Activity/Event: 2019 US Toboggan Championships!
Address: 20 Barnestown Rd. Camden Maine 04843
Cost: I believe (please double check) that it is $120 to register a team... the experience.... PRICELESS!!
Parking: If you get there EARLY (we arrived at 6:30 a.m.) you can park at the base of the ski slope just next to the toboggan run... When the lot fills up there are buses that bring people back and forth from Camden.
FMI: Visit their website: here
For a view of what it looks like from the top of the slide... check out WABI's news coverage! They have a cool video and team Just DOO It is in a few frames!
I chose to be part of this event through the FitMaine Social Club. Shannon Bryan, the founder, is doing a tremendous job of scheduling adventures for us all! I encourage you to check it out!
Notes:
When you live in Maine you hear about the Snow Bowl... when you have an uncle who lives in Camden Maine, where the crazy annual US Toboggan Championship is held... you hear the people who participate in this crazy activity 'coneheads.' You watch the news clips about this event and think one of two things.... 1 - Those people are CRAZY... or 2 - I want to do that!
Well... I chose option 3... Oh My Gosh... I want to be one of those CRAZY people who shoot down a chute out onto a lake on a toboggan! And today... that is exactly what I did!
The day started out at 4:00 a.m. ... my alarm sounded... I had set the alarm to be a song from Avenue Q: Schadenfreude.... I had chosen that song to wake up to because I fully expected to laugh if others slipped on the ice or tipped over on their toboggans... and I fully expected that others would laugh at me if I did the same... (Schadenfreude: pleasure from the misfortune of others.)
I was glad in a way that the alarm went off because I was not sleeping well because I was worried about not waking up in time... when I have people depending on me being somewhere at a certain time I hate the idea of being late! So I got up, got layered up... and waited for a couple of my teammates to meet me to ride together. We left my driveway about 5:10 a.m. and we arrived at the Snow Bowl at about 6:30. Before long our fearless leader, Shannon, arrived with the toboggans!
We had two teams, three people each. One of our toboggans was Team fuuuudge! (based on a Christmas Story!) So these are my teammates, bunny and leg lamp. They were rocking their costumes!
Before we got the toboggans out we checked things out, getting the lay of the land.
This is looking up the chute...
From the same spot looking out onto the lake... notice how far across the lake appears... (that comes up later!)
This is looking at the bottom of the chute from the lake...
Next stop... registering... signing our waivers to participate!
We walked by the trophies... pretty detailed!
After getting officially registered... we went to get the toboggans inspected... Yup, that's a thing! There is specific toboggan criteria!
Then... we practiced...
Then we got in line... (despite it looking long...it moved pretty quickly for our first run.)
Pausing to take a picture of team 'Just DOO it!' using emojis, including the poop emoji as their costumes.... those faces are not photo shopped!
I am not going to lie... it was COLD as we were waiting... especially between our first and second runs... the wind was brutal!
This is the place where the toboggans start. There is a platform that the toboggan is moved onto and then they drop you down!!
Once you get to the top of the line... you set your toboggan down and line up on your toboggan. The people working the event grab your arms and legs and tell you how to best sit... then they tell you to not move and tell you that the best way to not tip over once on the lake is to not move until the toboggan stops...
Our first team... team 'Just DOO it!'
(Thanks to my friend Troy Malave for the pics taken from this angle and for the pics of my team out on the ice!)
This is usually when the screaming is in full force!
Then it was our turn...
We got on, lined up, wrapped around each other... and moved forward... they do not count down to tell you when you are going to go, they just send you! The front of the toboggal is dropped down into the chute and you're off!!!
It is a bit of an adrenaline rush!
I was in the back... so I was laid down looking up at the sky! (Yes I was screaming most of the first run!)
I was nervous! I was worried we would hit the sides or jump out of the chute! But once I relaxed (as much as I could..) I enjoyed looking up at the blue sky with the tree branches flying by!
We got down the cute in 9.78 seconds... and then we flew across the ice...including a few spins!
Still going.... look at the fringe on the lampshade still moving!
We went all the way to the other side of the lake! And that was with some effort to slow ourselves down!! Ha! We may not have been the fastest team, but we went the furthest!
Finally we stopped!
This is the view walking back! There was no snow on the ice... it was slippery! But we made it. The wind was REALLY strong so it made it a bit of a challenge to get back. But we made it!
We all headed to the parking lot for some tailgating and Shannon-igans!
We eventually returned for our second run...
Our team times... Team Fuuudge, 8.78 and 9.8... team Just DOO it... 10.6 and 10.74
We had planned on sticking around for the costumer parade... we think A Christmas Story had a good chance of winning! This was us trying to be in character...
This event was A LOT of FUN! It was really busy and it was REALLY cold because of the wind. If the wind had not been blowing... this day would have been even better!!!
It helps to have great people to be with! Two of the people I was with today I met today! So, if you are reluctant to do some of these activities because you don't know other people doing it... once you meet them you can't say that anymore!
After our adventure we wanted a place to warm up and have a snack... so we headed to The Drouthy Bear in Camden. Outside they had this sign...
Mini toboggan championships??
Inquiring minds HAD to know...
We did not get to see what was involved until we agreed to do it.. we were told they had their own toboggan slide and their version of a toboggan... and that people needed to do a shot of fireball and then go down the chute! I convinced the guy to let me do it without the shot... I was driving after all!
So, here it is! Their toboggan chute is a kids slide... and their toboggan? A piece of cardboard!! Ha!
This pic is not even half the story... Getting into that little house area at the top of the slide... THAT was the hard part! I managed to do it!!!
In total four of us took the mini toboggan challenge! It was fabulous!
This was an AWESOME adventure!!
I think my back is going to be SORE tomorrow.. it is sore tonight... but I think tomorrow it is going to be even more so... it isn't too bad, but definitely feel like I did something today!
I will definitely look into doing this event again... hopefully with a more crazy costume!
Get out there and adventure!!
And one more picture...
I saw this pic on facebook, taken by one of the other people on our team... and I didn't recognize the person in the red coat and blue pants as me... but it is! My body has changed so much... So happy to be healthy! (Notice I didn't say healthy 'enough!'... this week I had my physical and my doc said my numbers are pretty perfect! That I am super healthy!! Yahoo!! Taking care of me is working!)
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