system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
When downhill snow sledding, would being heavier make you go faster (because of gravity's pull) or slower (because of friction)?
gpt
Gravity does not accelerate heavier objects at a faster rate. The only case where higher mass leads to a higher acceleration is in a case where there is a mass-independent force resisting the acceleration (for example air drag). In the case of sledding, air resistance is likely negligible. The only question is the behaviour of the friction against the snow. Friction is directly proportional to normal force, which in turn is directly proportional to mass. So mass should not affect the sliding rate at all. In reality, effects like crushing the snow or something might alter the coefficient of friction in a way that depends on mass, but this is probably a small effect.