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Twin Cities local XC racing scene losses and gains...
It looks like the local racing scene will be thinned a bit this year as St Paul
loses 3 races this year and the West side loses one. The New Years Day race at Phalen and the Lalapalooza race (held for te last 20? years) at Como where discontinued along with the Ski Games at Battle creek. The XC ski race at Murphy Hanrahan was also scuttled. In some ways this may be good news as the racing scene here seems to have to any races supported by too few racers. Although, the St Paul races were always some of the better attended. I wonder where racers will go these weekends. In a sport that requires some comparison to others to get a sense of how you do I would rather have 1 race with 150 participants than 3 with 50 or so. Perhaps these cancellations will bolster the numbers at some other local races and make them stronger in the long run. I assume the Baker Shaker 10k skate may benefit from this development, along with races in Red Wing and St Cloud. But it all remains to be seen... I was wondering why the Ski Game were scuttled? After a significant effort to create a major XC ski event? I also wonder if plans to make Battlecreek Park a major XC ski area will be effected by this loss? I also wonder how the loss of the race at Como will effect the grooming there (which has had some inconsistent grooming the past few years) On a positive note, The Twin Cities Loppet in Minneapolis, which will be finishing on the streets of Uptown this year seems to be gaining steam and looks destined to become one of the major XC ski events in the country. Was this a factor in the Ski Games decision?..to try and throw support to this new event that has the backing of the Mayor and city resources? Also the addition of Elm Creek 2.5K of snow making on real XC ski trails (and not just a downhill area side project) will be extending the season and perhaps ther racing season by as much as 6 weeks....Nice to know that the 5k time trial series at Elm Creek will not have to rely on the real stuff...This will also guarantee the high schools have a decent course to compete on despite what mother nature decides...It would be great to see some December weekend races pop up at Elm Creek. This seems like a no brainer. Perhaps another try at a Winter Triathlon there in late March? and so it goes... Stephen Bullard |
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#2
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Twin Cities local XC racing scene losses and gains...
The main thing is not having to drive far. Local races make for more racers, I
suspect. Too bad about losing those local races. When XC was big in Michigan we had multiple races every weekend. Sure it made us wonder about who was fastest but a few major events answered that. It was fun to gossip all the while: who's avoiding who. -- Jeff Potter **** *Out Your Backdoor * http://www.outyourbackdoor.com publisher of outdoor/indoor do-it-yourself culture... ...offering "small world" views on bikes, bows, books, movies... ...rare books on ski, bike, boat culture, plus a Gulf Coast thriller about smalltown smuggling ... more radical novels coming up! ...original downloadable music ... and articles galore! plus national "Off the Beaten Path" travel forums! HOLY SMOKES! |
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