HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1993-03-24, Page 3Luge racing: exhausting,
by Pat Livingston
He calls it "mentally exhausting"
-but Luge racing for Donald Andrew,
of Lucknow, is also exhilarating.
That feeling is evident as he
explains the sport and talks about
his third place finish in the senior
men's division (over 19) at the
1993 North American Champion-
ship Naturbahn Luge Races in early
March, at Negaunee, Michigan.
Donald's first exposure - to luge
came in 1984 when the Alberta
Sports Council introduced it at the
Alberta Winter Games. An Alberta
resident at the time, hee said he
could relate luging to his toboggan
days in Ontario and he fit the bill -
"a warm body to get on a sled."
The sport also twigged his com-
petitive nature.
Over the years he continued to
sharpen his skills at the sport. In
1990 he took a secondplace in the
Master Men's (over 40) category at
the Drummond International Com-
petition and a first in the North
American competition.
Luge, a traditional European
sport, uses a two runnered sled to
race down a snow or ice course.
There are two types' of luge racing -
natural track (naturbahn) which
takes place on an ice or snow
covered road; and artificial track,
which is the Olympian version,
which takes place on an ice track
formed with vertically banked
corners. Mr. Andrew is a natural
luge racer.
Luge racers need to be in good
physical condition and have a clear
mind focused on one thing only -
the course - as they start on a
speedy descent. Mr. Andrew es-
timates that 60 to 70 per cent of the
sport is mental. The course at
Negaunee, for example, is 800
meters or about one-half mile in
length, with a vertical drop of 88
meters or about 289 feet. The
average decline is 11 per cent over
the entire track, with a maximum
decline of approximately 24 per
cent in the final turn. The track has
29 curves to manoeuvre. Travelling
at speeds of up to 48 km/hour, a
racer must focus entirely on the
course and envision his trip from
top to bottom.
In natural luge, the slider can use
braking (cleats on shoes) to
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exhilarating
manoeuvre the sled and there. is a
rein to assist in steering. Ap-
proaching the flat, unbanked corners
after straight-aways, the slider must
sit up and brake, steer with the rein,
and use body motion to carve a line
around the comer. The- braking
element allows the slider greater
control over their speed, thus the
beginner need go no faster than
their ability permits. After the
corner, the slider resumes the
horizontal position to accelerate to
the next corner.
On artificial track (Olympic style)
the slider uses the banked walls to
carry 'them around the corner and
subtle body movements for steering,
Donald says the sleds are basic
but each is personalized by the
slider to his/her style and/or skill.
The adrenalin rush and physical
strain leave him breathless when he
finishes a run, but Donald shoulders
his 14 kg sled. and begins the walk
back up for another run. "I have a
feeling of accomplishment when, I
get to the bottom. I've gone as fast
as I dared to go - to my limit. I
increase my limits as I become
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Lucknow Sentinel, Wednesday, March 24, 1993 - Page 3
Donald Andrew demonstrates one of the positions he would
assume on his sled as he hurtles down a natural track. Donald
took a third place finish in the 1993 North American Champion-
ship Naturbahn Luge Race at Negaunee, Michigan, earlier this
month. (Pat Livingston photo)
familiar with the track and as my
skills improve."
Summing up Donald says, luge is
a sport where the slider intimately
lc oyes ,him/henelf, the track. and
their sled.
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