Rockin' the Halfpipe

Posted: Thu February 12, 1998

Figure skaters spend months selecting music to set the proper mood for their programs. The right music evokes emotion and passion, and can make the difference between an average routine and a gold-medal performance. Who can forget Torvill and Dean's stirring rendition of Bolero in 1984? Or Katerina Witt's provocative Carmen in 1988?

Halfpipe snowboarders can choose their music, too. Here are some of the selections made by competitors in the women's halfpipe on Wednesday. If music be the food of love, shred on!

Wyclef Jean's music helped U.S. snowboarder Shannon Dunn to the bronze medal in the women's halfpipe.   ERIN EGAN

Shannon Dunn, U.S. bronze medalist:
We Trying to Stay Alive, by Wyclef Jean
"It's fun music. I chose it in five seconds a couple of days ago."

Anita Schwaller, Switzerland
You Never Can Tell, by Chuck Berry
"It's kind of fun and bouncy. I heard it in the movie Pulp Fiction. I saw that movie several times."

Lori Glazier, Canada
Another One Bites the Dust, by Queen
"My music? I block it out. I heard a little of it in the beginning of my run."

Cara-Beth Burnside, U.S.
All Along the Watchtower, by Jimi Hendrix
"I like a variety of music. But this song gets me in a good mood."

Michelle Taggart, U.S.
Where It's At, by Beck
"I wanted them to play James Brown's Get on Up (Sex Machine). The guy who plays the music didn't have it. I was a little disappointed. But I don't care. I like Beck, too."

Show me the monkey!

Gunther Dengg of Austria finished 62nd in the men's 20-kilometer biathlon, but he looks happy with his simian friend.   ERIN EGAN

Just around the bend from Kanbayashi Snowboard Park sits Monkey Park. This is the place to go in Japan if you want to get up close and personal with monkeys soaking in hot springs. Who could resist?

Certainly not the Austrian biathlon team. Three members of the team, along with a coach and two translators, ventured into monkey town yesterday.

The biathletes had been warned: Don't feed the monkeys.

Yeah, right.

After the Austrians started giving the monkeys apples, bananas and candy, things started to get a little hairy. One feisty furball decided one piece of candy was not enough. When one of the translators refused to give him more, the monkey grabbed her bag and smacked her across the face. The translator was not hurt, but she did give the brute more candy.

The lesson: Don't shock the monkey.

Bob Der and Erin Egan, senior editors at SI For Kids, will be filing daily from Nagano. For a kid-friendly version of these reports, check out SI For Kids Online.

Anything you want to know about life in Nagano during the Games? Click here to send your question to Bob and Erin, or e-mail siwriters@cnnsi.com. Be sure to include your name and hometown. Selected questions will be answered in upcoming columns. You can also send questions for specific athletes, and our fearless correspondents will do their best to get a reply.

PREVIOUS EDITIONS
February 11: African skiers making strides
February 10: Surf's up for wired athletes
February 9: Heart of Nagano
February 8: Be careful what you wish for...
February 7: The Olympic spirit