Hometown Pride

It may be too late for you to catch much of the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, but there are still some final competitions today (Saturday) on NBC and the ceremonial stuff tomorrow. Also, ESPN will rebroadcast parts of it over the next couple of months.

The big story for us is that our humble town of Spokane, WA is hosting this event and we broke records for number of ticket sales -- more than the record holder, Los Angeles! All over town, businesses from retail stores to bars are celebrating the skaters coming to our city. Our downtown skywalk windows are painted with scenes of figure skaters. The local news features recaps of the event.

It's pretty exciting stuff around these parts -- not since the World's Fair in the 1970's (the legacy of which left us with a beautiful downtown and riverfront park) has there been such hoopla. In case you're thinking "Oh, the place with all the rain," we're nowhere near Seattle, but on the opposite side of the state -- almost to the Idaho border.

Every skater I've heard interviewed so far has mentioned the incredible Spokane audience and warm welcome they've received. Well-known Olympic ice dancer, Tanith Belbin, said that Spokane's like a little olympic village -- everyone involved. She said that it's been a great place to skate.

Considering it could've gone the other way, we're proud to have satisfied the skating community, and pleased that we're putting on a good face for the rest of the U.S. who might be watching the event.