User:Frederick Schröder/sandbox

Cresta Run

Cresta Run

Location	Sankt Moritz, Graubunden, Switzerland
Coordinates	46°30′9.3″N 9°50′42.2″E
Operator	St Moritz Tobogganing Club
Field size	0.75mi, 1.21KM
Construction
Built	Annually, first in 1884.
Opened	January 1885
Website
cresta-run.com

The Cresta Run is a natural ice skeleton track situated in the winter sports town of Sankt Moritz, in the Graubünden region of Switzerland. The ¾ mile Run (1.21km) starts on the outskirts of St. Moritz and ends in the municipality of Celerina. It takes its name from the hamlet of Cresta, within which it is partly constructed. The Cresta Run is the one of the few toboggan tracks in the world constructed annually from scratch, and the only one dedicated to the head-first discipline of Skeleton tobogganing.

First built in 1884, the Cresta Run is wholly owned and managed by the St Moritz Tobogganing Club (SMTC), a British-run private members club, which includes a wide variety of international and distinguished members. It was through the Cresta Run that the modern Olympic sports of Bobsleigh (four man) and Skeleton were established. The Cresta Run hosted Skeleton in the 1924 and 1948 Winter Olympics, although skeleton was only formally reintroduced into the Winter Olympics in 2002.

The Run

Map of the Cresta Run

The Cresta Run is ¾ of a mile long from the head of the run (Top) to the end (Finish). The course’s overall drop is 157m and has a gradient varying between 2.8 to 1 and 8.7 to 1 (length/drop). Top is situated under the remains of a Twelfth Century church, which was demolished in 1890, which is known as the ‘Leaning Tower’.

The Run contains two entrances at Top and ‘Junction’ along with three distinct sections, or banks: Upper, Middle, and Lower. Each year the run is built from scratch using the natural shape and contour of the valley as the framework. The run is built first from Junction, after which the Upper Banks are constructed.

There are 10 corners, each of which are named, including two corners which are purposely designed so that riders can exit from the run. These corners are called 'Thoma' and 'Shuttlecock'. Whilst Thoma can only be ridden from Top, Shuttlecock is ridden by all riders and has thus gained a reputation of infamy. Indeed, 1 in 12 riders fall at Shuttlecock, although this is higher for beginners. Those who fall at Shuttlecock automatically become a member of the ‘Shuttlecock Club’.

The Nature of Cresta Riding

The Cresta Run is used for Cresta Riding, an older version of the modern sport Skeleton. Cresta Riding entails a single rider lying head-first on a toboggan attempting to reach Finish from Junction or, for more experienced riders, Top, without falling out of the run. Rides are timed using advanced timekeeping equipment, and riders participate to try and achieve the fastest times possible, or that they feel comfortable with.

Whilst the Cresta is considered to be the home of Skeleton, the riding style is older and different due to the nature of the course. Skeleton takes place on Bob-Runs which are less steep and have tighter, enclosed corners which prevent the athletes from exiting the course. Whilst Skeleton sliders are subject to more G-Force, and generally go at higher speeds, the risk of falling and ejection on the Cresta leads some to consider it more dangerous than Skeleton.

File:Riding the Cresta Run.jpg

Cresta Run: Rider on a Flat-Top navigating Shuttlecock.

The main difference between Cresta Riding and Skeleton is the use of rakes on the feet of the riders to slow down, as well as the movement on the toboggan. Skeleton sliding is characterised by the desire to remain as still as possible on the sled, manoeuvring only with slight shifts in weight. However, due to the gradient from Top and the low and open design of Shuttlecock and Thoma, mean that Cresta Riders must use rakes on their boots to slow themselves down and to provide a pivot point around which the toboggan can turn. Due to Shuttlecock and Thoma, Cresta toboggans also have longer knives on the 'runners' in order to increase grip when traversing these corners. In these moments, riders must actively move their entire body off the back of the toboggan to place their weight on the knives to push the toboggan round the corners. Else they will be ejected from the run at risk of injury. Toboggans used by the Cresta Run are broadly separated into two primary categories: 'Traditionals' and 'Flat-Tops'. Traditional toboggans are the toboggans that every Cresta Rider initially starts on, and have been used since 1902; as an evolution of the earlier America toboggan. Traditional toboggans are characterised by a prominent sliding seat and having the runners integrated into the frame. Flat-Tops were introduced to the Cresta in the 1960s and are characterised by either a steel or carbon fibre base with removable runners. These lack the sliding seats of the traditional toboggans, meaning they are faster and more sensitive. Modern-day Flat-Tops are much more akin to Skeleton sleds, with some manufacturers providing Sleds to Olympic Skeleton teams and amateur Cresta Riders alike. Manufacturers include Heinrich Platzer and Willi Schneider. In the 2014 Winter Olympic Games, Skeleton athlete Aleksandr Tretyakov won gold medal using the toboggan of Cresta Rider and Junction record holder, Magnus Eger. Eger's toboggan was built in conjunction with former Skeleton World Champion Willi Schneider, who went on to coach the Russian Team in 2014.

Shuttlecock Corner

The Cresta Run is, as the Secretary describes it, “an inherently dangerous sport”.  Beginners are subject to the ‘Death Talk’, the Run’s health and safety talk. During the briefing, the Secretary indicates to a Skeleton made up of X-Rays of injuries sustained on the Cresta, particularly indicating to three of the bolts that connected the head of the former Secretary, Lt. Col. Digby Willoughby, to his body. Willoughby, a former Gurkha, had only realised he had broken his neck hours later, after a long lunch and prize-giving, when a fellow member mentioned his neck looked rather strange.

Throughout its history there have been a number of fatalities and innumerable injuries sustained on the Cresta. Five deaths have occurred on Cresta directly as a result of injury from the Run. Most recently, Ralph Hubbard, a 74-year-old pilot, died after sustaining a broken neck from a fall at Shuttlecock. Hubbard was riding a heavy ‘Traditional’ toboggan from Top, a practice no longer adhered to by many Top-Riders.

The Cresta Run organises races throughout the season, which generally starts around the 18th December and ends on the first Sunday of March. The four main races are called the 'Colours Races', as riders who finish in the top eight places can win their sporting colours. Three of these are run from Top: the Morgan Cup, Brabazon Trophy, and the Grand National, the most prestigious race on the Cresta. One Colours race, The Curzon Cup, is run from Junction.

History

Major William Bulpett and his team constructing the first Cresta Run in 1884.

The Cresta Run was first constructed in 1884 by the five members of the ‘Outdoor Amusement Committee of the Kulm Hotel’ and the people of St Moritz. This was achieved with the backing of Johannes Badrutt, the owner of the Kulm Hotel. Guests at the Kulm had taken to tobogganing through the streets of the town; thus, a decision was made that a purpose-designed run should be constructed in order to avoid local irritation and injury, whilst maintaining the excitement for the guests.

The proposed course was planned by George Robertson and Charles Digby Jones, two of the original five members of the Outdoor Amusement Committee. In this they delegated much work to Peter Bonorand, a 22-year-old Swiss Geometrician living in Celerina.  The course took 9 weeks to build and was completed in January 1885. In 1887 one of the original five members, Major William H. Bulpett, founded the St Moritz Tobogganing Club (SMTC), which continues to manage the run.

Initially the Cresta hosted what became two of the distinct types of Tobogganing: Bobsleigh and Luge. However, in the 1887 Grand National, the most distinguished of the Cresta’s ‘Colours Races’, Mr Cornish became the first rider to adopt the head-first position. Although he finished fourteenth, after three inconsistent and ‘erratic’ rides, a trend was established. This trend was furthered by an evolution of technology and equipment. The introduction of the ‘America’ toboggan in 1887 by L.P. Child – a skeleton toboggan with two metal runners – sped up this transition. The establishment in 1897 of the St Moritz Bobsleigh Club and the distinct Olympia Bob-Run, specifically designed for Bobsleigh and Luge, also accelerated the Cresta’s transition to exclusive skeleton riding. By the 1900 Grand National, all competitors were riding in the head-first position.

Battledore and Shuttlecock (1907)

In 1902, Mr A Bott adjusted the America toboggan with the addition of a sliding seat. The sliding seat allowed the rider in question to better shift their weight back and forth on the toboggan. This adjustment allowed riders to place more weight on the knives of the toboggan, situated on the back of the metal runners, in order to increase grip and control. These toboggans became the go-to for many years and became known as ‘Traditional’ toboggans.

In 1924 the Cresta hosted the Winter Olympics for Skeleton, the rider Jennison Heaton (US) – a Cresta Member – won Gold Medal, with his brother (John) coming in Second. Fellow Cresta Rider and close friend, Billy Fiske, also won Gold in the Five-Man Bobsleigh. The Skeleton at the 1948 Winter Olympics were also hosted on the Cresta. Nino Bibbia, a local greengrocer won the Gold Medal. Bibbia went on to become one of the most prolific and beloved members of the Cresta. At the end of his Career he had won all the major races, including the Curzon Cup 8 times, and had ridden in over 180 races and is estimated to have completed over 3000 rides. Turn 10 on Cesana Pariol, the Bob-Run built for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, is named after Bibbia.

In 1929, a collection of members voted to exclude women from riding the run. This exclusion was justified by the unsubstantiated claim that women’s participation in the activity led to a greater incidence of breast cancer. A more likely reason was that the wife of a senior member had recently beat him in the Curzon Cup robbing him of wining his Sporting Colours, whilst winning her own. Though women could still be members, they were excluded from riding the run aside from on a ‘Ladies Day’ on one of the final days of the season. This restriction was repealed by a vote in 2018 where a supermajority voted to allow women to ride the run. This decision allowed women to ride for substantially more weeks designated throughout the season.

In the 1960s toboggan technology underwent another shift with the introduction of ‘Flat-Top’ toboggans. These were introduced by the German Skeleton and Cresta Rider Reto (Peter) Gansser who worked with Heinrich Platzer on their construction. They are akin to modern-day Skeleton toboggans, but with some adjustments to account for the differences. The shift in technology allowed for riders to achieve much greater speeds. Gansser’s brother, Franco, went on to match Nino Bibbia’s record of 8 wins of the Grand National. Franco Gansser was also the first man to do ride from Top in under 51 seconds.

The SMTC, having been founded by military men, continues to have close ties to all branches of the British Armed Forces. The Royal Airforce, British Army, and the Royal Navy all send teams to compete against each other for the Cresta's 'Inter-services Cup', which was donated by by HRH Prince Philip. The former Captain of the RAF Team is Wing Commander Andy Green, who holds the land speed record and is the driver for the Bloodhound LSR project. Green commented that whilst setting the LSR was the fastest he's ever gone, the scariest thing he's ever done is riding on the Cresta Run.

In 2015 Lord Clifton Wrottesley, 15-time winner of the Grand National and Olympic Slider at Salt Lake City in 2002, set the record from Top with a time of 49.92. The previous record was 50.09 ridden by James Sunley. This is the only ever sub-50 second time ridden from Top.

In 2017 Magnus Eger set the Junction record of 40.94, riding two 40 second rides, the only sub-41 times in history. The previous Record was set by Johannes Badrutt (a descendent of the aforementioned Badrutt) with a time of 41.02.

The Baron Raunchy, a distinguished member of the Club, is credited with having achieved the slowest ride on the Cresta Run (from Junction) with a time of 380 seconds. This was considered to be a remarkable feat given that Beginners are expected to complete their first ride in 70 seconds.

Notable Riders or Members

• Clifton (Lord) Wrottesley: Most successful rider of the Cresta Run - current Top record holder. Fourth Place in the 2002 Winter Olympic Skeleton. Record holder for major wins on the Cresta: 12-time winner of the Curzon Cup and 15-time winner of the Brabazon Trophy, Morgan Cup, and Grand National.

• Franco Gansser: 8-time winner of the Grand National. Previous Top record holder. First man to do a sub-51 time from Top.
• James Sunley: Former Top record holder and President of the SMTC (2014-).
• Nino Bibbia: 8-time winner of the Grand National. Gold Medalist in 1948 Winter Olympics in Skeleton. Achieved over 3000 rides in his Cresta Career.
• Magnus Eger: 2-time Curzon Cup Champion, current Junction record holder.
• Sir Roger Gibbs: Former President of the SMTC and Chairman of the Wellcome Trust (1983-1999).
• Bruno Bischofberger: Swiss Art Dealer, close associate of Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat.
• Marcel Melcher: Youngest ever Winner of the Grand National (age 19, in 1979).
• Wing-Commander Andy Green: Holder of the Land Speed Record, driver of Bloodhound LSR, former captain of the RAF's Cresta Run team.

Bibliography

• Seth-Smith, Michael (1976). The Cresta Run - History of The St Moritz Tobogganing Club. Slough, Berkshire, England: W. Foulsham & Company ltd. ISBN 0-572 00949-6.
• Cresta Run. "Cresta Run - History of the Club".
• Rathgen, J. Philip (21 December 2012). "Getting Ready for the Cresta". Classic Driver.
• "Scene of Many Tussles between Champions: The Cresta Run." Illustrated London News, 11 Jan. 1913, p. 43. The Illustrated London News Historical Archive, 1842-2003, Accessed 18 Nov. 2020.
• "Where All the World Goes Tobogganing the Most Famous Run." Illustrated London News, 2 Feb. 1907, p. 179. The Illustrated London News Historical Archive, 1842-2003, Accessed 18 Nov. 2020.
• "Skeleton". Olympic, Accessed 9 December 2020
• "NASH AND DIXON: GREAT BRITAIN'S GOLDEN BOBSLEIGH DUO". Olympic. 1 February 1964.
• IBFS. "Skeleton History". IBSF.org.