Beautiful conditions for both skating and classic skiing on the full man-made snow loop after last night's snowfall. Should be a great week for the Junior National Cross-Country Ski Championship races! [ Note that Theodore Wirth North trails will be closed a number of days this week during the competition -- Ed. ]

Photos:

(Bill Oyler)

No grooming overnight - icy - probably best to avoid today due to the rain. I am guessing the course is being preserved for the upcoming races.

(Bill Oyler)

So much fun! Fast conditions. Some sugar - especially on a couple of the climbs.... I wish I had taken snacks so I could have skied longer!

(Lee Penn)

On the snowmaking loop, the skate deck is back to normal compared to yesterday - full skate deck available on the whole course. Trail 18 is still closed. The World Cup loop is open, probably for the race, going up the tubing hill to the upper stadium. Conditions softer than I expected. I was just the second pair of tracks and some hills were already very sugary at 6:00 AM.

(Sam Knuth)

Good news: it's fast. Conditions in the snowmaking loop are fantastic. Had the trails all to myself. Bad news: about half of the snowmaking trails are indeed tracked four-wide for classic skiing, which makes it challenging for skate skiers. It is feasible, just not ideal. Also, Trail 18 is closed but I didn't pass any signs until I'd already done it, and it was really nice. The "interpret as you will" news: the natural trails were doable but not awesome. If you aren't ready to say goodbye yet, go for it. There were no sticks/rocks/leaves, and only a few grassy patches on the bridge trail that can be avoided. I did the bridge trail, Tornado Alley, and Wirth lake. The lake had icy ruts on the trail but could be avoided if you went next to it. Just be careful going on the bridge going over Bassett Creek - there is only enough snow for about one ski's width, so don't come flying down the hill. Otherwise there was plenty of coverage, just crusty in some parts. Definitely get to the snowmaking trails before the big event this weekend. Enjoy!

(Melissa Noel)

Firm conditions on the manmade loop at 4:00pm. Everything north (towards chalet) of the roundabout was triple tracked for classic. There is also a trail extension going up the smaller snowboard hill.

(Mark Bushinski)

Warning only Twin Lakes and part/most of Green Meadow open for skate skiing on manmade loops. Sure would have been nice to have known prior to venturing out, but nice excuse to practice drills and better than nothing ; -).

(Ty Anderson)

It was a bad morning to skate on the machine-made snow at Wirth. The Meadow and Twin Lakes were great but the rest of the course was 4-tracked for classic and the machine shed loop was completely closed. To skate one had to skate over the tracks or go backwards, both bad ideas. It was frustrating because I checked the website last night and there was no communication about this closure.

(John Kendrick)

Good morning ski starting about 6:30, very good conditions overall! Snow was a little slow and a few spots where snow changes from some ice being churned up by grooming, but nothing too concerning. Tracks were very good. Four sets of tracks set in multiple areas where normally it is skate deck.

(Dan Hutjens)

Skied the snowmaking loop on skins at about 12:30pm. Conditions were better than expected! Snow is slow is places that were exposed to the sun yesterday but in great shape in the more shaded areas. Some mashed potatoes on the hills, especially on the unlit area behind Green Meadow Loop. If you're on the fence, definitely go ski today and let's all hope for some more snow to keep our season going strong.

(Chris Frenier)