Games with Gravity and Ice: Whistler Sliding Centre

For Olympic gold medal winning skeleton athletes, sliding head-first towards victory at the Whistler Sliding Centre is likely the fastest ride they’ll never forget.

Whistler’s majestic peaks have long inspired those seeking thrilling new ways to transform gravity into speed. The Whistler Sliding Center, perched on Blackcomb Mountain just above Whistler Village, was the venue for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games sliding events. Athletes competing in these events tested their mettle on the fastest sliding sports competition track in the world. In the future, the Whistler Sliding Centre will offer exciting opportunities for both visitors and Whistler locals to get in on skeleton action. According to Paul Shore from Whistler 2010 Sport Legacies, the Whistler Sliding Centre will continue to be a resource for athlete training but will also be open to the public for tours and special events and will offer an exhilarating, high-speed, recreational skeleton experience.

What are the bare bones of the skeleton sport? A skeleton competitor grasps the handles on either side of a metal sled, sprints as fast as possible for approximately 50 metres, and then jumps into a stomach-down position on the sled to ride the icy track head first. Sliders steer by shifting their bodies very slightly. In the 2010 Olympic Winter Games there were both men’s and women’s events.

Utilizing the “Maple Leaf Start” — a starting position that’s located lower on the track than the starting position used by experienced skeleton athletes — the recreational skeleton experience at the Whistler Sliding Centre will involve an adrenaline-pumping, super-fast solo ride that will last about 30 seconds. It is estimated that speeds reached during the ride will be approximately between 80 and 100 km per hour.

The recreational skeleton experience at the Whistler Sliding Centre is a 2010 Winter Games legacy planned for the winter season of 2010 / 2011. This high-velocity, adrenaline-inducing activity will be a great addition to Whistler’s year-round offering of unforgettable adventures.