American Birkebeiner 50K-54K - CC Skiing 2010
Saturday, February 27th 2010 at 8:00 AM 10527 Main St Hayward, 54843 WI- Distances:
- Mountain
- Weather:
- Local Weather
- Website:
- http://www.birkie.com
Checking weather...
Race Reports
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American Birkebeiner 50K Skate Ski
Race Report: Gorgeous Weather! Blue skis, temps in the high 20's, minimal wind. Biggest crowd ever- 7500 participants! I started in wave 6 at 9:25 AM and despite some initial fears that my wax was too cold, it was smoking fast on the downhills! The snow did deteriorate at about the halfway point, but that was about the only problem I could find with the whole day. I took the hills one at a time and survived this notoriously brutal World Loppet course! A small comparison is that this course has 7500 feet of climbing in about 30 miles. IM Wisconsin bike course has 8500 feet of climbing in 112 miles....No crashes on the downhills, but a couple close calls. I got really exhausted around 30KM, but I ate some gu, banana, and pushed on. The last 5 KM are flat across a lake, but my legs were so tired by then, I didn't have much balance left, so it took all of my energy to not fall over. I cruised up the snow-packed Main street lined with cheering spectators with cowbells ( and beers and brats in hand) and finished my first Birkie! My goal was to finish, but I thought I would be closer to 5:30, so I was tremendously happy with my sub 5 hour time! The overall winner was a guy named Fabio (seriously) from Italy with a course record time of 1:56. Yes, that's right, less than 2 hours for a 50K!
by Becca -
Great Day
What a beautiful day, what beautiful weather and what a fantastic race. Way to go, Birkie.
Everyone who cares about skiing, please ask dailymile to add XC skiing as a race event. Why should we have to call this a velo event or mountain run? Get with it, Dailymile.
by Eric T.
