CLARKSON TESTS LUGE SLED

POTSDAM — When it comes to Olympic luge racing, fractions of a second can mean the difference between winning and losing.

With that in mind, experiments going on this week at Clarkson University could help the U.S. luge team bring home a medal in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Researchers from Clarkson are working with USA Luge officials to figure out ways to modify the team's sled to produce quicker race times.

Through a series of experiments that started Thursday, they are recording how long it takes for a fiberglass luge prototype to travel through the university's high-speed wind tunnel.

Specifically, they're recording the drag forces on the luge, which has been equipped with a dummy rider named "Little Mark."

"We're working on the shape of the sled pod, also known as the shell, to reduce the air resistance so the sleds will go faster when they're racing," said Douglas G. Bohl, an assistant professor of mechanical and aeronautical engineering.

A typical luge run takes 50 to 60 seconds, with the top finishers coming in within 1/1,000th of a second of each other, he said.

"Those fractions of a second will determine who comes in first, second or third," Mr. Bohl said.

In luge, an athlete lies on his back and steers the sled with his legs.

Mark R. Grimmette, head coach of the U.S. luge team and a two-time Olympic medalist, is scheduled to travel to Potsdam from Lake Placid today to meet with the Clarkson researchers.

Based on their trial runs in the wind tunnel, researchers will make modifications to the sled and continue to conduct trial runs throughout this summer and into next school year.

"We'll look at what we did and how it impacted our times. It will be an interactive, ongoing process," Mr. Bohl said. "The goal is to get the drag as low as we can get it."

The 6-foot-long, 3-foot-high wind tunnel is housed in the university's Center for Advanced Materials Processing.

Mr. Bohl is being assisted by Brian F. Hilbert, a Clarkson undergraduate from Long Island who will incorporate the summer research into his senior honor thesis project.

"This is really cool," Mr. Hilbert, 20, said after crawling out from the wind tunnel. "The whole experimental process is something I'm learning."

The other portion of the research is being handled by Brian T. Helenbrook, also a Clarkson mechanical and aeronautical engineering professor.

Mr. Helenbrook's work involves creating computer simulations that depict the rider on the sled.

"It's easier for him (Mr. Helenbrook) to make bigger changes in the shape of the sled than for us to do it on the physical model," Mr. Bohl said. "Both sets of results give you guidance on where you should be going. The experiments are good for some things and the computer models are good for some things. They're different; they're complementary."

Gordon M. Sheer, director of marketing and sponsorship for USA Luge, Lake Placid, said teaming up with Clarkson is a valuable opportunity for the future of luge racing.

"It's huge for us. We're not receiving direct government funding like our competition does," Mr. Sheer said. "It's really up to us to find these connections."