Crashed Ice in Lausanne

There's a few events you're unlikely to find in Australia, and one of them is the Red-Bull sponsored, and silly-named, Crashed Ice that was on in Lausanne this weekend.

This event consists of a downhill track of ice, built in the middle of Lausanne, with jumps and bumps and turns, that ice-skaters, wearing ice-hockey outfits, race down. Apparently the locals are quite upset about the event, which has effectively cut off a large part of their town with the track construction.

There is of course lots of bumps and crashes along the way, and it really seems quite a crazy event.

We started watching from the top of the track, and slowly made our way down towards the finish, following the track, as the heats progressed.

It was incredibly crowded in Lausanne for the event, which was free, and the crush of people by the track made it almost impassable in points. It's really rare to see Lausanne so busy, and a friend from work commented that even on NYE it is not so crowded in Lausanne.

After the event we got some dinner in town, although it took several goes to find a restaurant willing to take us in (because they were full, not because they didn't like the look of us).

It was certainly a unique experience, but probably not one we'd repeat due to the crowds, and possibly also the fact that ultimately it is quite a pointless and ridiculous sport!