ski season

 birkie fever, they call it. i call it panic training. either way, this phenomenon defines our winters. from the minute the first snowflake falls until i cross the finish line at the birkebeiner race in hayward, wi, in the last weekend of february, i am working to find a way to get in more time on my cross country skis to train as much as possible. the race is a daunting 35 hilly hilly miles, and it's hard, and big strong muscles and good cardiovascular endurance help. so from december to february, we were skiing. 

and the minute that race is done, so is cross country ski season. and it's glorious. mother nature always seems to agree, and starts her annual snow melt the day we get back from hayward. 

scenes of our pleasure and trauma through the training season, just to remember the beauty and the pain:

but then it was race day, and even though the event was "virtual" with more than half of the participants completing their race at home (which included the beaches of southern california for this guy), we went up and skied the race. still hard, still hilly, even when there isn't a party waiting for you at the finish line. still makes me proud of myself every time. 

pretty deserted start line...

feeling good with 15k left to go....

the kids did great at their race while i was doing mine...

...and david made it back to the finish line to pick me up.

david was the next day, headed off to the finish line all alone....

and here is ramona, violating the "no spectators" rule while we wait for david to come through the finish line somewhere beyond that giant snow bank. 

happy finishers, ready to do it again next year.