Inter-Service Bobsleigh Championship

And what a race it was! But first, let me just set the scene. Training went well, particularly so when you consider that some drivers had never been on the track here in La Plagne until the beginning of the week. Yes we had a few spills, but nothing too serious. In fact the thing that was always likely to impact most on the race was the weather, and this turned out to be true.

Day one of the race, Friday, started with snow, and lots of it! Although this had been forecast, it still gave the track workers a wee bit of a headache because it was they who had to clear the snow from the track. This they did and, as the sun came out, we started the race pretty much on time at 2 pm.

Lee Johnston and his brother Karl, both from the Royal Marines, were the first off, as had been decided from the race draw. By the end of the first run of the men's race, the Royal Navy Team was in front of the Army Team by a very small margin, with the Royal Air Force in third place. However, as the women started their first run, it started to snow again. Not only does snow reduce visibility for the drivers, but it tends to slow down the track too. The Royal Navy number 2 pair of McAllister and Garrett had drawn first off and they duly started things going. By the time the Royal Air Force pair of Michelle Coy and Caroline Gray started - the last to start in the women's race - the snow was falling very heavily and there were no signs of it letting up!

Indeed, it was falling so heavily that the Race Jury went into a closed session to determine what impact this might have on the race. After due consideration of the safety factors, it was decided to cancel the second run.

All the teams packed their kit up and headed back to their accommodation to continue work on race runners for the second day of competition.

Saturday morning greeted us with more snow, much as Friday had left us. That said, by late morning the snow stopped and the sun came out. The teams prepared themselves for the third and fourth runs of the competition and by 2 pm everything was set.

The third run is the opposite of the first run, having been determined by the race draw. This meant Neil Scarisbrick and Dean Ward from the Army Team were first off in the men's race, and Michelle Coy and Caroline Gray for the Royal Air Force in the women's race.

The snow stayed away for most of the afternoon.

At the end of racing, we had covered over 63 kms on the track. The Royal Navy Team won the men's race by 2.5 seconds from the Army in second place, with the Royal Air Force Team about 14 seconds behind in third. In the women's race, the Royal Air Force won by 0.6 of a second in front of the Army, with the Royal Navy Team in third place, 4.5 seconds behind.

The Johnston brothers also took the Individual Champion's Trophy and Karl Johnston claimed fasted push for the men's race. In the women's race, novice brakewoman Paula Walker took the trophy for the fastest push of the competition.

Overall, it was a great competition and a fitting end to the competitive bobsleigh season. After an excellent prize giving party, everyone returned home on Sunday morning for a much needed rest.

Stephen Rowland-Jones, Saturday 11th March 2006