Skiing is a sport enjoyed by millions of people around the world. The adrenaline rush that skiers get from flying down the slopes is unmatched, but all too often the cause for this rush is overlooked. Physics plays a crucial role in skiing and without it, there would definitely be no skiing. The concept of skiing is simple. You attach a ski to each foot, go to the top of a hill or incline, and slide down, turning side to side. From this basic concept of sliding down an inclined plane, a worldwide sport has evolved. In this paper, I hope you gain a useful knowledge of the vitally important role that physics plays in the sport of downhill skiing.
m = mass of skier
g = gravitational force
a = acceleration
mu = kinetic friction coefficient
· Inertial Forces = (m)(a)
· Frictional Force = (mu)(m)(g)(cos theta)
· Graviational Force = (m)(g)(sin theta)
Gravity is the force that holds the skier to the ground and is also what pulls the skier down the hill. While gravity is acting straight down on the skier, a normal force is exerted on the skier that opposes gravity. As the skier skis down the hill, he or she will encounter an acceleration. This acceleration is due to gravity caused by a change in the skiers velocity. The mass of a skier is different for every person and is easily calculated by multiplying a skiers weight in kilograms by the gravitational force exerted by the earth. These forces and more are explained throughout the rest of this paper.
Gravity is a force that everybody is familiar with and is one of the simplest to understand. We all know that if you were to throw a ball in the air it would fall right back down. This force called gravity exerts a constant acceleration of 9.81 m/sec2 towards the center of the earth. Gravity is what pulls you down the hill. While gravity is being exerted downward, a normal force is being exerted on the skier opposing gravity. This normal force acts perpendicular to the earth's surface, and in this case the mountain on which the skier is skiing. Lets say for instance the skier was on a flat surface, both gravity and the normal force would be acting on the skier but in opposite directions, thereby canceling each other out and resulting in no movement. However when a skier is on the mountain, the combination of gravity and the perpendicular normal force result in the skier being pulled down the mountain at the same angle as the mountain’s slope.
m = mass of skier
g = gravitational force
a = acceleration
mu = kinetic friction coefficient
· Inertial Forces = (m)(a)
· Frictional Force = (mu)(m)(g)(cos theta)
· Graviational Force = (m)(g)(sin theta)
Gravity is the force that holds the skier to the ground and is also what pulls the skier down the hill. While gravity is acting straight down on the skier, a normal force is exerted on the skier that opposes gravity. As the skier skis down the hill, he or she will encounter an acceleration. This acceleration is due to gravity caused by a change in the skiers velocity. The mass of a skier is different for every person and is easily calculated by multiplying a skiers weight in kilograms by the gravitational force exerted by the earth. These forces and more are explained throughout the rest of this paper.
Gravity is a force that everybody is familiar with and is one of the simplest to understand. We all know that if you were to throw a ball in the air it would fall right back down. This force called gravity exerts a constant acceleration of 9.81 m/sec2 towards the center of the earth. Gravity is what pulls you down the hill. While gravity is being exerted downward, a normal force is being exerted on the skier opposing gravity. This normal force acts perpendicular to the earth's surface, and in this case the mountain on which the skier is skiing. Lets say for instance the skier was on a flat surface, both gravity and the normal force would be acting on the skier but in opposite directions, thereby canceling each other out and resulting in no movement. However when a skier is on the mountain, the combination of gravity and the perpendicular normal force result in the skier being pulled down the mountain at the same angle as the mountain’s slope.
- Downhill Racer is a 1969 American sports drama film starring Robert Redford, Gene Hackman and Camilla Sparv, and was the directorial debut of Michael Ritchie. Written by James Salter, based on the 1963 novel The Downhill Racers by Oakley Hall, the film is about a talented downhill skier who joins the United States ski team in Europe to compete in international skiing competitions.
- Ski race gloves and ski racing mittens with padding and waterproofing for hand protection. Auclair Junior Race Force Mitt. Regular price $150.00 Sale price $75.00 Save 50% Level Speed Over Glove. $50.00 1 2 Next. Company Company Contact: 800-814-7223; About Race Place.
- Alpine race stock skis by Atomic, Dynastar, Fischer, Head, Nordica, Rossignol and Volkl for every ski racer including junior and kids.
- The skis usually have rounded, low-profile tips. The skis have a shorter side-cut radius and are longer than those of Super-G. Ski poles can be bent easily, which helps the skier to zigzag around the curves. As in other alpine disciplines, downhill skiers wear skin-tight equipment and helmets to ensure protection against any external injury.
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Gliding is the art of maintaining the flattest ski in order to achieve the lowest possible friction. The forces associated with gliding are fairly straightforward: gravity, friction, and air resistance. Air resistance has several inputs that add to the total resistive force. Friction is caused by the lack of a perfectly smooth surface between the skis and snow on a microscopic level. Think of it as the Rocky Mountain range trying to slide over the Himalayas. On a microscopic level this is what friction is.Two factors contribute to the resistive frictional force; a normal force and the friction coefficient. The normal force is the force holding the person up keeping them from falling towards the center of the earth. On level ground the normal force acts straight up against the acceleration of gravity. On a slope, the normal force is equal to the force of gravity proportional to the cosine of the angle of the slope to horizontal. This portion of gravity attempts to accelerate the person toward the center of the earth, the normal force resists this acceleration. The remaining component of gravity accelerates the body down the hill parallel to the slope, a linear acceleration.It is the coefficient of friction that speed skiers and racers try to reduce to a minimum. The normal force is a constant since it is related to their body weight, which does not change during the course of the race. The coefficient of friction is already reduced from everyday levels because of the snow, but it is the goal of racers to reduce this to an absolute minimum to maximize speed.The coefficient of friction is a unit less ratio of the force of friction to the normal force. The real value for the coefficient is often determined experimentally....... middle of paper ......and the force normal to the shear plane. These two forces again result in the same resultant force but are rotated into the shear plane. The angle of rotation into the shear plane is phi in above second diagram. Phi is the edge angle minus the angle in the triangle of the normal force(N) and the friction force(F) on the ski divided by 2. This can be seen in the first diagram. The centripetal force can be found using the above equations in the second diagram:Fc=Fs*cos(phi)+Fn*sin(phi)Fn=Fs/tan(O-b-F)The Fc is the failing point at which the racer begins to slide the ski and lose speed. When a racer does balance the speed, radius, and other factors to maximize the centripetal force and acceleration, up to 2.5 Gs of acceleration can be achieved. Downhill ski racing is a ballet and balancing act of the laws of physics to be the fastest person down the hill.
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Rules for the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup - edition 2018/19 - 1 - RULES FOR THE ALPINE FIS WORLD CUP 1. Organisation Jury according to Art. 601.4 ICR 1.1 Downhill (incl. Combined DH) and Super-G - With voting right: the Technical Delegate the Chief of Race of the Organising Committee the Chief Race Director as Referee, appointed by the FIS.