In article ,
Jeff Potter wrote:
Yeah, I'll just set up a torquable handlebar connected to the skitips of
my skispark at first, before worrying about separate units.

They're built basically the same as dogsleds, where the
driving bow (the thing the driver hangs onto) is U-shaped
and extends to the runners. There are several attached
cross-pieces higher up, so that it's possible to distort
what's essentially a rectangle into a non-rectangular
parallelogram by pushing the driving bow to the side while
keeping the runners weighted. That means that the runners
are no longer perpendicular to the ground, and since they're
curved, it means that the part of the runner making surface
contact is now curved. Better sleds have joints tied with
string or rawhide rather than being bolted so that they can
flex better, but even very loose sleds don't steer very
well.
--
Melinda Shore - Software longa, hardware brevis -

The US government has to borrow 22 cents of every dollar it spends