Indoor Snow

Testing and Modifying

I learned a lot listening to Amy in the Snozone

boot room, but I couldn’t wait to get out on

the slope and give the prototype a run.

HE team from Sheffield was there, of

course. They were as keen as me to get

out on the snow, and we carried the sled

to the slope together. If I’m honest, at this point

we were probably all feeling a bit like kids in the

park on a snowy afternoon!

T

We started off only part of the way up the

slope, to make sure that I wasn’t going to go

thundering into the wall at the end of the flat

run-out area at the bottom of the slope. The wall

was all padded and no one expected that I would

overshoot the run-out, but we took things one

step at a time anyway. The sled actually rode

incredibly well. I could turn a bit by leaning and

the brakes did a very good job. Now I could feel

the excitement that little kids have when they’re

out on their plastic sleds. They run back up the

slope, they’re so desperate to have another go.

Fortunately, I didn’t have to do that as Snozone

has a moving carpet conveyor belt on the ground

at the side of the slope as well as a drag lift to get

you back up there without knackering you.

I went again and again, from higher up, trying

different positions and little changes of

technique. Going up and down the slope, I

didn’t pay much heed to the temperature. I was

keeping fine and warm. The film crew, on the

other hand, were doing a lot of standing around

and, with the temperature in the Snozone

hovering around -6º, they were feeling the cold.

I suppose I can count that as payback for all the

238    world’s fastest sled

Top: The boot room

coaching continued

when we were out on

the Xscape snow.

Bottom: I’m not sure that

helmet was impressing

Amy much.