The American Birkebeiner was cancelled yesterday for only the 2nd time in its history (I think the other time was in the late 80s?). Course was originally planned to be cut in half, but with the unseasonable warm temps and lack of snow over the week they decided to cancel the race the day before the race. Knowing that thousands come to this race internationally, it had to be very disappointing for many.
From what I saw via social media many made the best of it and went for runs, drank beer, hung out, etc. Everyone was chill and found a way to appreciate the weekend and sensible that shit happens.
Where is the outrage? Ironman Texas went on but had 12 miles taken off the course but still went on. Ironman Maryland cancelled the swim, Ironman Florida has shortened or cancelled the swim before, Ironman Lake Tahoe went up in flamsetc. When triathlons get cut short or cancelled triathletes let the RD’s know what they are owed and are very vocal. Where no triathletes up in northern Wisconsin this weekend?
The American Birkebeiner was cancelled yesterday for only the 2nd time in its history (I think the other time was in the late 80s?). Course was originally planned to be cut in half, but with the unseasonable warm temps and lack of snow over the week they decided to cancel the race the day before the race. Knowing that thousands come to this race internationally, it had to be very disappointing for many.
In it’s 44-year history (going back to 1973), it has been canceled or shortened 9 times, including this year.
5 of those years, the race was still timed/competitive for everyone, though it was on a shortened course.
Twice it was run for the elite wave (everyone else could not ski for the first of those but got to ski an un-timed/non-competitve event during the other).
1 of those years it was canceled for everyone.
This year, there was no competitive event, but there was a 5k open loop.
Skiers are or can be creative: Some Nordic skiers have practiced on the wet sand beaches of Hawaii. An off-season classical ski training device called the “CatSki” can be used on dirt trails, grass, sand, hard pavement and yes even on the real thing-snow! Ski Jumping competition in the warmer months can be done when “plastic material” is laid down on the jump track and hill. Skied the trails (some of it is lighted) and race a number of times since the 1980s.
4th place? GPS file or I’m lighting the pitchforks and starting a twitch hunt. /pink
It really is too bad. I didn’t comment as I’m distracted by the worlds at the moment, and planning my trip to Quebec City for mid-March and the World Cup Finals!
Diggins. What a baller sprint (in both races), but yesterday she out doublepolled Stina. And Simi and Eric got 5th, which was amazing for the US. I kept thinking Finland would get relegated, but neither team did.
Methinks Klaebo will win medals out the wazoo at the Olympics in 2018. What a ridiculous talent for Norway.
Diggins. What a baller sprint (in both races), but yesterday she out doublepolled Stina. And Simi and Eric got 5th, which was amazing for the US. I kept thinking Finland would get relegated, but neither team did.
Methinks Klaebo will win medals out the wazoo at the Olympics in 2018. What a ridiculous talent for Norway.
The good thing for Klaebo is that a world championship count as much as the olympics in Norway, also the world cup is important to. He does not have to do a good olympics to get the sponsors, they are lining up already.
Klaebo will now be part of the national team next year. His coach is his grandfather.
Also, for most Nordic athletes a world championship in either Finland, Sweden or Norway is valued more than olympics in a country with no xcskiing culture. It is a lot more fun skiing for 100,000 spectators than 5,000 in another time zone.
I used to travel from New England to race the Birkie; it was annual father/son meetup (my Dad would do the Korteloppet).
I also have the memories of the race being shortened, then cancelled, even a last-minute cancellation where I had to turn around in Minn/St.Paul airport and just go home.
Also remember the Mora Vasaloppet being cancelled 2yrs/row.
After that, I gave up on xc ski racing. Great memories though.
Global warming is a bitch.
Either that, or this whole Chinese hoax thing really sucks.
People realize how hard of a job it is to put on an XC ski race and don’t blame the Birkie for global warming. The Birkie is a non-profit run by amazing and generous people. They do this because they love it, not to make a dime. The Birkie has a special magic about it… and the community gets it. Everyone was extremely disappointed, but everyone also realized that the Birkie people did everything they could to make the event happened and it wasn’t in the cards this year. People put the blame on the weather and not on Birkie staff which I believe is the correct way to direct those feelings.
I know we are NOT supposed to look at the weather and draw conclusions about Global Warming, but I can say that what’s going on in transitional temperate zones, like where I live (southern Ontario) which is similar to where the Birkie is run in Wisconsin, is that winters have become more erratic and un-predictable. Go back 30 years and winter was snow on the ground in early December and good long stretches of temperatures below 0C with cold-snaps down to -20C every now and then, and the snow stayed until mid to late March.
That’s NOT what winters are now. In the last 5-years we have had no real consistent pattern to winter. I think it was 5-years ago. We had barely ANY snow, all winter long. We’ve also had a winter in the last 5 years that set records for sustained cold and the most ice coverage ever on the Great Lakes! This winter, it’s been a record lack of ice coverage on the Great Lakes - owing mostly to record warm water temps in the Great Lakes from a record warm fall that we had in the region. We’ve had some big dumps of snow from snow storms each winter - but they tend to be singular events. This past winter has kept up the strange unpredictability. Last week in the Toronto area it reached 18C - in the middle of February! Today it’s 11C - still in February, and we’ve had no snow on the ground for 2 weeks now. It feels like spring outside today.