MINNEAPOLIS — The third annual World Snow Sculpting Championship in Stillwater is just one week away, and after an underwhelming start to the winter, Mother Nature finally appears ready to cooperate.
"There were some worries that it wasn't going to get cold enough to make snow," said Chuck Dougherty, who is the owner of the Water Street Inn and part of the steering committee for the sculpting event.
The lack of snow accumulation itself has never been a major concern for organizers because the event has always relied on the snowmaking machines - and expertise - provided by their neighbors at Afton Alps.
"We use made snow for the sculpting because it needs to be nice and clean," Dougherty said. "You can't go and pick it up off the street or anything."
But you can't just flip a switch on a snow making machine either. Even though the machines were in place this weekend, above freezing temperatures early this week meant that the machines have largely been sitting idle.
"Usually, we'd have what we call a whale of snow," said Robin Anthony, president of the Greater Stillwater Chamber of Commerce, who puts on the event. "The pile looks like a big white whale in the park here, but it's going to be starting tonight, so we're excited."
Excited, because history has shown that as long as they can make snow, the sculptures and festivities will make for a very big week ahead.
"Oh, it's huge," Dougherty said. "We took a time of year when it's kind of more dead, and I think 50,000 people come out to see these sculptures."
That means there will soon be full hotels, restaurants and hopefully a fully frozen skating rink outside the Water Street Inn.
"It's still not quite frozen all the way through," Dougherty said. "Hopefully, by the weekend, it will be (frozen) and we'll be having it up and running."
The frigid turn in the forecast in the coming days should make sure of that, and give the snowmakers just enough time to catch up.
"It's so great I can sleep at night," Anthony said. "It was a little dicey there but I think that Mother Nature took care of us."
The World Snow Sculpting Championship will officially kick off at Stillwater's Lowell Park Gazebo at 9am on Wednesday, Jan. 17. To check out the sculpting, judging and rest of the festivities, check out the World Snow Sculpting Championship website.
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