Poor trail conditions may cancel Birkie XC race

HAYWARD, Wis. — Given "poor" conditions that included bare spots on the course on Thursday, officials said they will decide by Friday night whether they will run the American Birkebeiner cross country ski race.

HAYWARD, Wis. — Given "poor" conditions that included bare spots on the course on Thursday, officials said they will decide by Friday night whether they will run the American Birkebeiner cross country ski race.
    A mix of 52-degree temperatures, sunshine and rain on Wednesday created bare and icy spots on the course, and 3 inches of new snow would be needed to run Saturday's event, according to its Web site.
    There is a 40 percent chance of snow on Friday, with a 70 percent chance of additional snowfall after midnight.
    Officials will announce their decision at 9 p.m. Friday in the lobby at Telemark Lodge and post it on the event's official Web site, birkie.com.
    Organizers had already announced Wednesday that the race would be shortened from 51 kilometers to 23 kilometers due to unseasonably warm temperatures and a lack of snow.
    The race normally starts at Telemark Resort in Cable and ends on Main Street in Hayward. The change means the race will end at Sawyer County in Seeley.

— The Associated Press