75ZT Community

Took my little lad to watch the Olympic Torch pass through on the Wolverhampton / Dudley route today.

What a let down, Greeted by two giant Advertising stunts on wheels to begin with we eagerly awaited the Torch bearer.

The Torch, as nice as it may be close up, looked like nothing more than a Giant cornetto cone with a zippo lighter on it, hardly the magnificent spectacle I was expecting after all the Media attention.

Oh well...........

When I watched it in our area I thought my life was complete.

Vast numbers of Met police - obviously need making redundant when they go back as they are not needed.

Merchandise sellers - £2 a flag of 3 for £5.

Then the Coca Cola lorry giving out small bottles of Coca Cola

Then the Samsung lorry and I readied myself for the TV but got given 2 flags with Samsung one side and the Union flag on the other

Then a couple of coaches with the runner between - almost missed him.

Then the spectacular was over.

Think the best part of this 'tour' was the severely injured soldier walking with the torch, and even that nearly did not happen as the organisers were going to change the route to one he could not do.

All in all, the awarding of the ******** (this has been censored) games to London is great news for Paris.

Censored due to anyone not paying a sponsorship must not mention the name or display the symbol

Yep, The whole thing was a little sore. Firstly I would have expected the Torch Bearer to be at the Front of all this "pointless" advertising, after all, we all went to see him not two giant gas guzzling monstrosities painted in Corporate Colours, namely Cola and Samsung. The Bearer was, as you say, stuck between two vehicles so you could easily miss them, not very well thought out. Even the Road blockages hadn't been thought out that well, where we was there was nearly two head on collisions as people where U-Turning on a Blocked Carriage way, that should have been blocked at a Roundabout, but wasn't, so people entered the roundabout unaware of the people turning on the Carriageway ahead. Crazy........

Gotta say that in spite of the marketing the torch through Skeg was quite uplifting...what with the various dance troupes and the colour and the general 'happy feel'....summat I have never experienced in Skeg before...far better than the Jubilee 'celebrations' they held here.....

Even the Road blockages hadn't been thought out that well, where we was there was nearly two head on collisions as people where U-Turning on a Blocked Carriage way, that should have been blocked at a Roundabout, but wasn't, so people entered the roundabout unaware of the people turning on the Carriageway ahead. Crazy........

Perhaps it was organised by the BBC's Diamond Jubilee producers.....

What sticks in my craw is that they choose people who have given a lot to the community or who have survived horrendous difficulties to carry the torch... and then charge them for the "privilege"

raistlin wrote:What sticks in my craw is that they choose people who have given a lot to the community or who have survived horrendous difficulties to carry the torch... and then charge them for the "privilege"

OMG !! Really? That is just disgusting.

Sorry to say it but I have no time for the whole fiasco! "Bar-Humbug"!

NB. If you want to see the definition, other than the obvious, look it up in the Urban Dictionary....lol.

RhodieBill wrote:Sorry to say it but I have no time for the whole fiasco! "Bar-Humbug"!

NB. If you want to see the definition, other than the obvious, look it up in the Urban Dictionary....lol.

Bar Humbug:- A pub in Bristol.
Fiasco:- The ******* Games

LOL......

Why can't we say Olympic?

RhodieBill wrote:Sorry to say it but I have no time for the whole fiasco!

I agree. Just didn't want to be the first to say it.

I imagine that it must be horrible for an athlete who is committed to the ethos of the Olympian principle to realise that they and their efforts take a poor second place to Mammon and politics.

In my view, minority I know, the amount of money being spent so that a select few can make an even greater amount of money is obscene and would far better be spent elsewhere.

Charging torch-bearers for their torch is just the unpalatable tip of a disgusting iceberg. I'm also more than a little concerned at the indoctrination of children by schools to see the whole affair as something wholesome and to be admired. Athletic prowess - yes. The moneymaking circus - no.

Just my views

RhodieBill wrote:Why can't we say Olympic?

We don't have permission from the Sponsors.

raistlin wrote:

RhodieBill wrote:Sorry to say it but I have no time for the whole fiasco!

I agree. Just didn't want to be the first to say it.

I imagine that it must be horrible for an athlete who is committed to the ethos of the Olympian principle to realise that they and their efforts take a poor second place to Mammon and politics.

In my view, minority I know, the amount of money being spent so that a select few can make an even greater amount of money is obscene and would far better be spent elsewhere.

Charging torch-bearers for their torch is just the unpalatable tip of a disgusting iceberg. I'm also more than a little concerned at the indoctrination of children by schools to see the whole affair as something wholesome and to be admired. Athletic prowess - yes. The moneymaking circus - no.

Just my views

Couldn't have put it better myself.... Thanks.

RhodieBill wrote:

raistlin wrote:

RhodieBill wrote:Sorry to say it but I have no time for the whole fiasco!

I agree. Just didn't want to be the first to say it.

I imagine that it must be horrible for an athlete who is committed to the ethos of the Olympian principle to realise that they and their efforts take a poor second place to Mammon and politics.

In my view, minority I know, the amount of money being spent so that a select few can make an even greater amount of money is obscene and would far better be spent elsewhere.

Charging torch-bearers for their torch is just the unpalatable tip of a disgusting iceberg. I'm also more than a little concerned at the indoctrination of children by schools to see the whole affair as something wholesome and to be admired. Athletic prowess - yes. The moneymaking circus - no.

Just my views

Couldn't have put it better myself.... Thanks.

Still, some of them are / were looking to make a nice profit on their torches on eBay!

PaulT wrote:Still, some of them are / were looking to make a nice profit on their torches on eBay!

Can't see a problem with that. Everybody else to do with it is on the make, apart from the athletes.

A local (Suffolk) comment was that the relay in it present for started with the 1936 Olympics in Germany. Doing a quick Google brings this up:

http://www.infoplease.com/sports/olympi ... torch.html

TBH the commercialism of it all appals me. I'm sure it was just amateurs which used to take part?

While I'm at it why are they using BM'ers? Why not Jags or Landy's for the escort cars? At least they're built here.

Sorry for the hijack, rant over.

raistlin wrote:

PaulT wrote:Still, some of them are / were looking to make a nice profit on their torches on eBay!

Can't see a problem with that. Everybody else to do with it is on the make, apart from the athletes.

Apart from using facebook etc to advertise for their sponsors, adverts on the TV etc so I think the athletes are doing OK

I thought Olympic athletes were not supposed to make any money, being true amateurs?

Very noble thought Paul,I feel this whole Olympic Games thing has lost its way.I was always lead to believe to take part in the Olympics was a thing to aspire to,maybe it still is,I would like to think so.Its just the way the whole thing to me seems just a money making event for all those involved in actually providing the facilities.As for "Lord" Coe....no comment, even where I work,the whole thing is being blown up all out of proportion.Making money out of "The Torch",why does that not suprise me.I just wonder if there might have been more of a "lasting legacy" for all the people who live in that area or have been affected by the huge upheaval in The Olympic Area,if in fact some of if not all the money had been spent instead on improving their local quality of life and future prospects.Methinks perhaps a noble thought like yours too.I don't wish to sound pesamistic,I am sure their will be a few "uplifting moments",in the next few weeks but moments is all they will be.Time to open a bottle of Merlow methinks!.