Forklift Racing: The New Olympic Sport?

The 2012 London Olympics have officially begun: Charlotte, North Carolina, hosted the Olympic Canoe Slalom Trials in the United States and Canada in April and Saturday afternoon TV broadcasts now include a variety of competitions. of previous classification. America’s favorite Olympians are taking over television commercials, billboards and apparel. Michael Phelps endorses Subway’s healthy sandwiches as a substantial snack in his workout, while Shawn Johnson shows off his grace and agility in the latest Cola commercial. London will be the center of the world stage this summer, as more than 204 countries and territories cheer on their teams. Even forklift drivers are gearing up for their Olympics debut by refueling with Doritos and Funyuns. Hey?

In Dallas, Texas, forklift operators and co-workers host their own version of the Games: the 200-meter Forklift Race. Using traffic cones as lane lines, drivers accelerate their favorite forklift in the warehouse fleet and take off at an impressive 10 miles per hour. Featured on YouTube, Erik’s Hyster “gets yelled at by old Mitsubishi” in the middle of a parking lot. With that kind of backing, perhaps the forklift brand should consider sponsoring the 2020 Olympics. Forklift companies make both internal combustion (IC) and electric forklifts. Because diesel powered forklifts are built for speed and endurance, they are preferred over gas or propane forklifts for drag racing.

Organizations like the Canadian Materials Handling and Distribution Society host annual competitions to promote Dallas forklift safety and proper handling techniques. The CMHDS BC Championship Forklift Rally is a conducted obstacle course that requires drivers to maneuver forklifts with shock-absorbing tires and order pickers through narrow aisles and around cones, pylons and barrels. Efficiency points, total time to completion, and written proficiency test scores determine the gold medalists in each field. Crashing into obstacles subtracts points from the overall score, but is still a great crowd pleaser.

While forklift drag racing or the Forklift Rally will not be accepted as an Olympic sport for London 2012, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) approved two new sports: tennis, mixed doubles and women’s boxing. London will showcase a total of 26 sports and 39 disciplines throughout its two-week stretch between July 27 and August 12. No matter how exciting forklift racing may seem, witness Usain Bolt, the fastest man in the world, break another world record. for the 100 meter race it is much more entertaining and impressive. Don’t be discouraged forklift racers, keep practicing nimble turns around those barrels and maybe your dream of Olympic glory will finally come true.