Sled
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A sled, sledge or sleigh is a vehicle with runners for sliding instead of
Sleds are typically smaller and simpler than sleighs, though this is not always the case. Both are lightweight vehicles whereas a sledge is more usually a low and rough farm vehicle designed for heavy haulage of loads such as cordwood, stone or ice blocks.
With only gravity as the propelling force, a sled can be used downhill, also as a toy.
Alternatively, it may be pulled by animals, usually horses, mules, oxen or dogs. It may also be pushed or pulled by humans (playing children, a parent pulling a child, etc.). Man-hauled sledges were the traditional means of transport on British exploring expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic regions in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Dog-teams were used by most others, such as Roald Amundsen. Today some people use kites to tow exploration sleds in such climes.
A troika is a vehicle drawn by three horses, usually a sled, but it may also be a wheeled carriage.
The fictional flying sleigh of
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The various categories of sleds include:
- Coaster sled
- Wooden sled/sledge
- Draft-animal sled/sledge
- Horse-drawn sleigh
- Flying sleigh
- Bobsled - an Olympic sport.
- Toboggan