Day 1 of Ski Building

6 students began building skis tonight at 5 p.m. at the North House Folk School in Grand Marais, Minnesota. My husband Ron Thorley and I are building Sami ski shoes. Our instructor, Mark Hansen guesstimates the design is 6,000 years old and used by the Laplanders in Northern Scandinavia. Alice Williamson and Carol DeVore are building traditional cross-country skis suitable for track skiing. Peter and Solveig are making tele-style back country skis.

We are using North Shore white birch Mark harvested from Cook County. The wood has been drying for two years. Mark selected our blanks based on our height, weight and style of skis. He also showed us how to figure the length of curve in the tips, tail and where to locate the ski's centerpoint for determining binding placement later.

Ron and I have the shortest but widest blanks. Carol and Alice also have short skis, but they are narrower than the tele-types that Peter and Solveig are shaping.

Mark says white birch is ideal for ski building because of its long grain cellulose. He admits the fastest skis are ash, but he doesn't know why. He did share that a particular cemetery in Norway won't allow you to be buried there if you used ash skis. "They would consider your death a suicide if you had ash skis," says Mark with his characteristic storytelling smile. I think he's going to be the real story in this experience.

First on the agenda was to take the blanks from the stainless steel tub where they had been soaking for days in 120-130 degree water--Lake Superior water, by the way. If you want Superior skis, you need Superior Wood and Water. The North House Folk School compound is right on the Superior shoreline.

It's no easy task to get the wood to bend over the tip form and it took many hands to align the tips and then press the wood strips down in the mold so that we could screw wood block clamps on the waists and tips. We're working to have a slight curve on the tails too.

Without a doubt, building skis is truly a "hands on" job. I was first to put my skis in the mold and pressing down I said, "This must be what they mean by transferring energy in skiing."

The process took over an hour for 6 pairs of skis.

Now in the forms, the blanks will dry for 18 hours in Mark's basement. He has a special set up where he blows warm air over the skis to force the bends to stay. We'll meet at 9 tomorrow morning to learn more about ski design and then after lunch the blanks should be ready to begin sculpting into shape.

I'm thrilled to be in this amazing school, working with Ron, and most of all to be making skis--my absolute favorite snow toy.

By phone we told our son Ian we were building twin-tips, but I don't think he imagined them to be out of wood and from a design older than modern civilization.My aim is to have a pair of skis my great grandchildren will use. It must be in my blood. Before my father, Fred Waara, died in 1994 he built over 70 bamboo flyrods for trout fishing. To my knowledge he never built a pair of skis, but I know he's watching me with pride.

Stay tuned.

The night of the pink moon

Some years ago I was skiing the Superior loop at Blueberry with my good chum Ann Wilson. It was March and we were lured by that butterscotch sun that at 5:30 makes the woods so much more luring after work than heading home to cook dinner.
We got started late and the sun set while we were still out on the backside, but it didn't matter. Our eyes and balance adjusted to the fading light and we continued to soak the silence and spring smells of the forest.
We were as giddy as otters, our skis in the tracks roller coastering over the ribbon of trail. We didn't have to talk; we knew what we were sharing.
Skiing ahead of me, Ann stopped at a break in the trees to catch her breath. The spot overlooks the deep bowl glaciers have carved from this unusual section on the Sand Plains. Breathing heavy I stopped too, but rather than looking out, I was looking down.
Her skis were pink. And so was the snow.
Of all the times I've skied, and all the colors of snow I've witnessed, pink is not one I can remember.
"Ann, look at that." She saw it too. And that's when we searched the source and found the moon was pink too. It's a ski night we still remember, and now it has happened again.
Last night I met Mindy Nannestad on Wolverine. She was skiing with her brother Josh and his girlfriend Alicia. When we reached the Superior loop, they broke off to head back to the parking lot. Mindy had more time to fill and since as a new cross-country skier she'd never ventured to Superior we decided to give it a go.
Anyone who has skied this trail knows soon after you gulp your nervousness and head out on the more difficult loop your decision is questioned by two steep hills. I've nicknamed them the "Twisted Twins" in reverence to the "Twisted Sisters" we bike up on County Road 480.
When Mindy saw the sign for the alternate route she asked, "Should we do the cut-across?" But watching her ski I knew she was ready--even if she didn't.
Skiing at every level is a test of your skill AND will. The best way to progress is to ski with someone who has a wee bit more confidence and can help nudge you out of your comfort zone. Mindy is strong, very well balanced, and eager to improve. This was going to be a break through night.
Trusting me she climbed to the peak of the first slope. I know she was seriously second guessing when she saw the roll over because her deep brown eyes went wide. She didn't have to speak, I knew the words behind that expression. I gave her a few tips but didn't stall too long before I pointed them down and went for it. . .all the while hoping I wouldn't take a digger and spoil the confidence building.
In seconds she followed, pressuring a snowplow for the start and then letting the skis ride the gully and back up like a pro. "That wasn't bad at all," she smiled climbing to the next peak.
I didn't want to tell her the next one was worse. She'd find out soon enough.
The best way to set a new standard for accomplishment is to immediately build on success.
Last October I watched my son Ian at San Francisco's Icer Air. After testing the sketchy catapult run-in and the cratered landing with a number of other maneuvers, his gumption was up to try a new trick, a double back flip. It was nearing the end of the competition and he knew it was time. In the air, his flipping seemed flawless. He landed and the crowd went bizerk. The announcer was raving. Ian was the hero. But for him, that wasn't enough. He knew he could do better. So rather than stop for the applause he ran from the landing back to the start to try again, this time spinning and landing perfectly.
When Mindy saw the second set of hills I know the gnaw of doubt was back, but she also had success fueling her adrenalin and I wasn't going to turn off that tap.
The rollover on this hill is serious, one of the steepest I've ever schussed on skinny skis. I stopped to caution her that she may feel that tummy tickle in the belly of the hill but her speed--now the fastest she had probably ever gone--would run itself out because the climb on the other side is just as angled as the drop.
I went first and when I got to the climb I yelled back, "I believe in you, I believe in you," hoping she would believe in herself too.
She held on to the snowplow a little longer to check her speed, but then squeezed the momentum to ride up the climb, smiling like a Chessie Cat.
From that hill, Mindy's skiing is forever changed.
Around the bend at the crest of another hill, a puppy in comparison, we toasted water bottles, but we couldn't linger too long because darkness was falling fast.
Fueled by Mindy's accomplishments we flew around the curls and swoops knowing nothing would be as daunting as the "Twisted Twins." I was skating and she was striding.
And then we hit that same spot I remembered from years back with Ann, and again, the snow was pink, my bright yellow Fischers looked pink and when we turned to check out the moon now high overhead. . .it looked pink too.
I shared the story with Mindy.
I ski for so many reasons, but aside from the physical rush, I get out on the trail for the moments when nature reveals secrets.
We took another water break, a deep breath and then were back moving.
Mindy had kids to pick up by 8 and I still needed to get home to cook dinner for Ron.
We hit the rest of the trail hard, horses to the barn, but then at that point we didn't have to talk much, we had already shared more meaning than words.

Be ready for anything

On Sunday, March 1, I was helping Mary Connor teach a skate skiing class at our annual Winter BOW in Big Bay, Michigan.

Lucy, an accomplished classic skier from the Detroit area was practicing her freestyle V 1 glide when she fell face first. I turned just in time to see she was okay and smiling but her ski was still rocketing down the lane.

That's not something you normally see on a cross-country trail. Unlike alpine gear, nordic skis usually don't come off. As I poled toward the runaway ski, I figured she probably had snow build up in the binding bar on her boot and didn't get a secure lock when she stepped into the binding.

Boy was I wrong.

When I caught up to the ski I saw instead that this crazy woman had skied so fast and so hard that she had separated the outer plastic sole right off from her boot.

I've never seen that happen before but it's reason to add duct tape to your waist pack.

I laughed so hard the squirrels had to come out and check on all the commotion.

I love where I live

Last night I wrote how much I love where I live.

Today I got a list of reasons from Dick Wagner. It made me chuckle and I thought I should share some of them.

I've revised my list to be "You know you're a Yooper when."

1. You consider it a sport to gather your food by drilling through 18 inches of ice and sitting there all day hoping that the food will swim by.

2. You're proud that your region makes the national news 100 nights a year because Ironwood is the coldest spot in the nation.

3. The Dairy Queen is closed from October through May.

4. You don't think it's strange to be invited to a friends house to take a bath when they call to say, "The Sauna's hot."

5. You have worn shorts and a coat at the same time.

6. Your town has an equal number of bars and churches.

7. You have had a lengthy telephone conversation with someone who dialed a wrong number.

8. When vacation means going to "Camp" less than 1/2 hour away.

9. You know several people who have hit a deer--more than once--and gutted it on the spot.

10. You often switch from 'heat' to 'A/C' in the same day.

11.You can drive 65 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard, and eat your lunch.

12. People wear camouflage at social events, including weddings.

13. You carry jumper cables in your car and your kids know how to use them, even if they aren't old enough to drive.

14. You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.

15. Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.

16. You name all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter and road construction.

17. Your idea of creative landscaping is a statue of a deer next to your Mountain Ash.

18. Down south means Green Bay.

19. A brat is something you eat.

20. Pasty rhymes with nasty and the best are with rutabaga.

21.You take your Mom out to fish fry every Friday.

22. Your 4th of July picnic was moved indoors due to frost.

23.You have more miles on your snow blower than your car.

24. You drink pop and bake with soda.

25. You can actually drink Vernors without coughing.

26. You know that UP is a place, not a direction.

27. You know enough friends to rock a pickup out of the snowbank.

28. You nay not be able to spell it, but you know how to play euchre.

29. A significant amount of your cold weather wardrobe is orange.

30. And finally, you wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

Skiing in a storm

Tonight I had to ski.

It has been two days since I'd last had my feet locked in to a pair of skis and my body was begging to get out.

Still, it was one of those nights that works hard to keep you in. It was a long day. I got in late from Media Box. We had a late dinner, two games of checkers and I wasn't moving fast to get the kitchen wiped down . But I had to go.

Pulling out of the driveway, I second guessed driving to Blueberry. Lakewood was drifting shut and I fishtailed the turn to cross the river. Jeeze Louise the snow was piling up fast.

Plows heading east on County Road 480 made clouds when they passed threatening to steer me into the bank, but I recovered. When I got to Blueberry I busted into the lot, the only car and from the condition of the track, the only skier for at least an hour.

The gauge in the car read 5 degrees. I could tell there was a wind, but I wouldn't be cold. I chose my no-wax Salomon's and set my watch.

Most nights I ski by myself. It feels so good to be out in the air, the quiet, the snow. Tonight the track's humps looked like two legs stretched out under a blanket, but my skis found the grooves and dropped in easily.

Right away I knew this wouldn't really be a ski, but more of a walking glide, plowing snow with my skinny little tips. Approaching a light pole on the first rise I looked back to see if anyone was following. Not a soul. But my tracks, two shiny cuts stood out against the smooth fresh snow as if I was writing my name on a blank sheet of paper; not the letters, but certainly my identity.

I love where I live.

The beauty that surrounds us in Marquette ranks too rich for words.

The pine boughs caked with snow were so ripe for my trail trick, but no one was following to douse with snow. I would have to save it.

And no fresh animal tracks laced across my path. The critters tonight, big and little, are laying low and waiting out the weather.

Making the bend I felt the wind at my nose. My eyes blinked back the driving snow and then I gave up. I skied along with my eyes shut until I felt the row of Jack Pines break the wind. It's good for your balance to feel the trail in the dark with your feet.

Slowly I climbed the hill, my breath cupped in the neck of my parka. My furnace was fueled and firing. My energy was rebounding.

We have so much to be thankful for. Tonight it was the spontaneity of skiing alone in the night, during the eye of the storm, breathing winter and tasting the fresh snow as it layered on my top lip.

Before I left the house I listened on Public Radio to our governor, Jennifer Granholm, deliver her 7th State of the State address. Bless her. Michigan is suffering. But she's doing her best working through a mess of the economy. She spent the hour giving us the hard facts and her plan to inspire the future. I appreciated her hope. But out on the trail, I was wishing she was with me. I thought about her as a leader, a woman, a mother, a wife. Who and what inspires her? What keeps her energy moving forward?

How I wish she could have these Blueberry nights in her life too. To be in the track and feel the cold wet on her face, be awed by the beauty of the snow drenched trees. It works miracles.

And tomorrow it will only get better when the winds subside and the sun appears. The scene out of my kitchen window overlooking Lake Superior will likely catch my breath and make me pause, like it does most days, with wonder.

We are changed by the power of this place and the preciousness of this landscape.

More testimony to my mantra; "Everything gets better when you get outside."

Even . . .in a storm.

Granite Peak

It's rare that a Yooper chick travels SOUTH to ski, but when Darien Schaefer and Vicki Baumann invite you to play at Granite Peak and explore Wausau, Wisconsin, the car gets packed in a hurry.

Vicki is long time Operations Manager at Granite Peak Ski Area, the former Rib Mountain. Over the past 8 years she's seen the area grow under owner Charles Skinner from 14 to 74 runs. But what is most exciting about this transformation is how Vicki and Charles are working to make Granite Peak affordable and fun!

Saturday night skiing and snowboarding under the lights from 4-9 costs just $15.00.

Show me 5 hours of heart healthy entertainment for that price! It won't be at the movies.

If you need to warm up, check out the live entertainment in the newly remodeled Historic Chalet. Granite Peak is surely the Saturday night hot spot for central Wisconsin.

Vicki has also added family-friendly festivals. Her aim is on target. Kids 12 and under ski FREE with a family combo ticket.

Can't squeeze an entire week off? No sweat. You can still make memories for the gang with a ski trip to GP. Take advantage of their 3-day weekend lift and lodging special. Stay and ski for two days, and the 3rd day is half price. Check out all the deals at www.skigranitepeak.com.

Warm Up to Winter

Month 2 of the new year has started and winter in the Great Lakes region is still in full swing.

According to Steve Fleegel, Meteorologist at the National Weather Service office in Negaunee, regional snowfall through the month of January is up 30% over normal. That means at 156.1 inches, we’re 51.8 inches above average.

And it’s not just snow that’s making this winter so memorable. Temperatures are also lower than normal, a whopping 5.3 degrees colder than typical for January.

“They work together,” explains Fleegel. “Those cooler temperatures create more lake effect snow off the Great Lakes.” He says traditionally February has the least snowfall of the winter months, but he expects a second snowfall peak in March.

Bottom line, winter isn’t going away any time soon but don't go burying your head under another blanket. I've got a better cure for your cabin fever.

Trust me, EVERYTHING gets better when you get outside.

Come out and play with Jesie Melchiori and me.

We're hosting the first “Warm Up To Winter,” three day women’s snowsport symposium beginning this Thursday, February 5, at Marquette Mountain Ski Area.

“The goal is to get women together, outside and having fun,” says Jesie, Guest Relations Manager at Marquette Mountain.

The package price is $179. Women can choose three classes ranging from beginner to advanced skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, or even telemark skiing. The package also includes lift tickets, equipment, meals, morning yoga sessions and a special dinner Friday night at Sam Behm's L’Attitude Café in downtown Marquette. Heather is cooking up a tasty apres ski party for us.

Gail Anthony at County Inn and Suites has also arranged for a special lodging rate for those who need a bunk for Thursday and Friday. . .heck, at Marquette prices, stay all weekend.

We’ll have all the tools to improve your skiing or try something new, plus sessions on how to dress for the cold, take care of your skin, and work out sore muscles.

If you've been to the Becoming an Outdoors Woman weekends in Big Bay you'll recognize the format. And if you've been paddling with Ladies of the Lake sea kayak symposium or pedaling with She Cycles bike symposium, you'll understand how much fun it is to bust out of your comfort zone in the company of women teaching you new skills.

Jesie says, “If you have been looking for a reason to start skiing or snowboarding, this is it.”

I've long believed that, when Mom skis, the whole family will ski (or snowboard) so if you want your family to get gliding, get Mom out there having fun.

Don't hibernate, Participate.

For details on Marquette Mountain’s Warm Up to Winter call 800-944-SNOW or visit http://www.marquettemountain.com/.