Calling all adrenaline junkies! There’s a scary bobsleigh track in Latvia with your name on it.
The venue in snowy Sigulda hosts top-notch competitions where the world stars of bobsleigh, skeleton and luge reach speeds of up to 125 kilometres per hour as they snake their way down the mountainside.
It’s one of the few tracks in the world that’s accessible to members of the public and professional athletes – with prices starting at an amazing 10 euros. Sigulda is also renowned as one of the toughest tracks on the circuit.
How do I know all this? Well, in my “part-time job” as chiropractor to the winter sports stars, I’ve recently returned from week of working there and, as usual with these events, it was an interesting experience.
Just getting to Latvia from Bristol was an adventure in itself. Leaving home at 6.30am, I drove to London and then flew from Heathrow to the Polish capital of Warsaw before a connecting flight to Riga, in Latvia – then it was on to Sigulda by road. On arrival at 6.30pm local time, it was straight to work with a couple of athletes who began their week intent on making an impact at the World Cup and European Championship events.
Holland’s Kimberley Bos had already taken a knock as she competed in the women’s skeleton. We had to treat an acute ankle injury while also working on performance to help her slide even faster.
And flying Finn Alex Hassen was also in the wars after coming off his sled and smashing on to the ice at 125kph. We had to use all our chiropractic and physio expertise to treat his chest injury and manage the pain – we needed to restore Alex’s biomechanics so he could carry on competing with minimal discomfort.
Yes, these guys are tough and it takes a lot to keep them away from the ice.
At the end of a long day at these championships, the athletes and their hard-working support teams can always rely on being provided with a great range of food and drink. One of my favourites in Latvia was the Medovik honey cake. A ridiculously tasty multi-layered cake which seem like a very complicated set up just to deliver honey to my appreciative tastebuds!
You’d certainly be happy to hurtle down an icy slope if you knew a couple of those were waiting at the end of the high-speed journey!
The races were very exciting. Despite a very difficult week with chest pain, Alex pushed well of the top but slowed where he had crashed the week before and finished a respectable, considering the week, 23rd. Kimberly had an altogether different experience. We only managed to get Kim pain free for her ankle on her first of 2 slides in the actual race! Therefore she finished a disappointing, for her, 18th on her first run, just making the cut off for the second run. On her second run, buoyed by her pain free push, she pushed the second fastest time the track had ever seen and pushed herself up to 9th overall, which is almost unheard of! I had the honour of helping pick up her sled and standing next to her on the podium as the other sliders came in…maybe getting myself on the TV!.
Back home in Mangotsfield, our new chiropractor Emily Smyth-Roberts is settling in well and proving popular with our clients and I’m pleased to announce another newcomer to the team.
To help with the increased demand at Bristol’s biggest and best clinic, we’re delighted to welcome Catherine Quinn, who is the President of the British Chiropractic Association (BCA) and also chiropractor to the Queens Park Rangers football team.
Along with me, Catherine has also worked on the bobsleigh and skeleton Grand Prix circuit so brings a wealth of experience of the industry to the south west. No doubt she’s looking forward to swapping some Cockney rhyming slang for a bit of Brizzle speak (me babber!) when she starts here in March.
I’m also happy to report that our X-ray service, which also offers ultrasound scans, is back up and running. Book in for a consultation appointment with a chiropractor or physio so they can evaluate your needs.
For some people, it’s more appropriate to have an MRI instead of an X-ray or ultrasound scan. We can refer you privately for as little as £245.
Come on down to see us – we’re here to help you make your life easier.
