New Bobsled Design Sets The Ice On Fire

BMW teamed up with the USA Olympic team to design a lighter and faster bobsled.

The bobsled made its Olympic debut in 1926

NBC Olympics / Via nbcolympics.com

Pictured above are silver medal winners Ralph Broome, Thomas Arnold, Alexander Richardson and Rodney Soher Great Britain.

(Image courtesy of NBC Olympics)

A gold medal in bobsledding can be determined by a hundredth of a second

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Image courtesy of BMW Group.

The materials used to make the bobsled are one of the primary keys to speed

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In the past, bobsleds have consisted of wood, steel and even Kevlar fiberglass.

Image courtesy of BMW Group.

A new carbon fiber bobsled will make its debut at Sochi 2014

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Team USA partnered with BMW to make a new carbon fiber bobsled, a lightweight material that increases speed and aerodynamics.

BMW teamed up with Team USA to create this bobsled which is designed to take curves at more than 90 mph

Via BMW Group

Image courtesy of BMW Group.

Designers distributed the weight of the sled in a way that improved aerodynamics and easier steering

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This was achieved by adjusting the sled's center of gravity and narrowing the nose.

By changing the body of the bobsled to carbon fiber, BMW redistributed the weight of the sled to increase efficiency during the race.

Image below courtesy of BMW Group.

The sled was modeled in 3D and tested in a wind tunnel for an optimal design

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Designworks USA, the BMW design firm that created the bobsled used computational fluid dynamics and motion capture technology to hone the design of this innovative bobsled.

Image courtesy BMW Group.

Learn more about how BMW is designing to "drive on ice"

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Video courtesy of BMW Group.