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Volunteer breaks code of silence to tell real story
By Doug Robinson
Deseret News columnist
On this the last day of the Salt Lake Olympics, I'd like to turn the time over to the real backbone of the Games and one of the unsung heroes — a genuine, officially licensed Olympic volunteer.
I'd tell you her name, but she asked me not to because she'd get in trouble with SLOC for talking to the scum media, so let's just call her, umm, Robert. The rest of the column is hers to tell you about her experience in approximately her own words. Take it away, Robert.
"Thanks, Doug, you're the greatest. The big joke among volunteers is what we've been told we can say to the media. We're supposed to say, 'This is a wonderful experience. We're having the time of our lives.' There, I said it.
"I drive a shuttle van for the athletes, taking them from the village to venues or downtown. We are followed by Secret Service constantly, and the vans are connected to a Global Positioning Satellite. We also have a panic button. If you're in a hostage situation, you can push the button to alert the Secret Service.
"We aren't supposed to pull over for any reason, which is why we keep extra barf bags in the van. One volunteer got lost and pulled to the side of the road. A few seconds later, a car screeched over and two burly guys jumped out. They said, 'What is your emergency, man?' They were upset.
"We have precise routes we have to follow. Once, a local policeman wouldn't let me drive the right route. We got in a big argument. I called the Secret Service, and they said, 'You tell (the cop) you have to stay on the route.' The cop still wouldn't let me. I finally told him, 'The Secret Service trumps a policeman,' and I drove ahead.
"We pumped our own gas at a pump in the village. I told security that someone was going to steal gas because no one was ever there to guard it. They laughed. They said, 'Secret Service are in the bushes and the trees and mountains. Next time you're getting gas, just smile and wave.'
"All the athletes love music. They don't know the meaning of the words, but they sing along with every song. They like the music loud and they like to go fast. One night I was going 65 on the freeway, and they were saying, 'Go 80! Go 80! We pay ticket!' They also like the air conditioner on — it gets them prepared to be in the cold. It's funny. I picked up the athlete from Bermuda — they only had one — and he said, 'Wow, it's cold. I don't do winter.'
"Except for Americans, everyone considers the 'Seat of Honor' — the preferred seat — to be the one directly behind the driver. When teams get in the car, it's a big fight to get behind the driver. The second-most coveted seat is the middle back seat and then the other back seat. The loser rides shotgun. Americans are the only ones who fight to get that front seat.
"The athletes were pretty friendly, to say the least. One of the Italian athletes kept telling me how pretty I was and could he kiss me. I had an entire team serenade me — 'Let Me Call You Sweetheart.' I drove the night shift sometimes. At night it's pick up your drunks. They'd say, 'We love you, oh, we love you.' They'd kiss me and hug me. Some of the other drivers got groped all the time, although that never happened to me.
"The athletes learned pretty quickly that Utah girls don't like them when they're drunk. So they would hang out the window and shout to the girls, 'We're sober! We're sober!'
"One time I picked up a French skier at Deer Valley. He said, 'Do you mind if I strip?' I said, 'What?' He said, 'Do you mind if I strip?' And he took off his pants down to a black Speedo, then attached some electrodes to his legs, rolled down the window and put his feet up, and that's the way we drove to the Village.
"Anyway, it was a long haul. We worked 10- to 12-hour shifts, starting at 4 a.m. They're going to have a tribute to the volunteers on Monday night at the Medals Plaza with the Temptations performing. I went to pick up my tickets, and they said, 'Oh, sorry, the tickets are gone.' They said they printed only a thousand tickets — and there are nearly 30,000 volunteers. So it's 'Thanks for your help; sorry you didn't get in.' "
Doug Robinson's column runs daily through the Games. You can e-mail him at drob@desnews.com.
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February 24, 2002
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