Jamaica had a bobsled team. They never got near a medal, weren’t very competitive, but were a far better bobsled outfit than the team Vibe put on the ice tonight in Europe.
Our Vibe team of teachers and TA’s tried our hand at this crazy sport at the Innsbruck Olympic bobsled track in Austria, Europe.
The Vibe Team lined up as follows:
Matt Lewis – SEN team
Meg – SEN team
Craig Lewis – Red Team
Sam Bentley – Purple Team
Dane Attenborough – South Team
We were pitted against 4 other teams from our Contiki tour. Admittedly we did have a driver to handle our bobsled: Niklas.
Niklas competed twice in the Olympics, first in Salt Lake 2002 and then at Turin 2006. He now takes groups of tourists for one of the most intense and exhilarating 45 seconds of their life – a guided bobsleigh ride down the same track used in the 1976 Winter Olympics.
The man with Team Vibe’s fate in his hands … our driver, and two-time Olympian, Niklas
Niklas was a thick set man of very few words. From what we could gauge from our brief conversation in broken English, he had a far greater preference for the local Steigl Brau beer than he did for putting in the hours on the bobsled track. Hence why his achievements at the Olympics were less than inspirational (although we’re sure he would have run amuck with the snow bunnies in the Olympic village).
Our toes were frozen solid as we anxiously waited at the top of the starting gate, crammed into our rickety sled. The lights flashed, the beeps counted down and soon the nose pointed down the track. The noise was deafening and the speed terrifying as we hurtled into the first corner.
The shrill screams of Team Vibe were quickly silenced as each jolting corner threatened to rearrange our insides. The G-force rivalled any theme park roller coaster and we were all left bleary eyed and and blank faced as the bobsled finally ground to a holt. 43.46 seconds, a time etched in our memories forever, but sadly not enough for us to win the Contiki Cup.
Team Vibe came in second, but their were no runners up in regards to those that received a unique and exciting experience. What a rush! What a night! Definitely inspiring!
Dane & Sam