Sports

PHOTOS: Red Bull Crashed Ice Takes Center Stage in St. Paul

Red Bull Crashed Ice starts today with the National Shootout going down in St. Paul 5 p.m. Here's a schedule of this weekend's events and a list of places to catch a shuttle.

It’s back.

Red Bull Crashed Ice starts today with the National Shootout going down in St. Paul from 1.30–3 p.m. on a giant downhill course full of mind-and-body-bending jumps, turns and slides set against the backdrop of the historic Cathedral.

Friday Schedule:

Find out what's happening in Stillwaterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Noon – 1:30pm: International Shoot Out Run 
All 100 International athletes get 2 runs and the pool is narrowed down to 64. The top 32 athletes move onto the finals Saturday while the remaining competes against the US hopefuls in the Elimination Round. 
3:00pm-4:00pm: Elimination Round 
The 64 qualifying US and International athletes will be narrowed down to 32. 
6-8:30pm: Team Challenge 
Brand new this year, this is a chance for athletes to earn additional points and boost their collective rankings. Done in a head-to-head knockout format, the Team Challenge shouldn’t be missed.

Here's Red Bull's recap of the National Shootout:

Find out what's happening in Stillwaterwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Former University of Minnesota hockey defenseman Brian Schack was the fastest qualifier from Thursday night's National Shoot Out as almost 100 athletes took to the 400-metre-long ice track in a brutally cold Saint Paul.

With the top 32 advancing to Friday’s Elimination Round to face off against 32 top international skaters this was the opportunity for many of the athletes to make a name for themselves in the new sport as ice cross downhill makes its mark in Minnesota, the State of Hockey.

Schack, a towering 6 foot 4 inch and 225-pound athlete and former Gopher, had a pair of brilliant runs down the 400-metre ice track set up on a slope in front of the Cathedral of Saint Paul and running down towards the frozen-solid Mississippi River, stopping the clock in 40.81 seconds on his first run.

American Adam Gerlach was second in 40.92, while Daniel Guolla, of Canada, took third on an evening when temperatures dipped as low as -17 degrees Celsius.

“It’s a good feeling to get first tonight but tomorrow when all the other international athletes are out here I’ll just be another name in the pile,” said Schack, 26. “I’m very happy with my time.”

Schack made it to the round of 64 in his first race in Quebec in 2012 and the Round of 32 in Niagara Falls in the last race in December.

21-year-old Tyler Whitty, the fastest skater from the final qualifying event in Saint Paul two weeks ago, came ninth. The native of nearby New Prague recorded a best time of 44.05 seconds.

Austin Isaac, the younger brother of one of USA's top ice cross downhill skaters, Tigh Isaac, qualified for the next round as the 11th fastest athlete.

Visit redbullcrashedice.com/results for the full rundown.

UPDATED FROM Thursday:

The start of today's Red Bull Crashed Ice National Shootout has been delayed to make adjustments to the course.

The shootout will start at 5 p.m.

It’s back.

Red Bull Crashed Ice starts today with the National Shootout going down in St. Paul from 1.30–3 p.m. on a giant downhill course full of mind-and-body-bending jumps, turns and slides set against the backdrop of the historic Cathedral.

Red Bull Crashed Ice continues through Saturday, Feb. 26.

Here’s a schedule of this weekend’s events:

Friday, January 25: 12.45–2.30pm is the International Shoot-Out & Elimination Round; the Team Challenge is 7– 8.30 p.m.

Saturday, January 26: Gates open at 5 p.m. with the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship Finals happening from 7-9 p.m.

Shuttles are operating from other 50 locations in the Saint Paul area for the race on Saturday, January 26 – click here for more information.

Shuttles leave the Stillwater area on Saturday from Danny’s Bar and Grill (sold out) and Rafters in downtown Stillwater.

Race officials say this year's track promises to be one of the most difficult in the series, with a number of changes expected for the course. 

Click here for more information about Red Bull Crashed Ice.

RELATED: 

PHOTOS: Elimination Round at the Red Bull Crashed Ice World Championships

UPDATED: Red Bull Crashed Ice World Championships Athletes Train at The LumberYard in Stillwater


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