Red Bull is known for its various sporting events that occur throughout the year, including the most recent, Crashed Ice. The event brought in 22 athletes to compete in the races according to the Crashed Ice website. A large variety of spectators from all around the world also attended the weekend long event. Crashed Ice is an ice cross downhill competition that spans over the course of a few months in four different countries; Canada, Germany, Finland, and the U.S. This year the finale was held in Saint Paul, Minnesota. St. Paul was the host of the start of the games last year. Minnesota was the perfect place to end the competition for many reasons.
The first reason being that Minnesotans love winter sports and usually can't get enough of them. Whether it's skiing, snowboarding, ice skating, snowmobiling, or anything else winter-related, we just love it. Living in the North and having winter last longer than any other season, the only way to survive is to embrace it by taking up at least one winter sport...or at least actively watching one winter sport if athleticism isn't your thing. It's practically an unwritten rule in Minnesota, or the Northern United States in general.
The sport of ice cross downhill is a cross between ice skating, hockey, and the extreme sports of ski cross/snowboard cross. It seems fitting that the finals were held in Minnesota considering it is the state of hockey, after all. The gear worn by the athletes are hockey pads and hockey skates. Many of the athletes were once or still are ice hockey players as well, which explains why they are so good at this extreme sport. Because Minnesota is the state of hockey and this sport mimics many aspects of hockey, there is yet another reason Saint Paul was a perfect place to end the competition this year.
Another reason Saint Paul, Minnesota was an ideal place for the finals of Crashed Ice is because the Mayor of Saint Paul, Chris Coleman, loves and plays the sport. Though he does not directly compete in the competition, on the Thursday before the competition, he, along with other city figures, tested out the track himself. The mayor is a straight up boss at ice cross downhill. In a press conference on Thursday after his runs through the track, he talked about how much fun the event is and how it fits in so well with the Saint Paul atmosphere because the city "likes to do things a little on the edge."
As if you needed more convincing on why Saint Paul, Minnesota is the best place to hold Crashed Ice, there's yet another reason. The male winner of Crashed Ice this year, Cameron Naasz, is from Saint Cloud, Minnesota. Saint Cloud is a small city not too far from the Saint Paul. He is the first American to win the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship while his hometown friends and fans watched. What an amazing feeling that must have been being able to represent not only your country, but also your state, by winning the world championship in the place you call home.
Saint Paul, Minnesota has hosted Crashed Ice for 5 years now. It has been a huge success for the city every year, as hundreds of thousands of people gather outside the beautiful Saint Paul Cathedral and watch the extreme winter sport go down. Will Saint Paul, Minnesota continue to be a host for this event every year? For now, I think it's safe to say the answer is yes, because Minnesota truly is the perfect place.
