Capitol Square Sprints to anchor new winter festival
by Phil Van Valkenberg Perhaps you've enjoyed its excitement and pageantry of the Birkie or the spectacle of the Winter Olympics. If you're a fan of cross-country ski racing, winter sports in general or just like a good time, mark January 12-14 on your calendar. That weekend is shaping up to be one of the most exciting and fun events in the region.
The third running of the Capitol Square Sprints will meld with Kesslers Diamonds Polar Jam to create a winter celebration that is expected to attract between 40,000 and 60,000 participants and spectators to downtown Madison, Wisconsin. Ninety truckloads of man-made snow will transform the inside lanes of Capitol Square into a 1-kilometer race loop for the sprints as in the past. Meanwhile, the two blocks of
Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard will be closed off for the Polar Jam food court, live entertainment and lots of other activities put on by Madison Festivals Inc. It's amazing to think that just a few years ago the Capitol Square – a vital warm weather gathering place for the Farmers Market, Taste of Madison, Concerts on the Square and other festivities – seemed to go into hibernation in winter. The square was abandoned to the elements until
the stunning premier of the Capitol Square Sprints in 2005. Many people couldn't believe such a huge and unique undertaking as the sprints could get off the ground – or, in this case, dry pavement. Those who braved the frigid temperatures in '05 were treated to a stunning showcase of sprint racing – cross-country skiing's most exciting and spectator-friendly event format. Not
only was the snow in place, the grooming was terrific and there was even a bridge over a pedestrian underpass to add to the skiing challenge. Most of all it was a venue like none other. As part of the CXC NorAm International Races, the event brought the top skiers in the hemisphere for head-to-head competition. Just as exciting were the Wisconsin High School Relay Championships. Seeing
these young athletes competing in the shadow of their state Capitol was inspiring indeed. How did such a spectacular event come about? Today many people know the accomplishments of the dynamic young Russian Yuriy Gusev who has relocated to Wisconsin. Gusev now oversees CXC, Central Cross Country Skiing, which is the skier development body for our region. He first came to the state
University of Wisconsin in 1999 as an exchange student and returned to Madison in 2001 for an internship. In his native land, Gusev progressed as a competitive skier until he reached his maximum potential. "The coaching is very good there," Gusev said. "They know just how far you will make it."
In 2002, he started the Russian-Style Ski Coaching service, a private club offering individuals year-round
training. "It's funny though," he recalled. "I was in Wisconsin for six months before I even knew there was cross-country skiing here."
Gusev began coaching Ben Cline whose father, Joe, would become instrumental in securing the University of Wisconsin Health Services sponsorships for the Capitol Square Sprints. At the 2004 American Birkebeiner, Gusev met Wisconsin native Luke Bodensteiner, who directs the Nordic program for the
United States Ski and Snowboard Association, and they talked about the concept of sprint races in Madison as part of the NorAm Super Tour's Midwestern venues in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, and Telemark, Wisconsin (and now the City of Lakes races in Minneapolis).
Another key person in the development of the event was Sepp Candinas, who had brought his knowledge and love of cross-country skiing from his native Switzerland. His Sepp Sports shop has been a fixture on the
Madison cross-country ski scene for decades. When Yuriy told him about the sprint idea, Candinas said, "Let's do it around the Capitol" where he had once held a roller ski race.
Candinas introduced Gusev to folks at Tyrol Ski Basin and Hammersley Stone Company, who would make and truck the snow, as well as at H&H Electric which would power the event. Both the Madison Nordic and Blackhawk ski clubs, with their 1,700 members, rallied behind the event like an all volunteer army.
"I was really amazed at how smoothly it all went together," Gusev said.
This year he expects the Kesslers Diamonds Polar Jam to expose many more people to the excitement of cross-country racing who would not normally travel to see such an event by itself. By moving the start/finish location to the intersection at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, the sprints will anchor the Polar Jam festivities.
Also new for the 2007 sprints will be Friday evening's U.S. 100 and XC Speed world record attempts. As the snow is being dumped and groomed around the square, attempts will be made to set new male and female 100-meter skiing records.
Enter Madison Festivals, Inc.
The route by which Madison Festivals Inc. came into the picture was also somewhat circuitous and fortuitous. Known for putting on the Madison Marathon and Taste of Madison, the organization launched
Kites on Ice on Lake Monona.
"We created Polar Jam as a replacement for Kites on Ice," said Keith Peterson, event manager for Madison Festivals Inc. "Kites was a very popular event, but the weather situation in Wisconsin became too iffy. It was anybody's guess whether or not there was even going to be any ice for the kiters to fly on."
Polar Jam promises much more in the way of food, entertainment and activities for everyone. An expo tent
will house dozens of exhibitors, including local restauranteurs. REI will set up a snowshoe terrain park on the boulevard, and Tyrol will hold the Rail Jam snowboard event at the State Street corner of the square. National and regional music acts will perform on Saturday and Sunday.
Madison Festivals has experience marrying seemingly disparate events. "A few years ago when we were planning the Mad-City Marathon (now the Madison Marathon), we began working with the producers of
Brat Fest," Peterson said. "Even though the two events didn't seem similar at the time, we all knew that we could create synergy between them.
"We moved the marathon's finish line to the Alliant Energy Center where Brat Fest was taking place, and created a partnership that everyone – Madison residents and out-of-town guests – could enjoy on several different levels."
If the fusion of cross-country ski racing and Polar Jam is as successful, Madison will have another
outstanding festival weekend on its hands.
For more specific information on the activities and volunteer opportunities at the Kesslers Diamonds Polar Jam, go to www.madisonfestivals.com. For more information and registration for the Capitol Square Sprints, see www.capitolsquaresprints.org.
Phil Van Valkenberg recently relocated from Hayward to Cambridge, Wisconsin, where he continues to
bike and ski, volunteer at events and write from experience. Capitol Square Sprints schedule
Friday, Jan. 12:
5 p.m. – Snow Delivery
8 p.m. – U.S. 100 and XC Speed World Record Attempt (Skate Technique)
Saturday, Jan. 13:
7 a.m. – Open Ski (Classic)
9 a.m. – Fit City Seniors (Classic)
11 a.m. – Special Olympics Wisconsin 500m, 1K, 5K (Classic)
1 p.m. – Fit City Kids (Classic)
3 p.m. – Wisconsin High School Championships 3x1K Relay (Skate)
6:30 p.m. – SuperTour Team Sprint (Skate)
8:35 p.m. – 5K Master/Citizen Advanced Level Race (Skate)
9:05 p.m. – 5K Master/Citizen Intermediate Level Race (Skate)
9:35 p.m. – 5K Master/Citizen Beginner Level Race (Skate)
10:10 p.m. – Open ski (Skate and Classic)
Sunday, Jan. 14:
7 a.m. – Open Ski Time (Skate)
9 a.m. – SuperTour Woman Qualification (Classic)
9:10 a.m. – SuperTour Man Qualification (Classic)
10 a.m. – JOQ and Wis. High School Girls Qualification (Classic)
10:40 a.m. – JOQ and Wis. High School Boys Qualification (Classic)
11:30 a.m. – Paralympic Program (Classic)
12 p.m. – JOQ Finals (Classic)
1:30 p.m. – Wis. High School Finals (Classic)
2:30 p.m. – SuperTour Finals (Classic)
3:30 p.m. – 5K Master/Citizen Advanced Level Race (Classic)
4 p.m. – 5K Master/Citizen Intermediate Level Race (Classic)
4:40 p.m. – 5K Master/Citizen Beginner Level Race (Classic)
5:30 p.m. – Corporate Challenge Snowshoeing Relay
6 p.m. – Open Snowshoeing and Open Ski (Skate)
8 p.m. – Snow Removal | 
