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5 Midwest XC skiers going to Winter Olympics
Northern Michigan University cross-country skiers Lindsey Weier and Lindsay Williams were named to the U.S. Olympic Cross-Country Ski Team on January 17. Also representing the Midwest will be Chris Cook,
25, of Rhinelander, Wisconsin, and former Minnesotans Abigail Larson, 32, of Bozeman, Montana, and Torin Koos, 25, of Leavenworth, Washington.
In anticipation of their bid to compete at the Turin Games this month, Weier and Williams, both 21-year-old Minnesotans, were the subject of a Q&A in the January issue of Silent Sports (see "The Lindsey and Lindsay Way").
They will join the five other women and 10 men selected for to the U.S. Olympic Cross-Country Team. Five of the men and three of the women were on the 2002 Olympic Team, including Weier and Koos.
More recently, Larson placed third in the 20K pursuit at nationals and Weier was the pursuit silver medalist at the national championships.
The U.S. Olympic Cross-Country Team will arrive in Turin, Italy, February 6 to begin training.
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Minnesota snowshoers fair well at European Snowshoe Championships
A team of 15 U.S. snowshoe athletes recently traveled to Fondo, Italy, to compete in the fourth annual European Snowshoe Championships during the prestigious La Ciaspolada Snowshoe Race in the shadows
of the Austrian Alps.
Team USA, comprised of four members of the U.S. National Snowshoe Team and 11 other U.S. Snowshoe Association members, under the direction of coach Mark Elmore of Peru, New York, toed the
starting line of the 7K snowshoe race with over 700 athletes from Italy, France, Morocco, Austria, Finland, Germany, Romania and Poland. An additional 6,000-plus participants competed in the noncompetitive
division, making this the largest snowshoe race in the world.
Leading Team USA, the best non-Italian team at the championships, was Greg Hexum of Minnesota.
Hexum completed the course in 32:02.3 finishing in 33rd place. Giuliano Battocletti of Team Italy won the event in 27:42.7.
Behind Hexum was Mark Churchill of Vermont, finishing 36th in 32:23.1. National Snowshoe Team members Jesse Haynes of California and Charlie Wertheim of Colorado placed 50th and 52nd. Rounding
out the scoring for Team USA was 15-year-old National Junior Team member Zachary Rivers of Rochester, New York. Also competing for Team USA was Minnesotan Jim Graupner, finishing 147th in 41:27.4.
In the women's field, USSSA membership chairperson and National Women's Team member Cindy Brochman of Minnesota led the charge with her 18th place finish in 42:36.8. Cristina Scolari of Italy took
the championship title with her 34:29.6.
The trip to Europe for the championships was coordinated by the USSSA based in Corinth, New York.
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Duluth XC Ski Club invests in youth programs
The Duluth Cross-Country Ski Club (DXC) recently donated $1,000 to two Duluth area youth skiing programs.
A $500 grant was made to the KidSki program at the Snowflake Nordic Center. Another $500 grant was
made to the Nordic Spirit Youth Ski League based out of the Spirit Mountain Nordic Center. These two programs provide cross-country ski instruction to over 200 local children 4 to 14 years of age.
These grants were made possible with funds raised during the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour, hosted by DXC in November. An additional $1,000 will be used for summer youth cross-country ski
development programs.
For details on DXC activities, go to www.duluthxc.com.
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Iola Ski Backwards Day
Inspired by Silent Sports founder Greg Marr's advocacy of organized "backward days" at local ski trails, Iola Winter Sports Club will hold one at 10 a.m., Saturday, March 4 (with March 11 as a backup in case of
cancellation). Ski the trails in the reverse direction for a change of scenery and enjoy a bonfire, brats, drinks
and music. And bring a dish to pass. If you want to help or contribute to this event, call Phil Johnsrud at 715/445-4777. Updates and more
information will be available at www.gglbbs.com/iwsc after February 25.
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Wisconsin Bike Fed to develop 'Active Prescription' program
MADISON, Wis. The Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin has been awarded a $25,000 grant for its "Active Prescription for Wisconsin," a project to get adults bicycling as prescribed by health care providers.
The grant was one of 19 distributed by the Wisconsin Partnership Fund for a Healthy Future at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health for community-academic partnerships
designed to improve the health of the people of Wisconsin.
The Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin will work with Dr. Javier Nieto, M.D. Ph.D., of the University of
Wisconsin Department of Population Health Sciences and with the Thunderhead Alliance, a national group that supports the advancement of bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations.
The "active prescription" concept is based on a successful program in Victoria, Australia. The Bicycle Federation will spend a year gathering partners from the medical and insurance communities and then
implement a full pilot program in 2007-09.
"The news of this grant award is very exciting for the Thunderhead Alliance as Active Prescription programs
have only begun to gain momentum in the U.S.," said Sue Knaup, executive director for the Thunderhead Alliance.
Funding for this program was provided following the conversion of Blue Cross/Blue Shield to a for-profit organization. The awards mark the second series of planning and implementation grants awarded by the
Oversight and Advisory Committee of the Wisconsin Partnership Program.
The Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin is a statewide nonprofit bicycle education and advocacy organization
with over 2,400 members. Learn more at www.bfw.org.
Potential partners with an interest in Active Prescription should contact Dar Ward at 608/251-4456 or dar@bfw.org.
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National Park Service to work with MTB'ers
2006: Pilot project in Ohio, trail work in Minnesota
The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) and the National Park Service (NPS) have announced 12 partnership projects for 2006, including one of three pilot programs in the Midwest. In
addition, Minnesota will be one of nine Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew trail visits this year.
In May 2005, IMBA and NPS signed a partnership agreement to bring mountain bikers and park officials
together to develop trails and plan future collaboration. The programs outlined will be carried out in Big Bend National Park (Texas), Fort Dupont National Park (Washington, D.C.) and Cuyahoga Valley
National Park (Ohio). The three programs are unique, but all will involve substantial study of the recreational benefits and potential impacts that mountain biking.
While the timetable for establishing a pilot mountain bicycling program in Ohio is still in development, local bike advocates are hopeful that preliminary studies will be approved.
"The park is only 15 minutes from downtown Cleveland, and is no more than an hour and a half from more than 4 million residents of northeast Ohio," said Mike Farley of the IMBA-affiliated Cleveland Area
Mountain Bicycling Association. "This trail has the potential to become one of the best in Ohio and a destination for the entire region."
In addition, the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crews hope to visit as many as nine national parks in 2006, including the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area.
NPS owns only 35 acres of the 54,000 acres within the the park's boundaries. The recreation area is a narrow corridor of land on either side of the Mississippi from Dayton and Ramsey, Minnesota, on the north
boundary past Hastings, Minnesota, on the south border.
The trail care crews will provide expert advice and work with local mountain bike clubs, other trail-user groups, community leaders and park staff .
New riding opportunities require detailed study by park officials, as well as special rule-making procedures
for each park. Land that is protected as "wilderness" or proposed for that designation cannot be considered for mountain bicycling.
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Chequamegon Fat Tire Fest lottery rush is on
CABLE, Wis. While the starting canon won't boom until September 16, the race is already on for this year's Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival entries.
Celebrating its 24th anniversary in 2006, this popular multiday offroad bicycle event will once again be sponsored by Trek and hosted at Telemark Resort in Cable, Wisconsin, over the September 15-17 weekend.
Each year the selection process for the 2,500-person limit for the Chequamegon cross-country events involves a lottery drawing. To be included in the random registration drawing, hopeful participants must
obtain, complete and send in their entry blanks by the March 15 postmark deadline. Shortly after that date, 1,700 riders for the Chequamegon 40 and an additional 800 for the Short & Fat 16 miler will be selected.
Entry blanks can be obtained in two ways. First, from February 15 to March 15, the entry blank can be downloaded from the event's web page at www.cheqfattire.com. If you prefer a hard copy of the
registration form via the postal route, a self-addressed stamped envelope must be sent to the event headquarters as soon as possible.
To be included in the lottery drawing, potential participants must meet the March 15 postmark deadline for sending in their completed entry forms and fee payment to the event headquarters. Entries received after the
postmark deadline will not be included in the drawing.
Fat tire racing and fat tire fun in the northwoods will be the reward for the lucky 2,500 selected in the
drawing. After the entries are entered into the computer database, confirmation cards will notify the 2,500
of their acceptance into the event. Those who are not picked in the drawing will have their checks and entry forms returned as soon as possible. Each year many hundreds of entries are returned to their senders when
the event limits are filled.
For more info about the registration lottery procedure and other event information, visit the Chequamegon
Fat Tire Festival web page at www.cheqfattire.com. Direct all correspondence to CFTF, P.O. Box 267, Cable, WI 54821; 715/798-3594; cheqfat@cheqnet.net or stop by the event headquarters at Telemark
Resort in Cable.
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30th annual Grandma's Marathon now accepting requests for entry forms
DULUTH, Minn. The first step to getting registered for the 30th anniversary of Grandma's Marathon, the 16th annual Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon and the 13th annual William A. Irvin 5K is to request an entry
form. Grandma's Marathon officials began accepting entry form requests the third week of January.
Those interested in any of these races should send a self-addressed and stamped No. 10 business-size
envelope and a note specifying which race you wish to participate in and send it to Grandma's Marathon, P.O. Box 16234, Duluth, MN 55816.
Entry forms for Grandma's Marathon were scheduled to be mailed on January 18. Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon entry forms will be mailed at the end of February, and forms for the William A. Irvin 5K will go
out in mid-March.
The 30th anniversary Grandma's Marathon weekend celebration begins on Thursday, June 15, with the SMDC Health and Fitness Expo and continues Friday, June 16, with the Michelina's all-you-can-eat
spaghetti dinner, Whipper Snapper Races for kids, guest speakers, live music and the William A. Irvin 5K (at 6 p.m.).
The Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon and Grandma's Marathon will take place Saturday, June 17, starting at 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., respectively.
In all, over 16,000 runners and 50,000 race fans from across the globe are expected to participate. For more information, go to www.grandmasmarathon.com or call 218/727-0947.
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Midwest triathlon series expands in 2006
Midwest Sports Events is expanding the 2006 calendar with two new triathlons. In 2005 the Five Star Tri Series consisted of five multisports events in Wisconsin. This year there will be seven.
The expansion is due to the numerous requests Midwest Sports Events has received. "Many communities realize how these events help everyone become fit, especially kids who can now do the kids' triathlons,"
said Gloria West, executive director of Wisconsin-based Midwest Sports Events.
The two new events will be the sprint distance Green Bay Area Triathlon on June 4 and the Chisago Lakes
Area Triathlon on July 30. The latter triathlon will offer participants both sprint and half-Ironman distances.
The overall winners of the half-Ironman distance triathlon will receive entry in the 2007 Madison Ironman.
The other events in the series include the Paper Discovery Duathlon on May 7, High Cliff Triathlon on June 25, Pewaukee Triathlon on July 16, Oshkosh Triathlon on August 13 and the Green Bay Duathlon on October 1.
Athletes can sign up for individual events or, if they complete five of the seven events, compete for prizes and cash payouts.
To register for these new events and any Midwest Sports Events triathlon or duathlon, visit the website www.midwestsportsevents.com or call Midwest Sports Events at 920/338-8741 or 800/429-8044.
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ABD Cycle Club ups ante for '06 TT series
The Athletes By Design Cycle Club has opened registration and announced the details for the seventh annual indoor time trial series. After a successful 2005 series with more than 200 participants per race, the
indoor events have been relocated to a larger venue at Community High School in West Chicago, Illinois.
The series will include two indoor flat 10K races, two indoor rolling 10K races and the John Fraser
Memorial Time Trial. Overall results will now be based on the cyclists' single fastest flat 10K, single fastest rolling 10K and the 10-mile outdoor event.
The series started with a flat 10K on January 15. The series continues with a rolling 10K on February 5, another flat 10K on February 26, a rolling 10K on March 18 and the 10-mile TT on April 9 in Maple Park.
"Using both our usual flat course and Computrainer's official rolling 10K course in our series is going to
switch things up for our loyal group of participants, but also continue to raise that bar," ABD President Mike Farrell said.
The Computrainer training system provides computer-controlled units riders attach to their bicycles. The
units generate resistance comparable to riding hills and into the wind. At the 2006 series, riders will have the option of racing on Computrainer's new 8-Up, multi-rider racing system.
The 2006 Indoor Time Trial Series will offer $3,000 in overall and daily cash and prizes, including the return of the Fastest Men and Women Challenge: $50, $30 and $20 to the three fastest men and women each
day. There will also be a raffle at each event for racing equipment from Profile Designs.
Full race details, flyers and registration forms are available at ABD's website, ABDCycling.com. To register, go to www.Active.com
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Horribly Hilly Hundreds set for June 17
The Friends of Blue Mound State Park and the Viking Biking Club are gearing up for the fourth annual Horribly Hilly Hundreds (HHH) ride on Saturday, June 17. Registration will again be limited to the first
1,000 cyclists valiant enough to make the commitment. Register online starting February 1 at www.active.com.
Deemed the toughest one-day challenge ride in the Midwest, the HHH will follow the same sadistic routes as in 2005. Two challenging options await the cycling enthusiast: 100 kilometers, with 6,000 feet of
climbing, and 200 kilometers, with over 10,500 feet of climbin.
The ride will again start in Blue Mounds, Wisconsin, and finish at Blue Mound State Park the highest point in southern Wisconsin at 1,716 feet.
Changes for 2006 are minor, but do include free overnight accommodations at Mount Horeb High School. There will also be a pasta dinner and other activities at the school. For more information, visit the website www.horriblyhilly.com or call 608/437-HURT (4878).
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