The U.S. Luge team has lost an important part of their training equipment. They were heading back to their Lehigh Valley hotel Friday from a day of training at Blue Mountain when five of their sleds fell out the back of the box truck.
Apparently the rear door was not secured properly in the pouring rain that night. That door fell open in the area of Carriage Rd. in east Allen Township, Northampton County and the sleds slid out, according to Pennsylvania State Police.
A resident in the area saw the sleds on the ground. That neighbor says a man driving a black truck stopped to ask who they belonged to and the neighbor did not know. The man picked up the sleds, put them in his truck and drove off.
The training sleds cost $400 to $600 a piece.
Gordy Scheer, director of marketing and sponsorship for the U.S. Luge Association, says he doesn't think the man had any criminal intent, but simply saw the sleds and decided to take them.
"We're in the area, trying to recruit young athletes to represent the United States in international competition, including the Olympics," said Scheer. "Hopefully (whoever took the sleds) can find it in their heart to get this equipment back to us."
Pennsylvania State Police are asking anyone with information about the sleds to contact the Bethlehem barracks at 610-861-2026.
