I love minky as a backing.
I don't long arm.. I quilt on my Janome 6600. I have quilted meanders, loopies, hearts (using templates) and straight line cross hatches.
I use batting and I glue baste.
I have never had any problems with using the minky
Tish05 - your quilting gorgeous. I have never heard of fireside fleece.. I will be checking into that one