A few days ago, two sleds crashed during the second run of the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) World Cup four-man bobsled event near Lake Placid, New York. The first sled that crashed was the Swiss sled driven by Michael Vogt, and that was a typical bobsled crash: the sled tipped over onto its side during the run and slid to a halt after crossing the finish line.
However, the second crash during the second four-man run in Lake Placid was more notable for multiple reasons.
The sled that posted the fastest time in the first run of the two-run four-man event in Lake Placid was the Monegasque sled driven by Rudy Rinaldi. During the second run for the Rinaldi sled, the sled tipped over in the middle part of the racetrack, slid on its side for a few hundred feet or so, and was tipped back onto its runners by the steep banking of one of the turns. While the sled being tipped upright after a crash is, in and of itself, an unusual occurrence (usually, when a bobsled tips over and crashes, it usually doesn't tip back upright), a second unusual occurrence took place during Rinaldi's second run. After Rinaldi's sled landed back on its runners, the sled continued down the track at over 75 miles per hour and nearly ran over a track worker; the track worker had to leap over the sled to avoid being run over. Rinaldi and Vogt finished in a tie for 19th place out of 20 sleds; both sleds posted an identical two-run combined time and were credited with completing two runs. A video of the crash and the near-collision with the track worker is available here:
It was extremely fortunate that nobody was seriously injured at Lake Placid a few days ago.
However, the second crash during the second four-man run in Lake Placid was more notable for multiple reasons.
The sled that posted the fastest time in the first run of the two-run four-man event in Lake Placid was the Monegasque sled driven by Rudy Rinaldi. During the second run for the Rinaldi sled, the sled tipped over in the middle part of the racetrack, slid on its side for a few hundred feet or so, and was tipped back onto its runners by the steep banking of one of the turns. While the sled being tipped upright after a crash is, in and of itself, an unusual occurrence (usually, when a bobsled tips over and crashes, it usually doesn't tip back upright), a second unusual occurrence took place during Rinaldi's second run. After Rinaldi's sled landed back on its runners, the sled continued down the track at over 75 miles per hour and nearly ran over a track worker; the track worker had to leap over the sled to avoid being run over. Rinaldi and Vogt finished in a tie for 19th place out of 20 sleds; both sleds posted an identical two-run combined time and were credited with completing two runs. A video of the crash and the near-collision with the track worker is available here:
The reason why the track worker (in sliding sports like bobsledding, track workers are typically responsible for tasks like removing sleds from the track and removing fallen snow and debris from the track) was on the track in the first place was because the track worker was probably expecting the sled to remain on its side, expecting the sled to slide to a stop at a point near the bottom of the track and before the finish line. However, because the sled tipped back onto its runners well before the finish line, the sled did not slide to a stop and was able to continue going at a high rate of speed. Because bobsled tracks are built in such a manner that the width of the track is not much wider than the width of the sled, there isn't enough room for two bobsleds to go down the track side-by-side, and there isn't enough room for the driver of any sled to make an evasive maneuver to one side or the other to avoid hitting a person on the track. Had the track worker not managed to jump out of the way at the last second, Rinaldi's sled would have hit the track worker at over 75 miles per hour, seriously injuring, if not killing, the track worker.Tipping over and recovering? Almost running over a guy on the track?— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) February 19, 2019
This is one of the CRAZIEST bobsled runs you will EVER see. pic.twitter.com/H1cebKCdQH
It was extremely fortunate that nobody was seriously injured at Lake Placid a few days ago.
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