Birkie Break

 The Seawolves have been on the road, traveling from place to place around the mountain west for the past few weeks, though the list of venues able to host ski races is a lot smaller than usual this year. That's because there's hardly any snow on the ground west of the Mississippi River. In fact, we are scheduled to be in Bozeman, Montana this weekend for the RMISA Championships, but we're in Utah instead because there isn't any snow in Montana. And it was decided last week that the NCAA Championships, slated to be hosted by Montana State, will also be moved to Soldier Hollow, the only place that has a ribbon of man-made snow thick enough to host a serious ski race. 

Yes, it's really that warm here at Soldier Hollow today. And the forecast calls for a lot warmer this weekend. Our skiers came on this trip prepared to race in shorts.

So I decided I needed a little change of scenery for a few days. And that's how I ended up in the north woods of Wisconsin last week, for the running of the American Birkebeiner ski race. I didn't go to Hayward to race. I just went there to watch, and to do a little race announcing. But there were plenty of Seawolves at the Birkie, just as there are every year. 

For example, Hannah Rudd (2020) won the women's classic Birkie. So I got to meet her at the finish line with a microphone in hand and get caught up on the latest Hannah Rudd news in front of thousands of spectators lining main street.

Hannah Rudd

And who are these two characters at the start line?  Any true Skiwolf fan knows that's Seawolf and 2014 Olympian Brian Gregg (2006) and our current assistant coach Chase High wearing the Seawolf green!

In the end, these two stuck pretty close to each other all day, with Chase ultimately crossing the finish line a half-second ahead of Brian, to take 25th place. 

And who's that in the black and green Craftsbury suit (below) just to the left in the frame, reaching the finish just behind the lead pack in lucky 13th place?  Why, that's Seawolf Michaela Keller-Miller (2020)!

The Birkie is a big deal. Big enough that if you listen to local radio in Hayward during Birkie Week, you'll be serenaded by a long list of Birkie songs floating across the airwaves. Birkie Fever is alive and well.

ps. The Birkie even has its own rock concept album. You can listen to Bifurcated Monkey's EP, Birkie Extra Blue, here. And you can thank me later.