A new report by the British Columbia Safety Authority—or Technical Safety BC—has cast light on a pair of incidents at the Whistler Sliding Centre (WSC) in late 2023 and early 2024 that resulted in guest injury.
Technical Safety BC's findings deemed both ailments were caused by compression force during normal ride operation focused on the front of both patrons' vertebrae.
According to the report: since 2011 a total of approximately 50,000 individuals have done the public bobsled experience, with 10 documented incidents. These afflicted patrons ranged from 37 to 63 years of age, including six women and four men. Only two had noted pre-existing conditions.
Nine of these situations took place in 2015 or later.
Injury warnings given by WSC staff prior to December 2023 were exclusive to riders with pre-existing health conditions. Therefore, the report asserts that clients who identified as healthy may not have understood they were also at risk of injury.
"The Public Bobsleigh Program at the Whistler Sliding Centre is unique. It provides the general public the opportunity to experience this high-adrenaline sport in authentic equipment with world-class pilots," said Roger Soane, president and CEO of Whistler Sport Legacies (WSL).
"Safety is a priority at the Whistler Sliding Centre, and we will continue to work on educating our guests and mitigating the risk involved in this activity."
Prior context
The WSC hosted a private company for a holiday event on Nov. 23, 2023. During this event, the corporation's employees had an opportunity to partake in the venue's passenger bobsled experience—which involves up to three clients riding in a sled driven by a professional pilot working for the WSC.
One rider sustained a back injury during the ride. After receiving on-site medical care, the individual (Patron 1) was transported to the Whistler Medical Centre (WMC). Patron 1 was diagnosed with a back fracture before undergoing surgery at the Vancouver General Hospital (VGH): an operation that required an extended rehabilitation.
On Feb. 9, 2024, another WSC client experienced back pain during regular, public operation of the passenger bobsled experience while in a sled with two other visitors and a professional pilot. The individual (Patron 2) also received medical care on-site before going to the WMC and VGH for more tests. A back fracture was discovered, and Patron 2 expects to face significant recovery time despite not needing surgery.
The report states G-forces were concentrated due to the ergonomics of seat No. 4 in the sled. Unlike seats No. 2 and 3, this rearmost seat required clients to lean forward to grasp handholds positioned in front of the individual's torso. As a result, the patrons' core muscles (which would otherwise support their spine) were disengaged.
Moreover, seat No. 4's footrests were located in a way as to raise the guests' knees and bend their legs. This vulnerable posture rotates the pelvis forward, increasing stress on the front of the vertebrae.
Seven of the guests injured since 2011 were occupying seat No. 4.
The WSC was originally designed in accordance with International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) regulations for professional and amateur sliding athletes at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
After the Olympics, Whistler Sport Legacies (WSL) took over operation of the track and received a permit from Technical Safety BC in March 2011 to commence public skeleton and bobsled rides.
Passenger sleds are launched from an area called Maple Leaf Start located roughly halfway up the track—as opposed to bobsled and skeleton athletes who launch from the top. From this point, bobsleds are advertised by the WSC as reaching speeds of 125 kilometres/hour with four Gs of acceleration.
Public sleds also differ from competition sleds. They feature wider seats with foam pads, taller sides to provide more protection in the event of a rollover, cables along the interior for clients to grasp, and braking mechanisms in the front of the vehicle to be operated by a trained pilot.
Response to previous incidents
The report outlines that WSL made a number of administrative changes to the public pre-ride safety orientation over time, including additional warning language, a checklist to filter out passengers based on known medical conditions, and the introduction of full refunds for those who opt out due to safety concerns.
No documented physical changes to the track, track starting position, or bobsleds were made until late 2023, when the handholds on one particular sled were elevated slightly to match those on other sleds.
After February 2024, WSL hired a consultant who conducted speed and G-force testing for its passenger bobsled experience. These tests found that maximum G-forces occurred in curve 16 of the track in the 4 to 4.5 G range. These forces do not differ noticeably across seats No. 2 to 4.
An independent biomechanical engineer contributing to the report deemed that 4 to 4.5 G-forces is below the anticipated tolerance level of human vertebrae and would not be expected to cause a fracture without other aggravating factors.
In any case, Patron 1 stated in an anonymous interview for the report that they remembered signing a waiver but didn't “recall [WSC staff] saying anything about possible injuries.” They said that "going down the bobsleigh was fine until the very last curve, and as we were coming out of the curve I felt a very … strong pain in my middle back."
Patron 1 said they were instructed to sit up, look ahead, and make themself "look big in the seat." However, due to consistent downward G-forces that normally occur during the ride, they added: "For the most part going down I was able to follow their instructions … by the end, if I’m being transparent, it was pretty difficult near that final curve.”
Patron 2 contributes: "[WSC staff] compare [passenger bobsleigh] to a roller-coaster, but in a roller-coaster the G-force isn’t sustained. You get weightlessness, G-force, uphills, etc. The G-force on the bobsled is constant. As you went down, the pressure increased, it was the second or third to last [corner] I could feel my back get more and more compressed … at one point I felt like I got the wind knocked out of me."
Due to the size of the other clients in the vehicle, Patron 2 said they were asked to move to the very back of the sled.
The report (which can be accessed in its entirety here) concludes by stating: "WSL engaged a third party to conduct a risk analysis which independently identified similar risk factors as those identified in this report.
"This investigation report has been provided to the WSL for review to further their knowledge of any risks associated with the ride and to support their work in advancing safe outcomes for all passengers on their bobsleigh experience."
