Archives 2024
NewFinn Sisu: Holiday Gift Guide
December 20, 2024With the holiday's already upon us, check out Finn Sisu's holiday gift guide to catch up on all of your shopping needs with some of their favorite picks by their staff.
Team Birkie Learn-To-Ski Lessons Dec 6-7th
November 29, 2024Team Birkie is offering cross-country skiing clinics at the Loppet Cup World Cup site, Dec 6-7th. Learn from Midwest athletes and coaches, building skills and supporting Team Birkie's competitive skiers. Designed for beginners or those rediscovering the sport, clinics offer a fun and supportive environment for skill development.
Finn Sisu: Battle Creek Fifty K Black Friday Blowout
November 26, 2024If you're looking to put in some early season mileage while enjoying the trails at Battle Creek, then look no further than the Battle Creek Fifty K. Presented by Finn Sisu, the event is currently running a Black Friday special with a reduced registration fee of $40 for the first 200 participants, so don't wait and sign up today!
NNF: Drive for 25 Kickoff
November 24, 2024Every year the U.S. Nordic Skiing community comes together to support the National Nordic Foundation's (NNF) largest fundraising efforts of the season, Drive for 25. NNF funds many of the key development projects in cross-country skiing including Trail to Gold and Athlete Grants, junior development camps and international junior competition. Find many familiar faces acting as ambassadors to help boost the fundraising effort.
Lumi Experiences: Free Ski Trip to France Giveaway
November 22, 2024Cross-country ski travel company Lumi Experiences is celebrating its partnership as an official tour operator for the Worldloppet’s series of 19 international ski marathons with a trip giveaway for two lucky skiers on the 2025 France-Transju trip – a value of over $10,000, including two entries in the Transju ski marathon. Spend eight days this February skiing the seemingly endless trails that criss-cross through small villages and preserved forests in the French Jura. Enter by Wednesday, Dec 11th -- the winner will be announced on lucky Friday, Dec 13th!
Team Birkie Auction Underway
November 18, 2024Team Birkie's annual auction fired up Monday, featuring a diverse array of skiing-related items, services, and experiences. The proceeds directly benefit the team's Midwest-based athletes, including Alayna Sonnesyn, Zak Ketterson, and Kevin Bolger, as they compete internationally. This fundraiser provides essential resources for training, travel, and equipment.
Finn Sisu: Wax Clinic and Pop-Up Shop this Weekend
November 11, 2024There will be a flurry of activity at Finn Sisu this weekend for their first wax clinic of the season, plus a pop-up shop to boot. Starting Saturday, hear from World Cup wax tech Chris Hecker about the intricacies of glide waxing, then browse Saunamekko sauna clothing at the in-store, pop-up shop which will be set up through Sunday.
WINN Kortelopet Scholarship Program
November 1, 2024The Wisconsin Nordic Network (WINN), founded as a way to unite Wisconsin skiers and organizations, is currently focusing on getting young skiers into the tradition of ski racing. The Kortelopet Scholarship Program has made young skiers' first Kortelopet experience a little easier by covering the race registration but WINN is seeking donations to help cover the costs and make this program available to more youth skiers.
Lumi Experiences: World Championships in Trondheim, Norway
October 26, 2024This February and March, the attention of the cross-country ski world will be on the 2025 World Championships in Trondheim, Norway. Attend the championships in person with Lumi Experiences! The special trip includes lodging, transportation, grandstand tickets, special access, ski waxing and more! The signup deadline is approaching fast: receive a $300 / person booking discount when you sign up for Lumi’s Week 1 trip by Thursday, October 31st. There’s still a few spots available on the Week 2 trip too.
Endurance United: Learn to Ski/Intermediate Lessons
October 21, 2024For adults, Endurance United offers Learn to Ski programs for beginners in both classic and skate techniques, plus two levels of intermediate lessons focusing on technique development and race/tour preparation.
CXC Online Auction Concludes Thursday Night
October 16, 2024CXC's 8th Annual Online Auction has been adding new items all week but you'll need to act quickly to score some details -- the auction closes Thursday night at 8 pm CST. Proceeds from the auction go towards supporting CXC programs and events.
CXC Online Auction Opens Wednesday
October 8, 2024CXC's 8th Annual Online Auction opens Wednesday at noon with dozens of unique items up for grabs from nearly 20 different vendors and outdoor enthusiasts. Proceeds from the auction go towards supporting CXC programs and events.
NNF: An Unforgettable Day with Johannes Klæbo in Minneapolis
October 4, 2024Back in August, Olympic champion Johannes Høsflot Klæbo revisited Theodore Wirth Park in Minneapolis, leading a training session with Team Birkie and local youth. The event continued to inspiration just six months after the 2024 World Cup.
Trek Bicycle Teams Up With Team Birkie In Sweepstakes
September 24, 2024Team Birkie's fundraiser offers a chance to win a Trek bike worth up to $5,000. All proceeds support athletes aiming for World Cup and the 2025 World Championships. The sweepstakes winner chooses from a top gravel, mountain or adventure bike from Trek.
Lumi Experiences:Time to Start Planning Those Winter Vacations
September 5, 2024Dreaming of fresh snow already? Beautiful skiing, delicious cuisine, cultural experiences and the support of local, expert trip leaders await you on a range of Lumi trips -- from cheering trailside at European World Cup races like the Tour de Ski in Italy and World Champs in Norway to leisurely skiing with majestic mountain views and cozy trailside huts for lunch in Slovenia – there’s a trip for everyone. Check out which trips still have availability and sign up soon for this winter!
Endurance United 56K Rollerski Event this Sunday
September 2, 2024Endurance United will host their annual rollerski marathon this Sunday, Sep 8th. The event offers several rest stops and skiers can choose their own distance. Raffle prizes from Pioneer Midwest, Finn Sisu, New Moon and the Birkie!
Endurance Adventures Feature on Uberlegger Bob Britz
August 18, 2024Bob Britz, an Uberlegger, shares insights from 46 Birkie events (1978-2024), offering inspiration for future racers in this feature from Endurance Adventures. Plus check out their August newsletter.
CXC Drawing in Final Stretch
July 25, 2024CXC Annual Fundraising drawing has just days left with the drawing being held July 29th. This year features Trek bikes with the winner able to choose from mountain, gravel or adventure bike! The fundraiser supports the CXC Adaptive Program, which aims to produce and distribute adaptive sit-ski equipment to assist people with disabilities in learning and experiencing cross-country skiing.
CXC Drawing Underway
July 11, 2024CXC Annual Fundraising drawing is underway, featuring Trek bikes: the winner can choose from high-end mountain, gravel or adventure bike! Only 250 tickets will be available for the drawing and more than half have be sold, so act quickly! The fundraiser supports the CXC Adaptive Program, which aims to produce and distribute adaptive sit-ski equipment to assist people with disabilities in learning and experiencing cross-country skiing.
Gear West: Rollerski Clinics with Team Birkie
July 11, 2024Gear West is hosting a series of summer and early fall rollerski clinics with a rotating group of athletes from Team Birkie. Clinics are every other Wednesday evening at 5:30 pm, open to the public, and can accommodate all ability levels. Each clinic will include technique instruction and coaching and a fleet of Swenor skis to demo will be available.
NNF Online Auction Underway
July 9, 2024National Nordic Foundation's Online Auction kicked off Monday, July 8th, with dozens of great items! All proceeds from NNF's summer auction go directly towards supporting their pillar projects for next winter.
NNF: New Summer Speaker Series Starts June 7th
June 2, 2024The National Nordic Foundation is launching a new virtual summer speaker series featuring experts like elite runner Grant Fisher, US ski team's strength coach Tschana Schiller, Norwegian performance researcher Hans Kristian Stadheim and former US ski team member Andy Newell. The free talks support NNF's athlete development camps while providing sport education. Attendance is capped at 300 with recordings for registrants only.
NNF: Summer Pillar Projects Kick into Gear in June
May 30, 2024The National Nordic Foundation partners with US Ski and Snowboard for Pillar Projects of summer development camps emphasizing national collaboration. This includes regional elite group (REG) camps for top U18/U20 skiers, a first-ever U16 National Camp, and an International Junior Camp in Europe.
Endurance United: Junior Nordic and Paddling Programs Starting Soon
May 26, 2024Summer Junior Program - Join for a summer of Nordic training focused on technique, volume, strength, and intensity.
Summer Paddling Programs - SUP and sprint kayak programs for juniors, plus an advance canoe racing program for adults.
Programs start June 10th!
Lumi Experiences: Happy Mother’s Day
May 10, 2024Lumi Experiences takes an opportunity to reflect on the special time that adult children and parents can spend together on a ski vacation, including recent reflections from moms and their grown-up kids during their winter travels. Want to make your own family memories? Lumi is offering all parents and their adult children $300 off any 2025 Lumi trip that still has availability, starting Mother’s Day and ending Father’s Day.
Loppet Adult Summer Programs
May 5, 2024Loppet Nordic Racing offers summer training programs for adult cross-country skiers focused on strength training, rollerskiing, and women's mountain biking/trail running groups. Registration for the 2024 summer programs opened on May 1st, with options like 8-week strength classes, Tuesday/Friday morning workouts with Coach Ingrid Remak, an 8-week intermediate rollerskiing group, and 4-week women's mountain biking/trail running "brick" sessions.
Univ of Minnesota Nordic Ski Coach Study
May 1, 2024U of M researcher Sarah Kaja is working to understand the challenges the weather of the 2023-2024 season posed to coaches, as well as strategies that helped coaches and teams succeed despite the challenges. They'd like to use their study results to help more coaches--especially newer coaches or coaches in smaller programs--get the resources they need. Nordic skiing coaches from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan, who coach at least one skier age 18 years old or younger, are encouraged to participate.