Knud Bergslien painting depicts early 13th century Norwegian warriors on skis rescuing Prince Haakon. Lower right, American Olympic cross-country skier Gus Schumacher signs autographs the day after he won a World Cup race in Minneapolis in 2024.
It’s not surprising to see Norway leading the 2026 Winter Olympic medal count. The Norwegians (population 5.65 million) have been doing amazing things on skis for centuries. It’s in the DNA of Norwegian skiers such as Johannes Klaebo, who won his record 10th Olympic gold.
Who knows, maybe he’s related to Torstein and Skjervald, the Norwegian Birkebeiner (birchbark leggings) warrior-skiers who rescued Prince Haakon in the early 13th Century? The story is dramatized in the 2016 movie, “The Last King”. The feat is said to have led to the end of a civil war in which the wealthy Baglers sought to kill the infant heir to the throne, Prince Haakon. He escaped in the arms of the Birkebeiners, grew to be king and reigned for many years in peace.
This is relevant today, in the American Birkebeiner ski race this weekend (Feb. 21) at Hayward, WI, that commemorates the Norwegian history and civil conflict, then and now. At least today for the U.S. the conflict remains primarily in the world of politics and not warfare, and where democracies are striving to prevent a return to monarchy instead of preserving one.
Both the Olympics and the Birkebeiner ski race offer a respite from the political chaos emanating from the current federal administration. Wednesday it was exciting to watch the dramatic finish in the men’s cross-country skiing team sprint with Americans Gus Schumacher and Ben Ogden. They placed second with Schumacher finishing just 1.4 seconds behind the winner – who else? – Johannes Klaebo and Einar Hedegart.
I was privileged to see Schumacher in Minneapolis, signing autographs the day after he took first place in one event at the 2024 FIS World Cup, and beating Klaebo by 6.5 seconds. Jessie Diggins took third and fourth in two events and was said to be instrumental in bringing the World Cup event to the trails at Wirth Park.
If you are in Minneapolis and haven’t visited Wirth Park recently, you would be amazed at the improvements in year-round recreation. A large trail center offers food and gear for skiing and mountain biking. It’s the staging area for the City of Lakes Loppet, a two-day festival featuring cross-country skiing, fat tire biking and ski-jouring – dogs in harness pulling skiers. Years ago, I skied the City of Lakes Loppet 35k, mostly out of curiosity about how they created a course of that distance in Minneapolis.
‘Birkie fever’
Instead of just watching this on TV or in movies, it would be great to see more people out on cross-country skis, or snowshoes – anything to get outdoors in winter for exercise and escape from personal woes, world chaos or the ubiquitous screen. Norway counts about one million skiers – 22 percent of its population, and benefits from sufficient snow and many miles of groomed trails.
Around here, more consistent and better snow conditions would help, but climate is a topic for another day. This year the snow conditions look great for the Birkebeiner this weekend. As a past victim of “Birkie Fever,” this week would find me busy preparing for the race and sometimes fretting about the weather forecast. At my first attempt at the ‘Birkie’ in 1994 it wasn’t good.
After a sleepless night in a sleeping bag on the Hayward Middle School gymnasium floor, around 6 a.m. I along with two companions stepped outside in minus 15 degrees F heading to a nearby church for a pancake breakfast. At minus 6.5 degrees F, that day holds the record for the coldest average temperature for the event.
We survived the 51-kilometer, hilly course from Cable to Hayward. Fortunately, the sense of accomplishment prevails over the physical and mental strain, and the thick beard of ice covering your face. At the 2020 Birkie I skied the 15k Prince Haakon, and I plan to do so again despite physical challenges, which attests to the stubbornness from the Norwegian half of my ancestry.
Exercise, exorcize
Just a handful of people are able to win medals in the Olympics, but everyone can receive personal rewards from practicing its events, with the exception of a few such as Aerials and Big Air. How they are able to zoom high in the air and land on their skis befuddles the mind. Fortunately, you can appreciate the accomplishment without having to risk those or race over long distances.
Cross-country skis gliding on a well-groomed trail, the sun glistening above a clear, blue sky, transports you to a space where exercise strengthens your body, and exorcizes stray and unfounded thoughts in your head. And if skiing is not your thing, snowshoes or simply walking on packed snow works. Just keep out of the groomed ski tracks.
As a member of a local Nordic ski club, I have spent many hours on a large snowmobile towing a ski trail groomer making tracks. With sufficient snow and good weather, it’s rewarding to look back and see a wide, corduroy trail surface for ‘skate-skiing’ and parallel tracks for ‘classical’ skiing. Following that, it’s rewarding to see citizens and kids from the high school Nordic ski team out using the trails.
In 1203 Torstein and Skjervald didn’t have the benefit of groomed trails as they skied through the Norwegian backcountry toting the Prince. Re-enactors at the American Birkebeiner will be on groomed trails and carrying a pack weighing 7.7-lbs. representing the prince, as do Norwegians today in the Norwegian Birkebeiner.
“The Last King” movie (review) is very good and worth watching, despite some gory medieval mayhem, particularly for the scenes of telemark-style skiing down deep powder-covered slopes. That the legacy lives on in the Olympics and many ski events gives us encouragement for improved health, civic resilience, and democratic political stability in the future. That, and a future of snowy winters remains to be seen.
