Kongsberger Ski Club

Nils Eddy photo  The Tour of Meissner, at the Virginia Meissner snow-park near Bend, has been on my wanna-do list for several years. Classic technique only; 30k and 17k (and the same options for wooden skis); each course is one big loop, with no laps or repeats; big uphills and zoomy downhills; and the stated aim of Race Director Ben Husaby (two-time Olympian, 11-time national team champion, six-time Pole Pedal Paddle winner) is to create a race where skiers of every skill level will feel welcome. What's not to love? I haven't made it down there yet, but Suzanne did the race last weekend and sends us this report. Next year? I'm in! Tour of Meissner Race Report by Suzanne Corkran My coach and wax tech, husband Rob Corkran, thought that a nice classic race at 5,000-6,000 ft of elevation is just what my lungs, recovering from open heart surgery last summer, needed. So, I signed up for the Tour of Meissner at the Virginia Meissner Sno-Park out of Bend, Oregon.  *See the note be...

Many thanks to Rob Corkran for providing this awesome report on the 2025 Gunnar Hagen classic ski race at Cabin Creek last weekend: Gunnar Hagen, Winner, 1954 Provincial Championship, Edmonton, Alberta. In this photo Gunnar anticipates by two years, and with beautiful form, the revolutionary change that swept the 1956 Cortina Olympic jumping competitions. The American and Norwegian teams, the former ironically coached by KSC founder Olav Ulland who had once been a leading practitioner of the older Kongsberg technique, did not stand a chance.  The Central Europeans dominated using the new form. Did Gunnar initially practice this technique as coach of the 1936 Royal Yugoslav team on the huge jump at Planica, the first ski flying hill? Ragnar Ulland, Olav’s nephew, first Kongsberger US Junior National Champion and member of that 1956 American Olympic team, to his surprise readily adapted to the new technique. The Kongsbergers’ 30k classic race, which had served on occasion as the...

It's January, and the Gunnar Hagen classic ski race, the first Cabin Creek Nordic ski race of the season, is on the calendar! Sponsored and managed by Kongsberger Ski Club and open and welcoming to all skiers, as always, the race will be on Sunday, January 12. If you're a racer, here is what you need to know: *   classic technique only; race distances 30k, 10k (for para nordic), and 7.5k *   registration through Webscorer is open now, on the KSC website ( www.kongsbergers.org ); early registration closes at 11:59 pm Pacific on January 9; late registration, with an extra $30 fee, closes at 11:59 pm Pacific on January 10; absolutely no day-of registration, nada, zero, zilch, so don't come crying to the race timers that the dog ate your registration *   all the other details you need to know are on the KSC website If you're not a racer, here is what you need to know: *   the upper and lower parking lots will be jammed pack full from early on race morning to probably ea...