Calgary bobsled deaths: Sliding down track an after-hours 'tradition,' people say online

People familiar with the bobsled track at Canada Olympic Park know of its danger but also know the temptation to take a joyride down sometimes trumps common sense.

Brian Grant worked and trained at the park and said it wasn't uncommon for staff to take after-hours runs.

"It's a great temptation to hop on something and go down the track," said Grant.

When Cool Runnings was being filmed there Grant says he and some others slid down on seat cushions but he quickly lost control and had to grab the walls to try and slow down.

It's unclear how fast Jordan and Evan Caldwell were going when they hit the concrete gate but at the exact point where they crashed, a four-man bobsled would have been travelling 96.6 km/h, according to a pamphlet with technical data about the track.

"Once they started from the top they would not have been able to stop," said Grant.

After-hours runs a 'tradition'

Sliding down the bobsled track after-hours on 'dumb things' was a 'tradition' for staff at Canada Olympic Park, according to several people on social media who say they used to work there.

"When I worked there many moons ago it was tradition that people went down the track on dumb things," wrote Kendra Coates on Facebook.

Others wrote about apparent after-hours transgressions on a Reddit thread, including one poster who said "we did it on a flipped over park bench."

WinSport CEO Barry Heck told reporters he wasn't aware of anyone entering the park after-hours at a news conference Saturday evening

"I do not personally know of any incidents of anyone being on the sliding track," said Heck.