Luge - Not for the Faint of Heart

Imagine lying flat on your back, feet first, on an open fibreglass sled, as you hurl down an ice track at 125km/h. What might sound like insanity is actually the Olympic winter sport of luge. Luge requires skill, strategy and guts to succeed. Not to mention a phenomenal ice track.

An Olympic Legacy Venue

That’s where Canada Olympic Park’s (COP) 1,500-metre Olympic Track comes in. It’s where German luge great Georg Hackl began his winning streak and the Jamaican Bobsleigh Team won fans worldwide at the 1988 Calgary Olympic Games. Today, the track continues to serve as a world-class competition venue for the sliding sports of bobsleigh, luge and skeleton, including the upcoming FIL Luge World Cup on November 20 and 21, 2009.

What Makes a Great Luge Track?

First of all, ice on a luge track varies between 1” to 3” thick. But, unlike a skating rink, the ice cannot be “flooded” due to the grade and shape of the track. Instead, it requires painstaking work to create the ideal luge environment. “It takes a staff of 12 a week to build the track, applying 150 to 200 coats of water over 1.7km of refrigerated concrete,” explains Steve Reichenbacher, Track Foreman at COP. “The ice is then shaped by hand, exact to the millimetre, using a set of specialty tools that we design and produce ourselves.”

As if that isn’t meticulous enough, the COP ice techs go even further for a World Cup. “World Cup events require a lot of special attention,” affirms Reichenbacher. “Athletes exert up to 4.5Gs of force onto the ice surface, which chips and wears the ice away.” That translates into your body feeling 4.5 times heavier than normal as you accelerate through the track’s biggest corner. Ice damage from this g-force must be repaired, and the ice reshaped to ensure a smooth fast track. “Just before a race, the ice is coated in a combination of hot and cold coats of water. This eliminates frost and creates an even faster surface,” he says.

How Fast is Fast?

And when Reichenbacher says fast, he means fast. Top lugers have hit speeds of 140km/h. At the Calgary World Cup, he expects to see speeds around 125km/h, the odd crash, and post-race celebrations for not only athlete accomplishments, but maybe even a new track record. He also notes that Calgary’s track is considered a driver’s track, which means the best athletes are typically only hundredths of a second apart. “So, a first-place finish involves precision technique and steering with a very small margin of error,” he explains.

See Where Olympians Train

Visitors are also invited to check out the Ice House at COP. It’s the world's only indoor push-start facility for the sliding sports. The two side-by-side tracks allow a continuous cycle for luge training, and a state-of-the-art timing and video system provides the latest playback technology specifically for detailed analyses of the "start" technique.

Luge races are literally won or lost at the start. The Ice House provides a year-round training facility for athletes to practice and perfect their push-starts. 

Viessman World Cup in Calgary

The Canadian Luge Association is pleased to host the first Viessman Luge World Cup races of the 09/10 season. Mark your calendars for World Cup luge action at Canada Olympic Park, November 16th  through the 21st.

Get ready to see the world’s best lugers take to one of the world’s best ice tracks. Click here for more information on the schedule of events.