By Mark Armbruster, CFA
I’ve written a lot over the years about the quirky hobbies and activities I’ve pursued. Now it seems the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. My two sons have been avid Nordic ski racers for many years, but on the quirkier side, they also participate in a fantasy World Cup Nordic ski league.
Fantasy football and baseball are relatively normal these days, but fantasy skiing takes it to a whole new level. The kids are so into it that they have a subscription to a service that lets them watch the races, usually held in Europe, in real time. That means they are awake in the wee hours of the morning glued to their phones or computer screens to see which Norwegian or Swede, usually with names unpronounceable to those of us in America, comes out on top each weekend.
Our boys track all this religiously, so it was a dream come true for them that the World Cup finals this year were held in Lake Placid. While I have a passing interest in this level of skiing and my wife and daughter have absolutely none, we all found ourselves trekking up to Lake Placid last weekend for the races.
There were races Friday through Sunday, and watching ski races is not like watching normal sports. There is no arena to sit in. In fact, there is nowhere to sit at all. You find a place somewhere on the side of the course and cheer when the skiers go past in about three seconds. The best place to watch is on the big hills, so the boys dragged us out to the remotest sections of the five-kilometer loop to get the best vantage point.
I’ve done a lot of hiking in my years, but Nipa is not so excited about climbing mountains. It turns out she is even less excited about it when said mountain is covered in ice. Nevertheless, we slipped our way up Mt. Van Hovenberg to make sure we got the optimal viewing spot. Helping each other up the tricky spots, which were many, was probably the most we’ve held hands since we were newlyweds. Then, when we got to the top, the rain started. And it didn’t let up. Thirty-five degrees with rain and wind is about the worst weather you could ask for, and we were out in it for over three hours each day. There was a break between the men’s and women’s races, but it didn’t make sense to come down, because that would’ve meant climbing back up again later. And the hike down was almost more treacherous than the way up.
Nonetheless, we risked life and limb to please our children, and they were indeed pleased. Despite the hardships, there were some special moments, most of which will be underwhelming to the uninitiated.
We got to see Johannes Klaebo finish a perfect season. Not only did he win all six gold medals in Nordic events at the Olympics, but he was also the overall World Cup champion and won both the sprint and distance trophies. Unprecedented.
American skier Jessie Diggins won her third World Cup overall championship. She is certainly not a household name but is perhaps the best female skier in the world and has done more than anyone in our country to promote Nordic skiing. We saw her compete last Sunday in her last race before retirement. It was moving to watch her cross the line in front of an American audience.
We got to watch British skier Andrew Musgrave double pole the classic race on perhaps the hilliest course in the world. Without skiing knowledge, that may not seem remarkable but trust me it is crazy. Mad dogs and Englishmen…
But my favorite part was how accessible it all was for the die-hard spectators, particularly my boys. They got to meet a lot of the athletes on the last day and now have pictures with their ski heroes. These are not Primadonna athletes, but down-to-earth people who are grateful for their fans. Amer had college races at the same venue the weekend before the World Cup races, and the French team showed up to cheer for all the kids. Most people only knew that the French national team was there, but Amer knew it was Chappaz, Chanavat, and Schely. He went over to chat with them, and they were as friendly as could be. Omar and I went jogging on Sunday morning and ran into Norwegian Ansgar Evensen on his pre-race workout. He waved and gave us a big smile. Some girls from my old ski team got Frida Karlsson’s autograph and since they were so giddy to meet her, she gave them her ski suit and some of her warmup gear.
I can’t imagine the same dynamic playing out in football, baseball, or basketball. Nordic skiing is certainly quirky, but also a wonderful community of nut jobs doing strange, healthy, and wonderful things. I was thrilled to be a part of it. And, surprisingly, so were Nipa and Nyla. They couldn’t care less about the races, but it was great and increasingly rare to have the whole family together. Nyla wouldn’t leave her brothers’ side, and Nipa for the first time since I’ve known her, had a smile on her face while we were climbing up a mountain.
It may be many years until the World Cup comes back to the United States, but it created a memory for our family that will continue forever.