Parking & Transportation

The Loppet Foundation :: Events :: Fastenal Parallel 45 Winter Festival :: Festival Information :: Parking & Transportation

Getting to Fastenal Parallel 45 Winter Festival, including to the Coop FIS Cross Country World Cup Sprint Finals on Tuesday, March 17, will be smooth and easy if you plan ahead. A few notes of overview:

  • On all four days of the festival there is no spectator or participant parking within Theodore Wirth Park.
  • On all four days of the festival Theodore Wirth Parkway will be closed from MN Highway 55 on the south to Plymouth Ave in the north (further north to Golden Valley Road on Tuesday).
  • Our Fastenal Parallel 45 Transportation Map shows very fine grained detail of spectator-relevant transportation information.
  • On Saturday and Sunday participants and spectators will
    • walk or bike to the venue
    • take public transit
    • be dropped off (by friends, taxi or rideshare)
    • park in the Mortenson Lot and walk to the venue
  • On Monday spectators will
    • walk or bike to the venue
    • take public transit
    • be dropped off (by friends, taxi or rideshares)
    • park in nearby neighborhoods and walk to the venue
  • On Tuesday spectators will
    • walk or bike to the venue
    • take public transit
    • be dropped off (by friends, taxi or rideshares)
    • park in nearby neighborhoods and walk to the venue
    • be driven to the venue by free spectator shuttles from one of two nearby pick-up locations.

It’s our goal that Fastenal Parallel 45 be both environmentally sound and smooth and easy for spectators. Balancing these goals, we rank transportation options as follows:

Best

  • walk or bike to the venue
  • take public transit

Very Good

  • be dropped off by a friends, taxi or rideshares (this what the Loppet Foundation’s Event Director has advised his parents to do)
  • park nearby and walk to the venue

Good

  • be driven to the venue by free spectator shuttles from one of two nearby pick-up locations.

On Tuesday, World Cup Day, to encourage those Best and Very Good Options we’d like to do two things.

  1. Ask you, if you’re able, to consider choosing a Best or Very Good option.
  2. Encourage the Best and Very Good Options through a super sweet raffle giveaway. Every World Cup spectator that arrives at the venue on bike or on foot will be given a raffle ticket. At the Event Check-In Tents, where spectators show their tickets and receive their wristbands, 8 lucky spectators (four pairs) will be given upgrades to our VIP Champions Club Race Day Experience.

Road Closures

Walk or Bike

  • If you live within 15 minutes consider biking or walking.
  • Two bike parking areas are available, one near the north entrance and one near the south entrance. You can see them on the WC Transportation Google Map. Bring your own lock.

Public Transit

  • Metro Transit bus Northbound Route 7 brings riders to Plymouth and Washburn, the closest spot that anyone could park coming from the east.
  • Our partners at MetroTransit offer free rides on Saturday and Sunday to anyone going to Fastenal Parallel 45 through the links below.

Drop Off by Taxi, Rideshare, or Friend

  • The Official Lyft Drop-Off + Pick-Up Spot is Meadow Lane and Highway 55. This is also the best place to be dropped off or picked up by any taxi, friend, or other rideshare service.

Park and Walk

  • There is no spectator parking at any Theodore Wirth Park lots.
  • Parking is available at the Mortenson Lots at 700 Meadow Lane or 4100 Olson Memorial Highway. We are continually grateful to Mortenson for their support.
  • Parking is available on street in nearby neighborhoods. Follow posted parking laws, as illegally parked cars may be ticketed.

Road Closures

Walk or Bike

  • If you live within 15 minutes consider biking or walking.
  • Two bike parking areas are available, one near the north entrance and one near the south entrance. You can see them on the WC Transportation Google Map. Bring your own lock.

Public Transit

  • Metro Transit bus Northbound Route 7 brings riders from South Minneapolis, the closest spot that anyone could park coming from the east.

Drop Off by Taxi, Rideshare, or Friend

  • The Official Lyft Drop-Off + Pick-Up Spot is Meadow Lane and Highway 55. This is also the best place to be dropped off or picked up by any taxi, friend, or other rideshare service.

Park and Walk

  • There is no spectator parking at any Theodore Wirth Park lots or any Mortenson Lots.
  • Parking is available on street in nearby neighborhoods. Follow posted parking laws, as illegally parked cars may be ticketed.

Maps

Road Closures

Raffle

To reduce congestion on the shuttle buses, we are encouraging spectators to join us by using public transportation. Those who do will be eligible to win our World Cup day-of raffle.

Every World Cup spectator that arrives at the venue on bike or on foot (whether they walked from home or walked from the metro transit stop or Ride Share drop off area, etc.) will be given a raffle ticket. At the Event Check-In Tents, where spectators show their tickets and receive their wristbands, 8 lucky spectators (four pairs) will be given upgrades to our VIP Champions Club Race Day Experience.

Walk or Bike

Public Transit to Venue

  • All Metro Transit services are free after 6pm on Tuesday in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day.
  • The Metro Transit 7 gives riders from South Minneapolis two options:
    1. Get off at Plymouth/Penn and catch our event shuttles (NW corner on Plymouth) all the way to the Registration tent, or
    2. Stay on the 7 for a dropoff at Washburn/Plymouth and walk the 0.3 miles to the Registration tent.
  • The Metro Transit C Line provides bus transit service along Penn Avenue, with a stop at Penn and Plymouth. Riders will be able to transfer, with a half block walk westward, to Metro Transit pick up location where passing shuttles will pick up Metro Transit riders.
  • Several Metro Transit Lines bring riders to near shuttling locations. See Shuttle section below for details.

Drop Off by Taxi, Rideshare, or Friend

  • The Official Lyft Drop-Off + Pick-Up Spot is Meadow Lane and Highway 55. This is also the best place to be dropped off or picked up by any taxi, friend, or other rideshare service.

Park and Walk

  • There is no spectator parking at any Theodore Wirth Park lots or any Mortenson Lots.
  • Parking is available on street in nearby neighborhoods. Follow posted parking laws, as illegally parked cars may be ticketed.

Shuttle from Nearby Locations

  • A fleet of spectator shuttle buses will operate from 11:00am to 10:30pm serving two nearby locations:
  • Shuttles drop off in the Theodore Wirth Park Chalet lot, a five minute walk from the race venue.
  • Plan 35 minutes from shuttle pick up to arrival at World Cup race venue; that 35 minutes includes 5 minutes for boarding, 15 minutes for the trip, 5 minutes to scan your ticket and receive your wristband, 5 minutes to walk to the center of the venue (the remaining 5 minutes is just to be safe).
  • Return shuttles will run exactly in reverse as the night comes to a close.
  • Metro Transit services can easily bring spectators to our remote shuttle locations.
    • All Metro Transit services are free after 6pm on Tuesday in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day.
    • The Metro Transit 4 and 6 bring riders to near our Parade Stadium Shuttle Pick Up Location.

Hotel Shuttle Busses

  • Guests staying at the DoubleTree, Homewood Suites, AC Marriott, Holiday Inn Express or other partner hotels in the West End area will have designated shuttles at their hotel or nearby. Look for details at your hotel.