Holmenkollen

We could see the ski jump up on the hill from downtown and I guess we realized that meant that it would have a great view back of the city, too. Our CityPasses were good on the T-Bane and we were hoping it might be air conditioned (nope). We took the subway out to the closest stop, then walked the rest of the way up the hill (warm, but not too far).

M convinced me to ride in the simulator (this may have been her scheme all along), which included both a ski jump (over very quickly) and a downhill race (which is more exciting and takes a lot longer). Of course, the downhill was something I could actually relate to, which made it particularly neat for me.

Ski jumps share some basic geometry and characteristics, but this still proved quite the contrast to Lillehammer. Jumps are somewhat limited by the size of the hill on which they're built - if you need more height, you have to raise the in-run higher off the ground. While this jump has a long history, this  structure was completely redone a few years ago.

Besides the simulator, there is a small museum and ticket facility at the base, and then you ride to the top on an inclined lift. As at Lillehammer, there is a great view down the in-run, but unlike at Lillehammer it wasn't set up for summer training jumps. Walking up another level provided a 360° viewing platform - with an outlook that took in all of Oslo.