in tomorrow - YAY!) and there's a herd of people looking for cards. I wanted to yell out 'SLACKERS! PROCRASTINATORS!' but then I thought, hey, that's why I'm here, too! Heh heh....

Posted by Yano at February 13, 2003 07:46 PM

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