EAGAN, Minn. — A record that’s been on ice for 15 years was just broken in Minnesota.
The Minnesota Ice Festival broke the Guinness World Records title for the largest ice maze. An adjudicator with Guinness World Records certified it on Friday. The ice maze at TCO Stadium in Eagan is 18,148.89 square feet. The previous record was set in Buffalo, New York in 2010 at 12,855.68 square feet.
CEO of Minnesota Ice and the Minnesota Ice Festival Robert Harrell said he’s been trying to break this record for 18 months. His dream was delayed because they had to cancel the event last year due to the warm weather.
“Last year, we had an El Nino winter, this year we have the La Nina, so we’re very hopeful that it stays cold,” Harrell said. “We’re such an outdoor group, and you know we embrace the winter, and we enjoy it, and so it was really cool to bring this record to Minnesota and hopefully we’ll bring it again.”
Harrell said creating this maze took a lot of time.
“We start making all the ice around September and then we actually go ahead and plan everything out and build all the structures,” Harrell said. “We have big walk-in freezers that we store it in.”
He said, this year, they are expecting over 150,000 people.
“It’s about getting outside getting some fresh air when it’s cold outside and spend time with family and friends that’s what’s a lot of fun and, you know, all our artists come out and do their thing and they really get to showcase their art,” he said.
Harrell said it takes people about 20-30 minutes to walk through it. To help pass the time, attendees can participate in a scavenger hunt.
Besides the ice maze, there are several other activities. There’s an ice signature wall, where someone can carve your name in a block of ice, there are ice games inside igloos, and an ice slide. You can also grab something to eat at the food trucks or a beverage at the ice bar. Throughout the festival and maze there are unique ice sculptures, providing the perfect photo backdrop.
Harrell said he started this company in his garage in 2013 and has ambitions to make the Minnesota Ice Festival bigger and better next year.
You can get tickets to the Minnesota Ice Festival through Feb. 16.