Someone asked me the other day, "What is it like to drive a bobsled? How do you do it? It's incredible." Then I got a giant hug, and a gracious THANK YOU!

I had just given a passenger ride, where we give the general public a ride in a bobsled. We were standing on the finish dock waiting to be picked up, since there was a few minutes until the truck arrived I thought I would try to explain her question. Here is what I told her. ..

There is no other experience like driving a bobsled. There are no brakes; no steering wheel, no padding, and it's not really that safe. Oh, I don't want to forget that the ride she just took will really mess up her body. She agreed not knowing how tough tomorrow would be. Not much I can do for that so I continued.

At the top of the hill, there is a lot going on. More than the public sees, but that is normal at any sporting event. Basically, my routine goes something like this; One hour before it is my turn to race down the track (I have to guesstimate) I start my warm-up. It is your typical stuff, some jogging, skipping, stretching, sprints; nothing really that special. About 10 minutes before I go, I make my way into the Start House, where the athletes prepare, and get ready.  I do the normal stuff. Put on my speed suit, my spikes, double check that my helmet is ready. It really isn't anything to get crazy about. Well, at least if you're a guy. I'm pretty sure there are quite a few women out there that would love to come and enjoy the view. There are a lot of strong, buff guys taking off their clothes.  But like I said, women would like that. I'm not too fond of my competitors getting almost naked in front of me. Right down to their bikini briefs. YES! I said bikini briefs. Apparently that is the way to go in Europe, not that I have ever noticed. I digress,  I am now mentally and physically prepared to hurl myself  down an icy chute at break-neck speeds, pulling over 5 G's  with no seatbelt (for the record, bobsleds can pull just over 7 G's. I've seen the data myself.)

Ok, where were we? Oh yes, ready to face fear eye to eye.  I usually wait until the sled before me moves into position at the start before I make my way to the start area. That's about the time when I make the walk from the start house to the "on deck" area. I always watch how well the team before me pushes, and as soon as they take off I make my way onto the ice. I am now standing a few feet from the track. There is no turning back. It's my turn. I wait until our team is called to the start. In the mean time, I am waiting for the team ahead of me to get to the bottom as quickly as they can. Good luck. J

As many spectators, athletes, and coaches have noticed, I'm usually staring off somewhere at this point; I occasionally glance at the clock so I know when to take off my warm-up gear. But for the most part, I'm just standing there thinking about the few tough spots on the track that may pose a problem. I'm rarely worried about anything because at this point, there is not much I can do about it. All I can do is hope that I am able to achieve what I have been trained to do.

Anyway, a lot of people ask me what I'm thinking about while I'm standing at the start, looking like I'm focused and getting mentally prepared. Well... I am, but at the same time, I'm confronting my fears, over the years they have shrunk to be very small, but they are still there. Like I said, there is no turning back now, unless you want to look like you're scared, and there is no way I'm going to go out in that fashion. However, since I have 3 humans putting their complete trust in me I don't have the option of looking scared, or even the slightest bit unsure of what I'm about to do. Once I have confronted the doubts, issues, and fears that await me, I relax and start to daydream. It's actually a great feeling; knowing that there is nothing stopping you but your own doubt; and I've already left that behind.

So I'm standing there watching the clock, waiting for my turn to go as fast as I can. I see one thing, and it is awesome. It's by far one of my favorite moments, watching our mechanics hold the sled up off the ice for about 30 seconds. The reason that it is so critical is the runners(the blades) need to be as warm as possible. Putting the sled on the ice early will cool them down.  A warm runner will melt the ice and make you faster. So watching (and admiring) the mechanics struggle to hold the 400lb sled off the ice is great. It's actually kind of funny, at least to me, not so much for them. But hey, there is nothing wrong with a bit of humor to break the stress , right? Well, watching them do this brings one thought to mind, No matter how hard it is for them to keep it in the air, it will benefit us more than half of the other stuff we do to prepare. Americans don't mess around; our crew is willing to do whatever it takes to win. Why do you think we are one of the top nations in the world? Wait, we are the top nation in the world!!!