**History of Sledding:**
– Old-fashioned wooden sleds and toboggans without runners.
– Developed in regions with consistent winter snow cover.
– Early designs included hand-pulled sizes and larger animal-drawn versions.
– Early examples found in the Oseberg Viking ship excavation.
– Toboggan sleds used by various cultures like the Innu, Cree of northern Canada, and Ancient Egyptians.
**Types of Sledding:**
– Modern sledding involves traveling down snowy hills using sleds like the Flexible Flyer.
– Various materials used for sleds, including flat plastic, aluminum discs, and improvised designs.
– Fringe recreational activity with toboggan-type sleds.
– Backcountry sledding involves directional control, flotation, binding systems, and padding.
– Terrain includes powder-filled steeps, mountain bowls, and cliffs.
**Recreational Sledding Techniques:**
– First ride determines the path for further runs.
– Techniques include steering, twisting, turning around, and lying down.
– Various types of sleds used, such as runner sleds, toboggans, disks, tubes, and backcountry sleds.
– Sleds with greater surface area make initial runs easier.
– Steerable runner sleds invented in the 1880s for safety.
**Competitive Sledding:**
– Modern sport originated in St. Moritz, Switzerland in the 19th century.
– Competitive sledding began in 1883 in Davos, Switzerland.
– Evolution of bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton disciplines.
– Formal competitions for luge and bobsleds started in St. Moritz in 1883 and 1884.
– Skeleton added to the Olympic program in 2002.
**External Links and Resources:**
– Various resources for sledding locations and traditional sleds.
– Information on airboarding as a new winter sport.
– Video footage of traditional rail sleds and sled riding locations across North America.
– Resource tools for finding sledding spots.
This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2006) |
Sledding, sledging or sleighing is a winter sport typically carried out in a prone or seated position on a vehicle generically known as a sled (North American), a sledge (British), or a sleigh. It is the basis of three Olympic sports: luge, skeleton and bobsledding. When practised on sand, it is known as a form of sandboarding. In Russia sledges are used for maritime activities including fishing and commuting from island to island on ice.
