First, some background:
Here on the UAA Ski Team, we occasionally have situations when the
coaches aren’t available to drive the vans to practice or races. For example, the coach may need to miss a
practice or perhaps the athletes need to drive from the team house to the race
venue, but the coaches are already onsite testing skis so aren't available to drive. For this reason, the
athletic department gives permission for some athletes to drive team
vehicles. To get on the approved list,
however, the athlete must first go through a rigorous screening process. Driving records are perused, references are tracked down and
interviewed. The physical, emotional and
psychological makeup of each prospective driver is assessed. Phone
lines are tapped, e-mails are hacked. CIA, FBI, NSA, BSS and KGB data is
gathered and sent to NASA
for verification, analysis and processing.
In addition, old archived news reports are analyzed to find out if there
could be anything in the prospective driver-athlete’s past which may preclude
them from being the courteous, proficient, defensive driver that their teammates need to get them to practices and races in a safe and timely manner. Usually, these investigations go just
fine. But occasionally they do not.
Take, for instance, the case of Synnøve.
After
hours and hours of intensive, exhaustive internet research, poring over the records of news agencies, television networks and printed media, my minions brought
me this little gem from Norway:
According to a followup news article here, it all worked out OK in the end because the Volkswagen in question had "superinsurance". But the video leaves me with one question: Why was the warning ribbon strung across the street halfway down the hill where it was too late to stop anyone from attempting to drive down it? I bet Synnøve was wondering that, too.
Great post!
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