U.S. National Toboggan Championship Modified This Weekend

Update: The event has been modified due to the extreme cold expected during the weekend. According to the Camden Snow Bowl Facebook Page, this is the latest schedule of events.

"REMINDER: The Snow Bowl will closed for skiing and snowboarding all day Friday, Feb 3 and Saturday, Feb. 4, due to the extreme cold in the forecast. We will re-open Sunday, Feb 5 at 9 a.m. - 4p.m.. The U.S. National Toboggan Championships has been condensed to the final day of the event, Sunday, Feb. 5, beginning at 8 a.m. for racing.

Thousands will descend on the picturesque town of Camden, as the Camden Snow Bowl will play host to the 32nd U.S. National Toboggan Championships this weekend.

According to their website, camdensnowbowl.com, the events will kick off Thursday evening, from 5 PM to 11 PM, with a Winter Jamobourree at the Rockport Opera House.

The team check-ins and toboggan inspections (so they can keep everything legit and safe) will take place from noon till 7 PM on Friday. Dave Mallet will be playing at the nearby Camden Opera House that evening.

Saturday is the day the racing begins, with the team events kicking off at the Camden Snow Bowl at 8 AM sharp! (You'll definitely want to dress in some extra layers, as it's going to be brutally cold this weekend!)

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Sunday will be the day of the Final Runs and eventually, the awards ceremony will take place.

An annual event in Camden since about 1990, upwards of 400 teams are expected to fly down the Jack Williams Toboggan Chute, in hopes of being the fasted across the finish line.

Initially built in the 1930s, rebuilt in 1969, and then once again rehabbed in 1990, the chute is something you really should experience first-hand, either as a spectator or even better, a participant in the race.

People come from around the nation, and some from around the globe, to experience the races.

Uniquely Maine, according to a Wikipedia entry online, "The chute is 400 feet (120 m) long, 70 feet (21 m) in elevation, and speeds up to 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) are attained. The run-out is on to frozen Hosmers' pond. If there is clear ice on the pond, some sleds will go the entire way across, 0.25 miles (0.40 km)."

To get an idea of what these events will be like, check out this video L.L. Bean put together about the races.