Iceland is Nice: An INTERACTIVE Going for Gold Dynasty - Page 2

Chas in Cinti · 04-04-2022, 08:32 AM

Dola...

And this is great, by the way...

ntndeacon · 04-04-2022, 12:00 PM

Is there any purpose of putting money into athletes less than 50 for our purpose?

ntndeacon · 04-04-2022, 12:12 PM

And what do the numbers like 83a that we see on the athletes mean?

DavidCorperial · 04-04-2022, 12:23 PM

Well, money was similar on this site, that doesn't mean it was totally similar.

ntndeacon · 04-04-2022, 01:31 PM

I meant with rankings less than 50. Like both of the new speed skaters fall in this category with one like 43 and the other in the 30s.

SecretAgentMan · 04-04-2022, 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chas in Cinti

So is there something random in the way your identifying athletes? Seems a bit *lucky* you'd get 8 from one sport when the $$$ was similar to others...

It was by event, and there are more snowboarding events than for others. I intend to modify that a bit for next year, because certain sports get better results using the setup as I did it this season.

SecretAgentMan · 04-04-2022, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ntndeacon

Is there any purpose of putting money into athletes less than 50 for our purpose?

Still testing that to see, but my inclination is to say that it is a waste of time for athletes with skill levels below 50.

SecretAgentMan · 04-04-2022, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ntndeacon

And what do the numbers like 83a that we see on the athletes mean?

That is a code that shows the athlete's discipline. Guide is as follows

Code:

70a,Alpine Skiing (Speed)
70b,Alpine Skiing (Slalom)
71a,Biathlon
72a,Bobsleigh
73a,Cross-country Skiing (Distance)
73b,Cross-country Skiing (Sprint)
74a,Curling
75a,Figure Skating
76a,Freestyle Skiing:Moguls
76b,Freestyle Skiing:Aerials
76c,Freestyle Skiing:Ski Cross
76d,Freestyle Skiing
77a,Ice Hockey
78a,Luge
79a,Nordic Combined
80a,Short Track Speed Skating
81a,Skeleton
82a,Ski Jumping
83a,Freestyle Snowboarding
83b,Freestyle Snowboarding: Snowboardcross
83c,Alpine Snowboarding
84a,Speed Skating (Distance)
84b,Speed Skating (Sprint)

A lot of these things display awkwardly in text file format, but look better within the game's GUI. That's something I will need to work with to make it more forum-friendly

SecretAgentMan · 04-10-2022, 01:24 PM

Year 1, Chapter 1- 2022 2023 Preview
"Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice"
-D2: The Mighty Ducks

Outside, the sun was hanging low in the August sky. It was late in the day. Inside, my head was buried in a report as I sat at my desk. A quiet knock broke my concentration. I looked up. Katja was poking her head in the doorframe.

"Mr. Dalesson?"

"Jeffrey." I patiently reminded her. Formality had never been my strong suit.

"Sorry, Jeffrey. I keep forgetting..." she seemed flustered for a moment, but quickly recovered. "You told me to let you know when I was leaving, so you wouldn't forget to get dinner."

I smiled. "That I did. I figured it would be a good reminder to go get something for myself."

She seemed concerned. "Are you done for the evening? You've been poring over those reports nonstop since they came in this afternoon."

"Don't worry, I had just finished."

"And how are things shaping up for the season? I didn't get much of a chance to look at the reports myself."

I paused. "We'll see. I have reports from each of the coaches, and we've got a list of athletes to keep an eye on. So hopefully we'll get the schedules compiled soon, and we can start observing."

She smiled. "That sounds good, sir, but do please get some rest this weekend. You've got a busy schedule the next few weeks." She paused, then added "And get some dinner! They make a great Plokkfiskur at the restaurant down by the docks, you know!"

I did. Fish Stew was an acquired test, but one that I was starting to acquire. "I'll swing by there in a little bit once I leave."

"Good! Have a nice weekend, sir!"

"You too, Katja"

Satisfied, she left for the night, while I spent a few minutes collating my files into a binder titled "2022-2023 Season Preview", and left it on my desk as I turned the lights off, locked up the main doors for the office, and headed off for the weekend.

2022-2023 Season Preview Winter Sport by Sport

Iceland High-Performance Winter Sports Program
Fully-Funded Athletes

Code:

  |83(0)|70a|7000|Alpine Skiing|000069957|Viktor_Armannsson|27|0|M|
  |80(0)|70b|7007|Alpine Skiing|000070456|Julia_Leifsdottir|28|0|F|

Half-Funded Athletes

Code:

  |63(0)|72a|7205|Bobsleigh|000070486|Katla_Vilhjalmsdottir|20|0|F|
  |64(0)|72a|7207|Bobsleigh|000070498|Emilia_Olvirsdottir|20|0|F|

Watchlist

Code:

  |84(0)|70b|7007|Alpine Skiing|000070452|Karen_Vilhjalmsdottir|26|0|F|
  |81(0)|70a|7003|Alpine Skiing|000070423|Sara_Ingolfsdottir|23|0|F|
  |78(0)|73b|7308|Cross-country Skiing|000070061|Sigurdur_Olvirsson|23|0|M|
  |79(0)|75a|7508|Figure Skating|000070604|Katrin_Leifsdottir|25|0|F|
  |75(0)|75a|7507|Figure Skating|000070121|Guomundur_Sigurdsson|28|0|M|
  |76(0)|80a|8000|Short Track Speed Skating|000070276|Arnar_Hilmarsson|23|0|M|
  |82(0)|82a|8201|Ski Jumping|000070764|Rakel_Hilmarsdottir|26|0|F|

Youth Watchlist

Code:

  |66(0)|70a|7008|Alpine Skiing|000084738|Viktor_Sigurdsson|16|0|M|
  |62(0)|70a|7003|Alpine Skiing|000084807|Sigrun_Sigurdsdottir|17|0|F|
  |65(0)|83a|8302|Snowboarding|000084790|Daniel_Robertsson|17|0|M|
  |64(0)|83a|8303|Snowboarding|000070777|Emma_Olvirsdottir|18|0|F|
  |61(0)|83a|8301|Snowboarding|000084853|Emma_Stefansdottir|17|0|F|
  |58(0)|83a|8303|Snowboarding|000084855|Emilia_Stefansdottir|16|0|F|

Alpine Skiing Overview
Current Rating 20/100 for Speed Events, 23/100 for Slalom Events
Current Ranking #26 for Speed Events, #23 for Slalom Events
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |84(0)|70b|7007|Alpine Skiing|000070452|Karen_Vilhjalmsdottir|26|0|F|
  |83(0)|70a|7000|Alpine Skiing|000069957|Viktor_Armannsson|27|0|M|
  |81(0)|70a|7003|Alpine Skiing|000070423|Sara_Ingolfsdottir|23|0|F|
  |80(0)|70b|7007|Alpine Skiing|000070456|Julia_Leifsdottir|28|0|F|
  |77(0)|70b|7006|Alpine Skiing|000069984|Kari_Armannsson|22|0|M|
  |77(0)|70a|7009|Alpine Skiing|000070457|Julia_Thorirsdottir|23|0|F|
  |74(0)|70b|7004|Alpine Skiing|000069972|Viktor_Olvirsson|23|0|M|
  |74(0)|70b|7006|Alpine Skiing|000069980|Daniel_Olvirsson|23|0|M|
  |66(0)|70a|7008|Alpine Skiing|000084738|Viktor_Sigurdsson|16|0|M|
  |62(0)|70a|7003|Alpine Skiing|000084807|Sigrun_Sigurdsdottir|17|0|F|

Coaches' Notes
Alpine Skiing might be Iceland's strongest area of talent right now. There is actually some depth, though most of the skiers are not at World Cup level. We expect Viktor Armannsson and Julia Leifsdottir to be world cup regulars, and we could see Karen Vilhjalmsdottir or Sara Ingolfsdottir get some starts as well, though they both run limited numbers of events. If we can't get them World Cup starts, we'll try really hard to get our skiers into minor league cups. We also have two teen prospects who we would like to monitor, Viktor Sigurdsson and Sigrun Sigurdsdottir (no relation). The hope is to send them to junior world championships, since they both run all 5 events. We're optimistic that the year will end with some world cup points, and maybe we will surprise some people at World Championships.

Biathlon Overview
Current Rating 0/100
Current Ranking #47

Code:

  |63(0)|71a|7107|Biathlon|000070482|Julia_Sigurdsdottir|22|0|F|
  |62(0)|71a|7100|Biathlon|000069997|Gunnar_Thorirsson|23|0|M|

Coaches' Notes
The Biathlon foundation continues to struggle to attract talent. We are putting all of our focus this year into finding competitive starts for our top female athlete, Julia Sigurdsdottir, and our top male athlete, Gunnar Thorirsson. We are hoping that they will qualify for the IBU cup, but if they do not, we may not have a lot of good options.

Bobsleigh Overview
Current Rating 0/100
Current Ranking #50
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |63(0)|72a|7205|Bobsleigh|000070486|Katla_Vilhjalmsdottir|20|0|F|
  |64(0)|72a|7207|Bobsleigh|000070498|Emilia_Olvirsdottir|20|0|F|

Coaches' Notes
Well, at least we have a bobsleigh team now. Katla and Emilia have certainly captured people's hearts, so we hope that we can find some actual competitions to enter to get them some results. They are training hard, at least, though we think they are going to need to pick it up even faster than their current pace if there is any chance of making a go of this

Cross-Country Overview
Current Rating 23/100 for Sprint, 19/100 for Distance
Current Ranking #36 for Sprint, #37 for Distance
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |78(0)|73b|7308|Cross-country Skiing|000070061|Sigurdur_Olvirsson|23|0|M|
  |75(0)|73b|7309|Cross-country Skiing|000070540|Julia_Sigurdsdottir|27|0|F|
  |72(0)|73a|7301|Cross-country Skiing|000070525|Emilia_Hilmarsdottir|27|0|F|
  |71(0)|73b|7308|Cross-country Skiing|000070064|Kristjan_Leifsson|21|0|M|
  |71(0)|73b|7309|Cross-country Skiing|000070545|Emilia_Stefansdottir|29|0|F|
  |71(0)|73a|7304|Cross-country Skiing|000084749|Kari_Leifsson|18|0|M|
  |68(0)|73b|7308|Cross-country Skiing|000070066|Benedikt_Johnsson|23|0|M|
  |66(0)|73a|7302|Cross-country Skiing|000070054|Arnar_Sigurdsson|23|0|M|
  |66(0)|73b|7308|Cross-country Skiing|000070069|Daniel_Hilmarsson|23|0|M|
  |66(0)|73a|7305|Cross-country Skiing|000070535|Sigrun_Ingolfsdottir|21|0|F|

Coaches Notes
To be honest, we are pretty embarrassed by the lack of progress in cross-country skiing lately. We feel that we should be more competitive on the world cup and Olympic levels, and we feel like our current roster is lacking in that department. We are going to try to push the young guys hard in the hopes of being stronger by the time 2026 comes around.

Curling Overview
Current Rating 10/100
Current Ranking #45
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |76(0)|74a|7401|Curling|000070554|Emma_Olvirsdottir|23|0|F|

Coaches' Notes
Unfortunately, while we do have some players at the local level in Iceland, we have only identified one curler that we think can be competitive on an international level, and that doesn't work especially well in a team game. If we can find a decent male curler in the next few years, we might at least be able to try to qualify for the mixed doubles world championships. For now, no competitions for any official Icelandic curling teams.

Figure Skating Overview
Current Rating 10/100
Current Ranking #52
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |79(0)|75a|7508|Figure Skating|000070604|Katrin_Leifsdottir|25|0|F|
  |75(0)|75a|7507|Figure Skating|000070121|Guomundur_Sigurdsson|28|0|M|
  |65(0)|75a|7500|Figure Skating|000084755|Alexanderson_Robertsson|17|0|M

Coaches' Notes
We are looking forward to seeing how Katrin and Guomundur (our top ice dancing pair) do at the European Championships, and we would love it if they were to get an invite to a Grand Prix series event, though we aren't counting on it. As for Alex...we think he has some potential in men's singles, and we are hoping to see good results from him at Junior Grand Prix and Junior Worlds. We only get one entry for those events, and we expect it to be him.

Freestyle Skiing Overview
Current Rating 10/100 in all disciplines
Current Ranking Varies (20s to 40s)

Code:

  |75(0)|76d|7611|Freestyle Skiing|000070657|Karen_Vilhjalmsdottir|23|0|F|
  |68(0)|76d|7610|Freestyle Skiing|000070172|Mikael_Robertsson|23|0|M|

Coaches' Notes
Karen has had some success in Park & Pipe competitions locally, so we're hoping she might be able to take things to the next level. Granted, the next level is still pretty far away from the Olympics, but we like to emphasize progress in Freestyle Skiing! Same goes for Mikael, to be honest. However, even though we try to stay positive...we can't see any other disciplines where we are even going to get minor competition slots, much less world cups, so there's a long way to go before we have a breakthough in freeski.

Ice Hockey Overview
Current Rating 59/100
Current Ranking #28
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |85(0)|77a|7701|Ice Hockey|000070686|Karen_Thorirsdottir|26|0|F|
  |84(0)|77a|7700|Ice Hockey|000070219|Viktor_Johnsson|26|0|M|
  |77(0)|77a|7700|Ice Hockey|000070206|Aron_Vilhjalmsson|23|0|M|
  |77(0)|77a|7701|Ice Hockey|000070694|Freyja_Johnsdottir|27|0|F|
  |76(0)|77a|7701|Ice Hockey|000070661|Viktoria_Johnsdottir|29|0|F|
  |75(0)|77a|7700|Ice Hockey|000070192|Viktor_Vilhjalmsson|26|0|M|
  |75(0)|77a|7700|Ice Hockey|000070200|Mikael_Armannsson|23|0|M|
  |74(0)|77a|7700|Ice Hockey|000070211|Jon_Armannsson|26|0|M|
  |74(0)|77a|7701|Ice Hockey|000070669|Viktoria_Robertsdottir|21|0|F|
  |73(0)|77a|7700|Ice Hockey|000070184|Arnar_Robertsson|21|0|M|

Coaches' Notes
Look, the nice thing about ice hockey is that there is ALWAYS a ladder to climb. For the men's team, we're in Division II Group B this year, and we like to think that we stand a good chance of getting promoted to Division II Group A. That's our goal at worlds this year. The women's team is in the exact same boat, hoping to get promoted to Division II Group A. It will be a successful year for us if that happens! We think the men's team has a better chance of making that happen, but we would be thrilled if either does it.

Luge Overview
Current Rating 0/100
Current Ranking #44
Athletes to Watch
[/code]
|64(0)|78a|7800|Luge|000070237|Daniel_Stefansson|20|0|M|
|64(0)|78a|7801|Luge|000070727|Karen_Ingolfsdottir|23|0|F|
|58(0)|78a|7802|Luge|000070250|Aron_Olvirsson|25|0|M|
|58(0)|78a|7802|Luge|000070255|Arnar_Armannsson|22|0|M|
[/code]
Coaches' Notes
We're trying to get younger, so our focus is on youth development right now. We have a young doubles luge team, Aron and Arnar, and a young women, Karen, who has been improving greatly. We think our best hopes right now lie with Daniel Stefansson, who we are hoping might have the potential to make the world cup someday.

Nordic Combined
Current Rating 10/100
Current Ranking #28
Athletes to Watch

Coaches' Notes
Nope. Not this year.

Short Track Speed Skating
Current Rating 0/100
Current Ranking #49
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |76(0)|80a|8000|Short Track Speed Skating|000070276|Arnar_Hilmarsson|23|0|M|
  |69(0)|80a|8000|Short Track Speed Skating|000070283|Jon_Robertsson|29|0|M|
  |68(0)|80a|8001|Short Track Speed Skating|000070742|Telma_Johnsdottir|28|0|F|
  |63(0)|80a|8000|Short Track Speed Skating|000070277|Benedikt_Johnsson|23|0|M|

Coaches Notes
Arnar Hilmarsson is on the way up, and we're doing whatever we can to support him. We think we have some short track fans in the country who are starting to get excited, and we want to generate a buzz around him. If we can get that going, we are hoping we can convince the Committee to give him training funding for next year.

Skeleton
Current Rating 0/100
Current Ranking #50
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |70(0)|81a|8100|Skeleton|000070293|Daniel_Vilhjalmsson|25|0|M|

Coaches Notes
Daniel continues to live and train in Germany, where he's also a university graduate student. We have heard positive developments, but we don't have much other information to go off of at this time.

Ski Jumping
Current Rating 10/100
Current Ranking #33
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |82(0)|82a|8201|Ski Jumping|000070764|Rakel_Hilmarsdottir|26|0|F|
  |74(0)|82a|8202|Ski Jumping|000070306|Kristjan_Ingolfsson|24|0|M|
  |72(0)|82a|8201|Ski Jumping|000070767|Maria_Ingolfsdottir|21|0|F|
  |66(0)|82a|8202|Ski Jumping|000070311|Sigurdur_Vilhjalmsson|19|0|M|

Coaches Notes
Even we are surprised to be saying this, but we think we might have a shot at World Cup results this year. Rakel Hilmarsdottir has been training in Austria and coming on strong, and we think she can get some Top 30 finishes on the women's side. There's a few other athletes who could make an impact in the lower cups, too, and we are especially interested to see how Sigurdur Vilhjalmsson can fare in some of those cups. Looks like it will be a fun year!

Snowboarding
Current Rating 11/100 for Park & Pipe, 10/100 for all others
Current Ranking 30s for all (#33 max, Park & Pipe)
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |72(0)|83b|8306|Snowboarding|000070334|Daniel_Olvirsson|23|0|M|
  |70(0)|83a|8301|Snowboarding|000070776|Emilia_Hilmarsdottir|21|0|F|
  |68(0)|83a|8305|Snowboarding|000070781|Maria_Stefansdottir|22|0|F|
  |67(0)|83a|8304|Snowboarding|000070328|Guomundur_Stefansson|23|0|M|
  |66(0)|83a|8303|Snowboarding|000070778|Katla_Hilmarsdottir|20|0|F|
  |65(0)|83a|8302|Snowboarding|000084790|Daniel_Robertsson|17|0|M|
  |64(0)|83a|8303|Snowboarding|000070777|Emma_Olvirsdottir|18|0|F|
  |61(0)|83a|8301|Snowboarding|000084853|Emma_Stefansdottir|17|0|F|
  |60(0)|83a|8301|Snowboarding|000070774|Viktoria_Olvirsdottir|19|0|F|
  |58(0)|83a|8303|Snowboarding|000084855|Emilia_Stefansdottir|16|0|F|

Coaches Notes
We are thrilled as a sport to be getting so much attention after the success of our social media campaigns over the offseason, and we intend to use that attention to highlight our young and upcoming athletes. Most of them will be in local competitions and minor circuits rather than world cups, but we think there is a lot to build off of here!

Speed Skating
Current Rating 0/100 for Speed, 0/100 for Distance
Current Ranking #49 for both disciplines
Athletes to Watch

Code:

  |75(0)|84b|8400|Speed Skating|000070360|Benedikt_Armannsson|26|0|M|
  |73(0)|84a|8407|Speed Skating|000070843|Sara_Johnsdottir|22|0|F|
  |71(0)|84b|8405|Speed Skating|000070838|Anna_Olvirsdottir|22|0|F|
  |67(0)|84a|8408|Speed Skating|000070392|Jon_Robertsson|21|0|M|
  |64(0)|84a|8410|Speed Skating|000070410|Jon_Johnsson|20|0|M|

Coaches Notes
Iceland has not had a lot of success in speed skating, and this is probably not the year, either. Maybe we can find some results amongst these younger skaters or something.

[END Year 1, Chapter 1]

As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week, a press conference to introduce the new bobsleigh team and bobsleighp rogram.

DavidCorperial · 04-10-2022, 03:59 PM

Some good looks here, hope it goes well.

ntndeacon · 04-11-2022, 02:14 PM

There is a lot to get excited about with this! I am not sure where to put funds the next time we are able. Too many options!

SecretAgentMan · 04-11-2022, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ntndeacon

There is a lot to get excited about with this! I am not sure where to put funds the next time we are able. Too many options!

I suspect that as we see the results throughout the season, the options will sort themselves into likely/unlikely/pipe dream types of scenarios, but we will admittedly see. Part of the purpose of this dynasty is so that I can start testing budget amounts and settings, and I am looking to see what kinds of impact it has when you spend full budgets on athletes over a number of years.

ntndeacon · 04-14-2022, 09:47 AM

Snowboarding certainly looks like one of the likely category. They look exciting!

SecretAgentMan · 04-17-2022, 12:49 PM

Year 1, Chapter 2- Bobsleigh Presser
"Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice"
-D2: The Mighty Ducks

A camera flashed to my left, then another to my right. A short distance away, I could see TV crews getting a live look at the proceedings. Yes, indeed, it turned out that this was going to be a big deal.

We were out and about in Reykjavik today, and the scene was an interesting and joyous one. The athletic committee was holding a press conference to announce the new formation of our women's bobsleigh team, and far more media had shown up than I was expecting.

Again, the reason for that was likely the athletes themselves, though. Katla and Emilia (they were on a first name basis with a lot of the local sporting press at this point) had taken their viral fame from earlier in the year and run with it, and were already among the most famous winter athletes in Iceland without even having run in a competition yet. They had been posting training and workout videos and pictures continually in the ensuing months, as well as engaging their new fanbase in the process of designing bobsleigh uniforms. It was working, at least in terms of garnering attention.

Today was the next official step, though, and an important one at that. Ada Thorsdottir had the honor of introducing the proceedings. I was glad not to have to be the one giving a speech today, though Kris Einarsson and I were seated on stage along with the bobsleigh team, not too far from where she was currently speaking. Most of the office was in attendance today, and I could see Katja, as well as intern Gunner in the crowd.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to introduce you to the new coach of our national bobsleigh team, Mr. Gunther Schuller!"

As the audience applauded, the large German man who was seated directly to my right got up and strode to the microphone. We had been pleased to get a chance to hire Gunther. He was a recently retired from competing with the German national team, and he had been angling to get into coaching. A number of small countries were bidding for his services, but he seemed to be impressed with Iceland's potential. He answered a number of very simple questions from the press before getting thrown a more difficult one. I listened intently to his answer.

"Coach Schuller, given that we have no bobsleigh tradition here in Iceland, how will develop these athletes into an Olympic squad?"

Gunther paused.

"It is true that you have not done bobsleigh in this country before. But you have such a strong fitness tradition, especially with crossfit, that there is a lot we can build on. If we teach good fundamentals to these young ladies and they bulk up and keep training like I have been hearing...good things are going to happen."

The room clapped, and you could tell that everyone was happy to hear that answer. I was too, though not surprised, as it had been one of his pitches when we interviewed him. The plan was solid, in my mind. Were these, however, the right ladies for the job? That, in my mind, was still to be determined.

Speaking of which, Gunther was done with his questions, and it was time for the main event. With a great roar, Katla and Emilia took the stage. The questions began shortly thereafter.

"Ladies, given that this whole program came about because of your social media posts, how does it feel to be on stage as the first members of the Icelandic bobsleigh team?"

Katla beamed with a million dollar smile, and took the question. "Honestly...really damn great!" Her smile got bigger, and the crowd laughed and cheered. The ice, as it were, was broken. If the press had been expecting boring stock answers today, they were not going to get them. Katla, slated to be the team's driver, was enthusiastic, gregarious, and not opposed to peppering her answers with some occasional salty language. In other words, she was a sportswriter's dream. Not that Emilia, the brakeman, was any less enthusiastic, mind you. She responded to a question about how her training was going by standing and flexing, which the crowd just absolutely ate up.

If there were any doubts in the room prior to the day about why Katla and Emilia had swiftly gained a social media following, those doubts quickly vanished. Social media and personal dreams don't produce results on their own, though. That was my worry. This story certainly was a feel good situation, but I was worried about the very real matter of making sure that our bobsleigh team could actually succeed in competitive situations. I already loved Gunther's enthusiasm and evangelism for the sport, but how far is that and the dreams of two young women who are barely past their teen years going to carry us?

That would be seen possibly as soon as November, when the bobsleigh season got underway. It was still early October, though, and there were other sports and events to focus on in the interim. On with the season!

[END Year 1, Chapter 2]

As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week, we begin the season in earnest!

Also, the roles of the athletes in this post are being played by the following:

Katla (the driver) is portrayed by Thuri Helgadottir, an Icelandic Crossfit athlete

Emilia (the push athlete) is portrayed by Katrin Davidsdottir, an Icelandic Crossfit champion who twice previously earned the title "Worlds Fittest Woman"

Gunther (the coach) is portrayed by David Golling, a German Bobsledder

DavidCorperial · 04-17-2022, 07:40 PM

Looking good on this

Wusel · 04-18-2022, 02:29 PM

Really like the idea, looking forward to staying involved

SecretAgentMan · 04-18-2022, 08:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wusel

Really like the idea, looking forward to staying involved

Welcome, and I hope you enjoy!

Chas in Cinti · 04-19-2022, 10:08 AM

Keep up the good work... how much is story and how much is gameplay? i.e. do you really hire a coach to help kickstart you?

ntndeacon · 04-19-2022, 10:35 AM

Now we just need some dudes to do Bobsledding!

SecretAgentMan · 04-19-2022, 07:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chas in Cinti

Keep up the good work... how much is story and how much is gameplay? i.e. do you really hire a coach to help kickstart you?

Great question! I think I would call it like 50-50 right now. The actual gameplay is reflected in the athlete creation, basic budgeting process, and event results, and the rest around the edges (for example, things like hiring a bobsleigh coach) are story only...for now.

Strictly speaking, everything that I am doing in the story is aspirational for the game. For instance, I am currently working on coding the social media campaign process into the budgeting, as that had not been available previously in the game.

So I hope to be able to add more and more to the game to match the direction of the story going forward.

Chas in Cinti · 04-20-2022, 09:38 AM

Thanks! Will be interesting to see the differences as you continue to evolve... look forward to the next chapter!

SecretAgentMan · 04-24-2022, 10:24 AM

Year 1, Chapter 3- They Have Figure Skating in August?
"Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice"
-D2: The Mighty Ducks

The plane accelerated down the runway and began lifting off the ground. Shortly thereafter, we were airborne. I relaxed back in my seat, and waited for the signal to get out electronic devices. When that was given shortly thereafter, I had my laptop out ready to work. My assistant Katja, to my left in the window seat, had a dossier ready where she could take notes. (The seat to my right was mercifully empty)

We were on route to Austria for the start of the world cup ski season, but this trip was still mostly business, after all. There was work to be done, after all.

"Well, what are we starting with today, Katja?"

"Nothing too exciting, unfortunately. We have a lot of expense reports and financial paperwork to approve today. Lots of electronic signatures and the like."

I grimaced. Necessary, but not fun. Katja detailed more of the day's tasks, all of which were similarly mundane.

"...oh, and we do have one more thing. I have a report for you to review. Figure Skating results from August and September."

I did a double-take. Had she said what I thought she had said?

"They do figure skating in August?" I asked incredulously.

Katja laughed. I knew that she had been a novice skater when she was younger, and that she was more knowledgeable about the figure-skating world than was I.

"Jeff, the figure skating season never stops. But, yes, the Junior Grand Prix circuit goes from August to October"

I had probably been told that, mind you, but that particular piece of information apparently hadn't stuck.

"Ah. That means we'll be checking in to see how Alex Robertsson did, then. Let's take care of that first, then."

Katja nodded, and handed me the report.

Junior Grand Prix- Riga, Latvia Sep. 7th to 10th

Code:

152.56|5|4|83(0)|000077859|Adam_Tremblay                     |*1|Canada 
120.31|7|5|71(0)|000066328|Jaagup_Mihhailov                  |*1|Estonia 
116.44|6|6|78(0)|000007045|Gabriel_Bouchard                  |*1|France
112.29|5|6|82(0)|000015807|Yang_Tao                          |*1|China 
110.27|7|6|68(0)|000007047|Etienne_Caillat                   |*1|France
109.89|6|5|75(0)|000000470|Joshua_Miller                     |*1|USA 
109.34|6|6|77(0)|000011441|Luca_Romano                       |*1|Italy
106.74|6|6|78(0)|000009016|Lukas_Schmidt                     |*1|Germany
106.16|7|6|71(0)|000084346|Janis_Jansons                     |*1|Latvia
99.73|6|7|77(0)|000003263|Oleg_Zaytsev                      |*1|Russia
98.11|6|7|77(0)|000076251|Gabriele_Rossi                    |*1|Italy
96.41|6|7|74(0)|000077856|Reginald_Campbell                 |*1|Canada
92.03|7|7|73(0)|000075152|Ivan_Solovyov                     |*1|Russia
85.06|7|7|69(0)|000076248|Davide_Bianchi                    |*1|Italy 
82.26|7|8|70(0)|000011434|Gabriele_Esposito                 |*1|Italy 
77.80|7|8|69(0)|000077249|Sora_Ogawa                        |*1|Japan 
77.25|8|8|67(0)|000080190|Mykyta_Homenyuk                   |*1|Ukraine             
73.32|8|8|66(0)|000084997|Lukas_Fischer                     |*1|Luxembourg          
71.93|8|8|67(0)|000077246|Sho_Miura                         |*1|Japan               
70.61|8|8|67(0)|000078538|Min-jun_Ha                        |*1|South_Korea
70.14|6|8|77(0)|000009035|Maximilian_Wagner                 |*1|Germany
69.91|7|8|68(0)|000036103|Michal_Hrozný                     |*1|Czech_Republic 
68.00|8|9|65(0)|000084755|Alexanderson_Robertsson           |*1|Iceland
65.68|8|8|66(0)|000031374|Levin_Abdi                        |*1|Switzerland
58.34|7|9|70(0)|000037574|Robin_Goossens                    |*1|Belgium             
58.30|8|9|65(0)|000017286|Jackson_Parker                    |*1|Australia           
54.75|8|8|65(0)|000062199|Koba_Jgenti                       |*1|Georgia            
52.92|8|9|65(0)|000072495|Matyáš_Procházka                  |*1|Slovakia 
51.03|8|9|67(0)|000013494|Anders_Eriksson                   |*1|Sweden

Junior Grand Prix- Yerevan, Armenia Sep. 21st to 24th

Code:

106.44|5|7|83(0)|000077859|Adam_Tremblay                     |*1|Canada 
105.55|6|6|77(0)|000009035|Maximilian_Wagner                 |*1|Germany             
103.30|5|7|82(0)|000015807|Yang_Tao                          |*1|China 
102.50|6|7|77(0)|000076251|Gabriele_Rossi                    |*1|Italy
100.09|6|6|78(0)|000009016|Lukas_Schmidt                     |*1|Germany
98.91|6|7|75(0)|000000470|Joshua_Miller                     |*1|USA
98.16|6|7|74(0)|000077856|Reginald_Campbell                 |*1|Canada
96.66|6|7|78(0)|000007045|Gabriel_Bouchard                  |*1|France
94.23|6|6|77(0)|000011441|Luca_Romano                       |*1|Italy
93.39|7|6|69(0)|000077249|Sora_Ogawa                        |*1|Japan 
90.30|7|8|73(0)|000075152|Ivan_Solovyov                     |*1|Russia
90.26|6|6|77(0)|000003263|Oleg_Zaytsev                      |*1|Russia 
88.76|7|6|68(0)|000036103|Michal_Hrozný                     |*1|Czech_Republic
88.74|7|7|70(0)|000011434|Gabriele_Esposito                 |*1|Italy 
87.29|8|7|65(0)|000084755|Alexanderson_Robertsson           |*1|Iceland
77.89|8|8|67(0)|000078538|Min-jun_Ha                        |*1|South_Korea 
71.28|7|8|68(0)|000007047|Etienne_Caillat                   |*1|France
70.70|7|8|71(0)|000084346|Janis_Jansons                     |*1|Latvia 
70.57|8|8|67(0)|000080190|Mykyta_Homenyuk                   |*1|Ukraine 
70.09|7|8|69(0)|000076248|Davide_Bianchi                    |*1|Italy
69.53|7|9|70(0)|000037574|Robin_Goossens                    |*1|Belgium 
60.80|8|8|65(0)|000072495|Matyáš_Procházka                  |*1|Slovakia
57.59|8|9|65(0)|000017286|Jackson_Parker                    |*1|Australia 
52.98|8|10|66(0)|000031374|Levin_Abdi                        |*1|Switzerland
51.97|7|9|71(0)|000066328|Jaagup_Mihhailov                  |*1|Estonia
43.45|8|9|67(0)|000077246|Sho_Miura                         |*1|Japan                           
42.55|8|10|66(0)|000084997|Lukas_Fischer                     |*1|Luxembourg
38.37|8|10|67(0)|000013494|Anders_Eriksson                   |*1|Sweden           
34.30|8|10|65(0)|000062199|Koba_Jgenti                       |*1|Georgia

23rd in Riga, and 15th in Yerevan. The results looked okay, but it was clear that Alex had a lot of work to do still if he hoped to move up in the figure skating world.

"Didn't Aldis say that she thought there was a chance of Alex qualifying for Junior Worlds this year?" I had spoken with Aldis Bjornsdottir, our national figure skating coach, over the summer.

Katja nodded. "She did."

"And will these results get him there?"

Katja shook her head. "I don't believe so, no"

I frowned. "I hope she's not just trying to sell hopes and dreams here. We don't have the budget to fund or market athletes that have no chance of international success"

"I know that, sir. Hopefully our senior ice dance team will have better results."

"I hope so, or Aldis and I will have to chat about setting realistic expectations."

The mediocre report and impending paperwork had now made me grumpy, and I proceeded to sulk my way through part of the flight. On the other end, though, skiing and Austrian Alps awaited...soon enough, things would be fun again!

[END Year 1, Chapter 3]

As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week will begin the world cup ski season IF I can fix some program bugs....right now, something about the event creation process is unstable and not working...I have to find time to fix before I can begin running results

If not, I may have to pad with some filler

DavidCorperial · 04-24-2022, 12:11 PM

Not great, hope everything works out

ntndeacon · 04-24-2022, 08:52 PM

What score gets figure skaters to the Junior World's?

SecretAgentMan · 04-24-2022, 09:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ntndeacon

What score gets figure skaters to the Junior World's?

In real life, you need a Technical Elemental score of 23.00 in the short program for men and a 42.00 in the free program for men.

However, Technical Element is a measure of how difficult your program is, and only half of your score- there is also the artistic component to the scores.

So, I estimated that the skater would need an overall score of 46.00 in the short program and a score of 84.00 in the long program to make it to Junior Worlds. (So an overall score of about 130.00 or so) That might be a bit high, but is the current estimation I am using.

If Alex had been above 100 points total, I probably would have squeezed him into Junior Worlds for dramatic/story purposes, but he wasn't particularly close to that.

SecretAgentMan · 04-24-2022, 09:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SecretAgentMan

In real life, you need a Technical Elemental score of 23.00 in the short program for men and a 42.00 in the free program for men.

However, Technical Element is a measure of how difficult your program is, and only half of your score- there is also the artistic component to the scores.

So, I estimated that the skater would need an overall score of 46.00 in the short program and a score of 84.00 in the long program to make it to Junior Worlds. (So an overall score of about 130.00 or so) That might be a bit high, but is the current estimation I am using.

If Alex had been above 100 points total, I probably would have squeezed him into Junior Worlds for dramatic/story purposes, but he wasn't particularly close to that.

A very quick bit of research reveals that 95-100 seems to be about the minimum overall score at grand prix events for the junior worlds qualifiers, though it should be noted that the top scores in the junior grand prixs are usually ending between 200 and 230, so I have some adjustments to make next year to the overall scores, as we can see that nobody topped out at higher than 150.

Regardless, Alex was, by my count, the 100th ranked JUNIOR men's skater in the game. Given that only about 35 men actually attend junior worlds, he's not quite there yet either way. Maybe next season!

Wusel · 05-01-2022, 06:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SecretAgentMan

I frowned. "I hope she's not just trying to sell hopes and dreams here. We don't have the budget to fund or market athletes that have no chance of international success"

Brutal Business

Question: How different is the algorithm behind the separate sports? Just thinking there are probably some sports with higher variance in results than others?

SecretAgentMan · 05-01-2022, 08:39 AM

Year 1, Chapter 4- Ski Season Begins
"Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice"
-D2: The Mighty Ducks

"Now on course, our first skier, Austria's own Nicole Badem!" A huge roar went up in the crowd around me, and the event was underway.

We were in Solden, Austria, for the start of the world cup ski season. 82 women were about to head down the mountain in two Giant Slalom runs. We were, of course, keen to see how our Icelandic athletes would do. We were also excited because we had, for the first time in recent memory, been given 2 spots at this event, thanks to some cancellations in some of the bigger delegations. So we were looking to see how Julia Leifsdottir and Karen Vilhjalmsdottir would do.

Julia had been given full funding in our high-performance program and had gone to the Olympics last season, largely because she was capable of skiing all 5 disciplines. Karen was a slalom specialist, and coaches said she was having a great start to training so far this year and that she could possibly surpass Julia in the slalom events this year.

Was that going to happen? Well, we would see. Eventually. Little-known fact is that in skiing, they generally let the top-seeded skiers go first, and the lower-seeded skiers go last. Ours were seeded 80th and 81st today, unfortunately, so it was going to be a while.

Austria's Marie Fiser blistered the course early in a time of 1:19.00, which looked like the time to beat...for all of about 3 racers. Then Anna Rosenberg, also from Austria, set down a 1:18.75, and nobody else seemed to be able to touch it. As we got into the lower rated skiers, a lot of 1:21s and 1:22s were coming down. Then, finally, it was time.

"Now in the starting gate...Karen Vilhjalmsdottir, Iceland" Katja and I cheered, and there was some polite clapping in the crowd around us, but there was no big contingent of Icelandic ski fans to make noise on this day. The coaching staff would be excited, of course, but most of them were at the top of the mountain, and we certainly couldn't hear them down in the stadium.

Karen's image flashed onto the video board. How was she feeling behind those ski goggles? Nervous? Excited? It was her first world cup race at age 26, so probably a mixture of both. The starting gate countdown beeped, and she pushed off and took off down the hill.

Tentatively. It was very clear she was tentative. Earlier skiers had slid aggressively through the gates. Karen was arcing more carefully, traversing the course safely, but definitely not with the kind of edge that others before her had shown. She bobbled and stood up in her stance a bit at one point, then recovered.

Still, she made it down. The time clock, though, wasn't kind. 1:23.05. Last in the first run, and with only two skiers left, that wasn't too likely to change.

One of those skiers, though, was Julia Leifsdottir. Two years older than Karen, but possessing some actual world cup and Olympic experience, she was the next starter, and when she pushed off from the starting gate with a yell, she looked like she meant it.

She skied like it, too. Much tighter line, much more purpose, much more nuance. Still, though, that doesn't always translate into the leaderboard. She didn't have the speed that the Austrians and Swiss carried down the pitch, and while the time of 1:21.65 was solid, it was not going to be anywhere near a Top 30 finish that would get world cup points.

It was, however, good experience, which was the whole point of this weekend. Normally, a World Cup giant slalom would only allow the Top 30 from the first run to take a 2nd run. Today, however, was a special dispensation, and all 82 would get a 2nd run. On top of that, Iceland had been given 2 athletes today via special dispensation, rather than the 1 that would typically be allowed on the world cup. So we would take it.

*******
A few hours later, and we had an Icelandic athlete back in the gate again. This time, Julia was up first, and she strode down the course with the same sense of purpose as before. Unfortunately, the course was breaking down and getting choppy (the winners had already taken their 2nd runs and held their victory ceremony), and she wasn't able to match her first run time, coming in at 1:22.07 for her second trip down the hill. That would be good for 66th place on the day, a result that the coaches would later told me that felt was acceptable.

Now, it was Karen's turn. Would the second run be better? She hovered in the gate...still nervous? I couldn't tell via my view from a video screen. She pushed off from the gate, and immediately, things were different this time. That much was clear. Straddling gates tightly...taking an aggressive line....this was a much better run. That was immediately clear. She built up speed, continued arcing through her turns with precision, and got to the bottom with a fist pump. 1:22.01 was substantially better! In fact, she had even beaten Julia's time on the second run, and had been one of the few late skiers to ski faster on the worsening course conditions. The surge had moved her up 3 notches, finishing in 79th place. Certainly a positive building step.

As the season moved on, we would have to choose between the two skiers and decide which to send to each World Cup slalom event, but for today, there was some experience for them both.

Katja and I chatted amicably as we left the venue and headed back towards the hotel. Back to Reykjavik tomorrow, but we would be on the road again soon....since it was Bobsled time!

Code:

Alpine Skiing: Women's Giant Slalom
2:37.76|2|1|97(0)|000045853 |Anna_Rosenberg                    |*1|Austria             
2:38.05|1|1|99(0)|000045851 |Marie_Fiser                       |*1|Austria             
2:39.09|2|1|97(0)|000012190 |Roberta_De_Luca                   |*1|Italy               
2:39.52|4|2|92(0)|000007746 |Manon_Duclos                      |*1|France              
2:39.85|2|2|96(0)|000045861 |Nicole_Badem                      |*1|Austria             
2:40.15|3|3|94(0)|000032108 |Aurora_Maurer                     |*1|Switzerland         
2:40.21|4|3|91(0)|000058396 |Tanja_Zupan                       |*1|Croatia             
2:40.26|4|3|91(0)|000032113 |Melissa_Wolfisberg                |*1|Switzerland         
2:40.36|1|3|99(0)|000074179 |Sara_Zupan                        |*1|Slovenia            
2:40.38|3|3|93(0)|000032046 |Sofia_Ziegler                     |*1|Switzerland         
2:40.40|2|3|96(0)|000032117 |Leonie_Maurer                     |*1|Switzerland         
2:40.41|3|3|93(0)|000007728 |Aline_Petit                       |*1|France              
2:40.68|1|3|99(0)|000012180 |Roberta_Colombo                   |*1|Italy               
2:40.88|4|3|90(0)|000007731 |Soline_Badeaux                    |*1|France             
2:40.89|4|3|91(0)|000034993 |Leah_Haugen                       |*1|Norway              
2:40.97|3|3|94(0)|000001536 |Susan_Howard                      |*1|USA                
2:41.00|3|4|95(0)|000012172 |Martina_Mancini                   |*1|Italy
2:41.09|4|4|91(0)|000013986 |Jessica_Jonsson                   |*1|Sweden              
2:41.14|4|4|90(0)|000004185 |Irina_Solovyov                    |*1|Russia              
2:41.34|3|4|93(0)|000012199 |Federica_Moretti                  |*1|Italy               
2:41.34|4|4|91(0)|000012174 |Gaia_Rossi                        |*1|Italy               
2:41.44|5|4|87(0)|000009885 |Sofia_Schulz                      |*1|Germany             
2:41.47|4|4|91(0)|000032034 |Lena_Huggel                       |*1|Switzerland         
2:41.47|5|4|86(0)|000001507 |Ava_Hall                          |*1|USA                 
2:41.52|4|4|91(0)|000045857 |Sarah_Rainmayr                    |*1|Austria             
2:41.55|3|4|93(0)|000032098 |Aurora_Abdi                       |*1|Switzerland         
2:41.65|4|4|91(0)|000001518 |Susan_Ramirez                     |*1|USA                 
2:41.72|4|4|91(0)|000045870 |Marie_Steggall                    |*1|Austria             
2:41.74|4|4|90(0)|000007725 |Doriane_Durand                    |*1|France              
2:41.95|5|5|88(0)|000023932 |Emma_Lavoie                       |*1|Canada              
2:41.96|4|5|90(0)|000009897 |Lina_Becker                       |*1|Germany             
2:41.98|4|5|90(0)|000023938 |Sophia_Roy                        |*1|Canada              
2:42.08|4|5|91(0)|000009895 |Sofia_Schmidt                     |*1|Germany             
2:42.16|4|5|90(0)|000007715 |Marion_Coron                      |*1|France              
2:42.16|5|5|86(0)|000009888 |Lina_Hoffmann                     |*1|Germany             
2:42.16|5|5|86(0)|000013975 |Maja_Svensson                     |*1|Sweden              
2:42.21|3|5|94(0)|000045900 |Hannah_Wiesner                    |*1|Austria             
2:42.26|4|5|90(0)|000074203 |Sara_Kotnik                       |*1|Slovenia            
2:42.32|4|5|90(0)|000034994 |Linnea_Hansen                     |*1|Norway              
2:42.32|5|5|89(0)|000013992 |Nilla_Olsson                      |*1|Sweden              
2:42.35|5|5|88(0)|000001519 |Isabella_Cox                      |*1|USA                 
2:42.48|3|5|93(0)|000045847 |Nina_Fiser                        |*1|Austria             
2:42.49|5|5|87(0)|000058381 |Fata_Kovac                        |*1|Croatia             
2:42.50|4|5|90(0)|000045858 |Claudia_Shiegl                    |*1|Austria             
2:42.54|4|5|91(0)|000032089 |Ladina_Inler                      |*1|Switzerland         
2:42.56|4|5|92(0)|000004191 |Olga_Sokolov                      |*1|Russia              
2:42.57|5|5|88(0)|000001555 |Abigail_Gomez                     |*1|USA                 
2:42.58|5|5|86(0)|000009890 |Mia_Becker                        |*1|Germany             
2:42.72|5|5|89(0)|000032032 |Milena_Neumann                    |*1|Switzerland         
2:42.73|5|5|87(0)|000074199 |Lucija_Potocnik                   |*1|Slovenia            
2:42.82|5|6|89(0)|000012188 |Melania_Russo                     |*1|Italy               
2:42.83|5|6|87(0)|000074153 |Eva_Bizjak                        |*1|Slovenia            
2:42.90|5|6|88(0)|000004183 |Anastasia_Petrov                  |*1|Russia              
2:43.04|4|6|92(0)|000032112 |Elina_Spycher                     |*1|Switzerland         
2:43.15|4|6|90(0)|000009859 |Joern_Schneider                   |*1|Germany             
2:43.23|5|6|88(0)|000001546 |Olivia_Green                      |*1|USA                 
2:43.25|6|6|85(0)|000004192 |Dariya_Vasilyev                   |*1|Russia              
2:43.27|5|6|86(0)|000036681 |Simona_Katetov                    |*1|Czech_Republic      
2:43.30|5|6|87(0)|000012178 |Giulia_De_Luca                    |*1|Italy               
2:43.31|5|6|86(0)|000007747 |Jade_Joubert                      |*1|France              
2:43.38|5|6|87(0)|000009892 |Monika_Meyer                      |*1|Germany             
2:43.42|5|6|88(0)|000012181 |Giorgia_Colombo                   |*1|Italy               
2:43.44|5|6|86(0)|000013977 |Alice_Johansson                   |*1|Sweden              
2:43.66|6|6|85(0)|000034992 |Sahra_Johnasen                    |*1|Norway              
2:43.69|5|6|89(0)|000001523 |Maria_Myers                       |*1|USA                 
2:43.72|6|7|84(0)|000041950 |Jessica_Singh                     |*1|New_Zealand         
2:43.72|7|7|78(0)|000070456 |Julia_Leifsdottir                 |*1|Iceland             
2:43.75|5|7|87(0)|000012201 |Giulia_Giordano                   |*1|Italy               
2:43.76|5|7|89(0)|000045843 |Leonie_Pirktl                     |*1|Austria             
2:43.79|5|7|87(0)|000001468 |Margaret_Carter                   |*1|USA                 
2:43.85|6|7|85(0)|000007768 |Doriane_Galopin                   |*1|France              
2:44.35|6|7|85(0)|000007767 |Marion_Morel                      |*1|France              
2:44.38|5|7|89(0)|000058385 |Nika_Turk                         |*1|Croatia             
2:44.39|6|7|85(0)|000023925 |Ava_Smith                         |*1|Canada              
2:44.50|5|7|86(0)|000014010 |Lotta_Lindberg                    |*1|Sweden              
2:44.51|6|7|84(0)|000071328 |Mia_Schneider                     |*1|Liechtenstein       
2:44.54|6|7|85(0)|000058402 |Lara_Kovac                        |*1|Croatia             
2:44.72|7|8|77(0)|000006068 |Isla_Smith                        |*1|Great_Britain       
2:44.96|6|8|85(0)|000058398 |Dragica_Zupancic                  |*1|Croatia             
2:45.06|7|8|79(0)|000070452 |Karen_Vilhjalmsdottir             |*1|Iceland            
2:45.35|6|8|82(0)|000017680 |Isabella_Carter                   |*1|Australia           
2:45.44|7|8|80(0)|000040530 |Vasiliki_Panousis                 |*1|Greece              
2:45.46|7|8|79(0)|000049631 |Ruby_Doyle                        |*1|Ireland

[END Year 1, Chapter 4]

As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week...Bobsled time! (Also, have not had any time to squash the aforementioned bugs...that's still an ongoing problem

SecretAgentMan · 05-01-2022, 08:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wusel

Brutal Business

Question: How different is the algorithm behind the separate sports? Just thinking there are probably some sports with higher variance in results than others?

So, to answer this: It is something that is in my list of things still to work on in the future.

Right now, the algorithm is designed to be very common and runs for all events, so I don't have any difference in variance of results for different sports. I have some mechanisms in place that can be edited via text file and should, in theory, affect the variance and be adjustable for different sports and events, but I have not had a chance to test them yet.

DavidCorperial · 05-01-2022, 11:44 AM

Looks like good results based upon the skill levels as they seem to both be bottom 4 athletes at this discipline

SecretAgentMan · 05-07-2022, 08:28 PM

No update for "Iceland is Nice" this week. My wife and I were expecting a baby to be due on June 15, and she came early and was born last night. This thread will return soon, but not this weekend!

DavidCorperial · 05-07-2022, 10:18 PM

congrats

Chas in Cinti · 05-09-2022, 07:44 AM

Congrats!

SecretAgentMansdottir?

ntndeacon · 05-09-2022, 06:45 PM

Congratulations!

SecretAgentMan · 05-11-2022, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chas in Cinti

Congrats!

SecretAgentMansdottir?

Thank you!

Samsdottir has a nice ring to it!

SecretAgentMan · 05-11-2022, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ntndeacon

Congratulations!

Thank you!

SecretAgentMan · 05-11-2022, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidCorperial

congrats

Thanks!

SecretAgentMan · 05-15-2022, 01:01 PM

Okay, I was apparently too ambitious in assuming I would get something done this week. This thread will be off again this week, and I will try to get back into things next Sunday.

DavidCorperial · 05-15-2022, 01:35 PM

no worries, we all understand

SecretAgentMan · 05-22-2022, 03:43 PM

Because I like to be consistent about this, I'm going to make another Sunday post to say no update this week, either. Baby is finally coming home this week (she has been in hospital for 15 days bc of being premature), so things have been a little bit hectic. Maybe next Sunday I will have a new story post....either way, I will have an update.

DavidCorperial · 05-22-2022, 08:28 PM

good to hear

ntndeacon · 05-23-2022, 03:02 AM

Glad the baby is home!

Chas in Cinti · 05-23-2022, 09:14 AM

Family first! Good to hear she's coming home.

SecretAgentMan · 05-29-2022, 01:03 PM

Another week with no story post, mainly due to having a newborn finally home. Will try again next week!

stevew · 05-29-2022, 01:22 PM

I'm annoyed every time that this thread is not entitled Iceland is Niceland

DavidCorperial · 05-29-2022, 01:34 PM

still no worries

ntndeacon · 05-31-2022, 12:30 AM

Newborn at home is a great update!!!! We'll get back to Iceland soon enough!

SecretAgentMan · 05-31-2022, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevew

I'm annoyed every time that this thread is not entitled Iceland is Niceland

Fair enough! It would have a good ring to it.

Also, I have to say...I see THE YO as your location, and I just want to say that I am a local as well! Or, rather, I am from the area and went to college there. I do live in that state up north now.

SecretAgentMan · 06-05-2022, 05:31 PM

Year 1, Chapter 5- Whistler While You Work
"Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice"
-D2: The Mighty Ducks

We were on the ground and out of the office once again. Today, it was the first weekend in November, and Katja and I were in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. In 2010 it had been the site of the Winter Games, but today it was hosting an event in the North American Cup, the smaller of Bobsleigh's two minor circuits. Many people mingled around the track, including near the starting gate, which was where we currently were stationed as part of the first ever Icelandic delegation at a women's Bobsleigh event. It was exciting, but I kept reminding myself to temper the enthusiasm with some reality. I thought back to the conversation I had had with Gunther Schuller, our German coach, earlier in the week.

"Okay, so 17 competitors signed up....what are we realistically hoping for?" I had probed, wanting to know if this crazy endeavor had any hope of working.

"First off...." he said, speaking in English for my benefit with a slightly halted German accent. "Ignore what happens with the American and Canadian teams. They will...what is the expression you Americans use....wipe the floor with us."

"Lovely" I muttered.

"The best European countries send their developmental sleds to the European Cup, and we are not going to be able to compete with them right off the bat, so the hope is that we will stand up better with the North American Cup, which have some really strong American and Canadian teams, and then everyone else in the world who is hoping to eventually break into the World Cup."

He paused.

"I told the girls that we should be happy if we beat somebody."

"And will we?" I asked hopefully.

He paused again.

"We'll see."

So now it was time to start, and time to see what the actual reality would bear out.
******

A short while later, it was time. We were 12th to start, and it was pretty clear that nobody outside of North America had a realistic chance of a medal. We were focusing on the Irish squad, which had come down the track in the slowest time thus far (57.088), as well as the Chilean squad, which had yet to run.

I could see Katla and Emilia in the starting gate. They were still, though it was impossible to tell if that meant they were nervous or relaxed, given that their faces were hidden beneath a helmet. Their hands hovered over the pushbar, then I heard Katla bark out the start cadence.

EINN....TVEIR.....ÞRIR........FARA!

They pushed and sprinted down the chute, and hopped into the sled with what I thought was a surprising ease. I had a chance to sneak a peak at Coach Gunther's face, and his expression seemed proud. So that had been a good start! Unfortunately, his expression wouldn't hold their long. They made a pretty clear mistake, obvious enough that I even I could tell, in Turn 1, going high up into the turn before overcorrecting and skidding too far to the other side of the lane and bumping the wall. That would slow down a lot of speed, unfortunately, and it was evident even from the video boards that Emilia and Katla were not generating the kind of speed that most sleds had. A few more mistakes occurred as they continued down the track, but the damage had been done early. They crossed the line just a short minute later in 57.130, putting us into a last place 12th.

5 more sleds came down over the next few minutes, and each was faster than that, including the aforementioned Chilean sled. So, unfortunately, it looked like 17th (last) place was where things were going to stand after the first run. One more run to go, though, so we had to hope for some improvement.
******

An hour later, and we were back in the gate. This time, we were going first, because we were currently sitting in 17th place. Once more, Katla barked out the countdown, and once more the start looked solid. The first curve, thankfully, went a little bit better. Still too high, but no overcorrection. Turn 3 looked similar, but Turns 4 and 5 seemed good. Turn 6 was once again a bit high, and it was becoming clear that small mistakes were starting to add up. By the time the ladies got to the bottom, they had lost a lot of potential time....but it turns out, NOT as much as Run #1. At 57.096, they had improved, and that was a step in the right direction!

I chatted with Katja, and we were both pleased at the improvement. We were so caught up in conversation that we almost missed a huge development. Ireland had scuffed up the first turn pretty badly! They banged into the wall and struggled to right themselves before continuing down the track. Immediately, our eyes shot to the scoreboard. There was time check coming up. It was.....green. That meant they were ahead, but they still didn't appear to be gaining much speed. Our eyes glued to the screen, we waited for the next time check....still green. But they were dropping time! We watched each of the next two time checks, as Ireland kept coming back towards our sled, even though they were still in the lead. The finish line was approaching. We waited with baited breath.

Red!

We had done it, and beaten a team! Ireland had crossed the line 17 hundredths of a second behind Iceland! I threw my arms in the air and hugged Katja, and Gunther pumped his fist. On the video screen, we saw Katja and Emilia in the leaders' chairs, hugging each other in celebration!
******

It was a small triumph, obviously. Kajta and Emilia still finished 16th out of 17 teams on the day. But they had indeed beaten someone in their first bobsleigh competition, and that was something to celebrate. There were still two more competitions to be had in Whistler that weekend, but for this Friday night, Iceland was celebrating its' first small victory!

[END Year 1, Chapter 5]

As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week...back in the office for November results to come trickling in! (Also, have not had any time to squash the aforementioned bugs...that's still an ongoing problem

DavidCorperial · 06-05-2022, 07:03 PM

Huge result

04-04-2022, 12:12 PM	#53
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	And what do the numbers like 83a that we see on the athletes mean? __________________ Up the Posh!

04-04-2022, 01:31 PM	#55
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	I meant with rankings less than 50. Like both of the new speed skaters fall in this category with one like 43 and the other in the 30s. __________________ Up the Posh!

04-10-2022, 01:24 PM	#59
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	Year 1, Chapter 1- 2022 2023 Preview "Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice" -D2: The Mighty Ducks Outside, the sun was hanging low in the August sky. It was late in the day. Inside, my head was buried in a report as I sat at my desk. A quiet knock broke my concentration. I looked up. Katja was poking her head in the doorframe. "Mr. Dalesson?" "Jeffrey." I patiently reminded her. Formality had never been my strong suit. "Sorry, Jeffrey. I keep forgetting..." she seemed flustered for a moment, but quickly recovered. "You told me to let you know when I was leaving, so you wouldn't forget to get dinner." I smiled. "That I did. I figured it would be a good reminder to go get something for myself." She seemed concerned. "Are you done for the evening? You've been poring over those reports nonstop since they came in this afternoon." "Don't worry, I had just finished." "And how are things shaping up for the season? I didn't get much of a chance to look at the reports myself." I paused. "We'll see. I have reports from each of the coaches, and we've got a list of athletes to keep an eye on. So hopefully we'll get the schedules compiled soon, and we can start observing." She smiled. "That sounds good, sir, but do please get some rest this weekend. You've got a busy schedule the next few weeks." She paused, then added "And get some dinner! They make a great Plokkfiskur at the restaurant down by the docks, you know!" I did. Fish Stew was an acquired test, but one that I was starting to acquire. "I'll swing by there in a little bit once I leave." "Good! Have a nice weekend, sir!" "You too, Katja" Satisfied, she left for the night, while I spent a few minutes collating my files into a binder titled "2022-2023 Season Preview", and left it on my desk as I turned the lights off, locked up the main doors for the office, and headed off for the weekend. 2022-2023 Season Preview Winter Sport by Sport Iceland High-Performance Winter Sports Program Fully-Funded Athletes Code: \|83(0)\|70a\|7000\|Alpine Skiing\|000069957\|Viktor_Armannsson\|27\|0\|M\| \|80(0)\|70b\|7007\|Alpine Skiing\|000070456\|Julia_Leifsdottir\|28\|0\|F\| Half-Funded Athletes Code: \|63(0)\|72a\|7205\|Bobsleigh\|000070486\|Katla_Vilhjalmsdottir\|20\|0\|F\| \|64(0)\|72a\|7207\|Bobsleigh\|000070498\|Emilia_Olvirsdottir\|20\|0\|F\| Watchlist Code: \|84(0)\|70b\|7007\|Alpine Skiing\|000070452\|Karen_Vilhjalmsdottir\|26\|0\|F\| \|81(0)\|70a\|7003\|Alpine Skiing\|000070423\|Sara_Ingolfsdottir\|23\|0\|F\| \|78(0)\|73b\|7308\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070061\|Sigurdur_Olvirsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|79(0)\|75a\|7508\|Figure Skating\|000070604\|Katrin_Leifsdottir\|25\|0\|F\| \|75(0)\|75a\|7507\|Figure Skating\|000070121\|Guomundur_Sigurdsson\|28\|0\|M\| \|76(0)\|80a\|8000\|Short Track Speed Skating\|000070276\|Arnar_Hilmarsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|82(0)\|82a\|8201\|Ski Jumping\|000070764\|Rakel_Hilmarsdottir\|26\|0\|F\| Youth Watchlist Code: \|66(0)\|70a\|7008\|Alpine Skiing\|000084738\|Viktor_Sigurdsson\|16\|0\|M\| \|62(0)\|70a\|7003\|Alpine Skiing\|000084807\|Sigrun_Sigurdsdottir\|17\|0\|F\| \|65(0)\|83a\|8302\|Snowboarding\|000084790\|Daniel_Robertsson\|17\|0\|M\| \|64(0)\|83a\|8303\|Snowboarding\|000070777\|Emma_Olvirsdottir\|18\|0\|F\| \|61(0)\|83a\|8301\|Snowboarding\|000084853\|Emma_Stefansdottir\|17\|0\|F\| \|58(0)\|83a\|8303\|Snowboarding\|000084855\|Emilia_Stefansdottir\|16\|0\|F\| Alpine Skiing Overview Current Rating 20/100 for Speed Events, 23/100 for Slalom Events Current Ranking #26 for Speed Events, #23 for Slalom Events Athletes to Watch Code: \|84(0)\|70b\|7007\|Alpine Skiing\|000070452\|Karen_Vilhjalmsdottir\|26\|0\|F\| \|83(0)\|70a\|7000\|Alpine Skiing\|000069957\|Viktor_Armannsson\|27\|0\|M\| \|81(0)\|70a\|7003\|Alpine Skiing\|000070423\|Sara_Ingolfsdottir\|23\|0\|F\| \|80(0)\|70b\|7007\|Alpine Skiing\|000070456\|Julia_Leifsdottir\|28\|0\|F\| \|77(0)\|70b\|7006\|Alpine Skiing\|000069984\|Kari_Armannsson\|22\|0\|M\| \|77(0)\|70a\|7009\|Alpine Skiing\|000070457\|Julia_Thorirsdottir\|23\|0\|F\| \|74(0)\|70b\|7004\|Alpine Skiing\|000069972\|Viktor_Olvirsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|74(0)\|70b\|7006\|Alpine Skiing\|000069980\|Daniel_Olvirsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|66(0)\|70a\|7008\|Alpine Skiing\|000084738\|Viktor_Sigurdsson\|16\|0\|M\| \|62(0)\|70a\|7003\|Alpine Skiing\|000084807\|Sigrun_Sigurdsdottir\|17\|0\|F\| Coaches' Notes Alpine Skiing might be Iceland's strongest area of talent right now. There is actually some depth, though most of the skiers are not at World Cup level. We expect Viktor Armannsson and Julia Leifsdottir to be world cup regulars, and we could see Karen Vilhjalmsdottir or Sara Ingolfsdottir get some starts as well, though they both run limited numbers of events. If we can't get them World Cup starts, we'll try really hard to get our skiers into minor league cups. We also have two teen prospects who we would like to monitor, Viktor Sigurdsson and Sigrun Sigurdsdottir (no relation). The hope is to send them to junior world championships, since they both run all 5 events. We're optimistic that the year will end with some world cup points, and maybe we will surprise some people at World Championships. Biathlon Overview Current Rating 0/100 Current Ranking #47 Code: \|63(0)\|71a\|7107\|Biathlon\|000070482\|Julia_Sigurdsdottir\|22\|0\|F\| \|62(0)\|71a\|7100\|Biathlon\|000069997\|Gunnar_Thorirsson\|23\|0\|M\| Coaches' Notes The Biathlon foundation continues to struggle to attract talent. We are putting all of our focus this year into finding competitive starts for our top female athlete, Julia Sigurdsdottir, and our top male athlete, Gunnar Thorirsson. We are hoping that they will qualify for the IBU cup, but if they do not, we may not have a lot of good options. Bobsleigh Overview Current Rating 0/100 Current Ranking #50 Athletes to Watch Code: \|63(0)\|72a\|7205\|Bobsleigh\|000070486\|Katla_Vilhjalmsdottir\|20\|0\|F\| \|64(0)\|72a\|7207\|Bobsleigh\|000070498\|Emilia_Olvirsdottir\|20\|0\|F\| Coaches' Notes Well, at least we have a bobsleigh team now. Katla and Emilia have certainly captured people's hearts, so we hope that we can find some actual competitions to enter to get them some results. They are training hard, at least, though we think they are going to need to pick it up even faster than their current pace if there is any chance of making a go of this Cross-Country Overview Current Rating 23/100 for Sprint, 19/100 for Distance Current Ranking #36 for Sprint, #37 for Distance Athletes to Watch Code: \|78(0)\|73b\|7308\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070061\|Sigurdur_Olvirsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|75(0)\|73b\|7309\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070540\|Julia_Sigurdsdottir\|27\|0\|F\| \|72(0)\|73a\|7301\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070525\|Emilia_Hilmarsdottir\|27\|0\|F\| \|71(0)\|73b\|7308\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070064\|Kristjan_Leifsson\|21\|0\|M\| \|71(0)\|73b\|7309\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070545\|Emilia_Stefansdottir\|29\|0\|F\| \|71(0)\|73a\|7304\|Cross-country Skiing\|000084749\|Kari_Leifsson\|18\|0\|M\| \|68(0)\|73b\|7308\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070066\|Benedikt_Johnsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|66(0)\|73a\|7302\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070054\|Arnar_Sigurdsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|66(0)\|73b\|7308\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070069\|Daniel_Hilmarsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|66(0)\|73a\|7305\|Cross-country Skiing\|000070535\|Sigrun_Ingolfsdottir\|21\|0\|F\| Coaches Notes To be honest, we are pretty embarrassed by the lack of progress in cross-country skiing lately. We feel that we should be more competitive on the world cup and Olympic levels, and we feel like our current roster is lacking in that department. We are going to try to push the young guys hard in the hopes of being stronger by the time 2026 comes around. Curling Overview Current Rating 10/100 Current Ranking #45 Athletes to Watch Code: \|76(0)\|74a\|7401\|Curling\|000070554\|Emma_Olvirsdottir\|23\|0\|F\| Coaches' Notes Unfortunately, while we do have some players at the local level in Iceland, we have only identified one curler that we think can be competitive on an international level, and that doesn't work especially well in a team game. If we can find a decent male curler in the next few years, we might at least be able to try to qualify for the mixed doubles world championships. For now, no competitions for any official Icelandic curling teams. Figure Skating Overview Current Rating 10/100 Current Ranking #52 Athletes to Watch Code: \|79(0)\|75a\|7508\|Figure Skating\|000070604\|Katrin_Leifsdottir\|25\|0\|F\| \|75(0)\|75a\|7507\|Figure Skating\|000070121\|Guomundur_Sigurdsson\|28\|0\|M\| \|65(0)\|75a\|7500\|Figure Skating\|000084755\|Alexanderson_Robertsson\|17\|0\|M Coaches' Notes We are looking forward to seeing how Katrin and Guomundur (our top ice dancing pair) do at the European Championships, and we would love it if they were to get an invite to a Grand Prix series event, though we aren't counting on it. As for Alex...we think he has some potential in men's singles, and we are hoping to see good results from him at Junior Grand Prix and Junior Worlds. We only get one entry for those events, and we expect it to be him. Freestyle Skiing Overview Current Rating 10/100 in all disciplines Current Ranking Varies (20s to 40s) Code: \|75(0)\|76d\|7611\|Freestyle Skiing\|000070657\|Karen_Vilhjalmsdottir\|23\|0\|F\| \|68(0)\|76d\|7610\|Freestyle Skiing\|000070172\|Mikael_Robertsson\|23\|0\|M\| Coaches' Notes Karen has had some success in Park & Pipe competitions locally, so we're hoping she might be able to take things to the next level. Granted, the next level is still pretty far away from the Olympics, but we like to emphasize progress in Freestyle Skiing! Same goes for Mikael, to be honest. However, even though we try to stay positive...we can't see any other disciplines where we are even going to get minor competition slots, much less world cups, so there's a long way to go before we have a breakthough in freeski. Ice Hockey Overview Current Rating 59/100 Current Ranking #28 Athletes to Watch Code: \|85(0)\|77a\|7701\|Ice Hockey\|000070686\|Karen_Thorirsdottir\|26\|0\|F\| \|84(0)\|77a\|7700\|Ice Hockey\|000070219\|Viktor_Johnsson\|26\|0\|M\| \|77(0)\|77a\|7700\|Ice Hockey\|000070206\|Aron_Vilhjalmsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|77(0)\|77a\|7701\|Ice Hockey\|000070694\|Freyja_Johnsdottir\|27\|0\|F\| \|76(0)\|77a\|7701\|Ice Hockey\|000070661\|Viktoria_Johnsdottir\|29\|0\|F\| \|75(0)\|77a\|7700\|Ice Hockey\|000070192\|Viktor_Vilhjalmsson\|26\|0\|M\| \|75(0)\|77a\|7700\|Ice Hockey\|000070200\|Mikael_Armannsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|74(0)\|77a\|7700\|Ice Hockey\|000070211\|Jon_Armannsson\|26\|0\|M\| \|74(0)\|77a\|7701\|Ice Hockey\|000070669\|Viktoria_Robertsdottir\|21\|0\|F\| \|73(0)\|77a\|7700\|Ice Hockey\|000070184\|Arnar_Robertsson\|21\|0\|M\| Coaches' Notes Look, the nice thing about ice hockey is that there is ALWAYS a ladder to climb. For the men's team, we're in Division II Group B this year, and we like to think that we stand a good chance of getting promoted to Division II Group A. That's our goal at worlds this year. The women's team is in the exact same boat, hoping to get promoted to Division II Group A. It will be a successful year for us if that happens! We think the men's team has a better chance of making that happen, but we would be thrilled if either does it. Luge Overview Current Rating 0/100 Current Ranking #44 Athletes to Watch [/code] \|64(0)\|78a\|7800\|Luge\|000070237\|Daniel_Stefansson\|20\|0\|M\| \|64(0)\|78a\|7801\|Luge\|000070727\|Karen_Ingolfsdottir\|23\|0\|F\| \|58(0)\|78a\|7802\|Luge\|000070250\|Aron_Olvirsson\|25\|0\|M\| \|58(0)\|78a\|7802\|Luge\|000070255\|Arnar_Armannsson\|22\|0\|M\| [/code] Coaches' Notes We're trying to get younger, so our focus is on youth development right now. We have a young doubles luge team, Aron and Arnar, and a young women, Karen, who has been improving greatly. We think our best hopes right now lie with Daniel Stefansson, who we are hoping might have the potential to make the world cup someday. Nordic Combined Current Rating 10/100 Current Ranking #28 Athletes to Watch Coaches' Notes Nope. Not this year. Short Track Speed Skating Current Rating 0/100 Current Ranking #49 Athletes to Watch Code: \|76(0)\|80a\|8000\|Short Track Speed Skating\|000070276\|Arnar_Hilmarsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|69(0)\|80a\|8000\|Short Track Speed Skating\|000070283\|Jon_Robertsson\|29\|0\|M\| \|68(0)\|80a\|8001\|Short Track Speed Skating\|000070742\|Telma_Johnsdottir\|28\|0\|F\| \|63(0)\|80a\|8000\|Short Track Speed Skating\|000070277\|Benedikt_Johnsson\|23\|0\|M\| Coaches Notes Arnar Hilmarsson is on the way up, and we're doing whatever we can to support him. We think we have some short track fans in the country who are starting to get excited, and we want to generate a buzz around him. If we can get that going, we are hoping we can convince the Committee to give him training funding for next year. Skeleton Current Rating 0/100 Current Ranking #50 Athletes to Watch Code: \|70(0)\|81a\|8100\|Skeleton\|000070293\|Daniel_Vilhjalmsson\|25\|0\|M\| Coaches Notes Daniel continues to live and train in Germany, where he's also a university graduate student. We have heard positive developments, but we don't have much other information to go off of at this time. Ski Jumping Current Rating 10/100 Current Ranking #33 Athletes to Watch Code: \|82(0)\|82a\|8201\|Ski Jumping\|000070764\|Rakel_Hilmarsdottir\|26\|0\|F\| \|74(0)\|82a\|8202\|Ski Jumping\|000070306\|Kristjan_Ingolfsson\|24\|0\|M\| \|72(0)\|82a\|8201\|Ski Jumping\|000070767\|Maria_Ingolfsdottir\|21\|0\|F\| \|66(0)\|82a\|8202\|Ski Jumping\|000070311\|Sigurdur_Vilhjalmsson\|19\|0\|M\| Coaches Notes Even we are surprised to be saying this, but we think we might have a shot at World Cup results this year. Rakel Hilmarsdottir has been training in Austria and coming on strong, and we think she can get some Top 30 finishes on the women's side. There's a few other athletes who could make an impact in the lower cups, too, and we are especially interested to see how Sigurdur Vilhjalmsson can fare in some of those cups. Looks like it will be a fun year! Snowboarding Current Rating 11/100 for Park & Pipe, 10/100 for all others Current Ranking 30s for all (#33 max, Park & Pipe) Athletes to Watch Code: \|72(0)\|83b\|8306\|Snowboarding\|000070334\|Daniel_Olvirsson\|23\|0\|M\| \|70(0)\|83a\|8301\|Snowboarding\|000070776\|Emilia_Hilmarsdottir\|21\|0\|F\| \|68(0)\|83a\|8305\|Snowboarding\|000070781\|Maria_Stefansdottir\|22\|0\|F\| \|67(0)\|83a\|8304\|Snowboarding\|000070328\|Guomundur_Stefansson\|23\|0\|M\| \|66(0)\|83a\|8303\|Snowboarding\|000070778\|Katla_Hilmarsdottir\|20\|0\|F\| \|65(0)\|83a\|8302\|Snowboarding\|000084790\|Daniel_Robertsson\|17\|0\|M\| \|64(0)\|83a\|8303\|Snowboarding\|000070777\|Emma_Olvirsdottir\|18\|0\|F\| \|61(0)\|83a\|8301\|Snowboarding\|000084853\|Emma_Stefansdottir\|17\|0\|F\| \|60(0)\|83a\|8301\|Snowboarding\|000070774\|Viktoria_Olvirsdottir\|19\|0\|F\| \|58(0)\|83a\|8303\|Snowboarding\|000084855\|Emilia_Stefansdottir\|16\|0\|F\| Coaches Notes We are thrilled as a sport to be getting so much attention after the success of our social media campaigns over the offseason, and we intend to use that attention to highlight our young and upcoming athletes. Most of them will be in local competitions and minor circuits rather than world cups, but we think there is a lot to build off of here! Speed Skating Current Rating 0/100 for Speed, 0/100 for Distance Current Ranking #49 for both disciplines Athletes to Watch Code: \|75(0)\|84b\|8400\|Speed Skating\|000070360\|Benedikt_Armannsson\|26\|0\|M\| \|73(0)\|84a\|8407\|Speed Skating\|000070843\|Sara_Johnsdottir\|22\|0\|F\| \|71(0)\|84b\|8405\|Speed Skating\|000070838\|Anna_Olvirsdottir\|22\|0\|F\| \|67(0)\|84a\|8408\|Speed Skating\|000070392\|Jon_Robertsson\|21\|0\|M\| \|64(0)\|84a\|8410\|Speed Skating\|000070410\|Jon_Johnsson\|20\|0\|M\| Coaches Notes Iceland has not had a lot of success in speed skating, and this is probably not the year, either. Maybe we can find some results amongst these younger skaters or something. [END Year 1, Chapter 1] As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week, a press conference to introduce the new bobsleigh team and bobsleighp rogram. Last edited by SecretAgentMan : 04-10-2022 at 02:14 PM.

04-11-2022, 02:14 PM	#61
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	There is a lot to get excited about with this! I am not sure where to put funds the next time we are able. Too many options! __________________ Up the Posh!

04-14-2022, 09:47 AM	#63
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	Snowboarding certainly looks like one of the likely category. They look exciting! __________________ Up the Posh!

04-04-2022, 12:00 PM	#52
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	Is there any purpose of putting money into athletes less than 50 for our purpose? __________________ Up the Posh!

04-04-2022, 12:23 PM	#54
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	Well, money was similar on this site, that doesn't mean it was totally similar.

04-10-2022, 03:59 PM	#60
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	Some good looks here, hope it goes well.

04-17-2022, 12:49 PM	#64
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	Year 1, Chapter 2- Bobsleigh Presser "Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice" -D2: The Mighty Ducks A camera flashed to my left, then another to my right. A short distance away, I could see TV crews getting a live look at the proceedings. Yes, indeed, it turned out that this was going to be a big deal. We were out and about in Reykjavik today, and the scene was an interesting and joyous one. The athletic committee was holding a press conference to announce the new formation of our women's bobsleigh team, and far more media had shown up than I was expecting. Again, the reason for that was likely the athletes themselves, though. Katla and Emilia (they were on a first name basis with a lot of the local sporting press at this point) had taken their viral fame from earlier in the year and run with it, and were already among the most famous winter athletes in Iceland without even having run in a competition yet. They had been posting training and workout videos and pictures continually in the ensuing months, as well as engaging their new fanbase in the process of designing bobsleigh uniforms. It was working, at least in terms of garnering attention. Today was the next official step, though, and an important one at that. Ada Thorsdottir had the honor of introducing the proceedings. I was glad not to have to be the one giving a speech today, though Kris Einarsson and I were seated on stage along with the bobsleigh team, not too far from where she was currently speaking. Most of the office was in attendance today, and I could see Katja, as well as intern Gunner in the crowd. "And now, ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to introduce you to the new coach of our national bobsleigh team, Mr. Gunther Schuller!" As the audience applauded, the large German man who was seated directly to my right got up and strode to the microphone. We had been pleased to get a chance to hire Gunther. He was a recently retired from competing with the German national team, and he had been angling to get into coaching. A number of small countries were bidding for his services, but he seemed to be impressed with Iceland's potential. He answered a number of very simple questions from the press before getting thrown a more difficult one. I listened intently to his answer. "Coach Schuller, given that we have no bobsleigh tradition here in Iceland, how will develop these athletes into an Olympic squad?" Gunther paused. "It is true that you have not done bobsleigh in this country before. But you have such a strong fitness tradition, especially with crossfit, that there is a lot we can build on. If we teach good fundamentals to these young ladies and they bulk up and keep training like I have been hearing...good things are going to happen." The room clapped, and you could tell that everyone was happy to hear that answer. I was too, though not surprised, as it had been one of his pitches when we interviewed him. The plan was solid, in my mind. Were these, however, the right ladies for the job? That, in my mind, was still to be determined. Speaking of which, Gunther was done with his questions, and it was time for the main event. With a great roar, Katla and Emilia took the stage. The questions began shortly thereafter. "Ladies, given that this whole program came about because of your social media posts, how does it feel to be on stage as the first members of the Icelandic bobsleigh team?" Katla beamed with a million dollar smile, and took the question. "Honestly...really damn great!" Her smile got bigger, and the crowd laughed and cheered. The ice, as it were, was broken. If the press had been expecting boring stock answers today, they were not going to get them. Katla, slated to be the team's driver, was enthusiastic, gregarious, and not opposed to peppering her answers with some occasional salty language. In other words, she was a sportswriter's dream. Not that Emilia, the brakeman, was any less enthusiastic, mind you. She responded to a question about how her training was going by standing and flexing, which the crowd just absolutely ate up. If there were any doubts in the room prior to the day about why Katla and Emilia had swiftly gained a social media following, those doubts quickly vanished. Social media and personal dreams don't produce results on their own, though. That was my worry. This story certainly was a feel good situation, but I was worried about the very real matter of making sure that our bobsleigh team could actually succeed in competitive situations. I already loved Gunther's enthusiasm and evangelism for the sport, but how far is that and the dreams of two young women who are barely past their teen years going to carry us? That would be seen possibly as soon as November, when the bobsleigh season got underway. It was still early October, though, and there were other sports and events to focus on in the interim. On with the season! [END Year 1, Chapter 2] As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week, we begin the season in earnest! Also, the roles of the athletes in this post are being played by the following: Katla (the driver) is portrayed by Thuri Helgadottir, an Icelandic Crossfit athlete Emilia (the push athlete) is portrayed by Katrin Davidsdottir, an Icelandic Crossfit champion who twice previously earned the title "Worlds Fittest Woman" Gunther (the coach) is portrayed by David Golling, a German Bobsledder

04-17-2022, 07:40 PM	#65
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	Looking good on this

04-18-2022, 02:29 PM	#66
Wusel n00b Join Date: Jan 2022	Really like the idea, looking forward to staying involved

04-19-2022, 10:08 AM	#68
Chas in Cinti High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Cincinnati, OH	Keep up the good work... how much is story and how much is gameplay? i.e. do you really hire a coach to help kickstart you? __________________ Email: [email protected]

04-19-2022, 10:35 AM	#69
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	Now we just need some dudes to do Bobsledding! __________________ Up the Posh!

04-20-2022, 09:38 AM	#71
Chas in Cinti High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Cincinnati, OH	Thanks! Will be interesting to see the differences as you continue to evolve... look forward to the next chapter! __________________ Email: [email protected]

04-24-2022, 10:24 AM	#72
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	Year 1, Chapter 3- They Have Figure Skating in August? "Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice" -D2: The Mighty Ducks The plane accelerated down the runway and began lifting off the ground. Shortly thereafter, we were airborne. I relaxed back in my seat, and waited for the signal to get out electronic devices. When that was given shortly thereafter, I had my laptop out ready to work. My assistant Katja, to my left in the window seat, had a dossier ready where she could take notes. (The seat to my right was mercifully empty) We were on route to Austria for the start of the world cup ski season, but this trip was still mostly business, after all. There was work to be done, after all. "Well, what are we starting with today, Katja?" "Nothing too exciting, unfortunately. We have a lot of expense reports and financial paperwork to approve today. Lots of electronic signatures and the like." I grimaced. Necessary, but not fun. Katja detailed more of the day's tasks, all of which were similarly mundane. "...oh, and we do have one more thing. I have a report for you to review. Figure Skating results from August and September." I did a double-take. Had she said what I thought she had said? "They do figure skating in August?" I asked incredulously. Katja laughed. I knew that she had been a novice skater when she was younger, and that she was more knowledgeable about the figure-skating world than was I. "Jeff, the figure skating season never stops. But, yes, the Junior Grand Prix circuit goes from August to October" I had probably been told that, mind you, but that particular piece of information apparently hadn't stuck. "Ah. That means we'll be checking in to see how Alex Robertsson did, then. Let's take care of that first, then." Katja nodded, and handed me the report. Junior Grand Prix- Riga, Latvia Sep. 7th to 10th Code: 152.56\|5\|4\|83(0)\|000077859\|Adam_Tremblay \|1\|Canada 120.31\|7\|5\|71(0)\|000066328\|Jaagup_Mihhailov \|1\|Estonia 116.44\|6\|6\|78(0)\|000007045\|Gabriel_Bouchard \|1\|France 112.29\|5\|6\|82(0)\|000015807\|Yang_Tao \|1\|China 110.27\|7\|6\|68(0)\|000007047\|Etienne_Caillat \|1\|France 109.89\|6\|5\|75(0)\|000000470\|Joshua_Miller \|1\|USA 109.34\|6\|6\|77(0)\|000011441\|Luca_Romano \|1\|Italy 106.74\|6\|6\|78(0)\|000009016\|Lukas_Schmidt \|1\|Germany 106.16\|7\|6\|71(0)\|000084346\|Janis_Jansons \|1\|Latvia 99.73\|6\|7\|77(0)\|000003263\|Oleg_Zaytsev \|1\|Russia 98.11\|6\|7\|77(0)\|000076251\|Gabriele_Rossi \|1\|Italy 96.41\|6\|7\|74(0)\|000077856\|Reginald_Campbell \|1\|Canada 92.03\|7\|7\|73(0)\|000075152\|Ivan_Solovyov \|1\|Russia 85.06\|7\|7\|69(0)\|000076248\|Davide_Bianchi \|1\|Italy 82.26\|7\|8\|70(0)\|000011434\|Gabriele_Esposito \|1\|Italy 77.80\|7\|8\|69(0)\|000077249\|Sora_Ogawa \|1\|Japan 77.25\|8\|8\|67(0)\|000080190\|Mykyta_Homenyuk \|1\|Ukraine 73.32\|8\|8\|66(0)\|000084997\|Lukas_Fischer \|1\|Luxembourg 71.93\|8\|8\|67(0)\|000077246\|Sho_Miura \|1\|Japan 70.61\|8\|8\|67(0)\|000078538\|Min-jun_Ha \|1\|South_Korea 70.14\|6\|8\|77(0)\|000009035\|Maximilian_Wagner \|1\|Germany 69.91\|7\|8\|68(0)\|000036103\|Michal_Hrozný \|1\|Czech_Republic 68.00\|8\|9\|65(0)\|000084755\|Alexanderson_Robertsson \|1\|Iceland 65.68\|8\|8\|66(0)\|000031374\|Levin_Abdi \|1\|Switzerland 58.34\|7\|9\|70(0)\|000037574\|Robin_Goossens \|1\|Belgium 58.30\|8\|9\|65(0)\|000017286\|Jackson_Parker \|1\|Australia 54.75\|8\|8\|65(0)\|000062199\|Koba_Jgenti \|1\|Georgia 52.92\|8\|9\|65(0)\|000072495\|Matyáš_Procházka \|1\|Slovakia 51.03\|8\|9\|67(0)\|000013494\|Anders_Eriksson \|1\|Sweden Junior Grand Prix- Yerevan, Armenia Sep. 21st to 24th* Code: 106.44\|5\|7\|83(0)\|000077859\|Adam_Tremblay \|1\|Canada 105.55\|6\|6\|77(0)\|000009035\|Maximilian_Wagner \|1\|Germany 103.30\|5\|7\|82(0)\|000015807\|Yang_Tao \|1\|China 102.50\|6\|7\|77(0)\|000076251\|Gabriele_Rossi \|1\|Italy 100.09\|6\|6\|78(0)\|000009016\|Lukas_Schmidt \|1\|Germany 98.91\|6\|7\|75(0)\|000000470\|Joshua_Miller \|1\|USA 98.16\|6\|7\|74(0)\|000077856\|Reginald_Campbell \|1\|Canada 96.66\|6\|7\|78(0)\|000007045\|Gabriel_Bouchard \|1\|France 94.23\|6\|6\|77(0)\|000011441\|Luca_Romano \|1\|Italy 93.39\|7\|6\|69(0)\|000077249\|Sora_Ogawa \|1\|Japan 90.30\|7\|8\|73(0)\|000075152\|Ivan_Solovyov \|1\|Russia 90.26\|6\|6\|77(0)\|000003263\|Oleg_Zaytsev \|1\|Russia 88.76\|7\|6\|68(0)\|000036103\|Michal_Hrozný \|1\|Czech_Republic 88.74\|7\|7\|70(0)\|000011434\|Gabriele_Esposito \|1\|Italy 87.29\|8\|7\|65(0)\|000084755\|Alexanderson_Robertsson \|1\|Iceland 77.89\|8\|8\|67(0)\|000078538\|Min-jun_Ha \|1\|South_Korea 71.28\|7\|8\|68(0)\|000007047\|Etienne_Caillat \|1\|France 70.70\|7\|8\|71(0)\|000084346\|Janis_Jansons \|1\|Latvia 70.57\|8\|8\|67(0)\|000080190\|Mykyta_Homenyuk \|1\|Ukraine 70.09\|7\|8\|69(0)\|000076248\|Davide_Bianchi \|1\|Italy 69.53\|7\|9\|70(0)\|000037574\|Robin_Goossens \|1\|Belgium 60.80\|8\|8\|65(0)\|000072495\|Matyáš_Procházka \|1\|Slovakia 57.59\|8\|9\|65(0)\|000017286\|Jackson_Parker \|1\|Australia 52.98\|8\|10\|66(0)\|000031374\|Levin_Abdi \|1\|Switzerland 51.97\|7\|9\|71(0)\|000066328\|Jaagup_Mihhailov \|1\|Estonia 43.45\|8\|9\|67(0)\|000077246\|Sho_Miura \|1\|Japan 42.55\|8\|10\|66(0)\|000084997\|Lukas_Fischer \|1\|Luxembourg 38.37\|8\|10\|67(0)\|000013494\|Anders_Eriksson \|1\|Sweden 34.30\|8\|10\|65(0)\|000062199\|Koba_Jgenti \|1\|Georgia 23rd in Riga, and 15th in Yerevan. The results looked okay, but it was clear that Alex had a lot of work to do still if he hoped to move up in the figure skating world. "Didn't Aldis say that she thought there was a chance of Alex qualifying for Junior Worlds this year?" I had spoken with Aldis Bjornsdottir, our national figure skating coach, over the summer. Katja nodded. "She did."* "And will these results get him there?" Katja shook her head. "I don't believe so, no" I frowned. "I hope she's not just trying to sell hopes and dreams here. We don't have the budget to fund or market athletes that have no chance of international success" "I know that, sir. Hopefully our senior ice dance team will have better results." "I hope so, or Aldis and I will have to chat about setting realistic expectations." The mediocre report and impending paperwork had now made me grumpy, and I proceeded to sulk my way through part of the flight. On the other end, though, skiing and Austrian Alps awaited...soon enough, things would be fun again! [END Year 1, Chapter 3] As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week will begin the world cup ski season IF I can fix some program bugs....right now, something about the event creation process is unstable and not working...I have to find time to fix before I can begin running results If not, I may have to pad with some filler Last edited by SecretAgentMan : 04-24-2022 at 09:34 PM.

04-24-2022, 12:11 PM	#73
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	Not great, hope everything works out

04-24-2022, 08:52 PM	#74
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	What score gets figure skaters to the Junior World's? __________________ Up the Posh!

05-01-2022, 08:39 AM	#78
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	Year 1, Chapter 4- Ski Season Begins "Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice" -D2: The Mighty Ducks "Now on course, our first skier, Austria's own Nicole Badem!" A huge roar went up in the crowd around me, and the event was underway. We were in Solden, Austria, for the start of the world cup ski season. 82 women were about to head down the mountain in two Giant Slalom runs. We were, of course, keen to see how our Icelandic athletes would do. We were also excited because we had, for the first time in recent memory, been given 2 spots at this event, thanks to some cancellations in some of the bigger delegations. So we were looking to see how Julia Leifsdottir and Karen Vilhjalmsdottir would do. Julia had been given full funding in our high-performance program and had gone to the Olympics last season, largely because she was capable of skiing all 5 disciplines. Karen was a slalom specialist, and coaches said she was having a great start to training so far this year and that she could possibly surpass Julia in the slalom events this year. Was that going to happen? Well, we would see. Eventually. Little-known fact is that in skiing, they generally let the top-seeded skiers go first, and the lower-seeded skiers go last. Ours were seeded 80th and 81st today, unfortunately, so it was going to be a while. Austria's Marie Fiser blistered the course early in a time of 1:19.00, which looked like the time to beat...for all of about 3 racers. Then Anna Rosenberg, also from Austria, set down a 1:18.75, and nobody else seemed to be able to touch it. As we got into the lower rated skiers, a lot of 1:21s and 1:22s were coming down. Then, finally, it was time. "Now in the starting gate...Karen Vilhjalmsdottir, Iceland" Katja and I cheered, and there was some polite clapping in the crowd around us, but there was no big contingent of Icelandic ski fans to make noise on this day. The coaching staff would be excited, of course, but most of them were at the top of the mountain, and we certainly couldn't hear them down in the stadium. Karen's image flashed onto the video board. How was she feeling behind those ski goggles? Nervous? Excited? It was her first world cup race at age 26, so probably a mixture of both. The starting gate countdown beeped, and she pushed off and took off down the hill. Tentatively. It was very clear she was tentative. Earlier skiers had slid aggressively through the gates. Karen was arcing more carefully, traversing the course safely, but definitely not with the kind of edge that others before her had shown. She bobbled and stood up in her stance a bit at one point, then recovered. Still, she made it down. The time clock, though, wasn't kind. 1:23.05. Last in the first run, and with only two skiers left, that wasn't too likely to change. One of those skiers, though, was Julia Leifsdottir. Two years older than Karen, but possessing some actual world cup and Olympic experience, she was the next starter, and when she pushed off from the starting gate with a yell, she looked like she meant it. She skied like it, too. Much tighter line, much more purpose, much more nuance. Still, though, that doesn't always translate into the leaderboard. She didn't have the speed that the Austrians and Swiss carried down the pitch, and while the time of 1:21.65 was solid, it was not going to be anywhere near a Top 30 finish that would get world cup points. It was, however, good experience, which was the whole point of this weekend. Normally, a World Cup giant slalom would only allow the Top 30 from the first run to take a 2nd run. Today, however, was a special dispensation, and all 82 would get a 2nd run. On top of that, Iceland had been given 2 athletes today via special dispensation, rather than the 1 that would typically be allowed on the world cup. So we would take it. ******* A few hours later, and we had an Icelandic athlete back in the gate again. This time, Julia was up first, and she strode down the course with the same sense of purpose as before. Unfortunately, the course was breaking down and getting choppy (the winners had already taken their 2nd runs and held their victory ceremony), and she wasn't able to match her first run time, coming in at 1:22.07 for her second trip down the hill. That would be good for 66th place on the day, a result that the coaches would later told me that felt was acceptable. Now, it was Karen's turn. Would the second run be better? She hovered in the gate...still nervous? I couldn't tell via my view from a video screen. She pushed off from the gate, and immediately, things were different this time. That much was clear. Straddling gates tightly...taking an aggressive line....this was a much better run. That was immediately clear. She built up speed, continued arcing through her turns with precision, and got to the bottom with a fist pump. 1:22.01 was substantially better! In fact, she had even beaten Julia's time on the second run, and had been one of the few late skiers to ski faster on the worsening course conditions. The surge had moved her up 3 notches, finishing in 79th place. Certainly a positive building step. As the season moved on, we would have to choose between the two skiers and decide which to send to each World Cup slalom event, but for today, there was some experience for them both. Katja and I chatted amicably as we left the venue and headed back towards the hotel. Back to Reykjavik tomorrow, but we would be on the road again soon....since it was Bobsled time! Code: Alpine Skiing: Women's Giant Slalom 2:37.76\|2\|1\|97(0)\|000045853 \|Anna_Rosenberg \|1\|Austria 2:38.05\|1\|1\|99(0)\|000045851 \|Marie_Fiser \|1\|Austria 2:39.09\|2\|1\|97(0)\|000012190 \|Roberta_De_Luca \|1\|Italy 2:39.52\|4\|2\|92(0)\|000007746 \|Manon_Duclos \|1\|France 2:39.85\|2\|2\|96(0)\|000045861 \|Nicole_Badem \|1\|Austria 2:40.15\|3\|3\|94(0)\|000032108 \|Aurora_Maurer \|1\|Switzerland 2:40.21\|4\|3\|91(0)\|000058396 \|Tanja_Zupan \|1\|Croatia 2:40.26\|4\|3\|91(0)\|000032113 \|Melissa_Wolfisberg \|1\|Switzerland 2:40.36\|1\|3\|99(0)\|000074179 \|Sara_Zupan \|1\|Slovenia 2:40.38\|3\|3\|93(0)\|000032046 \|Sofia_Ziegler \|1\|Switzerland 2:40.40\|2\|3\|96(0)\|000032117 \|Leonie_Maurer \|1\|Switzerland 2:40.41\|3\|3\|93(0)\|000007728 \|Aline_Petit \|1\|France 2:40.68\|1\|3\|99(0)\|000012180 \|Roberta_Colombo \|1\|Italy 2:40.88\|4\|3\|90(0)\|000007731 \|Soline_Badeaux \|1\|France 2:40.89\|4\|3\|91(0)\|000034993 \|Leah_Haugen \|1\|Norway 2:40.97\|3\|3\|94(0)\|000001536 \|Susan_Howard \|1\|USA 2:41.00\|3\|4\|95(0)\|000012172 \|Martina_Mancini \|1\|Italy 2:41.09\|4\|4\|91(0)\|000013986 \|Jessica_Jonsson \|1\|Sweden 2:41.14\|4\|4\|90(0)\|000004185 \|Irina_Solovyov \|1\|Russia 2:41.34\|3\|4\|93(0)\|000012199 \|Federica_Moretti \|1\|Italy 2:41.34\|4\|4\|91(0)\|000012174 \|Gaia_Rossi \|1\|Italy 2:41.44\|5\|4\|87(0)\|000009885 \|Sofia_Schulz \|1\|Germany 2:41.47\|4\|4\|91(0)\|000032034 \|Lena_Huggel \|1\|Switzerland 2:41.47\|5\|4\|86(0)\|000001507 \|Ava_Hall \|1\|USA 2:41.52\|4\|4\|91(0)\|000045857 \|Sarah_Rainmayr \|1\|Austria 2:41.55\|3\|4\|93(0)\|000032098 \|Aurora_Abdi \|1\|Switzerland 2:41.65\|4\|4\|91(0)\|000001518 \|Susan_Ramirez \|1\|USA 2:41.72\|4\|4\|91(0)\|000045870 \|Marie_Steggall \|1\|Austria 2:41.74\|4\|4\|90(0)\|000007725 \|Doriane_Durand \|1\|France 2:41.95\|5\|5\|88(0)\|000023932 \|Emma_Lavoie \|1\|Canada 2:41.96\|4\|5\|90(0)\|000009897 \|Lina_Becker \|1\|Germany 2:41.98\|4\|5\|90(0)\|000023938 \|Sophia_Roy \|1\|Canada 2:42.08\|4\|5\|91(0)\|000009895 \|Sofia_Schmidt \|1\|Germany 2:42.16\|4\|5\|90(0)\|000007715 \|Marion_Coron \|1\|France 2:42.16\|5\|5\|86(0)\|000009888 \|Lina_Hoffmann \|1\|Germany 2:42.16\|5\|5\|86(0)\|000013975 \|Maja_Svensson \|1\|Sweden 2:42.21\|3\|5\|94(0)\|000045900 \|Hannah_Wiesner \|1\|Austria 2:42.26\|4\|5\|90(0)\|000074203 \|Sara_Kotnik \|1\|Slovenia 2:42.32\|4\|5\|90(0)\|000034994 \|Linnea_Hansen \|1\|Norway 2:42.32\|5\|5\|89(0)\|000013992 \|Nilla_Olsson \|1\|Sweden 2:42.35\|5\|5\|88(0)\|000001519 \|Isabella_Cox \|1\|USA 2:42.48\|3\|5\|93(0)\|000045847 \|Nina_Fiser \|1\|Austria 2:42.49\|5\|5\|87(0)\|000058381 \|Fata_Kovac \|1\|Croatia 2:42.50\|4\|5\|90(0)\|000045858 \|Claudia_Shiegl \|1\|Austria 2:42.54\|4\|5\|91(0)\|000032089 \|Ladina_Inler \|1\|Switzerland 2:42.56\|4\|5\|92(0)\|000004191 \|Olga_Sokolov \|1\|Russia 2:42.57\|5\|5\|88(0)\|000001555 \|Abigail_Gomez \|1\|USA 2:42.58\|5\|5\|86(0)\|000009890 \|Mia_Becker \|1\|Germany 2:42.72\|5\|5\|89(0)\|000032032 \|Milena_Neumann \|1\|Switzerland 2:42.73\|5\|5\|87(0)\|000074199 \|Lucija_Potocnik \|1\|Slovenia 2:42.82\|5\|6\|89(0)\|000012188 \|Melania_Russo \|1\|Italy 2:42.83\|5\|6\|87(0)\|000074153 \|Eva_Bizjak \|1\|Slovenia 2:42.90\|5\|6\|88(0)\|000004183 \|Anastasia_Petrov \|1\|Russia 2:43.04\|4\|6\|92(0)\|000032112 \|Elina_Spycher \|1\|Switzerland 2:43.15\|4\|6\|90(0)\|000009859 \|Joern_Schneider \|1\|Germany 2:43.23\|5\|6\|88(0)\|000001546 \|Olivia_Green \|1\|USA 2:43.25\|6\|6\|85(0)\|000004192 \|Dariya_Vasilyev \|1\|Russia 2:43.27\|5\|6\|86(0)\|000036681 \|Simona_Katetov \|1\|Czech_Republic 2:43.30\|5\|6\|87(0)\|000012178 \|Giulia_De_Luca \|1\|Italy 2:43.31\|5\|6\|86(0)\|000007747 \|Jade_Joubert \|1\|France 2:43.38\|5\|6\|87(0)\|000009892 \|Monika_Meyer \|1\|Germany 2:43.42\|5\|6\|88(0)\|000012181 \|Giorgia_Colombo \|1\|Italy 2:43.44\|5\|6\|86(0)\|000013977 \|Alice_Johansson \|1\|Sweden 2:43.66\|6\|6\|85(0)\|000034992 \|Sahra_Johnasen \|1\|Norway 2:43.69\|5\|6\|89(0)\|000001523 \|Maria_Myers \|1\|USA 2:43.72\|6\|7\|84(0)\|000041950 \|Jessica_Singh \|1\|New_Zealand 2:43.72\|7\|7\|78(0)\|000070456 \|Julia_Leifsdottir \|1\|Iceland 2:43.75\|5\|7\|87(0)\|000012201 \|Giulia_Giordano \|1\|Italy 2:43.76\|5\|7\|89(0)\|000045843 \|Leonie_Pirktl \|1\|Austria 2:43.79\|5\|7\|87(0)\|000001468 \|Margaret_Carter \|1\|USA 2:43.85\|6\|7\|85(0)\|000007768 \|Doriane_Galopin \|1\|France 2:44.35\|6\|7\|85(0)\|000007767 \|Marion_Morel \|1\|France 2:44.38\|5\|7\|89(0)\|000058385 \|Nika_Turk \|1\|Croatia 2:44.39\|6\|7\|85(0)\|000023925 \|Ava_Smith \|1\|Canada 2:44.50\|5\|7\|86(0)\|000014010 \|Lotta_Lindberg \|1\|Sweden 2:44.51\|6\|7\|84(0)\|000071328 \|Mia_Schneider \|1\|Liechtenstein 2:44.54\|6\|7\|85(0)\|000058402 \|Lara_Kovac \|1\|Croatia 2:44.72\|7\|8\|77(0)\|000006068 \|Isla_Smith \|1\|Great_Britain 2:44.96\|6\|8\|85(0)\|000058398 \|Dragica_Zupancic \|1\|Croatia 2:45.06\|7\|8\|79(0)\|000070452 \|Karen_Vilhjalmsdottir \|1\|Iceland 2:45.35\|6\|8\|82(0)\|000017680 \|Isabella_Carter \|1\|Australia 2:45.44\|7\|8\|80(0)\|000040530 \|Vasiliki_Panousis \|1\|Greece 2:45.46\|7\|8\|79(0)\|000049631 \|Ruby_Doyle \|1\|Ireland [END Year 1, Chapter 4]* As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week...Bobsled time! (Also, have not had any time to squash the aforementioned bugs...that's still an ongoing problem Last edited by SecretAgentMan : 05-01-2022 at 08:45 AM.

05-01-2022, 11:44 AM	#80
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	Looks like good results based upon the skill levels as they seem to both be bottom 4 athletes at this discipline

05-07-2022, 08:28 PM	#81
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	No update for "Iceland is Nice" this week. My wife and I were expecting a baby to be due on June 15, and she came early and was born last night. This thread will return soon, but not this weekend!

05-07-2022, 10:18 PM	#82
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	congrats

05-09-2022, 07:44 AM	#83
Chas in Cinti High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Cincinnati, OH	Congrats! SecretAgentMansdottir? __________________ Email: [email protected]

05-09-2022, 06:45 PM	#84
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	Congratulations! __________________ Up the Posh!

05-15-2022, 01:01 PM	#88
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	Okay, I was apparently too ambitious in assuming I would get something done this week. This thread will be off again this week, and I will try to get back into things next Sunday.

05-15-2022, 01:35 PM	#89
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	no worries, we all understand

05-22-2022, 03:43 PM	#90
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	Because I like to be consistent about this, I'm going to make another Sunday post to say no update this week, either. Baby is finally coming home this week (she has been in hospital for 15 days bc of being premature), so things have been a little bit hectic. Maybe next Sunday I will have a new story post....either way, I will have an update.

05-22-2022, 08:28 PM	#91
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	good to hear

05-23-2022, 03:02 AM	#92
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	Glad the baby is home! __________________ Up the Posh!

05-23-2022, 09:14 AM	#93
Chas in Cinti High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Cincinnati, OH	Family first! Good to hear she's coming home. __________________ Email: [email protected]

05-29-2022, 01:03 PM	#94
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	Another week with no story post, mainly due to having a newborn finally home. Will try again next week!

05-29-2022, 01:22 PM	#95
stevew Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: the yo'	I'm annoyed every time that this thread is not entitled Iceland is Niceland

05-29-2022, 01:34 PM	#96
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	still no worries

05-31-2022, 12:30 AM	#97
ntndeacon Pro Starter Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Alabama	Newborn at home is a great update!!!! We'll get back to Iceland soon enough! __________________ Up the Posh!

06-05-2022, 05:31 PM	#99
SecretAgentMan n00b Join Date: Feb 2022	Year 1, Chapter 5- Whistler While You Work "Greenland is Ice, but Iceland is Nice" -D2: The Mighty Ducks We were on the ground and out of the office once again. Today, it was the first weekend in November, and Katja and I were in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. In 2010 it had been the site of the Winter Games, but today it was hosting an event in the North American Cup, the smaller of Bobsleigh's two minor circuits. Many people mingled around the track, including near the starting gate, which was where we currently were stationed as part of the first ever Icelandic delegation at a women's Bobsleigh event. It was exciting, but I kept reminding myself to temper the enthusiasm with some reality. I thought back to the conversation I had had with Gunther Schuller, our German coach, earlier in the week. "Okay, so 17 competitors signed up....what are we realistically hoping for?" I had probed, wanting to know if this crazy endeavor had any hope of working. "First off...." he said, speaking in English for my benefit with a slightly halted German accent. "Ignore what happens with the American and Canadian teams. They will...what is the expression you Americans use....wipe the floor with us." "Lovely" I muttered. "The best European countries send their developmental sleds to the European Cup, and we are not going to be able to compete with them right off the bat, so the hope is that we will stand up better with the North American Cup, which have some really strong American and Canadian teams, and then everyone else in the world who is hoping to eventually break into the World Cup." He paused. "I told the girls that we should be happy if we beat somebody." "And will we?" I asked hopefully. He paused again. "We'll see." So now it was time to start, and time to see what the actual reality would bear out. **** A short while later, it was time. We were 12th to start, and it was pretty clear that nobody outside of North America had a realistic chance of a medal. We were focusing on the Irish squad, which had come down the track in the slowest time thus far (57.088), as well as the Chilean squad, which had yet to run. I could see Katla and Emilia in the starting gate. They were still, though it was impossible to tell if that meant they were nervous or relaxed, given that their faces were hidden beneath a helmet. Their hands hovered over the pushbar, then I heard Katla bark out the start cadence. EINN....TVEIR.....ÞRIR........FARA! They pushed and sprinted down the chute, and hopped into the sled with what I thought was a surprising ease. I had a chance to sneak a peak at Coach Gunther's face, and his expression seemed proud. So that had been a good start! Unfortunately, his expression wouldn't hold their long. They made a pretty clear mistake, obvious enough that I even I could tell, in Turn 1, going high up into the turn before overcorrecting and skidding too far to the other side of the lane and bumping the wall. That would slow down a lot of speed, unfortunately, and it was evident even from the video boards that Emilia and Katla were not generating the kind of speed that most sleds had. A few more mistakes occurred as they continued down the track, but the damage had been done early. They crossed the line just a short minute later in 57.130, putting us into a last place 12th. 5 more sleds came down over the next few minutes, and each was faster than that, including the aforementioned Chilean sled. So, unfortunately, it looked like 17th (last) place was where things were going to stand after the first run. One more run to go, though, so we had to hope for some improvement. ** An hour later, and we were back in the gate. This time, we were going first, because we were currently sitting in 17th place. Once more, Katla barked out the countdown, and once more the start looked solid. The first curve, thankfully, went a little bit better. Still too high, but no overcorrection. Turn 3 looked similar, but Turns 4 and 5 seemed good. Turn 6 was once again a bit high, and it was becoming clear that small mistakes were starting to add up. By the time the ladies got to the bottom, they had lost a lot of potential time....but it turns out, NOT as much as Run #1. At 57.096, they had improved, and that was a step in the right direction! I chatted with Katja, and we were both pleased at the improvement. We were so caught up in conversation that we almost missed a huge development. Ireland had scuffed up the first turn pretty badly! They banged into the wall and struggled to right themselves before continuing down the track. Immediately, our eyes shot to the scoreboard. There was time check coming up. It was.....green. That meant they were ahead, but they still didn't appear to be gaining much speed. Our eyes glued to the screen, we waited for the next time check....still green. But they were dropping time! We watched each of the next two time checks, as Ireland kept coming back towards our sled, even though they were still in the lead. The finish line was approaching. We waited with baited breath. Red! We had done it, and beaten a team! Ireland had crossed the line 17 hundredths of a second behind Iceland! I threw my arms in the air and hugged Katja, and Gunther pumped his fist. On the video screen, we saw Katja and Emilia in the leaders' chairs, hugging each other in celebration! ** It was a small triumph, obviously. Kajta and Emilia still finished 16th out of 17 teams on the day. But they had indeed beaten someone in their first bobsleigh competition, and that was something to celebrate. There were still two more competitions to be had in Whistler that weekend, but for this Friday night, Iceland was celebrating its' first small victory! [END Year 1, Chapter 5]** As always, remember that you can help improve Iceland's fortunes! With any comments you make on this post, you get Dynasty Points that you can spend at a later date to increase Iceland's budget. I update this thread once each week! Next week...back in the office for November results to come trickling in! (Also, have not had any time to squash the aforementioned bugs...that's still an ongoing problem Last edited by SecretAgentMan : 06-05-2022 at 05:33 PM.

06-05-2022, 07:03 PM	#100
DavidCorperial High School Varsity Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Stamford, CT	Huge result