This audio postcard captures that moment as a kid when sledding down a hill is the ultimate thrill ride. (Photo by Lester Graham)
There’s a lot of talk about the effects of global warming. But on a
recent frigid night, kids were thinking only of the cold and the thrill
of sledding down a hill. Producer Kyle Norris squeezed into the back of
a couple of sleds with the kids. She has this audio postcard
of the experience:
Transcript
There’s a lot of talk about the effects of global warming. But on a
recent frigid night, kids were thinking only of the cold and the thrill
of sledding down a hill. Producer Kyle Norris squeezed into the back of
a couple of sleds with the kids. She has this audio postcard
of the experience:
“My name is Kayli Mills and I’m twelve years old. Right now we’re
sledding and we’re actually snowboarding because last year we didn’t
really get to do much. It’s dark right now and it’s really fun to do it
in the dark not only is the hill clear, but um, and it’s quiet and
everything but it’s just really fun when you really can’t see much.”
“We’re getting on the sled and you want to sit how it’s most
comfortable to you because you don’t want to fall off, for sure,
especially with two people. Um, I’m sitting just on my butt but with my
legs hanging off. But I’m going to go on my knees in a second when we
take off, just doing this so that the sled doesn’t take off on its
own.”
(Sounds of sledding down the hill)
“Isn’t that fun? Go C.J.!”
“My name is C.J. and I’m nine years old. I smell snow and woods and
we’re at the bottom of Slauson Hill ’cause we just went down and it’s
really dark out and the clouds are white and the sky it blue. Well,
it’s creepy kind of cause, cause it’s a really steep hill.”
(Sounds of the sled thrown down on snow)
“We just sat down and we’ll probably go pretty fast but I don’t know.”
(Sounds of sledding)
“That was fun. That was really fun.”
(Kayli): “Definitely the wind in your hair is the best part….”
(C.J.): “It makes your cheek red when you go down like about five times
cause the wind blows into your cheeks really hard.”
(Kayli): “I’d say that if you look at the sky it’s very, very
beautiful I think even more than the day could even be. I mean, there’s
not really a sunset but you can kind of see the colors fading in from a
blue to a pink a yellow to a blue it’s almost like a rainbow but the
whole clouds are just a rainbow, dark skies. It’s very pretty right
now.”
(Sound of sled fades out).
Host tag: Those were the sounds of Kayli, C.J., and Austin braving the cold for
an evening sled on Slauson Hill in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The Wipeout sled from McGill University in Montreal gets a push at the start of the Great Northern Concrete Toboggan Race. (Photo by Karen Kelly)
The University of Calgary, Alberta Chuckboggan team heads down the hill fully clothed for this year's event. Traditionally, the team has competed naked. (Photo by Karen Kelly)
The Seamen of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario do the chicken dance with the mascot from Concordia University in Montreal. (Photo by James Kelly)
Every year, engineering students throughout North America hold competitions to test their skills. They build robots and solar cars – combining technical prowess with creative design. In Canada, engineering students have devised their own contest. As the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly reports, their contribution to the engineering world is a toboggan made of concrete:
Transcript
Every year, engineering students throughout North America hold competitions to test their skills.
They build robots and solar cars – combining technical prowess with creative design. In Canada,
engineering students have devised their own contest. As the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s
Karen Kelly reports, their contribution to the engineering world is a toboggan made of concrete:
(sound in gym)
It’s 10 am, Friday morning. The gym at Carleton University in Ottawa is packed with
engineering students. They’ve arrived for the technical exhibition of the Great Northern Concrete
Toboggan Race.
Why concrete?
Because it’s the last thing you’d expect on a sled.
Teams from 14 universities across Canada are here to display their designs – and to show off their
school spirit.
(sound of chanting)
There’s the oompa loompa team wearing overalls and matching green braids.
There’s the Big Fat Greek Tobaggan crew – hanging out in togas beneath a cardboard Parthenon.
And there are the Flaming Fowls, with caps featuring chicken legs made of yellow felt.
But it’s not just about costumes – it’s about the sled…
“So what’s special about your sled?”
“Well, one major thing its covered in feathers. As you can see, we went for a giant chicken.”
Giant as in 300 pounds – complete with a concrete bottom and a papier mache chicken head on
top. Andrew Kwiatkowski is team captain.
“Our running surface, what we did, we made a contour bottom so it’s higher up in the front and as
it goes back, it progressively flattens out so in theory, it will compact the snow and make us ride
faster.”
“Have you tried it out?”
“No, because our brakes – we actually worked on it on Wednesday before coming up. We didn’t
get a chance to test anything.”
The Flaming Fowls are not alone. Most of the sleds will make their inaugural run tomorrow – the
day of the race. Test runs, they say, are too risky. Hit a bump too fast, and the concrete can
crumble.
(sound)
“Well, we’re from university of Waterloo. Our sled’s name is Return of the Sledi, obviously Stars
War theme…”
Dan Roscoe runs a hand over the thick slab of concrete that coats the bottom of his sled. Each
sled is required to have a concrete bottom, a working brake, and room for five passengers.
Roscoe is particularly proud of the Sledi brake, which relies on borrowed parts to cushion the
sudden stop.
“The whole braking unit is riding on the aluminum column there, which at the back has 2 springs
off a Ford Pinto, so hopefully the riders won’t stop as quickly as the brake does.”
The competition offers a reward for best braking system, as well as best design, top speed and
best toboggan aesthetics.
(chanting)
But it’s really not about the prizes. Josh White and Emil Lauren are with Team Oompa Loompa.
And their focus is on having fun.
“It’s an awesome time. Plus, it’s really cool. You get to actually build something and apply what
you learned in class so it’s…and you’ve got to love the challenge. Building something that’s
theoretically impossible like super strong lightweight concrete, a sled out of things a sled
shouldn’t be built out of. It’s kind of fun just meeting that challenge.”
(cross fade with scraping)
The next morning, the teams gather at the top of a local ski hill. They huddle around their sleds,
rubbing them with thick layers of wax.
Carlos Deolivera is captain of Return of the Sledi. His team’s made some last minute safety
adjustments – covering sharp edges with styrofoam.
“So do you think this styrofoam held on by duct tape will actually protect people?”
“It’s a 300 pound toboggan with five riders, it’s not gonna be being cut that’s going to kill ya, it’s
the weight and the momentum of everything hitting ya. It’s just a little bit of safety in a
dangerous sport.”
Nearby is the team for the University of Calgary Chuckboggan – as in chuckwagon. They’re
mourning the loss of their longtime toboggan ritual.
“University of Calgary had a long tradition of nakedness at this competition. So last year we
brought it back, did a fully naked run in Edmonton, and got suspended by the university so this
year there won’t be any nudity, I don’t think. And it’s quite a bit colder here, too, I think.”
(sound of chanting)
The race begins and the crowd chants as the chickenhead tobaggon slides to the top of the 78 foot
hill.
“You guys ready?”
“Never. If we’re not, it doesn’t matter. We’re petrified.”
“You’re petrified?”
“Oh yeah. You can almost say we’re chicken, oh! (groans)”
The fog horn blows and the sled gets a push. The huge chicken slides about ten feet – and then
grinds to a stop.
(ohhh!)
It’s a disappointing finish for the chicken team as they push their sled to the side of the track.
Next up is the University of Calgary’s Chuckboggan.
(horn, then whoosh)
They fly by – fully clothed – and cross the finish line, winning first place. A few minutes later,
the Return of the Sledi grabs second place.
(little sound)
The Flaming Fowls do make it down the hill eventually – pushed by a crowd of other competitors.
But that’s the spirit of this event – in the end, helping a giant chicken cross the finish line is just as
important as whether you win or lose.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Karen Kelly.
Wintertime in the Great Lakes offers exceptional recreational activities – everything
from ice fishing, to skiing, to snowshoeing. But if the dare-devil sport of luge
captured your imagination during the recent Winter Olympics, you’ll be glad to
know that you, yourself, can take a run. While there are only four luge facilities in
the entire country, the Great Lakes region is home to three of them. The Great
Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson visited one, and has this report:
This audio postcard captures that moment as a kid when sledding down a hill is the ultimate thrill ride. (Photo by Lester Graham)
