Warning: It’s difficult to remember the exact chronological order in which events occurred, because of the length of time elapsed and our varying state of sobriety during the experience. Some names have been obscured to protect the innocent.
After our departure from Detroit Metro, we arrived at Albany International Airport to transfer to a smaller plane to take us directly to Saranac Lake. This plane looked kind of dated, like it was made of red plywood, and it wasn’t able to carry our equipment. The crew hired a truck, loaded everything, and drove the 3 hours to the destination.
They weren’t fazed by delays like this – the year before they were driving equipment from Germany to Switzerland and when they got to the border, Switzerland was closed. Not the entire country of course, just that border crossing. No amount of persuasion could get them through, necessitating a long detour through unfamiliar roads.
At the Saranac Lake airport, we were met by our two Olympic Village guides named Sugar and Laura. The Guides made sure we got transportation anywhere we needed to go and took us to whatever we wanted to see. The guides were dressed in special winter uniforms, so everyone knew who to flag down in case of trouble. They knew everything and were professional as can be. They gave us a ton of swag – posters, the famous collector pins, shirts, and more.
The living arrangements were pretty sweet – we stayed in a hotel suite on Mirror Lake and had dining privileges in the Olympic Village cafeteria with all the teams and officials. We were close to the Olympic Center and could get a van to take us anywhere we wanted to go. Up a small hill near our hotel was a bar/restaurant where Wedge had been drinking with Jim McKay and crew of ABC Sports. He managed to break his glass and cut his finger and stumbled down the hill to meet up with us. How he managed to join them is a story nobody seems to remember.
We were scheduled to perform two shows on Friday February 8th, several days before the official opening ceremonies. There were already a lot of teams there, but some were still arriving. For some reason, we were scheduled for a three or four day stay, which gave us plenty of time to investigate our surroundings. We visited the hockey arena where the US beat the USSR in the “Miracle on Ice” a bit later. The ski jump complex and bobsled/luge runs were very popular attractions, and we spent some time there watching practice and talking with some of the US contingent. We tried to wangle rides down the runs but weren’t unable to convince anyone of our official status as the US Sports Rock Team.
When the night of the concert arrived, we played our show set, all dressed in matching Adidas warm up suits, courtesy of Adidas…LOL The band was at a performing peak, having been on the road for most of the year before and was ready to kick some butt. Now American and European audiences are expecting rock bands to be loud, but that didn’t translate to the contingent from the Peoples Republic of China. We tore through our opener like we had so many times before bringing it to a dramatic end…and…crickets…no applause…nothing. We were stupefied…We didn’t realize that much of the audience was from the Chinese Team and it wasn’t part of their behavior to applaud. They sat stiffly in their seats, covering their ears for the entire show. We laugh about it now. It wasn’t so funny then… I have to wonder if they ever got acclimated to rock n’ roll?
After the second show, we went backstage to be greeted by our guides and sportscaster Eli Zaret, along with a large Rubbermaid “Big Brute” wheeled trash can filled with ice and bottles of beer! Eli was there to cover the Olympics and met us backstage to share some conversation and a beer. Alcohol was not allowed in the Village, so we still don’t know how they arranged to get it backstage.
Of course, after a gig, you need to find somewhere to eat. The Olympic cafeteria is not your typical Old Country Buffet. The Olympic Village had a cafeteria that was open 24/7 where all the teams took their meals. Because of all the different nationalities, cultures, and training diets, they had EVERYTHING and ANYTHING available to eat anytime. At about 3:00AM after the concert, we decided to get steaks grilled to order, along with salad and baked potatoes plus handfuls of ice cream sandwiches…Of course, after the Olympics, the Village was transformed into a prison. I doubt the food is anywhere near that good today…
At some point approaching dawn, Don and Bruce found themselves walking down the main drag looking for a place to buy more beer. Finding Heineken at $3 a six-pack, they brought a few back to the hotel and stashed it in the snow outside the sliding glass doors in the room. As the sun rose, we could continually hear that sliding door open.
After the concert, it was all sightseeing. There are photos somewhere of some of us in various team uniforms, particularly the great fur coats and hats worn by the USSR officials. We found almost everyone had a great sense of humor and we got along with them all. We knew we had to behave reasonably well because security was very tight in the Village. In 1972 eleven Israeli athletes and coaches were killed by terrorists in Munich and the Pentagon spent a lot of money installing sensors, cameras, and manned security to make sure nothing like that would happen again. The facility was previously a low-security prison and returned to that use after the Olympics.
There was plenty of opportunity for the athletes to socialize while they were in the Village., including a Discotheque, live entertainment at the auditorium, and game rooms. One evening we visited the disco to find that one of our companions had had a bit too much to drink and took over the dance floor pulling a black ski mask over his face and shouting, “Look at me…” OMFG…Only a few years after Munich
At the end of our stay, things were packed, goodbyes and thanks were said and we were packed in a van for the 20 minute trip to the airport.
