Tag: Bobsleigh

The conclusion of an adventure-filled weekend was a bobsledding ride. My conversation with Dan regarding bobsledding was pretty much the same as ice climbing. I had sent a list of cool Alberta things to do and he responded: “The bobsled ride is $169. Personally, I’m willing to fork that over for 60 seconds of adrenaline.” Canada Olympic Park (COP) in Calgary, site of the 1988 Winter Olympics, has a bobsleigh, luge and skeleton track. You may remember this track from the film Cool Runnings, and that movie made bobsledding look so fun! So with that, bobsledding was booked for the same weekend as ice climbing. What’s the appeal? I was buying what they were selling: 1 professional driver. 14 turns. A max speed of 120 km/h. A pull of 5 Gs. All in 60 seconds. Sold.

We arrived at the bobsleigh start house at the top of COP, signed in, signed waivers, and waited for the professional drivers to say their thing. They began by telling us what we could expect- the first three turns would feel like a glorified toboggan ride, but it would pick up after that. We’d hit a bunch of turns, a straight section, some more turns, and then the end (…it was a little more detailed than that explanation). We could also expect our head to possibly bounce a bit from side to side, and the force of 5Gs would feel like pressure pushing right down on our heads. NBD. No big deal, right? But not NBD! I’m quite an adventurous guy, and for some reason, it’s fairly uncommon for me to feel the level of nervousness that I felt while waiting for our bobsledding experience. We were in sled number 4, so as we waited for those 20 minutes or so, my nervousness kept increasing. I thought, what’s this sensation I’m feeling?!? Am I scared? I think I was! Being fitted for a helmet made me a little bit more at ease, but not by much.

Then it was time. Some random guy was at the back, then Dan, then me, then the professional driver. And then we were off. To be honest, I can’t even give a play-by-play of what happened. Yes, the first few turns felt like a nice glorified toboggan ride. Then the speed picked up. Before I knew it, turns were coming and going (you couldn’t even separate or distinguish the turns in order to count out 14); my helmet was knocking the sides of the bobsled; my head was being pushed down due to the force; the track zoomed by in my peripheral vision; and then ice was flying in my face as the brakes were pulled. All in 60 seconds. I believe we hit a speed of 119 km/h- awesome! When it was done, you could hear Dan and I giggling and laughing. The adrenaline rush was intense. I was so wobbly and almost tumbled coming out of the bobsled. It was an incredible experience!!!…. then I kind of felt like I was going to vomit. And that sensation lasted for quite a while. And then I had a headache for the majority of the evening. However, I did get a special commemorative COP toque. It was all totally worth the toque. 

The moral of the story: For me, 119 km/h, 14 turns and a force of 5Gs all in 60 seconds will induce a nice vomiting sensation, which may or may not have anything to do with having a full breakfast, a coffee, a cappuccino and a muffin earlier in the day. But whatever my stomach is feeling, it doesn’t detract from an absolutely incredible bobsleigh ride! Dan- it was great to share this adventurous experience with you. The other moral of the story? Like ice climbing, this is another must try for all. As I conclude the weekend, I can now cross off two more items from my 31 before 31 list. Whoohoo! Time to plan the next adventure…