We skated at Como this afternoon. 39F It was not too bad. Coverage was good, although a few cart path edges are beginning to show. There were a few sunny, slushy spots, but most of the trail was pretty darn good. When it freezes it will be fast, icy and rutted. One of my athletes found a fitbit on the course. Contact me if it is yours. I will also inform Lost/Found at St. Paul Parks Manager.

(Robb Lageson)

The trails are in pretty good condition considering the high usage and warming temperatures, but they are showing signs of deterioration. The classic track was mainly left alone to help preserve it. Overall, bot the classic tracks and skate deck are good condition.

(Amanda Smith, St. Paul Parks and Recreation)

Classic tracks are wet or icy in the sun. The snow on the perpetual glacier is still powder. Some bare spots, that can be avoided. V60 Red/Silver would barely kick in the sun, but dragged on the perpetual glacier. Beautiful weather.

(Jeff Brown)

Freshly groomed classic tracks, 19 degrees F., blue sky, made for excellent ski conditions. The downhill area looks to be finished for the season. I hope they continue to groom for cross country for several weeks! Well done groomers.

(James Rue)

Nice to have a little fresh snow. Not one leaf on the course. Did not appear to be groomed today but 90% of the tracks were in good condition. Some occasional squirrelly areas on the flats. Skate deck looked to be a bit slow due to the dusting of snow. Nice to be using blue, rather than green wax. Also nice not to have my earbuds freeze so I could listen to music from Johnny Cash to The Weeknd. Both Como and Central high school teams out. Big shout out to Central's Coach Robb. He has been an inspiration to so many teenagers (including my kid) to take up this lifetime sport. High school Nordic skiers rock!

(Kathy Bjornson)

Good classic conditions for most of the trail, recently groomed. Nice to get out on the fresh snow. The warmer temperatures made for a very pleasant ski. Thank you St Paul Parks and Recreation for keeping up on the grooming.

(Scott Stanley)

There was fresh looking corduroy when I arrived at 3 p.m., so it was about as good as it could be for skating, although a little slow. Classic tracks looked like they must have been reset today as well. They were plenty deep and solid most of the way around, with only a few exceptions. Good to be out in the sunshine with temps above zero!

(Lois Braun)

Classic tracks were firm, mostly shallow and disappeared a few times. Skin skis were draggy on this cold, dry snow. Very minor tree debris in tracks. Skate deck had firm corduroy, a few icy spots, and a few avoidable patches where dirt had come up with the groomer (and one spot with grass).

Photos:

(Karen Katz)

The trails are newly groomed and in great condition. The classic track is groomed to full depth over most of the course. Watch out for exposed earth at the sand trap by the 16th green; Skirt to the right of the sand trap.

(Jeff Brown)

I skated at Como early this morning. Most of the flat sections of the course were hard-packed and icy; the uphills were in better shape-- softer but not sugary. It was challenging to get an edge on a lot of the course. The trail at the top of the downhill coming out of the back bowl (between the pine trees) had been snowplowed down to ice and warrants a cautious approach. Hopefully the groomers can get out and grind things up a bit. My mom classic skied there at the same time and said that the tracks were in good condition, with the exception of a couple of bare spots near the beginning of the loop. It looked to me like they had been washed out in the usual places.

(Emma Lee)