Bobsleigh from A to Z: Useful Information You Need to Know

Bobsleigh is an Olympic kind of sport that is represented by timed runs down specially equipped ice tracks in gravity-powered sleds that are also known bobsleds. Bobsleigh is one of the most unique sports because there is no other kind of sport that was even a bit similar to it. That is why it is extremely necessary to know all the rules that govern this kind of sport.

Equipment and Athletes

Bobsled

It is not difficult to guess that bobsleds are the most important piece of equipment that is necessary for the given kind of sport. The first bobsled ever appeared in 1904 and it was wooden. More than 100 years have passed, and the bobsled design has changed a lot.

Modern bobsleds are made of an all-metal body of a stream-line form (to contribute to better aerodynamic features of the implement) with two pairs of runners. The set of front runners is moveable and it is connected with the wheel. The set of rear runners, on its turn, is fixed and equipped with brakes.

Although the number of athletes for a single bob used to vary from 2 to 5 (in some cases, a bobsleigh team consisted of three male and two female athletes), the modern state of affairs has a fixed nature. Thus, there are 2-man and 4-man bobsleds. With this, every bob should meet the following requirements:

• 2-man bobs – their length should be maximum 2.7 meters, while a maximum weight is 165 kilos (the weight of a crew should not overcome 200 kilos);
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• 4-man bobs – their length should be no more than 3.8 meters, a maximum allowed weight is 230 kilos (the crew should not weigh more than 400 kilos).

There are a few other rules, some of which, for example, refers to the chemical composition of the runners (thus, they should not include radium elements), their temperature, the use of lubricating compounds (it is prohibited), special parameters, weighing procedure, and so on and so forth.

To tell the truth, some new requirements that must be met by equipment can change with every year. In 2011, for instance, it was mentioned that the bobsled runners might be made of special materials that had been specially certified at particular plants. With this, every set of runners should bear a serial number. Prior to the beginning of every official run, corresponding officials check this number to identify whether the given piece of equipment can participate in the event.

In addition, important attention is paid to the number of runners used by a certain group of athletes during a single season. This is done, among others, to make it possible all the competitors are in almost the same conditions.

Technical improvements of the bobsleds are performed with due respect to the newest achievements of scientific and technical progress. With this, they are understandably controlled by weighting and dimension limitations that are taken out from international regulations for 2-man and 4-man bobsleds.

Track

It is clear that bobsleds need a track to travel across. That is why tracks are another important element for the given kind of sport. Bobsleigh tracks are made of concrete in a form of gutter that is covered with ice. This construction should be firm and stable enough because a track consists of a few bends and curves.

Nowadays, there are also particular requirements applied to bobsleigh tracks. Thus, they should be 1500-2000 meters long; there should be about 15 curves with a minimum radius of 8 meters; the elevation difference should be 130-150 meters.

While moving down, a bobsled can gain a speed of about 135 km/hour just in 60 seconds. Paying attention to this fact, it is clear that it is not an easy task for the athletes to be within a bobsled. To be more exact, they feel four times bigger force of gravity while going down.

Despite the information stated above, the length of tacks, the elevation difference between start and finish, and the number of curves and bends are not stable meaning they can differ from event to event. Thus, a bobsleigh track was 2366 meters long at the 1932 Olympic Games, the elevation level was 228 meters, and there were 26 bends and curves. On the other hand, the 1994 Olympic Games saw bobsleigh competitions take place at a 1365-meter track with a 107-meter elevation level. With this, there were only 16 bends and curves.

Athletes

A bobsleigh crew consists of a pilot (a person who is directly responsible for guiding his bob) and brakeman (this person occupies the back place and he is responsible for using the brakes). This is the full make-up of a 2-man crew.

When it comes to 4-man crews, however, the two athletes mentioned above are also joined by two pushers who are responsible for taking a run. In addition, they should contribute to maintaining an equilibrium of the implement by moving their bodies in a corresponding side during a sleigh.

With this, it should be clear that bobsleigh athletes should have special uniforms. These items should both protect these athletes from freezing conditions (but not contribute to overheating) and breathe. At the same time, this uniform should be light enough. To meet all these requirements at the same time, a special material is used. Thanks to it, bobsleigh athletes feel comfort in extreme temperature and atmospheric conditions even over long periods of time.

Also, it is necessary to tell a few words about helmets and their importance for the athletes. Its significance becomes even greater if we take into account that some bobsleigh athletes often beat their heads against the track. They are currently made of a special material that is not heavy and features perfect shock-absorption qualities.

As for the foot-wear for bobsleigh, its soles should be equipped with cleats for better push out of the ice. With this, these cleats should meet the following requirements:

• thickness – at least 1 mm;
• length – at least 4 mm;
• distance between one another – 3 mm.

As they say, the difference is in details.

Official Rules

When it comes to the Olympics, each crew should perform 4 sleighs. With this, every country can be represented by no more than 2 crews. To make it as fair as possible, the order of sleighs is always determined with the help of the random draw. When an event is over, the results of all the sleighs are summed up to determine a winning crew.

The bobsleigh results are determined by the speed a crew managed to gain at the initial part of the run. Thus, an event is won by a crew who managed to spend the lowest amount of time to perform all 4 sleighs. While at sleighing, the result depends mainly on a pilot, on his ability to choose an optimal trajectory to overcome a track and its numerous curves with the minimal loss of speed.

History

Bobsleigh appeared thanks to an English tourist, Wilson Smith, who combined two sheds and a board in 1888. With the help of that implement, he moved down from St. Moritz to Celerina. By the end of the 19th century, the first bobsleigh club was established, and the first official rules were created.

In 1903, the first bobsleigh track with a distance of about 1500 meter was constructed in St. Moritz, and the bobsled was invented. In 1923, the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) was created; this body is currently dealing with developing the given kind of sport.