XC SKI Race

[bigfoot]

SKI RACE HELP

Volunteers are needed for the City of Lakes Loppet (a cross country ski race) right here in Minneapolis. The race will be starting at Theodore Wirth Park and finishing in Uptown. Elite sprints and family events will be taking place on Friday, January 30 and the 10K and 35K races will be Saturday, January 31. Volunteers are needed for a variety of jobs on both days and will receive a free fleece ski hat as a thank you.

To volunteer, contact Kara Bancroft @ (952) 294-0940 or karabancroft@hotmail.com

The City of MPLS has been very receptive to developing mountain bike trails, as well as other silent sport trails. One way we can show our appreciation is they need volunteers for The City Of Lakes Loppet Race. Make sure you tell them your from the mountain bike community!

[bigfoot]

Still looking for volunteers. The full race course will be run.

See below for details.

Thanks!!!

[fatbaldpop1]

Skied the entire course on Tuesday. First 20K are truly spectacular and will surprise people (I was). Final 15 are on lakes and lake skiing is lake skiing. Finish line should be most excellent.

Probably worth staying in town, and skipping Pepsi at GR this weekend, to experience both Friday night and Saturday. Uptown (I live there) is fun, no matter what. I hope merchants appreciate the 1000's of people who come down. Also, I hope skiiers respect that it is a neighborhood.

I forwarded your volunteer request to a couple of schools where kids are trying to get credit for community service.

[bigfoot]

Thanks Will!
I appreciate your reply and forward.

I'm concerned about how the cold will effect the racers and volunteers. It is to bad because it is such a great course. Hopefully we can get the temp above zero by race start.

Have a good one!!

Kent

[fatbaldpop1]

Let's not confuse skiers' hardiness with elite road riders, apparently. Skiers will show and deal with it with a smile. Off-road riders appear to be pretty rustic dudes, also. I did the first of the Chilly chilies series last weekend. Normal beer swillin grunts like me were there, but the pretty boys were noticeably absent. I wish I could do both this weekend.

Volunteers/promoters of these events are the ones who are truly tough. Standing outside the whole time, answering highly evolved questions like, "Are there bathrooms around?" requires a metaphysical toughness which I clearly do not nor will ever have!

[Rocky Mountain]

This is probably general knowledge for most but for the few who are not aware of the coolness of this race since it ends in the uptown area. Yeah, XC skiers in an urban environment! : City of Lakes Loppet to be held on Jan. 31; NEW FINISH LINE will be at Lake and Hennepin City of Lake Loppet (http://www.cityoflakesloppet.com/)

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak announced today that the City of Lakes Loppet - the nation's largest urban cross-country ski marathon - will finish at Lake and Hennepin in the heart of Uptown. The long course of the 35K race will be run on January 31, 2004. Loppet organizers will move snow to the streets of Uptown for the race. "Seeing legions of cross-country skiers coming into the streets of Uptown from the chain of lakes is the greatest moment in evolution since the dinosaurs stepped out of the sea onto land for the first time," quipped Mayor Rybak about the new finish point of the race.

Elite cross-country skiers Chad Giese, Sonja Bostrom, Piotr Bednarski and Jan Guenther joined Mayor Rybak and Council Member Dan Niziolek rollerskiing down Hennepin Avenue to highlight the new finish point of the course. Nearly 1000 people participated in the Loppet in January 2003, its inaugural year.

[SickBoy]

Yeah, ok, so let's rip on road racers some more.... sheesh.