FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Loppet Foundation needs your help to bring The Trailhead to Wirth Park

The Loppet Foundation needs to raise $250,000 in order to break ground on The Trailhead in Theodore Wirth Park in North Minneapolis this month. We’ve raised more than $214,000, but the last part is always the hardest and we need your help to reach the goal. You can donate online at https://www.loppet.org/adventurecenter/drive-to-finish-line/.

Imagine it’s next winter and you’ve come to ski at Wirth Park. With the Trailhead in place, you’re no longer tempted to just change into your boots in the back of your car in the parking lot. You have access to a cafe, ski and bike rentals, locker rooms, and a community gathering space. But The Trailhead is more than just a beautiful building. It’s your home base for skiing, mountain biking, trail running, snowshoeing, and orienteering; it’s improved trails and infrastructure; and it’s where the next generation of outdoor athletes is being born.

We want to make this dream a reality. We’re pushing hard to get construction of The Trailhead going this month because we want it to be up and running in time for this winter--and in time for both the Masters World Cup and the Super Bowl. In order to have construction done in time for this winter, we need to start this month, and for that to happen, we need to raise this $250,000 in short order.

We’re in good shape on the overall campaign for the Trailhead (we’ve already raised more than 80% of the total $9.5 million cost of the project) and long-term funding of the project looks strong. But as we’ve gotten so close to starting, increasing construction costs have created a short-term cash flow challenge.

But with your help--and the help of the whole Loppet community--we can do this! More than 380 people have contributed in the past ten days. Will you join us?

The Trailhead will be a gift to our community, our children, and ourselves--a gift that will endure for decades to come. Let’s do this!

You can help us reach our goal by donating online at https://www.loppet.org/adventurecenter/drive-to-finish-line/, or contact Loppet Development Director, Marin Byrne, at  [email protected] or 612-644-0672.