Wow, what a wonderful day for the Birkie Tour III! Cold, but way better than expected conditions and, as would be expected from the American Birkebeiner Foundation staff, whom provided near perfect support in all aspects of the events. I have a few suggestions that I make later in this posting, but they are so far over shadowed by what fun I had and both needed physically and spiritually.
I was so anxious to get out skiing since this was the first time on snow for me this season believe it or not! I have been working in Minneapolis since October and moved to The North Loop part of the Warehouse District in downtown Minneapolis just before the holidays in December. I fully expected that I would have had a few months of skiing in already, and instead Minneapolis, as of this writing, has had only 2.5-12.5cm of snow at different times with major warm-ups in between and new records set for highest high and highest low temperatures. The jet stream is too high but then there is the Birkie Trail.
Upper Wisconsin has the benefit of lots of lake effect snow off of Lake Superior, especially with a cold Northwest wind. While the Birkie Trail did not have an overabundance of snow the groomers, who seem to keep improving techniques and equipment every year, did an absolutely outstanding job with providing nice corduroy that was a mix of some recent new snow and old snow. It was a little thin in spots but with the incredibly cold overnight temperatures, things setup just perfect.
So my day heading over to the tour began at 05:00 arising at my friend Tim Burke and his wife, Val's house in Superior, Wisconsin. Tim is a fellow skier, healthcare colleague, Birkie Buddy, and great friend. I arrived at their house Friday night after a busy day at the Arrowhead EMS Conference, a video conference call with a board member, and meetings with the Life Link III medical directors in Duluth representing Essentia Health and St. Luke's on our nine hospital air medical consortium. I have been blessed with a position in our air medical community that I believe, when all staff work together, will be a model for others in the country. That is a subject for another blog but suffice to say I am extremely happy and thankful to have the opportunity to lead this great organization. Lots of work to do but just the professional challenge I love! Life Link III is also the official air medical provider for the American Birkebeiner which has been part of my life now for 27 years. Pictured is the crew that helped work the booth, which was a big hit among conference attendees who numbered over 1,000 according to the Arrowhead staff.
The temperatures in Duluth was -25C when I awoke and then proceeded to go down to -29C on the way to Telemark in Cable, Wisconsin then to -28C at what was supposed to be the start. Thankfully the staff postponed the event for about 90 minutes. Additionally there was only a very light wind and it was sunny at least at the start. I began my second Birkie Tour around 10:45 after a bus ride down from Telemark Resort to Double 00 where I talked to a number of skiers, including a nice couple from Appleton, Wisconsin. The picture of me with Torstein (Darald Bothun) at the Double OO start area was taken by Susan Kendrick, the Marketing / PR Coordinator with the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation.
Even though I kept a low profile pile jacket on over my regular ski suit, I was never really cold and not hungry due to the excellent carb meals at the Burke's Friday night and Saturday morning. My skis were waxed perfectly too. Cold snow is very hard to get good glide but with Swix HF4, low-temp Speed Powder, assistance from Tim with his new hight tech iron, and some older snow it really felt like I was on snow conditions with much more moisture. Of course this being the first time out I took my time along the way to enjoy the trail, did some rhythmic athletic meditation, took some pictures at the highest point, and took a bit longer to get up some of the hills with my lack of skiing this year. Climbing is probably when I was doing the most meditation!
The Birkie Tour this year had 50, 45, and 25K options. With the cold weather and not as stable of snow and trail conditions south of Double 00, the tours were all shortened to the 25K option, which is what I had signed up for since I was not going long on the first day I was on skis this season anyhow. From Double 00 back to Telemark is through some of the highest hills on the course and are a good test of endurance. I also ski this section of the course at least twice a year, but this was the first time that I skied from South to North in many years. That made it hard to recognize some of the hills until I was right on top of them. With the perfect conditions it was easy just to let loose on the downhills and not have to worry about large ruts that start getting pretty deep in the later waves of the American Birkebeiner race in February. That is why we go up for the week before the race and ski on different sections of the trail as well as some other cross-country trails in the area before the big event.
An excellent Article by Susan Kendrick, the Birkie Media and PR Director, was posted around 19:00 on the day of the tour on the Birkie website.
Tim did the Seely Hills Classic the week before on January 14th. It was also held on the Birkie Trail and he reported that conditions were excellent with great tracks that had been set by the groomers. Since Tim has lived in the area he had done this race and the Pre-Birkie a number of times over the past several years.
Okay here are my suggestions for the Birkie Tour. The event is getting larger with over 640 participants this year and thus there needs to be additional support.
1. There should have been one more aide station at about the 1/2 way point. I remembered thinking that I was ready for some fluids and the station was still another 5K away. Fortunately, I had by own water and the tour is advertised as a limited support event but still nice to have.
2. With this many participants, National Ski Patrol support is needed. This may have been behind the scenes but I believe this should be visible to participants. To the credit of the staff and volunteers, I did see a snowmobile with a sled two times, who I believe was keeping an eye on the course.
3. Better communication on last minute temperature and conditions. Unless I missed it I did not see the post on the tour being postponed. No big deal but a little more rest would have been nice in the morning. I am sure with organizing volunteers the event needs to happen in a given time period and delaying taxes those volunteer's time commitment. Given the incredibly low temperature there was good forecasting for the day so as to start the event as the temps got up to -10C by the time I finished.
4. I wonder if WiMax or some other high-speed Internet access could be added along the trail using either grants or as a contribution to the Foundation with support by the Cheqtel Coop or another Internet service provider(s). This would provide up-to-date data for all involved including accurate temperatures, times, etc. It would be nice to have this all year. My cell phone provider provides no coverage and I don't think, unless things have changed, any other provider provides that good of coverage either. Of course I say that knowing I need to get away from all the electronics but that can be a choice to turn off or on and the data transmissions would help with safety, logistics, and last minute announcements. This would be nice for all events on the trail throughout the year.
Spiritually, I am the most moved by being in nature and especially gliding along in the snow on a winter day in the woods. During the tour I felt like I do when I ski the trail before the American Birkebeiner during Birkie Week. The trail is really a national treasure and when you can ski along with only a few others or by yourself there is nothing like it. Very centering for me since balance is such an important piece of good Nordic technique and just life in general.
After having to cancel the AirMed Bicycle Group Ride on Saturday, May 14, 2011, because of rain and cold, I was more than ready to get out for a long ride. Fortunately on Sunday the weather cleared and temperatures reached 17 C but with some pretty heavy wind from the northwest. I had heard about all the nice paved trails in Minnesota so I ventured over to Houston, Minnesota, which is only 20 minutes driving time from downtown La Crosse, Wisconsin. My thought was that with the bluffs and woods I would be protected from the wind and for the most part I was right.
My plan was to go long but I only had the afternoon and by the time I got everything together and drove over to Houston it was after 13:30 CDT. So I figured I would go 100K and just turn around at the 50K point. I was pleasantly surprised that in exactly 50K from Houston I would arrive in Lanesboro, Minnesota, which is the headquarters of the trail and bills itself as the Bed and Breakfast Capital of Minnesota. The picture to the left and the one below are just a few of the many bridges along the way.
This map and plenty of information about the trail can be downloaded at the Root River and Harmony-Preston Valley State Trails website. I printed out a copy which was nice to have but not a necessity as the trail is well marked and is 100% paved so all kinds of bicycles can easily navigate it.
In the section of the trail I did there was only one small hill that was about a 5% grade, so a good ride for all levels of cyclists. On this particular day there seemed to be more families and recreational riders near Lanesboro as they have a large shop that rents cycles. I am sure in the summer the trail could be quite busy.
The Root River Trail, which is part of the larger Harmony-Preston Valley State Trails, follow old railroad tracks along the Root River and is nestled among very scenic bluffs with plenty of SAG stops in the small towns along the way. The trail passes through Rushford, Peterson, and Whalan before I turned around in Lanesboro. The picture to the left is from Rushford.
The total time I was out was four hours and 50 minutes and riding time was four hours and 10 minutes. The main SAG stop I took was in Lanesboro where I found a nice park bench and relaxed in the sun after briefly walking around this very quaint town. My picture below was taken by a cyclist I ran into who was also out getting some good distance cycling in. He told me that the Harmony-Preston Trail was also very scenic and included a few more hills especially on the way to Harmony, Minnesota.
The stats from my Garmin can be seen below. My average speed was 24 KPH for the just over 100K ride and because of the flat nature I was spinning the whole time. Unfortunately, my cadence meter battery was out as I would have been interested in the reading. Next time!
This trail will be a very nice route for a future AirMed Bicycling Group ride so I have added it on our VeloCal.org site.
I know I may be in the minority of my friends but I love winter. This year I had the opportunity to experience Nordic skiing and snowshoeing for four months from December through March and I am very thankful. I also participated in five events including The Fridtjof Nansen Ski Race, the BirkieTour II, the St. Mary's 10K, the City of Lakes Loppet, theAmerican Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Race. See write ups of each on this blog. It was a challenging year with both the Birkie Tour and Birkie 52K being extremely cold.
I only went snowshoeing one day this winter but it was with my bride on my birthday - so February 12th was a magical day. Carol was up in La Crosse for a long weekend and we spent Saturday afternoon hiking some of the upper Hixon Forest Trails before going out for a nice dinner at The Waterfront Restaurant and Tavern which is right on the Mississippi River. We also had a wonderful MedLink AIR staff party at the Train Station BBQ on Friday night where it was a great opportunity to introduce Carol to fellow co-workers and for me to meet their spouses and significant others.
After the Birkie I was able to ski two more weekends. On Sunday, March 6th I skied the trails at St. Mary's in the early afternoon after church. The picture to the left was taken after a long climb up from the parking lot. The weather was beautiful with a nice sunny day, temperatures at -1C, a bit of a south wind, and trails that had been freshly groomed the day before! I skied 13.39K and had an absolutely delightful time including a nice talk with one of the Brothers who teaches at St. Mary's University.
Fast forward one weekend to Saturday, March 12th and I was in Northern Wisconsin and Tim Burke and I got in our last ski of the season in the Brule River State Forest on the Afterhours Ski Trail. The area has a number of trails that are mostly flat but very well maintained by the park service and the Brule XC Ski. We lucked out because when I drove up to Superior, Wisconsin where Tim and his wife, Val live on Friday night we were not sure if we would get to ski since it has warmed up. We lucked out, however, and had a nice day of classic skiing with four inches of new snow followed by a cool down with temperatures at -6C. The picture to the left shows all the fresh snow both on the trail and in the trees. The first picture in this post is of Tim and I on the Afterhours ski trail.
The picture to the left you will find near the parking lot at theBrule River State Forest on the Afterhours Ski Trail. I would highly recommend this area as a Daily Trail Pass is only $2 and if you have a yearly Wisconsin State Park Pass for $20 you are also covered. Below is the brochure from the Afterhours Ski Trail which shows the trail map.
I am writing this post on the first day that I rode my bicycle this season, Saturday, March 19th. It was only a short 14.66K ride on a nice sunny day with temperatures at 15C. As you can see from the picture to the left, we still have a good bit of snow here in La Crosse, especially in the bluffs on both sides of the Mississippi River. This picture was taken on Bliss Road which goes up to Grandad Bluff Park that overlooks the city. I thought this was a good picture to show the transition today from skiing to biking. Snow in the background and on my bike in the foreground. Thank you Winter and hello Spring!
My Garmin Connect GPS from the two days of skiing and the short ride today are located below.
I participated in my 24th American Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Race on Saturday, February 26th. Tim Burke, Mike Tarnow, and I have been coming to the race for 26 years now with each of us missing a few races and then all of us in 2000 when the race was cancelled for the first time. We have chronicled our time at the Birkie on our website at Birkie Web and now our Facebook page called Birkie Web Today. We have even done a few podcasts and had an article published in the Sawyer County Record on our Birkie Axioms as well as put up several photographs of this winter event that has been held for 38 years now.
The picture to the left is of Princess Finnley (AKA Prince Haakon) who I met in the warming hut at Double OO in Seeley, Wisconsin after skiing in my traditional Wednesday 18K ski over the hilliest part of the course from the North Trail Head in Cable, Wisconsin. This year I had a nice fall on one of the steeper hills practicing weight shifting and balance. Of course my spin on the story, is that as a Birchlegger, I was protecting the Prince!
This picture is of Tim, Mike, and I at the starting line tent. Mike skied in Wave 2 and Tim and I were in Wave 6. Mike has been as high as Wave 1 and Tim and I Wave 4. Tim and I have been coming to the Birkie since 1986 and Mike joined us three years later. We all met in Michigan and only Mike still lives in Traverse City. Tim is now in Superior, Wisconsin and I have lived and worked all over country and am now in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
Mike was the only smart one with the moleskin as I ended up being pulled off to one of the First Aid Stations because of a nice case of frostbite on my nose. Tim fared better with his beard but it was fully ice covered at the end. None of our times were great but, as always, the Birkie is much more than just your time and rushing through one of the most beautiful trails in North America.
We come up to the Birkie for a week and this is the first year since I lived in Kalamazoo, Michigan where I was able to get plenty of snow time in with three other ski races / tours and then just going out skiing both here in La Crosse and at Saint Mary's University in Winona, Minnesota. We have stayed at a number of places including the Pilot Fish Inn for 14 years, a cabin on Lake Namakagon for 6 years, and this year in a larger cabin on Lower Clam Lake. We are further away from the start but with age we have come to appreciate additional amenities, such as more than one bathroom especially on race morning after all the carbo loading! Although even the Carbo Loading has become out of favor rather than just replenishing during the race. The picture is of the Cascade Cabin which sits on Lower Clam Lake at the mouth of the Clam River. Very soothing sounds of the water which are most likely even more pronounced in the summer.
Another nice feature of our new cabin is that we have a full basement that has an unfinished area where we can wax our skis easily, a full-size game room with bar, and a washer and dryer. In this picture Tim is getting his skis ready for the Book Across the Bay race which is held the Saturday before the Birkie. The race starts in Ashland, Wisconsin at twilight and goes across the ice on the Chequamegon Bay to Washburn, Wisconsin lighted by luminaries. We did the race for the first time last year and had a great time as the conditions were really fast and it was not too cold. This year, however, we decided not to ski the race because with the big warm-up that happened the week before most of the snow had melted into the ice and even with the best the race crew could do, it seemed way to treacherous and risky and ripe for a nasty fall onto hard ice.
Instead we spent some time touring around Ashland including The Music Center where Tim and I jammed respectively on the guitar and drums working out the Book Across The Bay Blues. We had a late lunch / early dinner at the Deep Water Grille and South Shore Brewery where they have great food and beer. We also were able to watch the start from an overlook and the size of the race was indeed much smaller than last year which was sad. We all agreed that conditions with this race can be tricky as it could also be very cold and windy too. All in all a very nice non-skiing afternoon, however.
Mike did not have his best Birkie Week. First he had to travel back to Grand Rapids for a client who was in a federal bankruptcy hearing. Mike provided the real estate appraisal. Second, and most important, his mother has been in poor health and had worked on her own end of life plans, which Mike and his sister and brother fully agreed with. We thought he may not be back when he went back for business but he was able to fly back in to Minneapolis Thursday in the late afternoon so as to pick up his bib at the Hayward Middle School. Mike got the bad news Friday afternoon that she had peacefully passed. There were no Saturday flights, so what was probably best for Mike anyhow, he was able to ski the race. First thing Sunday morning we had to get him to the airport early so he could catch an earlier flight to Detroit though.
After a nice Classic Nordic ski from the Fish Hatchery Trailhead and lunch in Hayward on Monday, Mike drove to the airport in Minneapolis. Tim and I decided to make a visit to the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation office before heading back to Clam Lake. We had interviewed both Cherie Morgan and Ned Zuelsdorff in previous Birkie Web Today podcasts so Cherie arranged for a very nice impromptu tour of their offices before the onslaught of skiers later in the week. Both are delightful people that are totally dedicated to making the American Birkebeiner not only into the largest and most enjoyable Nordic Ski Event in the United States for skiers but in creating a world class winter festival with all kinds of expanded and new activities for everyone, including this year, both skijoring and Big Ski races. Pictured from left to right are Cherie, Tim, Ned, and Ed.
On Tuesday, Mike had arranged for Tim and I to take a ski lesson from Steve Morales, who is the founder of the New Moon Ski Shop, Nordic ski instrutor, and Birkie Veteran. I think Mike was sick of pounding technique tips into us and knew that Steve would be much more patient. It was a delightful sunny afternoon skiing from the Mosquito Brook Trailhead and listening to and watching Steve. Both Tim and I were working on weight transfer and balance on downhills and general poling styles. In the picture to the left are Tim, Steve, John Bauer, and me. John is a three time US Olympic Team skier who happened to be skiing by when we were taking our lesson.
On Wednesday it has become my tradition to ski from the North Trailhead in Cable to Double OO, which is about 18K over the hilliest part of the trail. Since I have lived mainly where there was not skiing it was even more important to have some snow time like this. As noted above I had fallen on one of the hills but continued on with a scraped up face. I ran into John Torinus, who after talking about skiing and retirement, informed me that he was the founder and chairman of the Serigraph Company in West Bend, Wisconsin which is north of Milwaukee. John has also authored a book titled The Company That Solved Health Care, which he told me about after finding out that I worked as the Director of the MedLink AIR Critical Care Transport program at Gundersen Lutheran Health System. He knows Dr. Jeff Thompson, our CEO.
John is 72 and never wants to retire since he likes to be active both mentally and physically and if you are doing what you love, I would have to agree. He took this picture of me coming up a slight hill around the 16K marker. Since getting back to La Crosse I have ordered John's book and look forward to reading it.
On Thursday the Elite Sprints are held on Main Street in Hayward. This picture shows a member of the Russian Team who had a large contingent of skiers at the race. The participating skiers go head to head in heats that go back and forth on Main. The skiers go all out as can be seen from the video below from the Sawyer County Record.
Driving back on to Clam Lake we go through an Elk Protection Area and were lucky on Thursday to catch a small herd on the side of Wisconsin Route 77 south of Clam Lake. Beautiful animals and I found out from one of our pilots, Jake Jacobson at MedLink AIR, that the heard, that originated in the Rockies, numbers about 100 which is behind what the planners had wished for. Bears and Wolfs have been a problem that Elk further south in the United States have not had to experience, let alone the colder weather.
On Friday I caught up with Prince Haakon (AKA Princess Finnley) again with her mom, Ann, in downtown hayward watching the skijoring and Big Ski events. She seemed to be enjoying her Norwegian Costume and hanging out with both her mom and grandmother, Gretchen Lingren, who is a Birkie skier that was playing Inga of Vartieg.
For Race Day on Saturday we probably got over to the start a bit too early but we wanted to make sure we could get a parking space at the lot on the road to Telemark Lodge. Temperatures were very cold at -25C and not warming up much more than -15C. There was also a southwest wind that you felt sometimes in the open areas as the trail generally goes from northeast to southwest. Besides the frostbite I felt very comfortable in my SportHill ski suit that with layering underneath is great for almost all conditions.
The upload from my Garmin is shown at the bottom and, as can be seen, I lost some time with my first aid stop and I am sure with my slow times at the feed stations. But, as can be seen from the write-up on the inspiration for this blog, there is nothing wrong with auto pausing!
This picture is of Tim and I at the finish line on Main Street in Hayward. As you can see it was quite cold! In all the times we have skied the Birkie this was the first time we finished together catching up with each other before Lake Hayward.
I have also included three videos from the race. The first is at the midpoint of the race from SkinnySki, the second from 10 Foot Back at the finish, and finally the third the Trailer from the Birkie 2011 Video.
I participated in the City of Lakes Loppet 33K Freestyle Nordic Race in Minneapolis, Minnesota on February 6, 2011. The City of Lakes Loppet is a relatively new event but has grown to be the largest urban Nordic Ski Race in the United States with over 10,000 participants.
This was my first year at the loppet and I was pleasantly surprised that it was really more of a Winter Festival with several events including ice sculptures, a sprint ski race, children's races, an ice bicycling event, skijoring races, and a luminary tour on Saturday and then a 10K tour, 25K classic race, following by a 33K freestyle race on Sunday. Really something for everyone. There is a nice wrap-up video of the events on the City of Lakes Loppet YouTube site which you can watch here:
I met up with some fellow bicyclists, Dave Mathews and Bob Burns from Kansas City, who skied the 25K classic race and who have been coming to the event for three years now. Dave and Bob left early in the Saturday morning from Kansas City and I late in the morning from La Crosse to get to the race in the early afternoon. I interviewed Dave in Episode 10 of the Birkie Web Today Podcast regarding being a skier from an area of the country that does not usually receive a lot of snow and then how you train.
The registration experience was well organized in a large tent with a few local and national ski related vendors including Subaru, Swix, Solomon, Bolder Nordic Sport, and Midwest Mountaineering. A full listing is on the City of Lakes Loppet Sponsor Page with links.
The skijoring 7K, 4.5K, and 2K events were a pure delight to watch on Saturday afternoon. Besides some demos of skijoring at the American Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Race, I had not seen an actual race. In the 7K there were some series racers with well trained sled type dogs and excellent skiers. The 2K was hilarious as many folks just brought their dogs out and not all of them cooperated very well with one skier pushing his dog and a women that used her small Yorkie that you could hardly see bouncing along. The video below does not capture all the fun but is a good recap. I heard from a skier on Sunday that the skijoring events had been the largest ever in the United States and that seem to be confirmed by the wrap-up video above!
At the Starting Area
I had been waiting to finish up this post when the skier pictures were released but I have not seen any as yet, except for the elite skiers. I did have another skier take my picture before my wave got off at the start area which is shown to the left.
I had very fast skis but the uphills were fairly beat up which made for some very heavy snow to skate through and many times I just had to herringbone. The course was surprisingly hilly especially at the start and then again about midway through the race. The official map of the 33K course is shown below.
Many times it was hard for me to believe that I was in Minneapolis since there were several wooded areas and then going across several very beautiful lakes. Towards the end it was nice seeing the skyline of the city then skiing across I-394 was very interesting seeing the high speed traffic below. There were plenty of super nice volunteers with lots of water and food. As usual I had the energy and water drinks but brought my own gel food which I had at each of the four stops.
My official time for the 33K Freestyle race was 3:37:12 so quite slow but, as always, I just love being out in the winter and enjoying the outdoors. Dave had a time of 2:17:46 and Bob 3:07:14 for the 25K.
The temperature for the race pretty much stayed around -3 C so it was very comfortable for skiing. My Garmin showed only 31.31K and a faster time. As can be seen below I found a way to embed the map from Garmin Connect which I will incorporate into future posts too.
I highly recommend this event as there is something for everyone and very well organized all the way around.
I added this photo on February 13th as Dave posted it on his Facebook page. This was a hill that many other skiers fell on so I must have had a smile since I navigated through it!
Personalized videos of the race were also released by RaceDay on February 16th where each participant can enter their number and see themselves ski past checkpoints in the race. My personalized video is below.
I participated in the St. Mary's 10K Nordic Skate Race yesterday. Pictured with me to the left are Megan and Ryan Ping the winners of the overall Women's and Men's races. Ryan is the brother of Garrett Ping who I skied with at the The Fridtjof Nansen Ski Race on January 16, 2011. Both Megan and Ryan were members of the CXC Ski Master's Team last year and also have skied the American Birkebeiner seven times.
The conditions were great with temperatures around -4 C, a slight wind from the north, and as I have found each time I have skied on the St. Mary's Trails, excellent grooming. A big thanks to Gary Borash the Outdoor Leadership Coordinator at Saint Mary's University for his leadership and organization of the race. As can be seen from the race poster there was also a 10K Classic race held earlier in the day.
I had fast skis and felt fortunate as I had not re-waxed them from last week at the Birkie Tour where temperatures were between -20 and -16 C. The reason I had not is because I have been under the weather for the last few days and was not sure if I was going to ski the race until the morning. I still have something going on as I sneezed the whole way back from Winona to La Crosse but felt it was still worth getting outside and enjoying a wonderful Midwest winter day. I am feeling a lot better today as the bug I had was probably moving into the respiratory phase yesterday anyhow or so I rationalize.
My Garmin did not record the course as I must not have hit the start button as I thought I had. My official time was 54:58 for the 10K course which was a double loop around the main trails at St. Mary's. To show you how fast the elite skiers are, they were finishing when I was near the turn for the second loop! Garrett was with a group of four that finished very close together and well ahead of the rest of the field. He was 4th overall. Ryan's time was 25:43, Megan's 28:32, and Garrett's 25:51.
I still can not get over the beauty of La Crosse and the surrounding areas. The drive up to Winona, Minnesota along the Mississippi is very scenic even on an overcast day like yesterday. I did not have time to take pictures of the many folks who were out enjoying ice fishing. I certainly can understand going out and fishing but not driving my vehicle out on the ice, especially on a river where there can be a strong current underneath. But I am not an ice fishing or even regular fishing expert.
Finally, I wanted to provide a picture of the overall winners of the St. Mary's 10K Freestyle Race without the trail sweeper. Congratulations Ryan and Megan!
Tim Burke and I participated in the BirkieTour II held on the American Birkebeiner Trail this past Saturday. It was extremely cold with the temperature at -20 C at the start and -16 C at the end so dressing properly and having the right wax were challenges. Both Tim and I were fine with both and then having a nice sunny day helped too! The picture to the left was taken at the Fire Tower Turn Around about 10K into the tour.
The course was changed a few days before the tour so instead of starting at Telemark Lodge and ending at either Highway 00 for the short course and Hatchery Park for the long course the tour started at Highway 00. See map at the left of the 20 K short course which went north on the Birkie Trail to Fire Tower Hill, the highest part of the trail, and then turned around and came back to Highway 00 on the new Birkie Classic Trail. The trail was in great shape but because of such cold temperatures the snow was very slow. I had perfectly waxed skis, however, so no complaints except with the change in courses, we were on some of the highest hills of the entire Birkie Trail the entire time.
I had wanted to go on and do the longer 42 K but with the cold was feeling the start of some frostbite on my face and then both of our toes were getting very cold too! The map and stats for the tour are found at my Garmin which showed the course at 19.5 K. Since this was a tour and not a race we stopped often to take in the beauty of the trail and especially the Classic Trail which we don't get to ski on very often. Total time was 2:18:09.
Over 640 skiers pre-registered for this second annual event and with the cold temperatures the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation was afraid it would keep people away. Instead there were 50 new registrations on Friday night and Saturday morning. The foundation also reported that skiers from as far away as Tennessee, Florida, Texas, and California in the United States and from Scotland, Russia and Canada participated in the event. While that seems like a lot of skiers for a race it was much smaller than the American Birkebeiner race in February which attracts over 9,000 skiers for the various events. What both Tim and I liked is that with the many up and downhills the course was not skied in with ruts that usually happen in the Birkie Race due to so many skiers. Tim is pictured to the left at the Fire Tower turnaround. I wanted to take more pictures but my hands got way too cold and it took me 2-3 K to get the feeling back in my finger tips.
After the tour Tim and I drove into Cable, Wisconsin and ate a late lunch / early dinner at The Rivers Eatery which is located in The Ideal Market. Garrett Ping, who I skied with last weekend in Eau Claire recommended the restaurant and this will be sure to become a regular place for Birkie week too. Wonderful stone oven pizza, salad, and plenty of good micro craft beer on tap all in a very nice atmosphere. After lunch we visited John Kotar and his family at his cabin in Cable. John is the founder of the Birchleggings Club and is a member of the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation Board of Directors. He did not participate in the BirkieTour but did get out for a couple of hours of skiing in the early afternoon because of the cold.
We stayed at the Lenroot Lodge in Seeley, Wisconsin and with the change in the BirkieTour couse we were very close to the start on Highway Double 00. The lodge is owned by the same folks as the Sawmill Saloon, which is a mainstay of Seeley and a restaurant we have eaten at every year that we have been up for the American Birkebeiner ski race. The Lenroot has very reasonable rates with nice rooms with a loft. My only complaint is that the temperature could not be controlled so it was quite warm in the room. All in all a great weekend with a one of my Birkie Buddies! Tim will be meeting Mike Tarnow, our other Birkie Buddy, next weekend at the Noqueman Ski Marathon in Marquette, Michigan. Too far for me to drive from La Crosse, Wisconsin.
