“I must tell you that I lived for The Birkie,” says 95-year-old Milwaukee native Bob Koebert, showing off his original medal and the wall he’s devoted to The American Birkebeiner, North America’s largest Nordic cross-country ski race, held in the Northwoods of Wisconsin. From 1980 to 2011, he participated in the race 22 times. His son Robb, 70, has 32 races under his belt. “Let me tell you, it’s grueling, and it used to be more grueling,” says Bob.
“[The Birkie] is 33 very hilly miles,” says Bob. The only flat part of the course is Lake Hayward, the last mile or so before the finish line on Main Street in Hayward. Bob remembers a particularly icy year when “they must have hauled 100 people, at least, to the hospital.” One of the more infamous spots was the long descent at what skiers informally call ’Biler Hill, named for the snowmobilers who gathered to watch. “[Spectators] used to stand and put up a number for how good your fall was,” he says, chuckling. But adjustments made over the years – taking out sharp curves at the bottom of downhill runs, and adding more rest and warming stations – have made it safer and broadened its appeal.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
Bob and his Milwaukee buddies became the Fossil Ski Team, with matching hats and jackets, and they spent their indoor time at Anglers Bar in Hayward, an unofficial headquarters for many skiers, where they were known for completing pitchers as much as kilometers. But while Bob kids he was a “better partier than an athlete,” his 22 races are no joke. “We did it in below zero, we did it during snowstorms,” and more recently, even when climate change didn’t cooperate. Robb skied the 50th anniversary Birkie in 2024. “He has some pictures of it,” says his father, “and there’s no snow on the ground.” The organizers built a raised path of artificial snow through the woods so the race could go on.
When Bob skied his final Korte (the shorter distance counterpart to The Birkie) just weeks before his 82nd birthday in 2011, he came in first in his age bracket. And last. “I won my age group in a lot of things, because I was the only guy nuts enough at that age to be doing that sort of thing.”
What To Know-Kie
The American Birkebeiner – known colloquially as The Birkie – began in 1973 when 35 skiers gathered at Telemark Resort for a race through the woods that stretched from Cable to Hayward. Over the years, the resort struggled, and now all that remains of it are three elevator shafts, affectionately referred to as Tele-henge. But the race – named after a long-distance cross-country ski marathon in Norway – became internationally acclaimed. Today, there is Birkie Week, with the full 53-kilometer namesake race and the 29K Kortelopet (the “Korte”), and much more, including youth competitions, a ParaBirkie, and a Barkie Birkie for dogs. Birkie Week is Feb. 19-23; register at birkie.com.
