These hills have ‘ahhhs’ Pointing out their peak thrills, readers responding to BDN’s ‘Hill of Fame’ contest say…

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Last month, when we asked Bangor Daily News readers to send in their votes for the best sliding place in Maine, we figured that we’d get a lot of kids.

Turns out grown-ups had just as much to say – in fact, they had more. Few things bring back memories of growing up in Maine more than the image of taking out your sled, your toboggan, your inner tube or your big piece of cardboard, and bombing down a hill on a frigid winter day.

There are plenty of spots all over the state – from well-known locations, like Essex Street Hill in Bangor (site of this weekend’s cardboard and duct tape sled race, sponsored by WKIT-FM 100.3), to spots where you have to pay, like Hermon Mountain and the Camden Snow Bowl. The kids at the Orono Afterschool Program all wrote in to vote for the hill at Asa Adams Elementary School.

Some wrote in to reminisce about spots that are no longer available to the sliding public.

“I know where the best sliding hill in the state is, but I can’t go sliding there any more,” said Mary Ranlett Mossman of Bangor. “The hill is still there, but now the city trucks keep Norfolk Street hill in Bangor sanded and salted… When I was a child over 60 years ago the hill was an official sliding place for children. The street was blocked off with orange sawhorses at Montgomery and Congress Streets. On a good sliding day we could go clear to Jefferson Street.”

A few pointed out some lesser-known locations, like the one Nick Snyder of Portland suggested. Snyder, 23, grew up in Hancock County and recalled sledding with his brother and his friends on a rather steep hill off South Road in Dedham.

“We would run, hard, feet pounding, sleds outstretched,” said Snyder. “And we would hit face first, our bodies lying on top of the sleds, heads hanging out over the front lip, and hands outstretched behind us. Human missiles.”

In light of the recent sledding injuries in Hancock and Bangor, it’s probably not a good idea to go headfirst. However, David Levy, aka Captain Avalanche, believes that as long as you take a few precautions, you can go fast and headfirst and still be safe. Levy sells custom-made steerable sleds on his Web site, www.captainavalanche.com, and has taken his sled to hills and mountains all over the world.

“Almost exclusively, without exception, all these horrible sledding accidents involve someone riding an unsteerable sled,” said Levy, who is based in Seattle. “If you’re on a little saucer, you can turn around and start going backwards, and then you lose control. It’s like driving a car you can’t steer.”

In addition to using a sled that can steer, Levy suggests planning your run before you actually go downhill.

“You should walk your run before you sled, so you know there are no obstructions or holes or divots,” he said. “You shouldn’t go sledding where you can’t see where you’re going. And also, if you’re doing any kind of sport where you’re going faster than you can walk or run, you should wear a helmet. If you take those other precautions, there’s no reason you can’t be safe.”

We picked six spots across the state that got the most votes, and that range in levels of challenge. For safety, we asked those who voted to give them a difficulty rating, with a “1” meaning that it’s safe for a small child accompanied by an adult, and a “5” meaning only the most thrill-seeking daredevils should attempt a run (naturally, we didn’t get any level 1’s). We also asked that every spot be open to the public.

It’s a safe bet that we’ve got at least three more weeks of sledding weather, before the snow begins to melt and spring starts to creep in. You could be under 10, or over 60, on a $5 Wal-Mart sled or a $50 toboggan. Regardless, there are plenty of thrills (and chills) to be had. So go ahead. Take the plunge.

Union Street Hill, Bangor. Difficulty rating: 3

“It’s really fun and really cool. Your stomach will come right up to your neck, and sometimes it’s scary ’cause you feel like you’re going to fall off your sled and land on your face.”

Kaitlyn Boyington, 10, Randolph

“You go super-fast. The snow flies up and hits you in the face sometimes.”

Lauren Boyington, 9, Randolph

“[My grandkids] come up to see Grandpa, and we usually come here. We have this sled, the torpedo, that goes super-fast. But I remember as a kid using pieces of cardboard.”

– Steve Boyington, Bangor

Asa C. Adams Elementary School hill, Goodridge Drive, Orono. Difficulty rating: 2

“I like sliding into the ditch. There’s a ramp and people always fall off it, and it really hurts. But it’s really, really cool. You go, like, so fast.”

Jessica, 10, fifth grade

“If you use a flying saucer you can spin around. Sometimes you go so fast it’s scary.”

Alli, 9, third grade

“I think it’s the best place around. I use a roll-up sled and I go pretty fast.”

Evan, 7, second grade

“I go as fast as I can. And I go all by myself. I’m never scared.”

Brayden, 7, first grade

Caribou Country Club, New Sweden Road, Caribou. Difficulty rating: 3

“That’s the best hill around. I wish everyone could see it right now. All the footprint[s] and sled marks show how much it’s been used. You can just go so fast on it, even with those cheap plastic sleds. You make it all the way down to the driving range if you get a running start. It’s a straight shot. On snow days, that’s where everyone goes.”

– Channa Jackson, 30, New Sweden

Big Bunker Hill and Little Bunker Hill, Kebo Valley Golf Course, 136 Eagle Lake Road, Bar Harbor. Difficulty rating: Little Bunker, 2; Big Bunker, 4

“They’re side-by-side, and the little one is a lot better for little kids. It’s smaller, though it’s still a pretty good size. The other one is a lot better, though… people bring out skis and snowboards and tubes. Everything… It’s definitely the most popular spot on the island.”

– Robert Blevins, 43, Tremont

“Killer Hill” off Main Street, Patten. Difficulty rating: 5

“As far as a degree angle goes, I’d say it’s at least 45 degrees. It drops to several different levels, so you hit all these little drops all the way to the bottom. I grew up in Patten, and as kids we’d start from the top and get thrown all over the place and get bounced right out of your sled. It was so steep that if it got icy we had to beat a path in the woods to get back up. You couldn’t even crawl up on your hands and knees. We’d build bonfires at the bottom and stand around to get warm.”

– Allan Smallwood, 33, Old Town

Third hole, Tarratine Golf Club, Golf Club Road, Islesboro. Difficulty rating: 3

“All the coolest people on the island head over to the third hole on the Tarratine Club golf course. The private club allows kids [young and old] to attempt to break their necks every winter on this treacherous hill. There’s lots of good bumps and drops involved. It’s fun, as long as your husband isn’t clinging to your tube forcing you to go along with him kicking and screaming!”

Jennifer Oldham, 25, Belfast

“It always looks like it’ll be a nice straight shot, but then you take a turn to the right, and you have to bail off your snow tube before you hit the woods, or it’ll be a mess.”

Nate Oldham, 24, Belfast