American Birkebeiner Race to Cover Full Cable to Hayward Course

The American Birkebeiner race will return to its full Cable to Hayward course this year after lackluster snow forced changes in 2024.

The yearly local favorite event is scheduled to begin on February 19th. The long distance nordic ski racers will start in Cable, Wisconsin, and cross miles of snow ending in downtown Hayward, Wisconsin on February 21st.

In the weeks leading up to the race, organizers were not sure if the weather would provide enough snow to complete the full course. In the 2024 iteration of the event, organizers were forced to create a loop in the Cable area due to lackluster snowfall.

As this year’s event drew closer, a lack of snowfall again threatened to force changes to the course. The lack of snow has been so troublesome that even northern Wisconsin counties had not fully opened their snowmobile trails yet. More of those trails began to open on Thursday and Friday this week thanks to another stretch of snowstorms rolling through the area.

Earlier this week, American Birkebeiner officials announced that last minute snowfall over the last couple weeks was enough to complete the entire course. According to a Northern News Now report, crews will continue to work on some areas that may still not be up to the usual standards.

Weather forecasts do not indicate another measurable snowfall over the next week, so conditions for the race should mostly remain the same as they stand now. Officials are warning racers that there may be some patches of low snow or even grass along the course, particularly in the last 10 kilometers.