Word: luge
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...teammate. "I've got no traction on my feet," yells Martin. Grimmette, like a longtime nanny, instantly wipes them down with his gloves. The pair, teammates for 10 years, alternate deep breaths. "All right, be aggressive," says Grimmette. "Yup," replies Martin. With that, the U.S.'s best-ever Olympic luge team shoots from the starting block. Now supine on the sled, they hit speeds of 130 km/h on the icy track, Grimmette atop Martin the whole way down. The Winter Olympics showcase some of the oddest-looking pairs in sports. Athletes endlessly tout the importance of chemistry, that unseen connection...
These athletes aren't conjoined just on the ice. Since most compete in low-revenue sports, the lugers, sledders and skaters often bunk up to save costs. Grimmette doubles as Martin's landlord, renting him a bedroom in his Lake Placid house; during the summer, a top Italian luge team, Gerhard Plankensteiner and Oswald Haselrieder, live and work together as forest rangers in Cortina. They share hotel rooms on the road and put in long hours prepping for competition. "We're like married couples," says Todd Hays, the top U.S. bobsled driver, sharing a sentiment echoed by dozens of athletes...
Partner swapping is less common in luge, since it takes years to get in synch. The top driver steers the sled through treacherous curves with his legs while the bottom driver rolls his shoulders to complete the turn. The key to doubles luge, says Italian coach Marco Andreatta, is "understanding each other only through physically feeling the athlete and knowing how to manage the reaction. You have to feel the sensations and interpret them as best...
That awkward contact presents another challenge for "sliders"--jokes from bemused spectators (the punch line of a Robin Williams riff on doubles luge: "Boys, get a room!"). Some brush them off: "If I wasn't luging, I'd be the one making fun of it," says Canada's Chris Moffat, a former singles rider now paired with younger brother Mike. Others take exception to the cracks. "O.K., we've heard the joke a million times," says Martin, 32, who won bronze with Grimmette in '98, silver in '02 and is chasing the U.S.'s first-ever luge gold...
Lugers Martin and Grimmette don't have to fake friendship. But like any close couple, they have their heated squabbles, mostly over luge issues. Whether teammates break bread, share a bed or see red, all Olympic pairs must be their own worst critics in Torino because when you're sliding down a track at 80 m.p.h. or throwing a skating partner in the air, mistakes won't just hurt your score. Says Martin: "If we screw up here, the consequence is pain...