Jane Binns showed the kids exactly how it’s done and even managed to capture the whole thing on her phone
A daring mother demonstrated to youngsters how it’s done whilst racing down a renowned beauty spot on a simple sledge. With paths piled high with snow the hillside was transformed into a massive toboggan run enabling users to zigzag their way down.
Jane Binns, 47, frequently visits Moel Famau, a 554-metre summit straddling the Flintshire–Denbighshire border, and you can tell. The location has long been favoured for sledging and this week’s snowfall enabled Jane to attempt the complete mountain descent she’d been waiting for.
The walk from the lower car park to the Jubilee Tower at the top typically requires around an hour at a brisk pace. Seated on her plastic sledge, Jane, from Ewloe, Deeside, made the return journey in just under four minutes.
During her descent walkers moved aside as she sped down the mountain, occasionally squealing on the bumpier sections of the route. Throughout she desperately gripped her mobile phone whilst trying to navigate, reports North Wales Live.
At the base Jane breathed a sigh of exhilaration after completing the run without incident. “I don’t understand why more people don’t do it,” she said.
“It’s a real adrenaline rush. I’d much rather sled down Moel Famau than go on a ride at Alton Towers, it’s so much more of a buzz. It was so beautiful too with the sun going down.”
She posted two videos on social media. One captured the breathless descent from the summit to the upper car park, whilst the other showed the route down to the lower car park where she had parked her vehicle.
“I was too nervous to take the car further up, the road was just too icy and slippery,” she said. “I was much happier when on my sled.
“I’ve been sledging here for years. I used to have a dog on the front of the sled, now the dogs follow me down the mountain.
“It’s faster than it looks on the video. While braking I was kicking up clouds of snow and I could barely see where where I was going. By the bottom I was completely covered in snow.”
Jane carefully chose to make her descent down the main path during the afternoon when fewer walkers were heading uphill. Amongst those she encountered was a man who called out, “that’s the way to travel!”
Most local sledging takes place near the car park. Upon Jane’s arrival, a group of young men were struggling to master their equipment – with little success.
Dismounting from her sled, Jane offered them some advice. Within moments they were gliding down the slope.
“The trick is to sit upright, keep your legs slightly apart and brake with your feet,” she said. “You steer by pulling on a rope but it’s a bit basic – you also need to shift your weight around.”
Jane’s footage was widely circulated, with viewers questioning how she remained on board without veering off track. Her feats were described as “awesome” and “epic”. One woman found them difficult to watch, saying: “OMG, that’s so fast.”
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