Bobsleigh team to visit backers
ONE of the GB bobsleigh teams arrives in Shetland on Sunday to complete their preparations for what will be a very busy and exciting winter racing season in Austria, Germany, Italy and Switzerland.
Kenny Simm and team mate Chris Wooley are competing in all two-man bobsleigh events in Europe starting with the British Championships. Kenny is pilot of the bobsleigh and Chris is the brake man.
This season will be Kenny’s and Chris’s second racing season and already they have shown in testing that they are strong and fast and will threaten all the two-man teams in the British Championships.
Preparation for this season’s racing includes a full bobsleigh refurbishment by Stronachs Body Repairs in Lerwick. Star Rent-a-car is hiring the team a van which is being fully fitted out as a mobile workshop and equipment storage facility with special bobsleigh loading and unloading stowage deck.
Ocean Kinetics is assisting with special bobsleigh tuning parts, Art Machine is preparing the artwork for the bobsleigh and transporter van and Thulecraft is completing the supply of special race helmets.
The British Bobsleigh Association, due to reorganisation, has told all the British bobsleigh pilots that they must fund their own teams this season and with Kenny being one of the seven GB pilots he has had to set up a professional team which will do justice to Shetland, Scotland and Great Britain throughout Europe this winter season.
Team administrator Alex Simm said was very painful having to pay to represent Great Britain but putting that aside they would prove that they can compete at the top level.
Slots are still available for sponsors to come onboard and anyone interested can meet up with the team and see all the equipment, race wear, the super paint job on the bobsleigh and artwork on the transporter van at Clickimin Leisure Complex on Tuesday from 11am to 3pm.
Anyone wishing to meet the team and see the equipment and bobsleigh is welcome to come along. Bring a camera so the kids can have their photo taken sitting in the bobsleigh and posing with the team.
On Wednesday the team will be meeting all the pupils and staff at Brae High School where they will be doing three presentations, showing a bobsleigh film, displaying all the equipment and generally explaining the sport of bobsleigh.
Other work ongoing to support the team includes Shetland Janitorial Supplies’ provision of cleaning materials while JB’s Autostore is assembling a special work pack to enable essential maintenance and repairs to be carried out during the racing season and Globus is looking into provision of suitable one-piece oversuits which are essential to the athletes between warm-up and race start to keep the body warm and ready for the explosive push off.
