Author Topic: The Hall Family goes Sledding (Read 407 times)

eskimo2 · « **on:** January 27, 2007, 03:49:06 PM »

I made this great sled many years ago. It significantly outperforms anything that can be bought in a store. We finally got enough snow in my part of Ohio to go sledding. Watch the clip and take a ride with my three daughters, wife and I.

http://hallbuzz.com/movies/sledding_jan_07.wmv
(8 MB, 2 minutes)

Note where our sled stopped and the green line where most other sleds stop.

My daughters and I

Bodhi · « **Reply #1 on:** January 27, 2007, 05:53:59 PM »

nice family Eskimo

Dace · « **Reply #2 on:** January 27, 2007, 05:56:26 PM »

ya that sled kicks arse too:aok

Halo · « **Reply #3 on:** January 27, 2007, 06:28:55 PM »

Nice runs and footage. So what's your sled design secret? Looks like a regular toboggan. Did you apply the best wax for the particular snow condition?

eskimo2 · « **Reply #4 on:** January 27, 2007, 07:38:05 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by Halo
Nice runs and footage. So what's your sled design secret? Looks like a regular toboggan. Did you apply the best wax for the particular snow condition?

Five dollar garage sale downhill skis! On top of that is a slick plastic. On top of that are a few inches of scrap high density foam with horizontal polycarbonate stiffeners (also scrap). All held together with double sided carpet tape. Screws go from the polycab stiffeners into the skis. The skis are the only lengthwise stiffeners. On hard pack it runs on the skies, on softer stuff it runs on the skis and plastic. I waxed the skies two years ago. They are due again I guess.

DiabloTX · « **Reply #5 on:** January 27, 2007, 08:38:51 PM »

Halo · « **Reply #6 on:** January 27, 2007, 11:53:01 PM »

Aha, very clever, eskimo2. Reminds me of favorite sled back in the olde days. Nearly everyone had "modern" sleds with steerable metal runners except some friends who had an old wooden sled with wide runners like skis.

Like your sled, theirs was king of the hill. Went at least 30% to 50% farther than metal runners. Except on icy hills the metal runners could give it more competition.

Toboggans are closer to the wooden ski runner sleds but they're a handful to steer. Optimum weight distribution and body english are the keys.

Again, nice design and photography!

VooWho · « **Reply #7 on:** January 28, 2007, 12:19:40 AM »

Nice video Eskimo. You should patten your sled design and maybe make some big bucks off of it. Design the ultimate sled, called the "Hall Speeder".

texasmom · « **Reply #8 on:** January 28, 2007, 02:13:08 AM »

Looks like y'all had a great time. Nice job on the sled.

I've got 3 sons; with a lack of snow in Texas, their version of sledding is:
toybox lid down the stairs.

(nevermind that there was a wall directly at the bottom)
That was one of many trips to the emergency room with split open heads.
TMom

eskimo2 · « **Reply #9 on:** January 28, 2007, 02:49:33 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by texasmom
Looks like y'all had a great time. Nice job on the sled.

I've got 3 sons; with a lack of snow in Texas, their version of sledding is:
toybox lid down the stairs.

(nevermind that there was a wall directly at the bottom)
That was one of many trips to the emergency room with split open heads.
TMom

I hear my brother did that before I was born; he used a cardboard box for a sled. He also went to the emergency room for stitches.

This sled is not the fastest or the most comfortable sled I’ve ever made. The most comfortable one was made out of a vinyl sofa and 6 downhill skies. It had a handbrake on each armrest so the guy on the right had to be talking to the guy on the left all the time and visa versa. We lived at 1,550 feet on the Anchorage hillside. We could slide from our driveway down the roads to about 1,000 feet. Then we’d either hitch/tow a ride back up or have a chase/tow car follow us down and tow us back up.

I actually have some really bad footage from 1994, taken at night when the couch ski was broken and wouldn’t slide straight:

http://hallbuzz.com/movies/alaska/ski_couch.wmv
(Windows Media Video - 3.3 minutes, 12.5 MB)

Ripsnort · « **Reply #10 on:** January 28, 2007, 02:50:57 PM »

I must have missed something or I'm just getting old...when did you move to Ohio? Awful flat there for a Alaskan like yerself...how do you cope?

eskimo2 · « **Reply #11 on:** January 28, 2007, 03:00:59 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by Ripsnort
I must have missed something or I'm just getting old...when did you move to Ohio? Awful flat there for a Alaskan like yerself...how do you cope?

I was born in Alaska in 1965, moved to Hawaii in 94, Colorado in 95 and Ohio in 2001. It is flat here, but there are some hills. I miss the mountains mostly and also the ocean a bit as well. You might have thought that I still live in Alaska because I refer to it often and we go visit my family every year, and I post pictures, etc.

Ripsnort · « **Reply #12 on:** January 28, 2007, 03:05:05 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by eskimo2
I was born in Alaska in 1965, moved to Hawaii in 94, Colorado in 95 and Ohio in 2001. It is flat here, but there are some hills. I miss the mountains mostly and also the ocean a bit as well. You might have thought that I still live in Alaska because I refer to it often and we go visit my family every year, and I post pictures, etc.

Quit moving around so much, you're hard to keep track of. :)Nice pics of the family!

texasmom · « **Reply #13 on:** January 28, 2007, 10:54:02 PM »

LOL! Completely funny with that couch sled! Good Stuff.
TMom

airspro · « **Reply #14 on:** January 29, 2007, 06:33:11 AM »

AWESOME

"Do it again" hehe sounds about right .

We have a sledding here in my town in Michigan as well .

I used to have a 5 foot sleld with the metal runners . When the ice was on the snow it would shoot over the road ( like you did ) and onto the middle of the ice skateing pod . Was alot of fun . You movie so reminded me of that .

We had good fun taking our girls ( 2 ) up there as parents as well .

Thanks for shareing .

PS: Will go look for my old pics I think , hehe .