Street luge gives you one of the hugest rushes of all extreme sports. Traveling down a hillside country road, taking tight corners, at a speed of up to 110 kilometres per hour, all with your head about 2 inches above the ground!!
Street luge in its simplest forms has been around almost as long as skateboarding. Thrill seekers would lie on their backs on their skateboards and travel down hills on the streets. Street luge is now a respected sport with official competitions. For competitions, there are four types of race, dual luge, four man luge, mass luge, and time trials. Time trials are a race against the clock, but the others are between luge pilots. In the dual luge, there are two pilots competing head to head for advancement, while in four man luge, there are four pilots, with the top two pilots advancing. Mass luge is by far more exciting than any of the others, as there can be as many as 20 luge pilots competing at the same time. Competitions are held on real roads that have been blocked off from traffic, and the course can be as long as two miles. A street luge sled works just like a skateboard to turn, the pilot leans to the side of the direction in which they want to turn.
The Equipment
The street luge sled is basically a high performance skateboard, but longer, and with foot pegs, handles, and a head rest. As with any other extreme sport, safety is a large concern. The pilots wear motorcycle helmets, leather suits, leather gloves, and thick rubber-soled shoes. The leather suit and gloves protect skin from “road rash” in case of a crash, and the special shoes perform a double function of protection, and as the brakes of the luge.
Html by Geoff D
Text by Geoff D
Graphic by Aaron L Eric
B and Geoff D