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Nordic Ski racing returns to Badger State Games

Posted by Tom Held on Dec. 13, 2011

Nordic Skiing, Badger State Games

The revived Badger State Winter Games will hold its cross-country ski races in Wausau on Feb. 4, a day crowded with two new races added to the Nordic calendar.

Minocqua Winter Park will host the inaugural Wolf Tracks Rendezvous and the Ashwaubenon Nordic Ski Team and Lakewood Ski Club have combined to create the Nicolet Nor-Ski on the Lakewood trails in the Chequamegon Nicolet National Forest.

The first weekend in February has been the traditional date for the BSG Nordic events over two decades, and the new owners of the Olympic festival will hold that spot on the calendar. Races will remain at the Nine Mile County Forest, outside of Wausau.

The Sports Authority of the Wausau/Central Wisconsin Convention and Visitors Bureau took over the games in October, two months after the Wisconsin Sports Development Authority dropped the sports enterprise.

Darien Schaefer, the executive director of the visitors bureau, said the Nordic ski races would be revised somewhat to appeal to more recreational skiers. Those changes include a low-priced 7-kilometer race and a 4-kilometer  Blue Jeans Race for recreational skiers and individuals new to the sport. It will be a come as you are, no fancy gear required outing.

It will be a year of transition for the BSG under new ownership and a somewhat scaled-down version. Snowboarding, snowshoe racing, the quadrathlon and ski jumping are all on the bench, at least for 2012, as the new management looks to find host locations and committees.

“Our goal is that the core events are done well,” Schaefer said. “This will be a transition year, and we’re looking at new ideas for 2013.

Registration for the Badger State Winter Games opened on Dec. 9. Click here for details.