Forklift Drag Racing: The New Olympic Sport?

The London Olympic Games in 2012 have officially begun: Charlotte, North Carol qualifying competitions. The United States favorite Olympic athletes are taking over television commercials, advertising fences and clothing. Michael Phelps endorses Subway’s healthy sandwiches as a hearty snack in his workout, while Shawn Johnson shows off his grace and agility in the latest Cola commercial. London will be center stage around the world this summer as more than 204 countries and territories cheer on their teams. Even the forklift riders are gearing up for their Olympics debut by stocking up on Doritos and Funyuns. Hey?

In Dallas, Texas, forklift operators and their co-workers host their own version of the Games: the 200-meter forklift drag race. Using traffic cones as lane lines, drivers speed up their favorite forklift in the warehouse fleet and take off at an impressive 10 miles per hour. Featured on YouTube, Erik’s Hyster “gets whipped by the old Mitsubishi” in the middle of a parking lot. With this type of backup, perhaps the brand of the lift truck should consider sponsorship for 2020 Olympic Games. Sounding companies manufacture both internal combustion (IC) and electric lifting wheelbarrows. Because diesel forklifts are built for speed and endurance, they are preferred over gas or propane forklifts for drag racing.

Organizations such as the Canadian Materials Handling and Distribution Society hold annual competitions to promote Dallas forklift safety and proper driving techniques. The CMHDS BC Championship Forklift Rally is a powered obstacle course that requires drivers to maneuver tire forklifts and order pickers through tight aisle spaces and around cones, pylons and barrels. Efficiency points, overall completion time, and written proficiency test scores determine the gold medalists in each field. Chipping the obstacles deduces the points of the general score, but it is still a great complement to the crowd.

While the drag of the lifting wheelbarrow or the rally rally will not be accepted as an Olympic sport for London 2012, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) approved two new sports: Tennis Mixed Double and Women’s Boxing. London will exhibit a total of 26 sports and 39 disciplines throughout its two -week period between July 27 and August 12. No matter how exciting forklift drag racing may seem, witness Usain Bolt, the world’s fastest man, break another world record. because the 100 meter race is much more entertaining and impressive. Take heart, forklift racers, keep practicing nimble turns around those barrels and maybe your dream of Olympic glory will finally come true.