NSLA - March 6, 1999
Mt. Cheaha Luge Road Race

The first race of the season was held on a beautiful 2.5 mile stretch of road in the Talledega National Forest, Alabama. The course is one of the fastest in the series and it gave everyone a good dose of adrenaline. Some interesting developments in the top pilots makes for a great start to the series.

During practice it was obvious who was going to be the man to beat. A meaner, leaner, driving machine called Beagle was making no mistakes and no one could get near him. The race itself was no different, Beagle stayed tucked and made flawless turns that no one could duplicate. The only hope anyone had was to hold onto a second or third place finish. If you weren't there to see it you missed one of the highlights of years of street luge racing - Beagle's smiling face and genuine ecstacy at having his first win.

In the Amateur division it was a student of Ed Bryant who took the first place prize. Coming to his first race (not counting working as a course worker at the Asheville race last year), and riding Ed's luge, Al seemed to have learned a trick or two from Ed. He walked away with first place honors after battling it out with another first timer, Chad Collins.

In the junior division another new pilot emerged to give Scooter Swartz some serious competition. Brandon Campbell kept Scooter worried due to his weight advantage. But the experience and tight lines took Scooter to the finish line first.

Check back later for more on this race. Until then here are the official results.