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A local group of veteran skiers of the American Birkebeiner Birkie has incorporated fall training with poles for years. Three of them, Wayne Williamson, 71, Paul Pedersen, 71, and
Darrell Thompson, 72, headed out on the Birkie Trail from the Hatchery Creek trailhead for a recent walk. Between the three of them, the men have skied a total of 78 Birkebeiners. by Darlene Prois Walking the Birkie Trail, the three Hayward septuagenarians don't think of themselves as trendsetters. But with 78 Birkies between them, it's clear that Wayne Williamson, Paul Pedersen and Darrell Thompson know a thing or two about endurance. And that means that until the snow falls, they'll be Nordic walking. Not that they'd call it that. According to Wayne, they're just using ski poles to help them on those relentless hills.
Cross-country skiers have long used poles for off-season training, but now, thanks to word-of-mouth buzz and skillful marketing by Nordic pole manufacturers, the secret is out. Using poles isn't beneficial just for skiers. For northwoods über-athletes as well as urban grannies, Nordic walking can provide significant health benefits. The sport is rapidly becoming one of the nation's hottest fitness trends. Using poles as you stride, it looks like cross-country skiing minus the skis and snow. In Europe, where the walking poles were introduced a decade ago, more than 6 million people have embraced the activity. Now Nordic walking enthusiasts are popping up all across the Midwest – from the northwestern Wisconsin's Birkie Trail to the Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway in the Twin Cities to the sound of rubber-tipped poles hitting dirt and pavement. The basic motions are simple, intuitive and repetitive: Step forward with one leg while planting the pole with the opposite arm, then repeat. The simple addition of poles engages as much as 90 percent of the body's skeletal muscles, and increases energy consumption by up to 40 percent over ordinary walking, according to the International Nordic Walking Association. Two recent converts to the sport are Dani McGarthwaite, 40, and Sally Gagan, 44. With husbands, demanding jobs and six children between them, the two Hayward-area women had fallen away from regular exercise routines years ago. But a desire to ski the upcoming Kortelopet pushed them to find an activity that would accommodate busy schedules and help them reach their fitness goals. They chose Nordic walking after reading about its health benefits. Every Sunday since June, the women have walked the Birkie Trail with their ski poles. "We thought 'we can do this,'" said Gagan, vice president of Beehive Botanicals in Hayward. "So we just started walking." On their initial outing, they were exhausted after 8K. Now they're tackling distances up to 23K, blazing up and down the rugged hills between the OO and Hatchery Park trailheads. "Every week it's just gotten better," said McGarthwaite, an insurance agent. "We walk farther and feel even better the next day. I'm not athletic, but after going up those hills week after week, my lung capacity has expanded. My breathing is easier. I feel like I have more energy throughout the week, and it's a great stress buster, too." They'll switch to skiing when the snow falls. But until then, they're thrilled at the added oomph the poles have given their walks. "It's a good workout, but it's not so strenuous that you couldn't do it, no matter what your age," Gagan said. "That's one thing Dani and I have talked about: We could keep doing this into our 60s." Good for the long haul That's aiming low, say local walkers in their 60s, 70s and beyond. As many as 30 "Birkie Girls" – a group of fitness-minded women who range in age from 55 to 74 – use Nordic poles during weekly walks on area trails. The women, who have been active together for six years, added Nordic walking to their regime two years ago. It started when one of the women, training to ski the Birkie, brought poles to the group's hikes on the advice of her personal trainer. Soon everyone was using them. "I don't know how anyone could hike without them," said convert Trish Truver, 65, of Hayward. Armed with her poles, Truver has tackled not only the Birkie Trail but also the entire length of the Superior Hiking Trail and the Grand Canyon. In winter, she uses the poles when snowshoeing. "What a difference they make," she said. "They're just great for hill climbing, especially rocky downhills. I'd be so afraid of falling without them." Indeed, health professionals and sports trainers are increasingly recommending Nordic walking for its therapeutic qualities. Besides adding an upper-body component, the poles reduce the pounding on knee and ankle joints. That's particularly important for folks like Williamson, a former runner who's had operations on both knees. He's completed 23 Birkies and plans to notch a few more while he still can. "It's pretty much bone on bone now," he said of his knees. "I don't have much left." Thanks to the poles, he's able to be out on the hills with his friends for two to three hours or more every week. Some weeks, as many as 10 men will train together by Nordic walking. Although Williamson said he's getting slower every year, he hopes to finish the coming Birkie in under four hours. Walking with poles can help out-of-shape people regain fitness, too. Joel Harrison, a former junior national biathlon champion now in his mid-30s, used poles to get back in shape after gaining weight a few years ago. "When I was in my 'fat' phase, it was the only thing besides cycling that I could safely do," said Harrison, a co-owner of Hayward's New Moon Ski and Bike Shop. "My usual physical activities had become too hard on my knees. I used to go out the door and run for maybe 20 miles. But when I turned 30, got a real job and had a kid, I put on a lot of weight. Nordic walking was a way for me to redevelop that base level of fitness. I built more lean muscle mass, lost a lot of body fat and was able to start running again. It's very therapeutic." The increased stability poles offer is especially important for those recovering from joint replacement surgery, said Brian Glader, a certified Nordic walking instructor at Midwest Mountaineering. When the store first started carrying the poles two years ago, most of the people buying them had undergone joint repair. At that time, only 15 percent to 20 percent of the pole buyers were athletes. Now a majority of those who purchase them are athletes in training, according to Glader. Jan Guenther, 48, an elite skier, runner and triathlete from Mound, Wisconsin, is a big fan of Nordic walking poles. She uses them to leap and bound up hills for an aerobic workout. To increase her ski stride, the co-owner of Gear West Ski and Run, walks with the poles on level ground. Upper Midwestern hubs Thanks to aggressive outreach from outdoor recreation outlets, Minnesota's Twin Cities area and Chicago are quickly becoming recognized as hubs for this activity. Hoigaard's and Midwest Mountaineering, both in Minneapolis, have Nordic walking experts on staff and host frequent seminars on the activity that quickly fills to capacity. "The interest has been phenomenal," said Linda Lemke at Hoigaard's. "It's something anyone can do." For the past two summers, Lemke has led Nordic walkers down metro area trails as part of Hoigaard's Out-door Women program. As many as 30 women show up for the weekly walks. This past summer, Lemke extolled the virtues of the activity for employees of Medtronic, Cargill, Ceridian and Best Buy. And in November, Gottfried Kürmer, a world-renowned Nordic walking expert and master coach (and vice president of Leki, the largest manufacturer of walking poles), came to Hoigaard's to teach advanced classes. Another urban Nordic walking hot spot is Portland, Oregon, where the second annual Nordic Walking World Championships were held this summer. Considered a special division of the Portland Marathon, the top Nordic walker's time was a blazing 3:31:52, turned in by a 31-year-old man from Salt Lake City. Closer to home, a competitive Nordic walking events will be held in conjunction with next fall's Birkie Trail Run, according to American Birkebeiner executive director Ned Zuelsdorff. He said a volksmarch that specifically welcomes pole walkers will be added in 2008. Walking or ski poles While pole manufacturers are eager to promote poles specifically designed for Nordic walking, many believe any properly sized pole will do. New Moon Bike and Ski in Hayward carries walking poles, but Harrison said nearly any pole in the shop could be cut to size. "Poles for walking should be about 10 centimeters shorter than your normal ski pole," said Harrison. "That's because there's no glide. When you're gliding down the trails on skis, a longer pole has more efficient leverage. The (Nordic walking pole's) removable rubber tips are for people who live where there are sidewalks. Here in Hayward, we're lucky to have so many grassy areas that typical ski poles work just fine." Riverbrook Ski and Cycle carries two brands of Nordic walking poles at their Seeley and Spooner shops, but co-owner Cindy Swift uses high-end, lightweight ski poles for her workouts. "As soon as the weather starts getting cooler, I start roller skiing, trail running and Nordic hiking," said Swift, 46, an elite skier and biker. "I run with poles because it's a lot easier on my joints. I'm taking some of the impact on my arms and off my knees and ankles." Marcia Engebretsen and Deno Mense, owners of Outdoor Ventures, are so convinced of Nordic walking's value that they're expanding their product line and planning workshops to introduce others to take up the activity. "We've only been selling the poles for about a year and we've been impressed with how many people are into it," said Mense. "The neatest thing is that people are coming back just jazzed after they've used them. They want to get their friends to join them." As an avid outdoorswoman, Engebretsen has been walking with poles for years. "I love to exercise outside," she said. "I don't care what the weather is, I just want to be out there. I just throw on some Icebugs (a brand of running shoes with carbide-tipped studs) and I'm good to go, even if it's slippery. I incorporate those with the poles, and I don't care what (the weather) is doing out there, it's not going to stop me." Mense is quick to point out that Nordic poles are equally valuable for those who desire less challenging terrain. "You don't necessarily have to be the type who wants to drive to the Birkie Trail to enjoy Nordic walking," said Mense. "You can live in town and like to walk in easier conditions and use them 12 months of the year. You don't have to buy lots of expensive equipment to get outside and breathe some fresh air." This spring, Darlene Prois left the Minneapolis Star Tribune where she worked as a photographer and writer for 35 years. She was an avid Nordic walker even before moving within a wolf's howl of the Birkie Trail near Hayward, Wisconsin.
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