Hard at Work

Hello Friends!

During the past 11 days we've been working very hard to prepare for the upcoming games.  Before I get to all the fun Mascots, Venues and other Olympic-y type stuff, I figure I'd post some pictures of where I spend the majority of my time.

The International Broadcast Center (IBC), my home away from home, is nestled right next to the Hockey stadium in the main Olympic Park.  My function is to make sure all the video from all the venues arrives safely to the IBC via a fiber optic network.   The IBC is also home to all of the Rights Holding Broadcasters from all around the world (NBC, BBC, CTV, CCTV, NINE, ZDF, SkyIT, ESPN, etc).  While I'm here, I'll be working for Olympic Broadcasting Services.  OBS is what is known as the "Host Broadcaster" - meaning, they are the host and provide all of the main content to the RHBs who provide it to the rest of the World.

enough babble.  here we go!

Home Sweet IBC

GB's Finest 

Hustle and Bustle 24/7 as everyone scrambles to test every last component 

This is where all the Magic happens.  Test Patterns and Green Screens for now - I'll take some more when we have actual video to monitor aka "Games Time"

click here for an interactive panoramic!

 "Ready to Roll"

Remember, it's only The Olympics.  Only 4 Billion people would notice if you made a mistake.

Try not to worry about it :)

Stay tuned.  I'll be providing more and more updates in the upcoming days and weeks.  

Thanks again for coming to visit!

-Sean

Hopped the Pond

Hello, Friends!
I arrived in London a couple of days ago and the adventure has already begun. Once again, I am working every day at the International Broadcast Center (IBC) with my wonderful Olympic Family. It's been great to see all the familiar faces and meet the new ones with lots of handshakes but many more hugs :)

I haven't had the chance to do much exploring at this point as I've been focused primarily with learning the IBC setup, becoming orientated, and reuniting with friends and colleagues. I will, however, leave you with a lovely image I captured from the upper deck of the Media Bus on the way to work this morning.

I thank you once again for joining me on this exciting journey and I will update you with news and pictures as often as possible.

Cheers!

Sean

T-MINUS 30

T-Minus 30 Days!

Only one more month until I touch down in London and begin my next adventure.

Stay Tuned!

T-Minus 60 Days!

I'll be in London 60 days from now.  Please stay tuned for the next Olympic Adventure!

LONDON CALLING!

It's official:  I'll be heading to London to be a part of the 2012 Summer Olympics.  I'll be at the IBC mid-July and will be staying through the end of the games.  I'm very excited to bring you my experiences once again.  

Only 7 months to go!

Cheers,

Sean

"I love the pictures.. but, um.. WHAT is it again that you're actually DOING there???"

During the past 13 busy days, I've been working to bring the Olympics from Vancouver to your couch at home.  Since the actual process is long and complicated, I'll break it down in some relatively simple terms:

1. video of the Olympic action (sports, ceremonies, commentary) is shot at the City and Mountain venues and then sent to the IBC via a fiber optic network (the IBC stands for: International Broadcast Centre.  you know.. where I work.  remember?)
2. the video is then transmitted within the IBC to all the Rights-Holding Broadcasters, RHBs -(NBC, CTV, etc.)
3. the RHBs package all the video with commentary and commercials, etc and send it to the world via their own TV fiber networks or by satellite.
4. the local networks get it from the RHBs and distribute to your house.  viola!

My job is to maintain the heath and welfare of the fiber optic network mentioned in bullet point #1.  I work for Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) - the Host Broadcaster.

if you still are scratching your head... here's a picture:

(it all happens Automagically)

so, seeing as I've been here for nearly a month, I suppose it's fitting that I finally show you some pictures of where I'm spending the majority of my time.   The CDT.  CDT stands for Contribution, Distribution & Transmission (it's in the middle of the IBC.. I know, too many acronyms)...  anyone that actually wants me to explain any of this in further detail can see me after class.

Just as a refresher, here's a picture of the IBC:

(sloped building on the right )

here are some shots of the CDT:

I attempted to stitch together a panoramic view of all the screens using an automatic program.  the result:

pretty neat looking..  but here's the real one (click):

here is my team, the Broadcast Telecom Crew - Vancouver 2010:

yes, we're all geeks.  so what?  I'm a cool geek, at least.

So, that's about it for now.  Just as long as you're seeing a nice, crisp, clear picture - you'll know that I'm doing my job.  If not, please call your local cable provider :)

In conclusion, here are some pretty trees I found:

The Olympic Flame

Here are some up-close-and-personal shots of the Cauldron, which, so happens to be right outside of my office.  Bonus!!!

here are a few shots taken before Mr Gretzky graced us with his presence:

while we were waiting, I decided to give it a head start:

it worked!

everyone cheered as we watched the fireworks:

they were shot off from a barge in the water.  great view!

excitement was everywhere!  there were tons of reporters and media:

what a night!

up next, some pictures shot during the day:

Bill Page and I:

some high res shots for your desktop (click to enlarge):

under the hood:

I was able to shoot these at around 6:00am.  I had the whole place to myself!

and some more high-res for you:

I hope you enjoyed the pictures.  come back soon!

-Sean