The organized sport of bobsledding was invented and actively pursued by Americans in the area surrounding Albany, New York. As early as 1882, the Albany Bobbing (Coasting) Association was organized to oversee the many clubs in the process of forming. The city’s bobsledding events quickly became a craze, attracting literally thousands of spectators and participants.

In 1897, the first bobsled club was founded in St. Moritz, Switzerland, spurring the growth of the sport in winter resorts throughout Europe. By 1914, bobsled races were taking place on a wide variety of natural ice courses. The first racing sleds were made of wood but were soon replaced by steel sleds that came to be known as bobsleds, so named because of the way crews bobbed back and forth to increase their speed on straight-aways.

In 1923, the Federation Inernationale de Bobsleigh et de Tobogganing (FIBT) was founded, and the following year a four-man race took place at the first ever Winter Olympics in 1924 in Chamonix, France. A two-man event was added at the 1932 Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, a format that has remained to the present. Bobsled racing began largely as an activity for the rich and adventurous who gathered at alpine resorts for weekends of competition and partying. There was no such thing as training. Competitors simply bought or rented a sled, started out as a rider and then took the wheel after a few runs.

By the 1950s, however, the sport as we know it today had begun to take shape. As the critical importance of the start was recognized, strong, fast athletes in other sports were drawn to bobsledding. Track and field competitors, handballers, gymnasts and others who could deliver a vigorous push at the start were much sought after. In 1952, a critical rule change limiting the total weight of crew and sled ended the era of the super heavyweight bobsledder and sealed the future of the sport as an athletic contest of the highest caliber. More athletic crews went hand-in-hand with advances in sleds and tracks. Today, the world’s top teams train year-round and compete mostly on artificial ice tracks in sleek, high-tech sleds make of fiberglass and steel. Until the advent of World Cup competition in the mid-1980s, bobsled success was determined solely by performance at the Olympic, World and European Championships. Since its inception, however, the World Cup series has added an exciting new dimension to the sport where versatility on different tracks and season-long consistency are rewarded.

By far the most successful bobsledding nations have been Switzerland and Germany. The Swiss have won more medals in Olympic, World and European Championships than any other nation. East Germany emerged as the sport’s major powerhouse in the mid-1970s with its emphasis on sled design and construction. Since reunification, German bobsledders have remained a formidable group, winning numerous Olympic medals and World Championship titles since 1990. Italy has a long and successful track record in the sport, particularly from the mid-1950s to late-1960s. Austria has also had its share of shining moments.

From the small core of alpine nations that originally embraced bobsledding, the sport has since expanded around the world to include countries such as Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and now, Israel.

SOURCE: www.fibt.com

Sleds - Sleek, shiny and bullet-like with tapered fins both fore and aft, the sleds themselves are often the central attraction for spectators and participants alike at Olympic bobsled competitions. The 2-man sled measures about 10 feet from end to end versus about 12 feet for the 4-man sled. Most bobsleds are composed of a steel chassis and fiberglass body riding on two sets of steel runners, moveable in front and stationary in the rear. The body is actually in two parts - with the joint just in front of the driver - so that the sled can bend with the curves and be more easily maneuvered. The fin-like projections are actually bumpers to protect the sled from slamming against the walls and have little or no aerodynamic value. The brake is nothing more than a steel, rake-like arm that when the brakeman pulls up on a lever, drops down from the belly of the sled to claw at the ice and slow the vehicle.

There are, of course, big weight differences between the two types of sleds. Weighing about 500 pounds (227 Kg) empty, the 4-man sled cannot exceed 1,388 pounds (630 Kg) with all four athletes aboard. Two-man sled weighs about 385 pounds (175 Kg), the two occupants cannot add more than an additional 473 pounds (215 Kg). The difference in weight and length has tremendous bearing on the sled's racing behaviors.

"One drives like a dune buggy", says a coach for the U.S. Team, "and the other like a Cadillac." The lighter weight, 2-man sled is less stable and can get into trouble faster on the track, but it is also more responsive to the driver. The heavier 4-man sled, on the other hand, is smoother and glides better. But if it starts to tip or skid, the big sled can quickly become uncontrollable.

Runner design and development is another important area in the sport. A sled builder can select from a million different combinations of alloy composition, forging techniques and shape design to produce a batch of steel runners. Yet within any particular group, one set of runners might be fast in cold, dry conditions and another set may be snail slow in anything but warm, wet conditions. A fast set of runners can cost around U$ 5,000. Sled costs? A 2-man Olympic -caliber sled carries a price tag of about U$18,000. The 4-man costs between U$ 20,000 and U$ 25,000. But prototypes built by wealth, technologically minded countries can cost a half-million dollars or more to develop.

Racing Gear - All bobsledders must wear helmets, and most choose top-of-the-line motorcycle helmets with goggles instead of face shields because goggles fog up less. Their body suits are typically made of Lycra with polyurethane coating to minimize wind resistance. To aid in the push starts, athletes wear special shoes with hundreds of needlelike spikes on the soles to give added traction on the ice. Most drivers wear gloves, although some prefer bare hands to feel the steering ropes better. Some riders wear elbow knee, shoulder and neck pads under their racing suits for safety purposes.

SOURCE: www.fibt.com

To begin a race, the team members take their positions beside the sled and grasp the push bars, slide the sled a step forward, then back, and then with all their might heave forward and push it for a good 50 meters. In a 2-man sled, the driver jumps in first, followed by the brakeman. Getting aboard quickly, smoothly, and without rocking the sled is difficult and takes plenty of team practice. A strong push start can make the critical difference in a bobsled competition. Experts have determined that a sled, which is 1/10 of a second faster in the start can shave _ to 1/3 of a second off of its total time.

During a race, only the driver watches the track. The other slider keeps his head down to minimize wind resistance. Should the sled overturn, most coaches instruct their sliders to try to remain in the sled and maintain the heads-down racing posture. At such high speeds the sled can actually protect the athletes from ice burns and injury. It takes a nervy driver, quick reflexes, and steady concentration to guide a speeding bobsled down a trough of gleaming white ice. The smallest error can decide a race.

SOURCE: www.fibt.com

The standard length of a bobsled track is approximately 1.500 m (one mile) of curving troughs of ice with sharply banked turns. The ice is manufactured using a network of refrigeration pipes beneath the track. These usually contain an ammonia based coolant that freezes water sprayed on the surface. During an event, track surface grooming and repair are important because the heavy sleds tend to rut and chip the ice. Attendants shovel filler slush onto rough spots, smoothing the areas out with trowels before the filler freezes.

All tracks drop a minimum specified vertical distance and each has its own unique characteristics and elements of technical difficulty. Tracks also have uniform lighting, race clock, athlete warm-up areas, sled work areas, first-aid and press centers, start and finish buildings, as well as solar/weather protection covering sensitive areas of the track from damage from the sun. The cost to build an ice track is close to U$ 30 million.

SOURCE: www.fibt.com