by Jayleen Wilke My most memorable/touching Birkie story doesn’t necessarily come from the race itself but from an encounter at the Vikings Feast after the big race. After 6 years of doing the Birkie Lite, in 2017, I thought it was finally time to go to the feast and see what it’s all about. And of …
by Jim Black, veteran and scarred skier Once upon a time ….in the early days of the Birkie – perhaps 1994 … in the era when skiers were provided a black plastic bag and number tag for their clothes to be transported from the UCHV to Waskahegan … I arose up early on Birkie morning, as …
by Dana Mauer By now, you’ve heard of the Full Moon Birkie,….the fantastic night of skiing at Cooking Lake-Blackfoot, organized by the Canadian Birkibeiner Society. But have you heard of the Half Moon Birkie? It was a very icy year for the Canadian Birkie in 2012. There had been freezing rain and warmer temps during …
by Marion Hinteregger Encouraging kids to get outside and be active in the winter, is a solid step towards improving mental and physical health. What better way then to cross country ski?! Our Canadian Birkebeiner Society (CBS) volunteers had so much fun at Delton Elementary School on February 15, 2019. CBS provided cross country ski …
by James Brohman When I met my wife she did not know how to X-C ski and I came from a racing background (bad combination)! Many a tears of frustration were shed on the trails out at Blackfoot trying to keep up and not hold me back (my most dreaded question from Lori on the ski …
by Tammy Fedun My introduction to the sport of cross country skiing came a few years ago through a friend’s invitation to an annual spring event at the Strathcona Wilderness Centre called the “Pastry Ski.” My friend said we’d ski a little, eat a little. This sounded like a pretty good trade off to me. …
by Vaughn Scalia What is your cross country ski background? I’ve been with Edmonton Nordic for 8 years now (at the time, 6 years), and my family has been cross country skiing casually since I was born. When we moved from Calgary to Edmonton I started racing in Biathlon and I’ve been mainly doing that …
by Ken Sloman There may be more stories per skier about the Canadian Birkebeiner than Birkies skied. Enthusiasm is Contagious. Following the Birkie during the morning-after work break, I heard and vicariously imagined the misfortune or success of five colleagues as they shared their experiences. Seeds of interest were sown in me from their banter. …