Street Luge - Equipment, Safety and Racing

Equipment, Safety and Racing

Street lugers ride boards in the supine position. The design of these boards is based on the rules set forth from different governing bodies. Consistent design elements include:

  1. The use of lean-activated steering skateboard-style trucks
  2. The prohibited use of mechanical brakes
  3. Front and rear padding
  4. Length, width and weight restrictions - details depend on sanctioning body
  5. The prohibited use of parts that enclose the rider’s body or hinder braking

Current street luge boards are made from many materials including steel, aluminum, wood, and carbon fibre. The majority of the street luge boards in the world are custom made although commercial models are now available. Actual board designs can vary as the construction rules are very open and allow for numerous design considerations.

Riders participating in sanctioned racing events are required to wear safety equipment including:

  1. Hard-shell helmet with chin strap and face shield or goggles
  2. Leather or Kevlar racing suit
  3. Leather or Kevlar gloves
  4. Sturdy Shoes

Race courses are usually held on mountain roads but have been held on city streets as well. Courses can range in length from 0.5 to 3 miles (1 to 5 km) and vary in layout (number and severity of turns). Racing can take the following formats:

  1. Single elimination with 2, 4, or 6 racers at a time
  2. Double elimination with 2, 4, or 6 racers at a time
  3. Timed trials
  4. No elimination points system (points for each finishing position in several heats)
  5. Mass runs, with up to 20 racers at a time (positions are decided by the order they cross the finish line)

Read more about this topic:  Street Luge

Famous quotes containing the words safety and/or racing:

    “For hours, in fall days, I watched the ducks cunningly tack and veer and hold the middle of the pond, far from the sportsman;... but what beside safety they got by sailing in the middle of Walden I do not know, unless they love its water for the same reason that I do.”
    —Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)

    “Upscale people are fixated with food simply because they are now able to eat so much of it without getting fat, and the reason they don’t get fat is that they maintain a profligate level of calorie expenditure. The very same people whose evenings begin with melted goat’s cheese ... get up at dawn to run, break for a mid-morning aerobics class, and watch the evening news while racing on a stationary bicycle.”
    —Barbara Ehrenreich (b. 1941)