Article by Eli Holm. Photo by Olivia Simonson.
This January, the MN State Tourism Department, or, Explore Minnesota, named The Powder Ridge Ski Resort one of the state’s best slopes for skiing and snowboarding.
This Saturday, students from St. Cloud State University will embrace the cold and enjoy the fresh snow. Campus Recreation is taking a skiing, snowboarding, and tubing adventure down the Powder Ridge hills.
Sitting just outside Kimball and surrounded by a lush forest, Powder Ridge has been a go-to destination for winter sports enthusiasts for over 70 years, so it was an obvious choice of inclusion for the St. Cloud States Winter Recreation program.
“The hope is to spend the day soaring down the hill and having a really great time. We will enjoy lunch together, socialize and get to know one another, and relax outside of the academic environment,” said Melissa Bates, Associate Director of Campus Recreation. “Trips like this also expose the students to another side of Minnesota as well as introducing the Minnesotan community to our students. My hope is the students on this adventure will make new friends or have a good time with existing friends, have fun tubing, and relax and recharge for a new week.”
Campus Recreation is also collaborating with the LGBT center for this trip, in an initiative to include all students in their activities and build a welcoming atmosphere as they spread the joys of sport and amusement.
This will be the first time Campus Recreation takes students to Powder Ridge, something Bates worries will have an impact on turnout, but will hopefully mean word-of-mouth for next year.
“A challenge I see is this is the first time we have hosted this adventure so the word has not yet gotten out about how much fun it is. Once a group of students joins us on one trip, many more sign up the following year,” Bates said.
There’s also an elephant in the room: the temperature and a chance of snow. This week’s winter storms throughout the Midwest are set to continue over the weekend, with a 90% chance of snow on Saturday morning.
“The biggest challenge I see is no one wanting to play in the snow and wanting to stay indoors. It’s been very cold this week and that is understandable. I plan on being bundled up and on a tube a lot this Saturday, though!” Bates said.
Campus Recreation leaves for Powder Ridge at 8:30 a.m. this Saturday, with hopes that the success of the first trip means further trips for years to come.
“I would like to see the van we have rented filled up, smiles and laughter from the students and staff joining us, and an eagerness to join us on more adventures in the future,” Bates inquired.
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