CAMDEN, Maine — Despite the weekend's cold conditions, hundreds gathered in Camden to take part in the 32nd annual U.S. National Championships.
Hosted at the Camden Snow Bowl, sledders waxed their toboggans to perfection to line up to a makeshift snowbank chute when the original led to unfrozen pond, a last-minute effort by volunteers.
"We don't want to let them [attendees] down so we kind of do whatever we have to," Camden Snow Bowl Assistant Manager Holly Anderson said. "It's just making do with what mother nature gives you!"
When it comes to shaving down on seconds on your time, many have their own techniques, with attendee Jason Latiolais saying it's all in the tuck.
"The way to do it is to lay down, straddle your legs and all this and make a low profile," Latiolais said, who is representing the U.S. Coast Guard's team.
"My strategy is just tuck in and hope for the best," Cillian O’Sullivan said, whose family team came all the way from Ireland for the event.
The family has a relative who lives in Maine and enjoyed the event so much last year they had to come back.
"I tell people that I qualified last year for the US National Toboggan Championships," Vincent O'Sullivan said. "People are surprised let’s put it that way.”
Some teams took it a step further crafting their own sleds themselves. The "Lovely Lady Sleighers" brought theirs all the way from Indiana.
"Being able to just barrel down and know we had our whole hometown behind us was incredible," Kate Baker said. "We really depended on each other; we became one as a human team!"