US Ski Teammates Gus Schumacher & Zak Ketterson in Conversation
We invited US Ski Team members Gus Schumacher & Zak Ketterson to talk about how they got started with Nordic Skiing, staying active in winter, and how climate change is affecting their sport.
[edited for length and clarity]
Zak Ketterson & Gus Schumacher
Gus Schumacher: Zak, how were you introduced to Nordic skiing? And what are your earliest memories of being outdoors in the winter?
Zak Ketterson: So I grew up in the first five years of my life not being around snow at all. I was born in Michigan, and it was a part of Michigan, Rochester Hills where there wasn't much snow. And I only lived there for the first few years of my life. And then we moved to Texas, where there was absolutely no snow. So my first time seeing snow was actually when I was in, like, kindergarten in Minnesota. I remember my brother and me being so excited by all the things you could do in the snow like building snowmen and having snowball fights. That was so new to me at that age.
I didn't discover Nordic skiing until I was in middle school when I was around 14. My first winter sporting activity was snowboarding. I did that throughout elementary school at my local ski hill. For a while that was what I liked the best. But my brother got into Nordic skiing when he was in high school and eventually talked me into joining the team and I really liked it from there. It was a fun social group and just stuck with it. How about you Gus?
GS: I didn't know the Texas thing, that's funny...
I was introduced to Nordic skiing early, growing up in Alaska by my parents who were not big Nordic skiers, but they did the Birkie and stuff so they liked it. And those are some of my earliest memories of being outdoors in the winter. Like, we would go in the backyard with the boot skis – they had bears on them and stuff. I also did some of the other stuff like snowball fights, making snowmen, and sledding and all that stuff. I think having those things in the winter makes the cold and darkness in Alaska something that you can look forward to, which is a lot of fun.
What do you think people miss out on when they avoid outdoor activities in the colder months?
“I think rather than looking at winter as this really sad time in Minneapolis people should try having a winter specific activity like cross-country skiing.”
ZK: This is probably the same for you in Alaska Gus, but Minneapolis is a place where the winters are very long, very cold, and sometimes very snowy. If you don't have anything to do in the winter besides sit inside you can get pretty sad. I hear that so often, like, "ah, Minneapolis would be such a great place if it wasn't for the winter." I think rather than looking at winter as this really sad time in Minneapolis people should try having a winter specific activity like cross-country skiing. We have Theodore Wirth Park in Minneapolis and a lot of other really nice ski areas. When the snow is good I think it's one of the most fun activities you can do. So I think a lot of those people who get the sort of seasonal affective disorder, where you get sad in the winter, should get outside and try Nordic skiing because it makes the winter something to look forward to.
GS: I've always liked winter, mostly because of skiing. But I found that in high school all the kids that wanted it to be summer, hated winter, and we're so obviously depressed in the winter didn't have anything that they wanted to do in the winter. That's why they didn't like it. If you're looking forward to the next snowfall or being able to see the Northern lights in Alaska or see the stars really well – that kind of thing can make winters a lot better. And yeah, cross-country skiing was a great way for me and for a lot of people to make winters much more... palatable.
ZK: I'll also add: I think Minnesota being a place where there are four distinct seasons is really fun. In each of the seasons, you're missing the other ones a little bit. So you're always looking forward to what's coming and you can do different activities in each of them. Winter is definitely one where you can still have a lot of fun.
GS: How do you think climate change will affect Nordic skiing in the near and distant future? What do you notice as a cross-country skier?
ZK: I remember in my first year skiing 10 or 11 years ago it was much more common to have natural snow. It wasn't such a big deal if your local ski area didn't have manmade snow because you could pretty reliably ski on the natural trails. I feel like there's been a really big shift in that in the last 10 years or so that now you can pretty much only ski if there's manmade snow available. So that's been kind of sad because I think a lot of the best skiing in Minnesota and elsewhere is on the natural trails.
And then from a World Cup and racing standpoint, I think we see a lot of these venues that we visit every year having less and less snow, almost to the point of becoming unreliable, and maybe won't be venues that are considered for competitions in the future. Some of the things I've heard that they might do to address this is maybe having more races at these high-altitude venues because the snow is more reliable. It is sad that a lot of these historic venues might not be a thing anymore considering that they might not have snow reliably.
GS: And the broader picture is that when these venues stop having snow there are a lot of other consequences. For context, we're in Oberstdorf, Germany, that's had a lot of World Cups historically, and is a big skiing destination in Southern Germany. But we've been here three times in the last three years, and each time there has only been snow on the race trails and nowhere else. It makes you think about what that does to the local population of skiers. Obviously fewer people are going cross-country skiing because it's not accessible.
I think climate change is a huge driver of these accessibility issues. We want everybody to be able to enjoy these sports that we also enjoy as competitive athletes because it makes it better for everyone. The more people that are participating, the more trails there are. And the infrastructure gets better. Maybe there is a better lodge, better food at the lodge. All of that comes with more people being involved.
“If someone is unsure about how much they enjoy cross-country skiing, if there’s only a one-kilometer manmade loop, that’s not very enticing compared to skiing through the woods and really enjoying nature.”
When there's not enough snow to have these natural trails, then you're on the manmade stuff. If someone is unsure about how much they enjoy cross-country skiing, if there's only a one-kilometer manmade loop, that's not very enticing compared to skiing through the woods and really enjoying nature. Being able to be immersed in nature is a huge part of why skiing is great. So yeah, it's a bummer to see the sport being hit so heavily by climate change.
Climate change is obviously important to everyone. But as skiers, our lifestyle is impacted pretty heavily. So it makes sense for us to be some of the first ones to speak up.
Speaking of: I was connected to The Great Northern by Protect Our Winters and Zak by The Loppet Foundation. Zak, how are you connected to the Loppet foundation?
ZK: So the Loppet Foundation is a nonprofit in Minnesota that has a mission of trying to get everyone outdoors and to enjoy winter activities, but also a lot of stuff in the summer with mountain biking and trail running. The Loppet Foundation has been instrumental in getting me to continue Nordic skiing, but they have programs that encourage everyone to get outdoors and enjoy the great nature that Minneapolis has to offer, not just professional athletes.
My relationship with them started when I joined Loppet Nordic Racing which is sort of the junior racing arm of the Loppet Foundation. That's actually how I got involved with competitive skiing at a national and international level because for me, initially, it was just high school skiing. But Loppet bridged that gap between high school skiing and skiing at a college level or even now at a World Cup level. It's cool that they can serve both competitive skiers and folks in the Minnesota metro area who want to get outdoors. There are tons of events that they put on, and they are really passionate about everything they do.
How did you get involved with Protect Our Winters?
GS: So having grown up in Alaska I have been seeing the effects of climate change since middle school over 10 years ago. Our winters have been much less consistent, and we've had more warm storms during the middle of winter, which obviously makes skiing hard. That was what got me into climate advocacy initially.
When I eventually got onto the national team I met Jessie Diggins, who is on the board at Protect Our Winters. She gave an open invitation to anyone on the team to get involved. And I was like "Yeah, of course" realizing that I'm now in a position where I can be truly involved with Protect Our Winters, which was a lifelong aspiration.
Since joining I have lobbied in DC with them and have got to do a lot of other climate advocacy work through the greater Protect Our Winters community. It has given me a lot of purpose in the climate change fight. I think that's why I think everybody should get involved with this advocacy too: climate change impacts everyone. If you want to change your world for the better you don't have to do much, but doing something, for me anyway, has felt really good, and has honestly been kind of fun. Protect Our Winters is a really good group and community. It has been energy-giving to work with them.
ZK: I feel like The Loppet Foundation and Protect our Winters' missions complement each other: The Loppet Foundation is all about getting people outdoors in the winter to enjoy skiing, fat biking, trail running, etc. but all of these activities are only available to us if the climate allows it.
GS: Totally. And also the more people that are involved in skiing and winter sports, the more those people are then going to be interested in advocating for the protection of winter and preventing climate change from being so rampant. It goes hand in hand.
ZK: One of the saddest things I hear is when people talk about the winters being warmer and how there is less snow and those people we mentioned earlier who don't like the winter, they're almost excited. They're like, "oh, like less snow and warmer. That sounds nice to me"...
GS: ...but people are not gonna be able to eat in 100 years, so...
ZK: ...Exactly. It's not just about enjoying winter sports – climate change affects so many things, but it is definitely hard to ignore how it affects skiing.
Embrace Winter with The Great Northern! See the full list of outdoor festival activities here:
The City of Lakes Loppet Winter Festival is founding partner of The Great Northern, and includes festivities for skiers, bikers, skijorers, and snowshoers of all ages and abilities, in addition to events for the biggest fans of the season. Events like Captain Ken’s Kubb Tournament, the Southwest Journal Snow Sculpture Contest, and the Star Tribune Skate Ski Loppet provide unique ways to enjoy a true Minnesotan winter. And the Luminary Loppet is guaranteed to be the most magical night of the year.
Protect Our Winters helps passionate outdoor people protect the places we live and lifestyles we love from climate change. We are a community of athletes, scientists, creatives, and business leaders advancing non-partisan policies that protect our world today and for future generations.