NewWeekend Racing

March 12, 2025

One last shot for racing this season in the Midwest...
Mar 14 Brewskibeiner - A fun final race at Hyland Lake, this one an unusual Friday evening event!
Check the Racing Outlook for event updates.

NewTeam Birkie: World Championships

March 12, 2025

Five members of Team Birkie competed in the Nordic World Championships, February 26th to March 9th, in Trondheim, Norway. Alayna Sonnesyn, Kevin Bolger, and Zak Ketterson, all competed multiple times for the United States, and will now continue on the World Cup circuit through the end of the season.

NewJunior Nationals Freestyle Sprint Results

March 12, 2025

Junior National racing resumed Wednesday at Soldier Hollow, UT, with a long day of freestyle sprint racing. Linnea Ousdigian was crowned national champion as she won the girls U16 final! Logan Drevlow was 4th in the MU18 final, Greta Hendrickson 4th FU20 final, Onika Colassacco 5th FU16 final, Connor Reckinger 5th MU16 final. Other notables: Hanna Koch 1st FU20 B final, Lila Golomb 2nd FU18 B final, James Drenne 3rd MU16 B final, Elsa Lindfors 4th FU18 B final, Lillian Franzen 4th FU20 B final, Evie Malec 5th FU16 B final. Friday will feature mass start freestyle distance races.

A Love Letter to the Ski North Ultra

March 10, 2025

Despite another season of uncertainty and the unbelievably warm weather the past few days, the Ski North Ultra made its triumphant debut over the weekend on the trails tracing the North Shore. Penning an open letter to the community that supported the event in it's inaugural season, race director Allie Rykken reflects back on what, for her, took the race from a wild idea to a shared experience.

Junior Nationals: Classic Results

March 10, 2025

Junior Nationals competition got underway at Soldier Hollow in Utah on Monday with the individual start classic races. The Midwest put two skiers on the podium as Linnea Ousdigian (FU16) and Hanna Koch (FU20) both finished in second place. Other top results from the Midwest/Great Lakes - FU16: Eleanor Mody 13th, Evie Malec 15th; MU16: Niels Stringer 5th, Connor Reckinger 14th, James Derenne 14th MU16; FU18: Lila Golomb 13th, Helen Townley 25th; MU18: Logan Drevlow 17th, Soren Winikoff 20th, George Nelson 22nd; FU20: Chloe Angerman 4th, Greta Hendrickson 10th, Lillian Franzen 11th, Josephine Kwasny 17th, Monet Argeropoulos 23rd; MU20: Kristian Hudacek 11th, Anders Westanmo 12th, Eddie Snider 15th. Next up are the freestyle sprints on Wednesday.

ABR Eric and Angela Celebration Planned for Saturday, Mar 15th

March 9, 2025

On Saturday, March 15th, ABR is celebrating 30 years of Eric Anderson and Angela Santini running ABR! Come out for an afternoon of food and fun as they commemorate this milestone. Brats and burgers, beer by the bonfire, sharing memories, and having some friendly competition with a few games. Please RSVP to ensure there is plenty of food and drink!

Gear West: Bike Clinic Wednesday - Going Tubeless

March 9, 2025

Gear West has a number of bike clinics coming up, this Wednesday evening, Mar 12th, where they give you all the low-down on tubeless tires.

World Championships: Women's Freestyle Mass Start

March 9, 2025

After the wonderful weather yesterday the conditions on Sunday in Trondheim, Norway were some of the toughest yet for the final competition of the 2025 World Championships. Racing 50K in the freestyle technique through a thoroughly moisturized snowpack, the women's field was already in shambles shortly after the start of the event with eight athletes skiing away from the rest of the group only 5K in. That number would be cut in half another 5K in, and it would stay that way until the final uphill before the decent into the stadium when, in a tragic moment for the Swedish skier, Ebba Andersson would catch the ski of her teammate, Frida Karlsson, and crash out early, leaving the podium all but decided, save for the order. Karlsson would go on to take the gold, winning out over the two remaining Norwegians, Heidi Weng and Therese Johaug, granting Sweden the sweep of the gold medals across all of the women's competitions. Toughing it out together, all four of the US women would cross the line as a group, finishing 19th, 21st, 22nd, and 23rd. Now just a week later athletes will do it all again as they face yet another batch of 50K races in Oslo, Norway next weekend.

NCAA Championships: Freestyle

March 8, 2025

The NCAA Championships concluded on Saturday with a mass-start 20K freestyle race for all athletes in Hanover, NH. Gaining ground after a third place finish on Thursday, Joe Davies of the University of Utah took the title in the men's race, crushing the competition by over a minute on his way to the win. Thursday's champion, Dartmouth University's John Steele Hagenbuch, was the next skier up in second, who himself put a nearly 30 second gap on third which went to Brian Bushey, also of the University of Utah. A stellar showing for the Midwest men, Wisconsin's Ben Dohlby, who skis for the University of Alaska Anchorage, finished 5th. The women's competition also featured a bit of a blowout as Kendall Kramer of the University of Alaska Fairbanks skied away for the win with over 30 seconds to spare on the race's runner-up and Thursday's champion, Erica Laven of the University of Utah. Another 12 seconds back, Tilde Baagman of the University of Colorado Boulder finished third to completed the women's podium. Finishing 14th in the field, Molly Moening of the University of Vermont was the top contender among the Midwest women.

World Championships: Men's Freestyle Mass Start

March 8, 2025

Records were rewritten on Saturday as the first of two mass-start 50K freestyle races took place in Trondheim, Norway. For the final event of the 2025 World Championships it was the men's field racing first, and from the start the group was off to a fast pace. By 15K the tempo had taken a toll on the field, and by 25K less than 20 skiers were still in striking distance of the leaders. The rest of the way the remaining athletes would be whittled down to four with 5K to go, and then just three after a crash knocked another out of contention. Approaching the final climb Sweden's William Poromaa tried to make a break to take the gold, but hot on his heels was Norway's Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo who has proven time and time again to be unbeatable when a race is left late. Easily out sprinting Poromaa, Klaebo took the win, becoming the only athlete to ever win all six events at a World Championship, and perhaps cementing his status as the greatest of all time. Perfectly happy to be sharing the podium with an all time great, Klaebo's teammate Simen Hegstad Krueger crossed the the line in third seconds later to take the bronze. An outstanding showing by a skier often recognized as a sprinter, Kevin Bolger was the first to finish for the US men, placing 22nd. One race remains at the 2025 World Championships with the women's field doing the same dance tomorrow for their version of 50K event.

River View Loppet Results

March 8, 2025

The husband and wife duo of Nick Ross and Marit Ross-Sonnesyn finished first and second in the 24K freestyle race at the River View Loppet Saturday in Brule. Doug Scheider won the 24K classic event. 12K freestyle champs were Sullivan Sportel and Trisha Evans, with Timothy Pera and Cecelia Toshner winning the 12K classic.

Great Bear Chase Results

March 8, 2025

Over 700 skiers turned out Saturday for the Great Bear Chase races on Saturday in Calumet, MI. The 50km Skiathlon winners were Julia Junkkala and Sam Holt. Elspeth Ronnander and Caden Albrecht took the 50km Classic titles. The 50km Freestyle victories went to Hanna Derby and Ryan Thieme. The 25km Classic was won by Abby Scheller and Parker Courte Rathwell with the 25km Freestyle going to Lena Mitkey and Luke Kubasta. And in the the 20km Skiathlon, Gretta Scholz and Jacob Stiele were champions.

Lumi Experiences: $1000 Drawing off a 2026 Cross Country Ski Vacation

March 7, 2025

Lumi’s 2026 Worldloppet, World Cup and Sight Skiing trips are already filling quickly. Founded by Minnesota cross country ski Olympian Garrott Kuzzy, Lumi Experiences will be leading three once-in-a-lifetime trips to the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympic Games! Enter drawing for a chance to win $1000 off a 2026 Lumi trip and book your trip by March 31, 2025 to receive a $300/person early discount.

World Championships: Women's Team Relay

March 7, 2025

Perhaps the most dramatic event of the 2025 World Championships so far, the women's 4x7.5K relay on Friday was one for the ages with multiple shocking storylines playing out in Trondheim. After getting off to an early lead on, Norway appeared to be a lock for the gold medal as they maintained a minimum of a 30 second gap over the rest of the field through the first three legs. Sweden, the undeniable favorites to win the event, looked as though they would finally be bested after sweeping the titles thus far, but that all changed when Jonna Sundling started making up ground on her anchor leg. Within 2.5K Sundling had caught Norway's anchor, Kristin Austgulen Fosnaes, and would ski with her through the final uphill where the World Champion sprinter would make a move to break to deadlock and complete the comeback. The surprising upset would be shortlived however as Germany and Finland, who had been neck and neck through the final leg, came crashing in, with Germany dealing another devastating blow to Finland to bump them off the podium. After struggling to stick with the tempo early on, the US women's team of Rosie Brennan, Julia Kern, Sophia Laukli, and Jessie Diggins dug deep to deliver a respectable 6th place finish. A Marathon event will make up the final two days of racing at the 2025 World Championships, with the first day going to the men's field who will be racing 50K in the freestyle technique tomorrow.

NCAA Championships: Classic

March 6, 2025

While the World Championships were taking place overseas, the NCAA Championships was getting underway stateside in Hanover, NH. The first of two days of racing was Thursday which featured an interval-start 7.5K classic race for all athletes. Kicking off the 2025 competition the same way he did in 2024, John Steele Hagenbuch of Dartmouth University was crowned the men's champion with roughly 15 seconds to spare over another New England representative, Finn Sweet of the University of Vermont. Laying claim to last spot on the podium with a comfortable 20 second gap on the rest of the field, Joe Davies of the University of Utah rounded out the top-3 for the men's race. Meanwhile, Cooper Camp, also of Dartmouth University, solidified himself as the top Midwestern skier on the day with an impressive 9th place finish. In the women's race the leaders were similarly separated as Erica Laven of the University of Utah took the win over the University of Vermont's Annie McColgan by roughly 10 seconds, with Jasmine Drolet of Dartmouth University another 20 seconds back from McColgan in third. Maggie Wagner of Midland University stood out as the top Midwesterner in the women's race, placing 16th. Friday will offer a quick reprieve from the racing action before collegiate athletes return to the track for a mass-start 20K freestyle race to close out the competition on Saturday.

World Championships: Men's Team Relay

March 6, 2025

For the past 12 World Championships running Norway has taken home the title in the men's team relay, and that streak continued on Thursday as they picked up their 13th straight victory. From the start of the 4x7.5K event it could have been considered a race for second as the team representing the host nation broke away early, and by the mid point of the race had accrued a 30 second lead that would see their anchor, Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, comfortably cross the line in first, extending his gold medal streak to five straight wins. Conversely, the race for second and third was a close contest as five teams sought those final two spots on the podium. A five way sprint in the final kilometer would see those two spots go to Switzerland and Sweden with only two tenths of a second separating the two. The first in following the group of five, the US men's team of JC Schoonmaker, Zak Ketterson, Kevin Bolger, and Ben Ogden put in a strong shift to finish 7th on the day. Tomorrow the women will be representing their nations as a team for the second straight day of relays, albeit at an earlier time, 6:15 AM CST, as forecasted high winds hamper events in Trondheim.

World Championships: Team Sprints; Diggins and Kern Win Silver for the States

March 5, 2025

A breakthrough for the US Ski Team, Wednesday's women's silver in the team sprint event marked the first medal for the Americans at the 2025 World Championships in Trondheim, Norway. Led out by the veteran Jessie Diggins, and anchored by her protege, Julia Kern, the two battled it out with the likes of Sweden, Finland, and Switzerland at a blistering pace across six legs to ultimately secure a silver medal. On top in every event so far, the Swedish women simply couldn't be beat yet again as Jonna Sundling and Maja Dahlqvist took home the gold, while Finland would find themselves the odd team out with the Swiss team overtaking them in the closing stretch to earn bronze. Redemption for the Finns would come in the form of their men's team who won out in a tight sprint finish to take sliver just ahead of the Swedish team who took bronze. The men's team sprint title went to none other than the Norwegian team led by the now four time gold medalist from these Championships, Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, who paired up with Erik Valnes on his way to victory. Within 10 seconds of a podium finish, the US men's team of Gus Schumacher and JC Schoonmaker gave it their all on their way to 6th place finish. More team tactics will be at play tomorrow as a full four man relay takes center stage for the men's field.

World Cup Racing: World Championships Schedule, Part 2

March 4, 2025

We're already half through the 2025 World Championships in Trondheim, Norway, but fear not, there's still plenty of racing action to come. After Tuesday's competitions the focus will be on a team event the following day, Wednesday, with classic team sprints taking place at 4:00 AM CST for the qualifiers, and 7:30 AM CST for the finals. Then it's on to another team event the next two days, a 4x7.5K relay, which will see the men's teams skiing first at 5:30 AM CST on Thursday, and the women's teams doing likewise a day later at 7:00 AM CST on Friday. Last but certainly not least, a mass-start marathon covering 50K in the freestyle technique will close out the competition on Saturday and Sunday, with the men's field taking the first shift at 4:30 AM CST on Saturday, and the women's field taking the second shift at 5:30 AM CDT on Sunday.

World Championships: Classic Individual Start

March 4, 2025

A complete 180 from Sunday's weather, a snowstorm set the stage for Tuesday's interval-start 10K classic races at the 2025 World Championships in Trondheim, Norway. First up was the men's field, and to some surprise the top time on the day would be set by the hometown hero, Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, who picked up his third straight victory, winning out over two of his teammates, Erik Valnes and Harald Oestberg Amundsen. The women's race also featured a repeat winner, Sweden's Ebba Andersson, who narrow edged out Norway's Therese Johaug for the second race in a row to claim today's title, with another Swede, Frida Karlsson, rounding out the women's podium in third. Gus Schumacher once again led the way for the US in a distance event posting the highest finish of the American men in 13th, while Rosie Brennan led the American women, finishing 22nd. Tomorrow our attention turns to the first team event of these Championships: a team sprint in the classic technique.

World Championships: Women's Skiathlon

March 2, 2025

Rain was in the forecast for Sunday but it didn't dampen the spirits of the women competing for World Championship medals in the weekend's second skiathlon. A vicious pace from the start had the field fractured only 5K into the 20K competition, and that pace would never really slow down as the race went on. By the midpoint a fumbled exchange reduced the lead pack from six to five, and it would largely stay that way until the penultimate pass through the stadium when a crash took two more skiers out of contention, with a third falling off the back. On their own out front, Sweden's Ebba Andersson and Norway's Therese Johaug battled it out all the way to the finish line where the title would be decided by a foot throw, with Anderson taking the win over Johaug. The best of the rest, Jonna Sundling of Sweden, the instigator of the earlier crash, took third in a separate sprint finish. The tough tempo and challenging conditions appeared to take a toll on US skiers as Jessie Diggins posted top finish in 13th. Another rest day tomorrow means the World Championships will continue on Tuesday with an interval-start 10K classic race for all athletes.

Pepsi Challenge Coverage

March 1, 2025

Skiers enjoyed near perfect conditions Saturday at Giants Ridge as more than 250 turned out for the Pepsi Challenge events. In the premiere 50K freestyle, Anders Sonnesyn edged out Isaac Wieber at the finish for the victory with Gabrielle Vandendries topping the womens field. The sparse 50K classic field saw Leevi Tarjanne and Emily Erickson posting the top times. Samuel Olson and Della Bettendorf won the 25K freestyle events, Ryan Rogers and Lisa Garretson the 25K classic titles. Full results linked in, photos by Shannon Brault posted.

Sleeping Giant Loppet Results

March 1, 2025

A field of over 550 participated in the Sleeping Giant races on Saturday in Thunderbay. Two Minnesotans came away with top honors as Matt Liebsch and Caitlin Gregg won the 50K skate titles. The 50K classic titles went to Kendyn Mashinter and Kerrie Berg. Felix Doucet and Mya Marshall had the top 35K freestyle times. Reid Thompson and Delaney Summers won the 20K skate races and William Vanden Berg and Lauren Pineau were crowned 20K classic champions.

World Championships: Men's Skiathlon

March 1, 2025

Racing resumed on Saturday at the 2025 World Championships in Trondheim, Norway for the first of two days of skiathlon competitions. The men were up first, skiing 10K classic followed by 10K freestyle, and from the start the race was off to a fast pace. By the exchange the field was already stretched thin and would only grow thinner until only a dozen remained heading into the final kilometer. Unfortunately for the other 11 athletes, one of those athletes was Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo of Norway, Thursday's sprint champion, who slipped away relatively uncontested to claim his second World Championships gold medal in as many competitions. Crashing in behind him was a quartet of competitors fighting for silver and bronze which narrowly went to two of Klaebo's compatriots in a photo finish, Martin Loewstroem Nyenget and Harald Oestberg Amundsen. Making the break but just missing out on the medals was the top American finisher, Gus Schumacher, who finished an impressive 9th, only two seconds off the podium. Sunday will see a second day of skiathlon racing as the women's field gets their turn to compete in the 20K event.

Bearskin: Team Birkie Questions?

February 28, 2025

Team Birkie's Alanya Sonnesyn is preparing a special Q&A episode of her Extra Blue podcast, alongside fellow teammate and World Cup skier Zak Ketterson and Bearskin Lodge owner/ski groomer Quinn McCloughan. Add your Nordic skiing questions in the comments section of the post, then watch for the podcast after the World Championships.

World Championships: Freestyle Sprints

February 27, 2025

The 2025 World Championships in Trondheim, Norway got underway on Thursday with a series of freestyle sprints as the opening event. Soft conditions lead to some surprises, but the day's champions were not one of them as the sprint titles went to the victors from seasons past: Jonna Sundling of Sweden, her third straight title, and Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo of Norway, his fourth. Sundling would ski away with her win, leaving Norway's Kristen Stavaas Skistad to second and Switzerland's Nadine Faehndrich to third, while Klaebo would have to work all the way to the line to hold off the Italian veteran Federico Pellegrino, as well as third place's Lauri Vuorinen of Finland. A stellar start to the American's campaign, eight athletes qualified for the heats including Ben Ogden and Julia Kern who made the semifinals and finals respectively, with Ogden ending the day in 12th, and Kern in 5th. After a rest day tomorrow, the action continues on Saturday with a 20K skiathlon for the men's field.

MCSA Midwest Collegiate Cup: American Birkebeiner Update

February 27, 2025

Once again finishing on the streets of downtown Hayward, the American Birkebeiner took place over the weekend and was the final stop for the Midwestern Collegiate Ski Association's (MCSA) Midwest Collegiate Cup. While the race for the women's team title was all but decided in favor of St. Olaf, that didn't stop the Ole's Lily Hubanks from putting in a performance worthy of a win as she crossed the line first in the women's 53K classic race. Meanwhile, the University of Wisconsin Madison men's team also put it all on the line, passing the St Olaf men's team by just 10 points to take the men's team title. With USCSA National Championships just around the corner, read Luke Dykowski's recap to get caught up on the latest for the collegiate clubs before they attend the big event in mid-March.