U.S. bobsled competitors are set

BEAR HOLLOW — It's been two years since the American bobsled drivers, pushers and brakemen have been able compete in the four-man events on its own America's Cup circuit.

The problem was sleds. There simply were not enough to go around. The best and fastest sleds were given over to the top World Cup teams. As a result, there were few sleds left at home.

What was needed, said Stephan Bosch, development coach for the U.S. Team, "Is a minimum of six sleds . . . . We now have nine."

As a result, there will be a full field of American competitors in the Cup race on Friday and Saturday at the Utah Olympic Park. Races will begin at 3 p.m. each day.

American's have always had a hard time coming up with good sleds.

"It's easier to have two-man sleds running," said Bosch. "It's not as easy to have four-man sleds running. There were not enough teams, and it's expensive to transport everything to races. This year we've got everything together, and we've got enough sleds."

Where did the sleds come from?

"We grabbed sleds out of garages here in Salt Lake City and anywhere else we could. They're good sleds. The best sleds are over in the World Cup. Are these sleds fast? Fast enough," he said.

Bosch, in fact, will be one of the drivers racing in the four-man competition. Joe McDonald, who drove United States 1 in the two-man, and John Napier, driver of United States 2, are two more drivers to watch.

Winner of the two-man event, driver Jiri Dzmura of Slovenia, a long-time veteran, is certain to be another of the top finishers.

As with the two-man races, the key to a good run is a good start, a point in the race where all four passengers push and then jump into the moving sled in succession.

The record for a push start in the first 100 feet is 4.72 seconds. Two-man teams, which raced on Monday and Tuesday, were within two-hundredths of the record.

The record run for a four-man sled is 46.57. Two-man teams were within three seconds of the track record. The top speed for a four-man is 88.8 miles per hour.

The women's two-person races will also be held on Friday and Saturday, along with skeleton runs.

The track record for the men's skeleton is 48.60 seconds and 49.91 for the women. The top speed for skeleton is 81.6 miles per hour.