Nordic Kids – Skiing the "Barnie" The Boys & Girls Club of Lac Courte Oreilles in Wisconsin offers a winter program for youth called Nordic Kids.  This is a combined effort with the Hayward Community.  Youth participants learn various styles of skiing from local amateur and professional athletes.  Nordic Kids allows members to learn the basics of both classical and skate skiing.  The program takes place every Sunday for eight weeks.  About 100 children, ages 6-12, including several Club members participated this year.  After each lesson there was a potluck of healthy snacks.  The Nordic Kids program prepares youth for the annual “Barnie.”  The “Barnie” is a fun youth skiing event that imitates the Birkebeiner Cross Country Ski race.  It is held in Hayward, Wisconsin, every year.  The “Barnie” is the kick off to the weekend leading up to the American Birkebeiner.  The youth ski down Main Street with hundreds of viewers cheering them on.   At the end, they are all awarded a medal.  The Club is honored to have such an exciting event right in their very own backyard every year.  The American Birkebeiner was first created by Tony Wise, a Hayward native, with the support of Lac Courte Oreilles Elders like Pipe Mustache and tribal friends like Ernie St. Germaine.  Wise designed the ski race after the Birkebeiner Rennet, which had been held in Norway since 1932.  He started the American Birkebeiner in 1973. The Boys & Girls Club of Lac Courte Oreilles is very proud of its skiers.   Youth skiers show off their new skills on the day of the “Barnie”

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