Jerry Poling
Co-sponsored by the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library.
The American Birkebeiner between Hayward and Cable, Wis., is North America’s largest cross-country ski marathon and one of the largest in the world, with more than 10,000 competitors annually. How did founder Tony Wise fuel its rise from humble beginnings, with just 54 skiers in 1973? What keeps skiers, from weekend warriors to Olympians, coming back each February despite the extreme, 30-plus-mile challenge through the snow and hills of northern Wisconsin?
Attendees will be inspired by the fascinating history of the Birkebeiner and its visionary founder — one man’s dream that became the pride of two communities and the talk of the Nordic ski world — as well as the spirit of the race.
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JERRY POLING is an author, editor, and longtime journalist who spent twenty-seven years at the Leader-Telegram in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. He is best known for his book A Summer Up North: Henry Aaron and the Legend of Eau Claire Baseball, which details the Hall of Famer’s start in the minor leagues. Poling currently serves as the assistant director of Communications at the University of Wisconsin–Stout. His writing often explores regional history and sports, and he has contributed to numerous publications throughout the Chippewa Valley. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire.
