Loppet? What's a Loppet?

Twinkly luminaries light the way.

The question begging to be answered is:  "what is a loppet?" The word loppet (so much fun to say) is Scandinavian in origin meaning a great gathering of skiers who ski on specifically groomed trails of varying distances, include enormous amounts of food and drink, and usually end with a party or celebratory banquet and dance. Who wouldn't want to attend such an event? The annual City of Lakes Loppet is a two day cross country ski festival featuring the beautiful trails and lakes of the Twin Cities. There is a 33K Freestyle Loppet that draws about 2000 competitors and encompasses three or more lakes, a Minne Loppet for the under 12 set, a 7K Skijoring Loppet (think cross between dog sledding and X-country skiing and watch the YouTube video at the end of the post), and the 5K Luminary Loppet which Jim and I attended on Saturday night. Thousands of Minneapolis neighbors came out to enjoy this 6th annual night of lights.

One of 1200+ ice luminaries.

Chicken and eggs.

The entire Luminary Loppet is run and manned by almost 500 volunteers. The luminaries are  mostly made in 3 gallon buckets. One ingenious volunteer rigged a contraption he dubbed "The Water Cow" that can make 12 3-gallon luminaries a minute (he studied engineering in a previous life).

Me and the Viking.

Luminary Pyramid.

Fire dancers.

Along with skiers, bikers, snowshoers, walkers, kids and dogs we enjoyed the luminary lit 5K route that snaked around the ice on the the Lake of the Isles. There was an ice sculpture contest, fire dancers, a luminary Pyramid, Enchanted Forest,  and Icecropolis. Not a detail is overlooked, including hot cocoa stations to warm the belly and fire pits to warm the digits.

Directional on the lake.

Jim at Icecropolis

The twinkling crystal of the luminaries created a magical glow across the lake and even with all the spectators, there was a the quiet peacefulness about the night. I embrace the Minnesotan view that it's not about the weather.