Peak Nordic lines up a 5K under the lights at Lapham, even without snow
The popularity of the Wednesday night ski races at Lapham Peak State Park prompted organizers to try a summer version: the Prowl the Peak 5K race scheduled to start at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Proceeds from the run will support the Peak Nordic Ski Team, which has close to 100 youths that train, ski and race on the hills in the Town of Delafield.
Organizer cancels 2011 Unnamed Epic
The organizers of the Unnamed Epic mountain bike race followed their own "go epic or go home" creed and canceled the event after failing to develop a suitable course.
Jack Hirt announced the cancellation in an email to the registered riders, who will receive full refunds. Hirt will work to put together a 75-mile, point-to-point lay out for 2012.
Badger State Games will end after 25 years
Started in 1985 to re-create the Olympic experience for citizen athletes, the Badger State Games has reached its own finish line.
The nonprofit Wisconsin Sports Development Corporation announced Tuesday it would drop the games it organized for both winter and summer sports.
Tour de Fat brews up $9,000 for Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin
New Belgium Brewing's Tour de Fat drew nearly 1,500 cyclists and onlookers to Humboldt Park on Saturday and generated $8,921 for the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin, through donations and beer sales.
Taking the bike lane; cyclists spin tank video
Arturas Zuokas. the pro-cycling mayor of Vilnius, Lithuania, has become a much-celebrated man among American cyclists, thanks to the cyber spin of this video
Green Bay woman dies after bike crash; fourth fatality since July 1
A report in the Green Bay Press Gazette identifies a cyclist who died after a crash in the Town of Oneida on Monday as Kris Hanson.
The 56-year-old was riding on a tandem with her husband, Douglas Hanson, 59, who was injured and hospitalized.
A departure and a return
The following is the Editor's Letter that appeared in the August 2011 issue of the print magazine.
It was no accident that Silent Sports, this magazine, took root in central Wisconsin 28 years ago last month. Sure, founding editor Greg Marr happened to live and work in Waupaca. But he also played on the canoe friendly Crystal and Waupaca rivers, the Chain O’ Lakes got him into rowing a scull, the myriad hilly rural roads lured him out onto his bike, and the Iola Winter Sports Club and other nearby Nordic ski trail systems got him ready (or at least willing) to tackle the American Birkebeiner year after year.
Cyclist remembered as aspiring artist
Kudos to Jeff Starck at the Wausau Daily Herald for letting readers know that Easton Shryne was more than a 22-year-old killed while riding his bicycle.
Starck talked to Shryne's mother, who shared her son's dreams of moving to California and becoming a successful artist. He also reminded everyone that the impact of a fatality like this is felt by the motorist, as well.
Safer than walking down stairs: Bike Fed analyzes dangers of cycling
Cycling promoter Dave Schlabowske analyzed statistics from the National Safety Council and other sources to debunk the myth that taking the roads on a bike is an inherently life-threatening exercise.
Jorgensen ready to race for spot on U.S. Olympic triathlon team
Gwen Jorgensen traveled to London for the first time this week and will race on Saturday to book a return trip for the 2012 Olympics.
In just her second year as a professional triathlete, the part-time tax accountant from Milwaukee is one five women from the U.S. invited to compete in the International Triathlon Union World Championship Series race. The top two U.S. women will qualify for the Olympic squad, provided they are in the top nine overall.
County Supervisor Jursik envisions a bike lane attachment for Hoan Bridge
"Why not suspend a bridge cantilevered off the side of the arch of the Hoan?"
In a recent guest column, Milwaukee County Supervisor Patricia Jursik proposes that fresh and serious idea for providing a bike and pedestrian lane on the Daniel Hoan Memorial Bridge.
Report offers details on crash that killed cyclist on charity tour
The driver of a Chevrolet Corvette that hit a Green Bay couple on a tandem bicycle reported he didn't see them as they pedaled westbound on County Highway EE, according to a report released Wednesday by the Outagamie County Sheriff's Department.
Michael Gustman of Seymour estimated he was traveling 55 mph on the rural road at the time of the crash, about 11 a.m. Monday.
National Geographic rates Milwaukee in top 15 hiking cities
Proximity to the Ice Age National Scenic Trail earned Milwaukee a spot on National Geographic's list of top 15 cities for hiking in the United States.
The magazine's write up: "Eskers, kames, and potholes are a few of the trippy things you might see on Wisconsin’s 1,000-mile-long Ice Age Trail. (Translation: the elongated ridges, small marshes, and teardrop-shaped hills that the last continental ice shelf left behind.) And one section of it, in the northern unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest, is located just 53 miles north of Milwaukee."
Prosecutors charge motorist with negligence in death of cyclist
A Kenosha teenager was charged Monday morning with negligent homicide a bicyclist was struck early Sunday morning on County Highway H in the Village of Pleasant Prairie.
Friends reported the victim, Devin Kunich, 22, was biking home from his job at the Bristol Renaissance Fair when he was hit about 12:30 a.m. He is the fifth cyclist struck and killed by a motor vehicle in Wisconsin since July 1.
Jorgensen earns spot on U.S. Olympic triathlon team, talks tactics in post-race interview
Gwen Jorgensen, a part-time tax accountant from Milwaukee, surged to second place in the International Triathlon Union Championship Series race on Saturday and earned a return trip to the London course for the 2012 Olympics.
In just her second year as a pro triathlete, Jorgensen posted the best finish by an American in the history of the International Triathlon Union World Championship Series and leaped to the top echelon of the sport.
David Landgraf, Birkebeiner "founder," killed while cycling near Hayward
David Landgraf, one of only three people to ski in every American Birkebeiner since its founding in 1973, died Monday afternoon from the injuries he suffered when a car hit him while he biked on Hwy. 27 south of Hayward.
According to the Sawyer County Sheriff’s report, a 24-year-old woman from Hayward turned to speak to her children while driving south on Hwy. 27 about 6:50 p.m. Friday. She turned back and saw Landgraf, but too late to swerve and avoid him.
Safer roads for motorists and cyclists
I had hoped intently that the rumor shared last night about David Landgraf being hit and killed while cycling would turn out to be wrong.
Tragically, for all those who knew and respected the retired teacher and Birkebeiner skier, Landgraf died Monday afternoon from the injuries he suffered when a car hit him on Highway 27, south of Hayward.
Streaking runner marks 30 years with 30 laps
John Chandler fretted that his plans to run 30 laps on the Whitefish Bay track Tuesday night would jinx his streak, something akin to talking about a no-hitter in progress or printing playoff tickets in advance.
His celebratory side took over, however, and the financial planner has invited guests to join him as he marks 30 years of continuous running - at least one mile a day for 10,958 days. His streak ranks 52nd on the list of active streaks recognized by the United States Running Streak Association Inc.
Asthma, injured shoulder end Nyad's bid to swim from Cuba to Key West
I was disappointed to read earlier today that Diana Nyad had to abandon her attempt to swim from Cuba to Key West due to asthma and an injured shoulder.
While swimming isn't as much a part of my Off the Couch reporting as it should be, Nyad's story stuck with me. I was captivated by her interview on NPR in July, when she talked about making another attempt at the 103-mile swim with sharks, at age 61.
Singing a joyful tune: 100 miles on the AT in Vermont
"They call me mellow yellow ... "
It was the first song to get firmly stuck in my head. I had told my father, Sam (trail name Festus), and his good buddy Ron (Dr. Schlepper) that the terrain on the Appalachian Trail in Vermont would be mellow - it was.