Photo: Nordic FocusOur Home Base
Why Minneapolis and Cable
Minneapolis and Cable offer one of the deepest Nordic training setups in North America, plus a Fortune 500 city for school, work and life.
Jessie Diggins at the 2024 Minneapolis World Cup. Jessie grew up in the Twin Cities, went to Stillwater High School and was a member of the inaugural CXC Team that has now become Snø Racing. She went on to have the most decorated cross-country skiing career in U.S. history.
Winter in the Twin Cities
- 4metro trail systems with Nordic snowmaking (Theodore Wirth, Hyland Lake, Elm Creek, Battle Creek)
- 15+ kmmachine-made snow, most of it lighted for night skiing
- 105 vs 64average open days on snowmaking trails vs natural snow (Elm Creek)
- 8lighted trail systems across the metro
- 60+groomed ski trail systems in the metro
- 40,000spectators at the 2024 World Cup at Theodore Wirth Park, the first World Cup in the U.S. in more than 20 years
"Nowhere else in North America has this many snowmaking venues for Nordic skiing."
Summer training
- 480+ milesregional trails across the Twin Cities metro
- 80+ milesoff-street paved paths in Minneapolis alone, including the 50-mile Grand Rounds
- 58regional parks and park reserves
Minneapolis is consistently ranked among the top bike cities in the U.S.
Cable and Hayward, Wisconsin
- Host of the 2027 U.S. Championships (opens in a new tab) in cross country (Jan. 2–7, 2027), selection races for the World Junior, U23 and U18 teams
- Host of the 2026 U.S. Junior Nationals and regular SuperTour races
- 100+ kmBirkie trail system
- 5 kmsnowmaking loops at Mt. Telemark Village, with 7 km planned
- 5 kmpaved George Hovland loop for rollerskiing
- 300+ milesmountain and road bike trails (CAMBA)
- 15,000skiers at Birkie week, the nation's largest cross-country ski race
A ski state
- ~4,000Minnesota high school Nordic skiers, nearly half of all U.S. high school Nordic skiers
- ~4,000youth skiers in the Minnesota Youth Ski League, double since 2018
Beyond skiing
- 16Fortune 500 headquarters in the Twin Cities metro, with internship and career opportunities
- 166nonstop destinations from MSP Airport, including 35 international, with a Delta hub
- UnitedHealth Group
- Target
- U.S. Bancorp
- Best Buy
- CHS
- 3M
- General Mills
- Ameriprise Financial
- C.H. Robinson
- Land O'Lakes
- Ecolab
- Xcel Energy
- Thrivent
- Solventum
- Securian Financial
- APi Group
College skiers can train with Snø Racing all summer while building a résumé in one of the country's strongest job markets. Summer College Program
Ready to Join the Pack?
Sources: Metropolitan Council, Three Rivers Park District, Star Tribune, American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation, Fortune (2026), Metropolitan Airports Commission.