Vancouver To Host Green Olympics At Least In One Sense of the Word

Looks like there wont be enough snow for some of the Olympic sports events at Cypress Mountain. So VANOC is going to have to truck and even fly snow in, with straw and wood being used as a base for freestyle skiing and snowboarding events being hosted there.

It feels like Spring in the city. Trees are budding, and plants breaking through to the light of day. Looking up from my house at the mountains above Vancouver you can see the problem that VANOC faces: large patches of green and brown which typically would have been covered in the white stuff.

These mountains are only a half hour or so from doorstep to resort car park so they are perfectly situated if there's a dump of snow. But it's been another mild winter here in Vancouver with rainy, muddy conditions. The local mountains closed before they were scheduled to for the Olympics and conditions don't look set to get colder by Olympics time.

The Olympic PR machine has been working overtime of late telling everyone the Olympics are still on, with the shortage of snow at Cypress Mountain and the news that Whistler Blackcomb resort, where the major Olympic ski events are being held, will be up for auction on 19 February.

The 2010 Olympics are from 12th to the 28th February.

Then we start paying the bill.