Abstract
The aim of this chapter is to give a complete overview about the bobsleigh (or bobsled) and the related discipline of skeleton. Although not the focus of the chapter, some analyses will also be extended to luge. Before starting to analyze specific topics about these sports, it is interesting to give a brief introduction about the history of these disciplines.
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Notes
- 1.
A toboggan is a simple sled which is a traditional form of transport used by the Innu and Cree of northern Canada. The big difference with respect to the most part of sleds is that it has no runners nor skis on the underside, but it rides directly on the snow. The traditional toboggan is made of bound, parallel wood slats, all bent forward at the front to form a sideways “J” shape.
- 2.
Due to velocity and relatively few protection devices, the safety of the track is really critical. As an example, one can remember the fatal accident happened to the 21 years old Georgian luge athlete Nodar Kumaritashvili during the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games in 2010: the high velocity of the luge, in this case around 140 km/h, and a wrong trajectory in a bend brought off road the sled. The luge, running off the track, crashed against a not-protected pole on the side of the track, causing the athlete death few hours later.
- 3.
We neglect the very first part of the race, when the athletes are pushing the sled: this velocity is considered at race time zero, 15 m after start.
- 4.
Just to have an idea of the Reynold’s number value, one can use the values proposed in [10] (or [39]), where for \(Re = \frac{\rho vL} {\mu }\) it is assumed: air density \(\rho = 1.22\,\mathrm{kg/m}^{3}\), air dynamic viscosity \(\mu = 1.79 \times 10^{-5}\,\mathrm{Pa}\,\mathrm{s}\), velocity \(v = 35\,\mathrm{m/s}\) and the athlete length L = 1. 75 m, resulting in Re = 4 × 106. This value of the Reynold’s number identify a turbulent air regime around the athlete.
- 5.
Only France, Austria, Switzerland, and Germany take part in these competitions.
- 6.
In fact, due to the roll motion of the bobsled approaching a turn, the athletes perceive a compression force, that is normal to the ground.
- 7.
In [24] a similar concept of optimal trajectory is defined, with a more sophisticated mathematical approach. In [24] it is proved that this kind of optimality does not necessary correspond with best performances. In fact each driver has a totally different way of drive, less or more aggressive with respect to the steering action, and the best athletes are able to change their style during the run, adapting it to the track and the velocity of the sled.
- 8.
This track is part of the Utah Olympic Park. It was completed in December 1996, the track length is 1680 m roughly, with a vertical drop of 120 m and 15 curves.
- 9.
One may refer to [58].
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Sabbioni, E., Melzi, S., Cheli, F., Braghin, F. (2016). Bobsleigh and Skeleton. In: Braghin, F., Cheli, F., Maldifassi, S., Melzi, S., Sabbioni, E. (eds) The Engineering Approach to Winter Sports. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-3020-3_7
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