COHASSET — Winter isn't going to stop a dedicated group of mountain bike enthusiasts from having a good time on area trails.
"It's obviously a little bit chillier," said Russ Kolstad of the Grand Rapids Itasca Mountain Bike Association. "But that sound of the snow — almost like that Styrofoam-y kind of squeak that you get just rolling through the snow up there — is just such a pleasant sound.
" ... On a day like this, man, there's just nothing finer."
Kolstad was a recent guest on Bright Spot on the KAXE Morning Show, where he spoke about the joys of winter riding in the Tioga Recreation Area near Cohasset. With over 25 miles of trails in the rec area, cyclists of all ages and skill levels have options rated green, blue, black and double black, much like ski trails.
Tioga Recreation Area was opened to riders in 2019, but it had a whole life before that. Tioga Mine operated until 1961, shipping more than 3 million tons of iron ore in its heyday. Left behind were slopes and a large pit, which is now a deep body of water.
The mountain bike association, known as GRIMBA, led the fundraising effort to create and maintain mountain bike trails cutting through the hills and rocky outcrops.
"It's better to build a trail on a hill than it is to build it on flat ground," Kolstad said. "Because the flat ground will just hold water."
The trails have berms, jumps and features like "skinnies," which are dead trees with their top edge cut flat. The group relies on volunteers to keep the trails clear of debris in the summer and to groom them in the winter. Kolstad described using the grooming machine as "wrestling a refrigerator."
The trails at Tioga host two major events each year: the Fat Forest 14 in February and the Itasca Thrillseeker in August. The Thrillseeker is GRIMBA's largest fundraiser of the year and it is part of the Minnesota Mountain Bike Series.
Learn more at GRIMBA's website and listen to our full conversation above.
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The Bright Spot is made possible by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and the citizens of Minnesota.
