Finding Minnesota: Snow Surfing On Frozen Lakes

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Rob Evans will never shy away from Minnesota's windy winter days.

If anything, it gives him an excuse to get outdoors.

"There's nothing better than being the fresh air and the other thing is, it's really good exercise," said Evans, a champion snow surfer.

The windy days are when Evans can follow his passion for speed on a surfboard made for snow.

Snow surfing is the cold weather take on that big water sport.

"I love the speed. It's raw speed," Evans said. "It's quiet and it's just powered by mother nature, just wind power."

A large sail is the substitute for ocean waves propelling the board forward. Skis are the vehicle to surf across a lake's frozen surface.

"It's like total freedom, feels like you're flying in a way. It feels pretty good," Evans said.

Evans has spent decades perfecting the nuances needed for speed and most of the focus is on balance.

"It's three dimensions, so, you're trying to balance the board on your feet and balance the sail with the wind," Evans said.

His dedication to the sport earned him worldwide recognition.

"I did win the world championship in this sport about 10 years ago," he said.

As a champion of the sport, he's always looking to help it grow.

"I'm surprised it's not more popular, because it is a lot of fun," he said.

Evans believes part of the reason the sport isn't more popular is because of the equipment involved. Not only are there several steps to putting his board together, he doesn't know of any business that rents the snow surfboards.

In fact, all of his boards are homemade, built specifically to his liking.

"I'm kind of a gear head. I guess I like to have specialized equipment that works perfectly," Evans said.

There is also a somewhat challenging learning curve for the sport. It can take time to figure out the balance of both board and sail. However, once the mechanics are mastered, a snow surfer can quickly figure out how to pick up speed.

"The more you do it the better you get at it," Evans said. "It's a multiplier effect of once you get into it, you get more and more into it."

If snow surfing doesn't take, Evans has other options to harness the winter wind. He also has the equipment for a sport called kitewinging.

"That's a sport where you're in your regular ski boots or skates and it's a wing you're holding," he said. "It has a harness line so you can hook into your harness and it's a unique sport."

The handheld sail is held like a large sheet on the side of the body and once it catches the wind, it propels a skier across a snowy surface.
Forward motion isn't a matter of skill rather the whim of the blowing wind.

"These are great when it's 15 mph," Evans said. "Right now, it's 8-9 mph which isn't quite enough."

In a state that embraces cold weather activities, a windy winter day has never looked so appealing.

"Once you try it and feel how fun it is, it's pretty addicting," Evans said.

Both the kitewing and snow surfing gear can also be put on skates to move across the ice.

Evans says if you want to give it a try, he'd be happy to take you out on the ice. You can contact him at revans@mastersofsail.com.