Only this time there won’t be pavement, an engine, or even a steering wheel. They’ll be carving down the 2002 Olympic track in a bobsled, sliding on ice, relying on gravity, and gripping their hands around a set of D-rings. Bodine and Said will be testing new modified sleds at one of the fastest tracks in the world in an effort to bring the excitement of NASCAR and NHRA to the ice at Utah's Olympic track. Ideally, this test session will lead to the staging of a second Bodine Bobsled Challenge at the Utah Olympic Park immediately after a scheduled World Cup event.

“I’m excited and anxious about driving the Olympic track, like a kid waiting for Christmas,” Said remarked before adding again how excited he is about the opportunity.

The Chevrolet Geoff Bodine Bobsled Challenge, where NASCAR and NHRA drivers exchange their cars and compete in modified bobsleds down the icy chute, was created as a fundraiser to assist the U.S. bobsled team in continuing efforts to increase research and development for the men’s and women’s teams. After watching the U.S. team compete in European-made sleds in the 1992 Winter Olympics on television, Geoff Bodine, NASCAR icon and Daytona 500 winner, became eager to make American-made sleds with race car technology.

“Our athletes on the U.S. team love the involvement of the NASCAR drivers and benefit greatly from use of the best sleds in the world built by Geoff Bodine,” Executive Director of the U.S. Bobsled and Skeleton Federation Terry Kent said. “It would be great to have another event happen in Park City.”

The Chevrolet Geoff Bodine Bobsled Challenge, presented by Whelen Engineering, made its debut in Lake Placid, N.Y. in January 2006, where road-racing expert Boris Said began his domination on ice.

Said finished fourteenth at the Daytona 500 in the No. 60 Sobe No Fear Ford Fusion car this season, posting the fastest qualifying time among non-locked teams and the sixth fastest qualifying time overall. Most recently, Said placed third at the Mexico Telcel Motorola 200 race on March 4.
“I think training on ice in Lake Placid helped Boris get a feeling for Daytona,” Head bobsled coach Brian Shimer joked. “He won the races here pretty convincingly, and he had a natural ability to drive a sled.”

Said won his first Chevrolet Geoff Bodine Bobsled Challenge in January 2006, and collected two gold medals at this year’s race in January 2007, which was held in conjunction with the U.S. Bobsled National Championships. It can be argued that Said has a hereditary edge over his NASCAR competitors on ice, considering his father, Boris “Bob” Said, competed at the 1968 and 1972 Winter Olympics as a bobsled athlete.

The Bo-Dyn Bobsled Project helped the U.S. bobsled team claim 18 World Cup and two World Championship medals this season. Please visit www.usbsf.com to view a Speed Channel video recap of the U.S. bobsled and skeleton team’s most successful season ever.

“I’m proud of our U.S. bobsled team and to be a part of the fundraising for their sleds, because I’m as patriotic as anyone,” Said commented. “But I’m also a huge bobsled fan, and I’m getting more and more interested in the sport everyday. To be in Lake Placid with the national team during their Championships this year was exciting. Being able to watch these guys in person, to see how athletic and powerful they are, was an opportunity I won’t forget. Everyone should witness this sport in person.”

2007 Overall World Cup Champion Steven Holcomb (Park City, Utah) and 2006 Olympic medallist Shauna Rohbock (Orem, Utah), who also finished the season ranked second overall, will be on site testing The Sled of Tomorrow with chassis designer Bob Cuneo in preparation for Vancouver 2010. With Cuneo’s new engineering, the assistance of the Bo-Dyn Project and a grant from the United States Olympic Committee, The Sled of Tomorrow will continue to keep the U.S. team at the top of international standings.

Schedule for Wednesday, March 28:

• 9 a.m.-11 a.m. MST: The Sled of Tomorrow testing with Holcomb and Rohbock
• 11 a.m.-12 p.m. MST: Bodine Bobsled Challenge testing with Said and Bodine
• 1 p.m. MST: Comet Winter Bobsled Rides available for the media

Media interested in attending the testing events and scheduling interviews can contact David Dinger, Utah Olympic Park Track Operations Manager, at (801) 750-2805; or RJ Shannon, Utah Olympic Park Event Manager, at (801) 712-5068.

For more information on the Bodine Bobsled Challenge, please visit www.bodynbobsled.com.

About the U.S. Bobsled and Skeleton Federation
The United States Bobsled and Skeleton Federation, based in Lake Placid, N.Y., is the national governing body for the sports of bobsled and skeleton in the United States. The USBSF would like to thank its sponsors, suppliers and contributors for their support: Allianz Life, Columbia Sportswear Company, CW-X, KBC Helmets, Schenker Logistics, Speedo and Whelen Engineering. For more information, please visit the USBSF web site at www.usbsf.com.