I was watching luge today on TV, briefly. It seems to involve a man in lycra lying on a sled and sliding down a bobsled run feet-first.

It's all very well and good, but it's not very obvious that the lugist is actually doing anything. Don't get me wrong - I can believe that he is doing all kinds of subtle things with his muscles, but to the uninitiated it looks like you'd be just as well off sending a streamlined brick down the track.

I also watched a little figure-skating. Clearly this involves tremendous skill, but there's no apparent risk factor other than a possible gusset-malfunction. (Is it me, by the way, or are there far more legs-akimbo-whilst-turning-around moves than are healthy?)

So, to save time and improve the enjoyment of the winter olympics, just send skaters down the luge course. On their skates, obviously. Probably not as fast as a prone luger (?), but jolly exciting I should think. (They would probably not skuge in pairs, and would probably not attempt spins and catches on the way down, but this is clearly another option.)

So, in summary, send skaters down the luge course. Damn - put that way, it seems far too simple and obvious.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Feb 15 2010

Poetry http://en.wikipedia...948_Summer_Olympics
[hippo, Feb 16 2010]

Mandatory outfits http://www.salon.co...umes/slideshow.html
[wagster, Feb 16 2010]

Tarmac not ice http://forum.ctc.or...ic.php?f=24&t=32181
This may be a way forward [pocmloc, Feb 16 2010]

Meanwhile, over at the ice rink, a streamlined brick has a colourful gusset attached, and is sent spinning across the ice...
-- pocmloc, Feb 15 2010


One tiny misjudgment and the skater would be smeared over the surrounding landscape as a thin film of Humanberry jam ...

We would pay a dollar to see that. [+]
-- 8th of 7, Feb 15 2010


A human is more bean than berry.
-- rcarty, Feb 15 2010


Before this recent fatality on the luge, which seems to be alluded to very subtly, there was some room to wonder if it could be a sport involving skill at all. Given that marginal errors can result in extreme consequences, as we have wtinessed, there shouldn't be any more room for doubt.
-- rcarty, Feb 15 2010


What's that you say?
The hasbeen 'celebrity' contestants from Dancing on Ice shoved down a luge run that connects to a frozen ski-jump track? That's brilliant. The fact that there is a pool of angry snapping turtles for them to land in at the other end is the deal clincher.

Nice job [MB]!
-- Jinbish, Feb 15 2010


Will there, can there, be full barrel rolls, 360° triple spins and half-pipe axels?
-- jurist, Feb 15 2010


//a streamlined brick down the track//

Curluge would also be a more watchable combo, especially the broomers.
Hurry! Haaard!
-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Feb 16 2010


[+] but only if the lower end of the Skuge course is combined with the ski-jumping ramp ... and the landing area for the ski-jump is the (summer olympics) diving pool ... and of course I'm assuming that the Skuge event will form part of the new Winter Biathlon, so contestants will be expected to do some rifle shooting on the way down ... and poetry used to be an Olympic event (link) so we should incorporate that somehow.
-- hippo, Feb 16 2010


Hmmm - re 21Q's Standing Luge - yes, prior art somewhat, though I note that it explicitly does not involve skates. However, I'm happy for this to be mfd'd if people think it's too close.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Feb 16 2010


wouldn't work: lugers pull 5G's.

anyways...
[marked-for-deletion] bad taste.
-- FlyingToaster, Feb 16 2010


//lugers pull 5G's. //

So? A strong man can support the weight of four people plus himself. Also, there is a choice regarding the exact course to follow - the skuger could opt for a course/speed which gave lower peak G's, at the expense of speed; or they could risk the high-G course if they thought they could stand it.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Feb 16 2010


The main thing missing from this idea is the ridiculous outfits. It may have been implied, but I think it needs explicitly stating that the skaters would have to wear full figure-skating costumes while trying to remain upright at 300kph. (link)
-- wagster, Feb 16 2010


//So? A strong man ... // at 150kmh ? while doing deep knee bends in various directions ? get real.

//choice regarding the exact course to follow// not so much if somebody went ahead of you, considering the length of skate runners vs. length of luge runners and the weight involved.
-- FlyingToaster, Feb 16 2010


[FlyingToaster] The fact that an idea might be in bad taste is not, by itself, grounds for deletion (some people here would never be able to post anything if that were the case). If an idea contained nothing except for a 'bad taste' comment, that would be different. Personally, I don't think this idea is, or was intended to be, in bad taste.
-- hippo, Feb 16 2010


"bad timing" then.
-- FlyingToaster, Feb 16 2010


I would point out that I had and posted this idea before I heard about the lugist's death, and that therefore it was the accident which was badly timed rather than this idea. However, I suspect this would be in bad taste.

//get real.// This is, isn't it not not, the halfbakery? If we are saying that skating down a luge course is, per se, impossible, then I suspect this is a challenge waiting to be, ah [whatever the elegant word is for responding to a challenge].
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Feb 16 2010


I like it.

The objections regarding G-forces are easily surmounted, I think. First, the skugers could drag a toe pick, wear a frilly skirt, or otherwise keep their speed low, and make surviving the turns part of the strategy of the race: "Swenson's incredible roostertail of ice is getting all over his tutu as he slows for the turn, but he lets off quite early--he's going for a 2.5 gee line, evidently confident that his grotesque thighs can take the strain...". Or, obviously, a separate skuge track could be built that wouldn't have as sharp a set of turns in it. (+)
-- baconbrain, Feb 16 2010


//have as sharp set of turns// considering the height of a luger at 1.5ft and the height of an adult in skates at > 6ft, you'd have to make the turns *much* looser.
-- FlyingToaster, Feb 16 2010


[baconbrain], thank you for the mental image of burly strongmen in tutus skating down a luge track. If I hadn't already bunned the idea that would have convinced me.

On a more serious note, some runners wear small parachutes to increase drag while training. Maybe using those would keep the skater's speed low enough for safety.
-- gisho, Feb 16 2010


//no apparent risk factor other than a possible gusset-malfunction//

Apparently you haven't seen the movie "Blades of Glory" ...

//whatever the elegant word is for responding to a challenge//

Surmounted?
-- MikeD, Feb 16 2010


That's the one. Surmounted.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Feb 16 2010


Skate blades fitted to hands, elbows, knees, bum and head as well as feet (link)
-- pocmloc, Feb 16 2010


Oh for goodness' sake. It is sad that the luger died, and this idea isn't meant to play on that incident. Can we take this one outside now?
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Feb 16 2010


No real risk for skating? Um, hello? People throwing you about by your waist while you get dizzy in mid- air wearing narrow metal blades? Go try it.
-- RayfordSteele, Feb 16 2010


//I thought...// it was. I did take it for granted that the timing was accidental rather than deliberate. I didn't hear, myself, 'til the end of the weekend.
-- FlyingToaster, Feb 17 2010


I just read in brit. there is a publication ban on death footage, that explains it.

Canadian and American channels have it on loop, slow mow, super slow mo and ultra zoom.
-- rcarty, Feb 17 2010


hope I don't get bored enough to go looking for it.
-- FlyingToaster, Feb 17 2010


pretty much all of this is becoming bad-taste...

-- xandram, Feb 17 2010



random, halfbakery