Minnesota dirt biker turns to snow for winter X Games

AFTON, Minn. (KMSP) - The brand new sport of snow biking is debuting at the upcoming winter X Games in Aspen, Colorado and 20-year-old Afton, Minnesota native Nolan Heppner will be a part of history, qualifying for the games after just four days of practice. 

Snow biking, which is a mash of dirt biking and snowmobiling, takes tricking out your dirt bike to a whole new “winter extreme” level.

“It’s a dirt bike, but it looks like a snowmobile because of the track and the front ski,” Heppner said.

Going in as the top guy after only four days is unbelievable. But, Heppner is already a well-established motocross biker. He's been riding since he was four years old. But, to go from a dirt bike to a snow bike is a big change.

But, racing on snow does have an upside.

“The snow is a lot more forgiving than the dirt, you know,” Heppner said. “You can make some falls or mistakes in the snow and it’s not that bad. With the dirt, if you go down there might be some consequences.”

With the summer X Games coming to U.S. Bank Stadium, Nolan could become a hometown hero on dirt too, once he learns a little bit of freestyle.

Heppner leaves for Aspen this weekend, but his bikes are already out there. The X Games run Jan. 26 through Jan. 29.