American Birkebeiner

Team Sturdy Women - Birkie.com

A 2012 Birkie Fever Story

A few years back I submitted an article about "Team Sturdy Women." It was about my family's lifetime Birkie accomplishments for our three generations of Birkie skiers: Judi Karshna, Wendy Rebne, Kate Karshna, and myself, Leah Rebne. Since that article was submitted in 2009, we have had many more experiences, both good and bad. I would like to give an update on our team for the 2012 Birkie season.

During the Birkie of 2009, tragedy struck. My grandma, Judi Karshna, fell as she was snowplowing down a treacherous hill and broke her arm, about halfway through the Birkie. We waited to yell, “Go Gunnar!” (our team cheer for each other) as she came up Main Street but, she never came in. We were all extremely worried, as any family member would be if their 68 year-old wife, mother, and grandmother went MIA during an American Birkebeiner. (Which, just to point out, is an incredible feat for 60 plus year-old person to be out there skiing on the Birkie trail at all!) We finally heard from my aunt, who found Judi lying on the side of the trail shortly after her fall, that she had been taken to the local hospital. My aunt had stopped on the trail during the middle of the race to huddle next to my grandma to keep her warm until the first aid crew could make their way to her. (My aunt did finish the race after stopping for over an hour during the catastrophe.)

We soon found ourselves in the waiting room of the hospital, where we all sat in disbelief. All of us sat in silence until she was released. As soon as we saw her she, of course, being the selfless person that she is, asked us how all of our Birkies went. We could have cared less how each of us did at that point, because we couldn't stand to see our Birkie team leader in pain. She was the reason we all started skiing, and we were very concerned she would never fully recover to ski another Birkie again. However, after a long year of rehab and prayers, we found our full team in line to pick up our race bags for yet another Birkie in 2010. We couldn't believe that she made a full recovery to ski a Birkie the following year after her break, and competed yet again last year!

My grandma is a Birchlegger, having skied 20 Birkies, and very proud of it, as we all are of her and all of her accomplishments. She is a strong and dedicated woman who loves the sport more than anyone I know. I can only hope that I will make it through as many Birkies as she has. This year, she will be participating in her 29th Birkie at the age of 71! Last year, she received first place in the age group 71-74 women's skate for the full length Birkie. This year, I am sure she will do just as well, but we love her and are so proud of her no matter what her place or time.

I am very excited that we will be continuing the tradition again this year for Birkie 2012! I will be participating in my 5th full Birkie and have completed a Barnebirkie, Junior Birkie, or Kortelopet every year before I turned the legal age to ski the full Birkie. That makes 20 total Birkie weekend events for me! My mom, Wendy Rebne, is doing her 19th Birkie this year, and has only one more to become a Birchlegger, which she is very excited about. My aunt, Kate Karshna, will be participating in another full Birkie to make a total of 10 combined Birkie and Korte events for her. My grandpa, Skip Karshna, is also a very important aspect of our team. Without him, we would have no transportation after the Birkie, no WOJB radio the night before or the morning of the race--which would be a total disappointment due to the fact we would have no Birkie Fever music (an obvious must for preparing for the race), and no support crew to cheer us on at Main Street as we trudge through the mashed potato-like snow. He has always been there for us and I would like to thank him for helping out, even if we can be a bit ornery during the entire Birkie season training.

With that said, I would not trade my family and the wonderful experiences they have given me for anything in this world. They are all amazing people and have shown me what dedication and hard-work can do. I can’t wait until I become a Birchlegger, and can have that remarkable accomplishment for bragging rights. As for this year, I am greatly looking forward to spending another amazing weekend with my family at the 2012 American Birkebeiner.

-Leah Rebne