A bobsled steers with a simple but very precise front-runner steering system that the pilot controls using rings connected to cables or pulleys.

Core idea: how a bobsled steers

  • Modern bobsleds have steerable front runners (the front pair of blades) and fixed rear runners.
  • In front of the pilot are two metal rings or handles attached to a pulley/cable system.
  • Pulling the left ring turns the front runners slightly left; pulling the right ring turns them slightly right.
  • Elastic “bungees” or springs pull the system back to center when the pilot relaxes their input, helping the runners return to straight.

So the pilot isn’t wrenching a big steering wheel; they’re making small, fingertip-level pulls on rings that twist the front blades a few degrees.

What the pilot actually does

  • The pilot sprints and jumps in, then spends the run reading the track’s curves and ice pressure.
  • They use tiny steering inputs—often just a few quick, light tugs on the ropes/rings—to adjust the sled’s line.
  • At 80–90 mph, over‑steering will scrub speed or even flip the sled, so subtlety is everything.
  • The rest of the crew can make micro weight shifts with their bodies to help the sled hold the best line through turns.

A good pilot almost “draws” a perfect path through each corner using these tiny corrections instead of big, obvious turns.

How bobsled steering feels (quick mental picture)

  • Imagine a shopping cart on ice where only the front wheels can pivot a little.
  • Now replace the handlebar with two ropes: pull the left rope and the front “wheels” angle left, pull the right and they angle right.
  • Springs snap those wheels back toward straight when you stop pulling, just like the bungees on a real bobsled.

Multiply that by a narrow ice chute, 90 mph, and g‑forces in the corners—and that’s bobsled steering.