Home > Outdoors > Team ‘Cool Runnings’ takes first place in the build your own sled competition in Bagley Nature Area
Team ‘Cool Runnings’ takes first place in the build your own sled competition in Bagley Nature Area
BY KATIE BERG
STATESMAN STAFF WRITER
ISSUE: 78/22
RYAN HANSON / STATESMAN
Josie Thole, Marcie Thole and Drew Peters in
their homemade sled, wait for a push courtesy
of Nicole Vanderherden at the homemade sled
contest held for Out Cold week.
RYAN HANSON / STATESMAN
Scott Ewen takes a spill off his sheet of
cardboard in Bagley Nature Center.
As students were wrapping up afternoon classes on Tuesday, a fierce competition was held on the sledding hill in the Bagley Nature Area. Teams competed in RSOP’s ‘Build Your Own Sled’ Competition as part of UMD’s Out Cold week. “… [Sleds] can’t be made out of plastic, metal or glass… you’re pretty open from there, as long as it’s not pre-made” said Nicole Vanderherden, judge and head of the event. “We’ve got a tarp, a rope and a bunch of boxes…I feel like we’re good,” said sophomore Marcie Thole.
Teams were to either bring homemade sleds or construct simple ones on-site. Junior Paul Syverson chose the latter, simply taping strips of masking tape to the bottom of a cardboard box. “It reduces friction,” said Syverson. “There’s not a solo team that can beat me.” Syverson happened to do very well with his sled … at least the first time. “I lost the speed tape,” Syverson said after his first test down the hill. “I burned it all up on my inaugural run…these sleds have a pretty short lifespan.”
Syverson went up against team “Cool Runnings,” with a sled of a few larger boxes taped together sitting on top of a tarp, large enough for three people. Fifth-year senior Scott Ewen went a little simpler, teaming up with RSOP Associate Director Tim Bates to ride down the hill in just a large cardboard box.
“I spent the whole summer canoeing, I think I can figure out a box,” Ewen said. “It works as long as it’s really smooth on the bottom, like a slip and slide.” Teams broke into solo competitors and even switched around, but in the end team “Cool Runnings” took home the prize for farthest distance traveled. After the competition, other materials were attempted, such as a car sun visor. Cool Runnings member
Josie Thole said it best about where the competition sleds were heading: “All right, where’s the recycling?”
