Local Media Helps Kick Off North of Normal Frostival
The North of Normal Frostival makes its debut with sled racing.
The event is a three day weekend of winter activities.
The fun started with a friendly competition between the media.
One of the many activities the Frostival will offer is sled racing, but there’s more.
And it’s not just downhill from there.
The F-M Convention & Visitors Bureau is introducing its first winter festival filled with unique events.
The idea stems from trying to attract more people to the community since the high demand of needed workforce.
“Sometimes we’re our own worst enemies when we complain about the winter. As we struggle to fill all the open thousands of jobs that are in this community, sometimes people think the weather is a real detriment,” says CEO Charley Johnson of the F-M Convention & Vistors Bureau.
Local media members joined in a friendly competition to start the festivities, including a few of us from KVRR.
Racers got to work, making their own sled out of just card boards before hitting the slope.
“I was extremely nervous about at top of the hill, my heart started to race. I didn’t know if I would die going down to be honest because I thought that I could flip over,” says KVRR reporter Sarah Brechbill.
Half the fun is building your sled, the other half, going down the hill!
“Going down the hill because I didn’t know what to expect. All of us we’re like “Ah!” The snow is melting, we weren’t sure if we were going to get some speed but I have to say it was really fun,” says KVRR reporter Brittany Ford.
Organizers designed the event to be weather proof so it could still function with or without snow.
Brechbill adds, “The whole idea of the Frostival is a great idea, because getting outside during the winter can be tough. Just being outside, having the fresh cold air whip against you. It kind of wakes you up and makes you excited for the winter season and getting outdoors. So it’s a good thing.”
If you missed the kickoff that’s wrapping up at the downtown plaza, there will still be plenty of Frostival fun Saturday and Sunday.
