cross country skiing

On this Outdoor Explorer, we’ll talk to Alice Tower Knapp, who grew up in Anchorage, skiing on the local ski trails. She recently published a book about the history, the people, and the inner workings of the Nordic Skiing Association of Anchorage.

Alaska has a plethora of cross country ski trails and the clubs that groom them. This week’s Outdoor Explorer talks with the people that make Nordic skiing happen in Alaska.

Alaska’s World Cup Ski Racers are a force to be reckoned with on the international racing circuit. On the next Outdoor Explorer, we’ll be talking with two of them who have been making an impact lately: Sadie Maubet-Bjornsen and JC Schoonmaker.

This week we’re checking in with the outdoor community here in southcentral Alaska, which is all about getting ready for the coming winter and being involved in the positive stuff that so many of our neighbors do for one another. We’ll have segments on reviving fish runs in the Eklutna River, getting your skis ready for winter, and volunteering to help girls in Guatemala stay active through puberty. Thanks for listening!

KSKA: Thursday, Feb. 1, at 2:00 & 8:00 p.m. The winter Olympics are here, and Alaska is sending the most athletes ever. Half the nordic ski team is from Alaska, and six of those skiers are going with their siblings. We’ll talk with America’s top skiing siblings, Erik and Sadie Bjornsen, and their mom, Mary, and I’ll have Rosie Brennan and her mother, and Rose Mancari’s mother, too.LISTEN HERE

KSKA: Thursday, October 05, at 2:00 p.m. On this Outdoor Explorer, we are eagerly getting ready for winter. Charles took a portable recorder to Kincaid Park to join a volunteer trail crew preparing cross country ski trails for the first snow, which we were all looking forward to so we can ski again. The trail work is designed to smooth the ground so we won’t need much snow to ski, and to be ready for the US National Championships and Olympic Trials in January.LISTEN HERE

KSKA: Thursday, Feb. 16, at 2:00 p.m. One of the biggest and best events of the Anchorage winter is a ski race that crosses the whole city, held the same weekend as the Iditarod start. It’s the Tour of Anchorage, and it’s coming up soon, with some of the nation’s best skiers and plenty of regular folks who just want to go the distance.LISTEN NOW

KSKA: Thursday, Sept. 15, at 2:00 p.m. Budget cuts have forced the University of Alaska to look at eliminating sports, potentially making Alaska the only state without collegiate athletics, including its' ski team. On the next show we’ll hear interviews with the alpine and nordic coaches at UAA. We'll also speak with the director of the skiing program at APU. We’ll learn a lot more about a subject we haven’t covered before on the show.LISTEN NOW

https://player.vimeo.com/video/104357106?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0&color=918a8a Adventure within Range from ATMI on Vimeo.Alaska Teen Media producers Barae and Aviva Hirsch explored Hope with U.S. Olympic Skier Holly Brooks. Brooks explains why she loves to train in the Chugach National Forest.

https://player.vimeo.com/video/61134198 Tour of Anchorage 2013 from ATMI on Vimeo.You don't have to be an Olympian to participate in a Nordic ski race. Anchorage has races for the rest of us, where fast skiers can duel at the front while older and less competitive skiers push their personal limits. The Tour of Anchorage is the biggest race of the year, with up to 2,000 contestants covering up to 50 kilometers, but local volunteers organize many other cross-country ski races during the winter that are open to anyone willing to try.KSKA: Thursday 1/9 at 2:00 pm and 9:00 pmListen Now