USA Luge Recruiting Tour Coming to Duluth This Weekend

The clinics are free for kids ages 9 to 13 and will take place this Saturday and Sunday, May 22 and 23, on the UMD campus on Junction Avenue from E. Niagara to W. College.

DULUTH, Minn. – Last summer, the USA Luge offseason recruiting tour, the White Castle USA Luge Slider Search, was supposed to come to Duluth for the first time. The event was canceled due to COVID but it will finally be happening this weekend.

The Slider Search will be taking place this weekend on the UMD campus. It’s for kids ages 9 to 13 as they begin their national search for talent as they’ve found around 80 percent of their past Olympic teams through this event.

The kids use wheeled sleds to try the sport and no prior experience is needed.

“The White Castle Slider Search is a chance to try something new, something you’ve never done before and get a free tee shirt. You never know where it might take you. We’ve had kids who really didn’t know what the sport was, they show up and it seemed like something fun to try and 8, 10 years later, they’re competing in the Olympic games so you just never know,” director of marketing and sponsorship for USA Luge Gordy Sheer said.

Kids all over the country will try the sport out this summer and then they will narrow a group down to be invited to try it on ice. But this weekend, the program mainly just wants the kids to try something new and have fun.

“We’re looking for kids who are adventurous and who are coachable and listen and are enthusiastic and obviously have some ability to drive the sleds. There are some kids who try it and have difficulty and can’t quite get it and all of a sudden it snaps so it’s really fun to watch that progression and see that satisfaction,” Sheer added.

The clinics are free and will take place this Saturday and Sunday, May 22 and 23, on Junction Avenue from E. Niagara to W. College. For more information or to register, visit the USA Luge Slider Search website.