MINNEAPOLIS — If you're wondering how to celebrate Minnesota winter traditions during such an untraditional Minnesota winter, the Loppet Foundation is offering the Twin Cities an example this weekend.
Despite record warmth over the past two weeks, the annual Loppet Winter Festival and Luminary Loppet are still taking place, thanks to some detours.
The Loppet Luminary, which typically takes place on a frozen Lake of the Isles, has morphed into a candlelit walk around the lake, but will still feature, music, fire dancing, drinks and fun.
Meanwhile, Theodore Wirth Park is hosting a smaller slate of winter festival races on Saturday and Sunday.
"We have postponed the fat tire bike races until March," said Claire Wilson, executive director of the Loppet Foundation. "The snow is just unsafe for bikers. It's too shallow."
Though cross-country skiers were welcomed, they were required to race across less country than normal.
"I think it was supposed to be a 20k (race) and they reduced it down to 9.5k," said Jonathan Kirsch, who visited Theodore Wirth Park to cheer on his wife, Julie. "And as a spectator, you can't go up to the finish line. They don't want us up on the snow. They want to preserve it."
"Unfortunately, we had to limit those spectators because there are sections of the course that are really low on snow right now, and dirt is the cancer of snow," Wilson said. "The dirtier it gets, the faster it melts."
The course conditions are in the spotlight because the upcoming FIS World Cup, which the Loppet Foundation has been preparing to host for several years, is set to begin at Wirth Park in just two weeks.
"The International Federation for Skiing just visited and said our course looks great," Wilson said. "But we have to keep it where it is right now because it is not... it's not an ideal course right now."
She says Wirth Park will likely begin closing trails following the last Winter Festival events on Sunday, and organizers will then go into full hibernation mode ahead of more warm, wet weather in the forecast.
"We are likely going to truck in some snow (for the World Cup)," Wilson said. "We also have gotten some blankets - some concrete blankets - from our friends at Mortenson Construction. We are going to start covering some of the trail, we're going to start covering our snow piles and just hope we make it through the warm spell and through the rain."
Though the conditions aren't ideal, there will be plenty of winter sports fans cheering them on.
"It's amazing what they are doing," Kirsch said. "I can't believe that they're going to do it, especially after a winter like this. We can't wait."
"People are just excited to be on snow this winter," Wilson said. "I've just seen a lot of smiles today."
Click here for more information on the Luminary Loppet Event.
Click here for more information about Loppet Winter Festival events.
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