(Originally posted September 5, 2012)
USA! USA!! USA!!!
Our trip to Lake Placid this year happened to coincide with the 2012 bobsledding world championships. It was awesome because we could see the pros do what they do so well, with a slight downside for us because we couldn’t go for bobsled rides ourselves since the track was being used for real competitions.
We were able to catch the final morning of competition for the 2-man sleds. The times were close and the USA 1 sled (piloted by Steve Holcomb, with Steve Langton on brakes) was pushing for the come-from-behind win. We grabbed a spot literally right next to the track in Curve 10 – also known as Shady II – and settled in for the race. I simply clicked away at every sled from this fantastic vantage point while my husband and our friends hung back in the crowd. Being so close to the track, you could feel these sleds rush by as they were moving something like 80mph down the hill and through the turns!
As it turned out, we got to see a little bit of history as the USA 1 sled had a fantastic final run… a run good enough to knock the German sled out of first place!! The crowd erupted after the USA run, then really went nuts a couple of sleds later when the competition was over and the win was in the bag! It’s probably as close as we’ve ever come to being part of a little Olympic-esque moment in-person. It’s definitely something we’ll never forget! (And it’s something that continued to turn us into bobsled racing fans!)
Once we got home, I decided to make a composite shot of the USA 1 sled during its winning run. I simply loved how it all came together because you can see 4 images I got of the sled as it zoomed by, how close we were to the track, and even a little sliver of the fans along the track cheering them on. It totally encapsulated the moment that literally flashed by our eyes.
-JC
