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The Minnesota Thread

16K views 106 replies 28 participants last post by  Deacon 
#1 ·
I don't know about the rest of you but the snow showers we got last week got me amped to ride.

This will be my first season up-north so I'm pretty exited for the new(hopefully improved) riding opportunities that will bring.

What are all of your plans for the season?
 
#2 ·
Welch

I'll be taking advantage of my season pass to Welch Village (SE MN) and spending friday mornings there and any other chance the wife will let me disappear for half a day.

With any luck, organizing another trip to Lutsen, 1st time there this past march for my bachelor party, amazing.

Any good hills nearby but outside of MN? I keep checking out Montana and such, but that's a haul and an expense, but I'd love to find some "real" mountains.
 
#6 ·
Any good hills nearby but outside of MN? I keep checking out Montana and such, but that's a haul and an expense, but I'd love to find some "real" mountains.
Idk if you have heard of mt.Bohemia in the U.P. never been there but have heard good things. I'm going to be heading there with a couple buddies over winter break.

Apparently its 900 ft of vertical, and they don't do any grooming or snowmaking, but they get like 300 inches of snow in the yoop so they can get away with it. I looked at a trail map and it looks like its all tight blacks and glades. I'm pretty excited about it.

anyways i'll be purchasing passes at giants ridge and mt.itasca this season, possibly spirit since i could get it for $99 with a giants ridge pass
 
#3 ·
Snow showers! we just got all the damn wind and high 30's in temps last week here in alexandria minnesota, This year will be my first time going to lutson hoping to make multiple trips there. For now i am stuck with andes tower hills i got my season pass for 130 bucks so cant complain lol and im only 12 minites from there
 
#4 ·
Snow and high winds??! Where the hell was I? Last week I was in Iowa = suck, the week before I was backpacking on the Superior Hiking Trail near Two Harbors and it was over 80degrees = another suck. Definately got no snow where I've been.
Just looked at the trail map for Andes Tower Hills... You will wet yourself at Lutsen. Not as big as I'd imagined, and too many front face black diamonds on which I am completely worthless and have yet to figure out the point of for snowboarders (perhaps none), but Mystery Mountain is a load of fun for the long woodsy runs, and running from Eagle mountain, under the bridge down to the bottom was the fantastic. then spent an entire day covering every square inch I could muster on Moose.
Welch had a season pass deal for $100 so I jumped on it last season and this season, got one for my son too!
 
#7 ·
Minnesota doesn't often get credit for having good snowboarding, but honestly I've had some of the best times riding the natural terrain in Lutsen and hitting the park at Spirit. Not to mention if you buy your season's pass at Lutsen before September 30 it's only $229!?! That's madness. Hope you guy's have a great season, and Papa Charlie's is the best. :thumbsup:
 
#9 ·
Ya Andes has maybe 15 runs or so and the only goals i hope to accomplish will be to ride goofy as close to as good as i ride regular and i have always had troubles with backspin's so that is my goal. Im not quite sure if you any of you have heard of snowball fest that is held at lutsen in the January time but i defiantly plan on getting up there around then.
 
#13 ·
Ya Andes has maybe 15 runs or so and the only goals i hope to accomplish will be to ride goofy as close to as good as i ride regular and i have always had troubles with backspin's so that is my goal.
When I first learned to ride, they (my friends) kept forcing me to ride regular, and the board kept spinning to goofy, so I let it and the learning curve went straight up. My son wanted to ride goofy, couldn't get it, took lessons regular, and by the 3rd lesson he was back to goofy, and damned good at it too. My goal this year is to trust myself at speed regular, I can do it pretty well, but I don't want to get in the habit of always riding heel-side, which is what I did when I started. I'm left handed, I've been told that has something to do with it.

Good Luck!
 
#10 ·
...where have you been riding that Minnesota is a potential upgrade?

I've ridden Welch, Afton, Buck, Wild (but only early season, so doesn't quite count), and Spirit. Welch and Afton are garbage. I'd tolerate them better if they had better lifts, but spending 20 minutes to get back up for 30 second runs wears on a guy. Buck I like since it's small, easy to get to the top, easy to get back to the bottom, and the park set-ups are better. Afton and Welch have truly garbage parks. Spirit is actually a lot of fun, only issue I have with that place is that the lifts are still stupid slow, but the runs are a bit longer and generaly steeper. Parks are fun too.

Need to hit Trollhaugen and Hyland, those sound like decent local places to Twin Cities (but pricier). Never been to Lutsen... just haven't been able to justify the price of a weekend trip + gas when I can save up funds for Tahoe trips when I visit my folks back in California.

I've heard great things about Granite Peak in Wasau Wisconsin about 4 hours east. Allegedly one of the top 10 park setups in the country. About 7 hours drive from the Twin Cities is Mt. Bohemia in the UP of Michigan. That place rips. Atrus, based on the way you describe yourself, I would avoid Bohemia. As awesome (and cheap, $99 pass sale first weekend of December) as it is, you need to be comfortable on legit steeps (not Midwestern steeps) and confident in your riding to tackle it. I made two trips up there last year and it was unreal... got shit snow the second trip though. Still had fun, but it was suuuuper sketchy.
 
#14 ·
Gotta diasagree with kimchijajonshim, Buck Hill is pretty bogus. Been there once and will never go back. Way too crowded and urban, which granted is an issue anywhere in the Twin Cities, but their longest run is TOPS a quarter mile. At least Afton has a nearly mile long run. Buck Hill has what, probably 40 acres TOPS of skiable terrain whereas Afton has 300. Afton has 48 runs and Buck Hill has what, not even 20? I'll give you that if your only a park rat and do not freeride at all Buck Hill isn't too bad, but it is not even close to Afton in terms of overall size. Not to mention you can actually hear i-35 while your boarding.

Ill concdede your point on Aftons lifts but once you learn their layout you learn how to get places pretty quickly and the lifts do take longer because Afton is taller than Buck as well. I will agree that Welch is overated but Lutsen and Spirit are both fun if you can make a 2+ hour trip to both those places. Trollhaugen is ONLY good for their Friday night boarding which is $15 for riding from 10pm - 3am, otherwise don't even waste your trip for their short ass runs. Overall, boarding in MN is pretty sad, even Lutsen isn't that crazy and Lutsen is hands down THE best place in MN. The problem being your talking a 4+ hour drive that may be even worse due to weather conditions. Never been to Wild and have no desire to go.

Afton also has pretty dope drink prices if your in to those sorts of things as well ($4 patron shots!).

Here would be my breakdown of the best places in MN (purely for freestyle, I dont do park too much):

1. Lutsen
2. Spirit
3. Afton
4. Welch
5. Buck Hill
 
#16 ·
Afton is a blast if you hit it on a weekday morning. The lifts are still slow but usually no lines at all. and they still usually have 15 of the 18 open.

My best day day of riding was at afton last year on a wedensday morning right after we got 8" of snow. nothing had been groomed, it was 28 and sunny, and 90% of the time we had the whole run to our selves.

Pure fun
 
#20 ·
Afton and Trollhaugen guy here myself, I don't really do the park so I love the variety and how spread out Afton is(and they have 18 "fast" 2 man lifts), you have to know how to ride the place so you can do laps from one side of the place to the the other, also lots of woods and places to ride in the state park nearby if you have lots of snow and 2 bars one below and one above. Welch is fine but is crowded because they sell all those uber cheap early season passes that and it's to far away from everything to ride every day after work.
 
#22 ·
Atrus: The expo was a little disappointing they had a ton of little vendors but no brands there to check out gear.

To everyone else: If you think Hyland and Buck are premier places here in minnesota then you need seriously rethink what your doing cause Buck and Hyland get icy real fast and then there is the little punk kids that hangout at Hyland and are rude to every one and Buck is just boring the Park is decent as long as you go during the day on a weekday cause if you go on the weekend the park is gonna be rutted out and if you are gonna be a latenight boarder then dont go to any of them cause they will be so icy I have heard people compare them to glaciers.
 
#28 ·
Lived in Alexandria and boarded Andes Tower Hills last year. While it's nothing impressive, size wise, it does get the job done. I had the luxury of going during the day, during the week. I was usually one of maybe 20 people. The snow last season was epic so I actually had 4-5 days of fresh tracks for a few hours.

I live in the middle of South Dakota now. I'd MUCH rather be back there. I'm 4 hours from Terry Peak (which is noticeably bigger) but now I have to plan for a full day and potentially overnight when I want to go.

Heading back up that way for Thanksgiving. Stoked to ride on the Saturday after.

Also: I'm going to Snowball and Lutsen is the bomb. I love Mystery mountain. Sugar Maple run is the bomb.
 
#35 ·
Hey guys I started a tuning and clpthing line called The Butter Factory hit us up on facebook i do some basic tuning right now like waxing ptex and sharpening and we will be getting our stickers and tshirts out very very soon here I will be putting up the designs for the tshirts up here in the next couple of days but check up out on facebook just search The Butter Factory
 
#36 ·
Just a reminder to my fellow Minnesota riders. Snowball 2012 is coming up fast. It's not too late to get tickets, as far as I know.

Snowball 2012

Come up to Lutsen and get buck wild with Jon Wayne & The Pain, Roster McCabe, Wookiefoot, Useful Jenkins and others! 3 days of boarding and bands. It's going to be BUCK WILD!
 
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