IMAGINE accelerating faster than a Formula 1 car up to 155 mph down a steep icy slope with no more protection than a helmet—then trying to go faster.

That is exactly what Dundee-based speed skier Dr Nigel Brockton did yesterday when he and members of the British speed ski team took part in wind tunnel testing.

Dr Brockton and fellow team members Millar Reid and Richard Abram were using the Argyll tunnel at Glasgow University’s department of aerospace engineering to test their equipment and positions.

The session follows the speed ski team’s most successful year, which saw Dr Brockton score the first British World Cup win and three members of the team finish in the top 10 at the world championships.

The team are hoping that, by refining their equipment and positions in the wind tunnel and exploiting the expertise of the aerospace engineering staff, they can achieve higher goals.

Previous testing in 2001 led to direct changes in equipment and strategy, which contributed to the team’s improved performance, and it is hoped yesterday’s session will take the team a step closer to the holy grail of optimal aerodynamics.

The skiers were mounted on a “load cell” which measures the resistance they cause to the airflow through the tunnel.

By refining their equipment and stance they can reduce the drag, enabling them to go faster.

“We’re right up there with the top racers in the world and using this kind of data could give us the edge to dominate,” said Dr Brockton, a medical research doctor at Ninewells Hospital.

Despite his demanding job, Dr Brockton manages to be ranked among the top professional speed skiers in the world and is no stranger to adversary, having overcome cancer twice in his 32 years.

“I think it will improve our chances for the rest of the season.

“If nothing else, it means you go into the race knowing you’ve got the right equipment and not thinking ‘should I change this or that.’”

Professor Roddy Galbraith added, “The vortices created use up energy which detract from the possible speeds attainable.

“By eliminating or reducing these, we can increase their speed.”

The margins of victory in speed skiing are often so small that any slight advantage can have a big impact.

The fine-tuning resulting from yesterday’s session will be put to the test in a series of races in Switzerland and Austria before, it is hoped, leading the British team to victory in the fastest races of the season in France and Switzerland during April.