| A skier rounds a corner during an NCAA race at St. Mary's.
THE TRAILS OF ST. MARY'S
Trail grooming miracles inspire
skiers to make the pilgrimage to Winona
By Eric Wuennenberg
When most of us are asked to ponder the qualities of the monastic lifestyle, what usually comes to mind are images of robed ascetics transcribing ancient texts in sparse cubicles or chanting away the day in a hilltop abbey. But there are other paths to spiritual fulfillment besides
hours of quiet contemplation. Just ask Brother Jerome Rademacher.
Brother Jerome is the guiding force behind the cross country ski trail system at Saint Mary's University, in Winona, Minn. While southeastern Minnesota isn't exactly considered the Snow Belt, the trails at St. Mary's are a magnet for serious skiers from throughout the region. Nords–in–the–know praise the system for its challenge, scenery and, above all, the exquisite quality of the trail grooming.
St. Mary's is a small but vibrant Catholic university with 1,300 students attending classes in Winona. The college also operates campuses in the Twin Cities, Rochester and Nairobi, Kenya. The university is operated by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, an international Catholic order founded in France in 1680 St. John Babtist de La Salle.
Brother Jerome is a physics professor at St. Mary's, having joined the faculty in 1974. Shortly after arriving in Winona, he saw the potential for
developing recreational trails in the wooded bluffs overlooking the campus.
"When we started, I we were just looking for a way to make the trails easier for bushwhacking," he recalls. "We got some students together with axes and chain saws and started following the deer paths."
The new trails were an instant hit with students, who were swept up in the cross country ski boom of the late 1970s.
Dr. Richard Jarvenin, a faculty member originally from Norway, started
an official cross country ski team. He encouraged Brother Jerome to take the next step and bring in a bulldozer. Excavation began in the early '80s, with student workers pulling roots and picking rocks. Today, the system totals 17K of trails, which work their way up the contours of the hillsides in two valleys, Saint Yon's and Bergler's.
"Most of our trails would be considered intermediate to advanced," Brother Jerome explains. "We do have a flat 1K loop on our ball field,
and there are some easy trails higher up. You have to climb to get there, but we've found most of our beginners are eager to try out the hills anyway. All our trails are at least 10 feet wide and most of the system is closer the 15 feet wide, so everyone has plenty of room."
In addition to hardwood forests, skiers can pass through an old apple orchard and enjoy views of Gilmore Creek as they glide along the trails.
St. Mary's doesn't charge a trail fee, although a $2 daily donation is requested. Individual skiers also make generous contributions and local ski and running teams provide hours of volunteer labor. The trails are open for hiking in the summer, and are used by local high school and college cross country teams. Mountain biking is not permitted.
While the St. Mary's trails are entertaining in their own right, it is Brother
Jerome's passionate commitment to grooming that ultimately sets the system apart.
"We've gotten very good at grooming, and probably do a better job than most people," he said modestly. "We don't get a lot of snow, but because our trails are hidden back in the hills, we can hold our snow a lot longer than other places in the area."
Others are less reserved in their praise for Brother Jerome's efforts. Jim Flim is a retired Winona teacher and coach. For many years he guided
the local high school Nordic skiing, cross country running and track teams. He credits the St. Mary's trails for much of the success of his programs.
"Our skiers have always enjoyed a big advantage by being able to train at St. Mary's," he says. "We're the southernmost team by over 100 miles to ever take state high school cross country ski championships. We've won a couple of state team XC titles and also had Amy and Heather Cichanowski win individual championships.
"Obviously, much of our success goes to the hard work of our kids, but the work that Brother Jerome does at St. Mary's is a tremendous benefit for us. We can train on snow at St. Mary's, while other teams might have to travel for hours," Flim adds. "Our skiers can find every conceivable type of terrain and training opportunity here that you'd find at places like Giant's Ridge. Brother Jerome is responsible for making that possible."
Trail maintenance at St. Mary's is a year–round endeavor. During the summer, the trails are inspected for signs of erosion and other wear and problem areas repaired. Then grass seed is applied in open areas where it will grow and the trails are mowed regularly.
A major component of autumn trail work is removing fallen leaves from the trail.
"We spend quite a but of time getting rid of all the leaves. We use a mower with the deck set high to blow the leaves off the trail," Brother
Jerome explains. "If you don't do that, you end up with an insulating layer of leaves that keeps the ground from freezing. You're also constantly kicking up leaves with the grooming equipment."
A special landscaping rake is pulled behind a tractor to pull out rocks that have emerged from the soil. Then volunteers toss the rocks aside and the holes are filled in and smoothed.
Unlike some trail managers, Brother Jerome doesn't like using wood chips on the trails.
"They have a tendency to wash out or be blown off when we remove the leaves," he says. "We also heard complaints from runners that wood chips would get slippery when wet and also get stuck in the spikes of running shoes."
One unique aspect of the design of St. Mary's trails is the virtual absence of water bars on downhill sections. The standard erosion management procedure on most trail systems is to partially bury logs or timbers at a
diagonal across sloped sections to catch and divert rain and runoff. However, water bars can also pose a hazard to skiers, who risk scraping the exposed tops in marginal snow conditions. At St. Mary's, the trails have been deliberately constructed with a very slight outward cant on hilly sections.
"This directs the water off the trail almost immediately," explains Brother Jerome. "You don't need very much slope, but it makes a great
difference in erosion control. There are just a few places where we've had to resort to using a structure like a water bar."
Brother Jerome also has learned to plan ahead to keep snow in exposed areas.
"In any spots that have a southern exposure and tend to burn out, we find an open spot nearby and mow it down. Then we'll harvest and haul snow from there with a Bobcat and do patching during the season. In winters where we're lucky enough to have a lot of snow, we'll use that
extra snow to build up problem areas so they'll hold up when the thaw comes. We also bring in snow from parking lots if necessary."
Selective tree planting has also been done around some problem areas, although Brother Jerome sees that as a long–term solution. He recommends planting spruce or other native species, since deer tend to view white pine as a dietary delicacy.
The final touch is mowing the trails with the meticulousness of a manicured fairway.
"That mowing really makes a huge difference in how quickly we can ski," says coach Flim. "If there's enough snow to ski on a golf course, we can ski at St. Mary's."
Once the snow finally arrives, grooming and other trail maintenance becomes a daily ritual.
"Under normal circumstances, it takes me two to three hours to groom the entire system," Brother Jerome points out. "But 'normal' is a relative term, and each day presents a unique situation."
In lighter conditions, the trails are groomed with Yamaha VK540 snowmobiles. He likes the handling of a double–ski configuration, as opposed to single–ski machines like the Ski Doo Alpine. He stresses the importance of keeping weight over the front skis for improved steering, especially on uphills. He is also looking closely at the Flexi–Ski, a type of aftermarket front ski that reportedly enhances snowmobile maneuverability in difficult conditions.
When the snow gets really deep, Brother Jerome fires up a Piston Bully 70 Snowcat, which will handle virtually any snowstorm and also grind through ice. Double tracks are set whenever snow depth allows. Then nearly half the system is reserved for diagonal striding only.
"We have track sleds with cutters that are only 1 inch deep, so we can provide tracks in very minimal conditions," he said. "We also groom out old tracks whenever we are going to set new tracks."
When Brother Jerome isn't in the classroom or in the woods, he can often be found in the university's welding shop. He constantly experiments with new designs for grooming implements, often wielding the torch himself.
"I will look at equipment by companies like Tidd Tech and Yellowstone Track Systems, but I'm always looking for ways to strengthen a design or make it more versatile," he says. "I've tried all sorts of ideas over the years, but there's always ways to improve performance."
Brother Jerome's arsenal includes rollers, scarifiers, combs and track sleds, each designed to maximum performance in specific conditions. Out in the back of the shop lies a combination museum–scrap yard–metallic cemetery, where mistakes of the past are kept until they can be reworked and recycled into the innovations of the future.
Like all accomplished trail groomers, Brother Jerome brings an artistic as well as professional perspective to the task. But he also seems to
possess a unique spiritual dimension that adds an extra quality to his efforts.
"I get great satisfaction from working on the trails. Whenever I look out the window and see all the school kids out there having a wonderful time, it just feels tremendous. I've received letters from people telling me that learning to ski at St. Mary's was one of the best things they've ever done in their lives. That makes all the effort worthwhile."
As this story is being written in early January, barely an inch of snow has fallen in southern Wisconsin and Minnesota. Yet Winona skiers, as well as others who have learned the secrets of the trails of St. Mary's, are out on their boards.
"We're using our rock skis," says coach Flim, "but Brother Jerome has been busy moving snow and getting the trails in shape. We're having a great time."
The word "miracle" is not a term used lightly by those, like Brother
Jerome, who follow a spiritual calling. But thanks to his commitment and imagination, it is a word that comes quickly to mind for cross country skiers in the Mississippi Valley.
For more information on skiing at St. Mary's, call 507/452–4430. Trails are open during daylight hours and maps are available at the Toner Student Center.
To contact Brother Jerome directly, call 507/457–1555 or send an e–mail to jrademac@smumn.edu.
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