Announcements/News
April 26, 2026 4:00 PM Spring Banquet (Potluck) Registration is Open!
St. Anne's Episcopal Church 2035 Charlton Rd. Sunfish Lake, MN 55118
Spring Banquet is a potluck. Bring a dish to share. Sunday, April 26, 4:00-7:30 p.m. A nice time to gather together, share stories of the ski season, hear about spring and summer activities. Space limited. For more info see full description (link below) event. Registration required.
Online registration (the event is free) is strongly encouraged and you must be logged in to the website to register. Registration deadline is April 19. Please click on this link to register and tell us food you plan to bring and sign up to help with the event. The link also provides full details about the event: Spring Banquet (Potluck) REGISTRATION IS OPEN - Events - North Star Ski Touring Club.
If anyone is interested in leading a hike or short bike ride prior to the dinner, please contact event coordinator Tim Kessler at 612-398-1481 or josephkessler57@yahoo.com. You can also ask Tim about volunteer opportunities (decorating tables, setup, and cleanup) or send him questions if you have any. But the website listing is very detailed and is the place to look first for information.
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Regular Club Meetings (September -March) Mark you calendar: 6:30pm (Social); 7pm (Program); 8:30 (End)
- 2nd Tuesday of the Month, October to March
- Hybrid Meetings: Attend in person or virtually online * (link below).
- Location: Danish American Ctr., 3030 W. River Rd. Pkwy, Mpls
- Month-to-month meeting program descriptions: Link
- Join virtually: NSSTC Zoom Meeting Link
Link to Video recordings and documents from NSSTC meetings Club Meeting Video Recordings
Club Zoom meetings now in Documents Library!
To see slides from "Trails of the North Shore" (December, 2021 meeting), go to "Resources" on the status line above, then "Document Library", "Folders" and on the bottom of the list click on "Club Zoom Meeting PDF's".
Just Released in December: New Book About Norm Oakvik
Norm Oakvik: The Inconspicuous Coach
The book covers Norm’s life, his competitors, and the dozens of Minnesota State HS Nordic champions he coached, plus a detailed list of Minnesota high school ski champs from 1935 to 1980. The book includes interviews, stories, newspaper clippings, and dozens of photographs of many of those champions and Olympians, and a chapter about the founding of the North Star Ski Touring Club.
Norm was one of the founders of our club in 1967. His dedication to teaching and encouraging skiers fueled the rapid growth of our club and the sport. Norm made many contributions to the growth of cross country skiing in Minnesota. His generous bequest to the NSSTC upon his death in 2015 continues to enhance cross country skiing in Minnesota and Wisconsin through the North Star Grant Program, which has, to date, awarded $195,000 in grants to ski clubs and other organizations to grow and enhance the sport of Nordic skiing.
The author, Doug Edmonson, was a Minnesota state champion in cross country skiing in 1966. Norm Oakvik was his coach.
Minnesota Nordic State Champions and Coaches are Raving about “Norm Oakvik”!
Available now on Amazon.com at a reduced price. To order, click on the link below:
Norm Oakvik: The Inconspicuous Coach and Book of Champions: Edmonson, Douglas A: 9798890905048: Amazon.com: Books
“Finn Sisu: Ahvo’s Journey” Doug Edmonson is pleased to announce the publication the life story of Ahvo Taipale, long-time owner of Finn Sisu Sauna and Ski Shop. is The 180-page biography of Ahvo, entitled “Finn Sisu: Ahvo’s Journey” chronicles his amazing life from his birth in Toikavva Finland in 1946 to his recent retirement, selling the Finn Sisu shop to his valued employees. Ahvo, like classic ski coach Norm Oakvik, became a fixture in the Minnesota Nordic ski community, selling equipment, conducting clinics on the new free skating technique, coaching both young and old competitors and promoting lighted trails and man-made snow for Nordic ski facilities in the St. Paul area. Ahvo assisted thousands of young skiers in learning and excelling in Nordic skiing, especially with the revolutionary changes from classic to free or skate technique came in the mid-1980s. Ahvo was well-know throughout the world Nordic community and teamed with Steve Gaskill, former U.S. Nordic combined coach, to create a collegial Nordic community, working with numerous ski shops to create teams that lifted Minnesota Nordic skiers to national prominence. One young seventh-grader, named Jessie Diggins, after numerous skinned knees and elbows, learned how to roller-ski from Ahvo, going on to become the first U.S. female Olympic gold medalist and eventual three-time World Cup Nordic ski champion. Ahvo was like a tough old walnut, crusty, tough exterior with a soft, kindly interior. He lived for each day, looking to make Nordic skiing better for all Minnesotans. Many around the world see people wearing Finn-Sisu jackets and come up to ask “Do you know Ahvo?”
Get “Finn Sisu: Ahvo’s Journey” plus “Norm Oakvik: The Inconspicuous Coach” on Amazon at the Minnesota Nordic Ski Series Contact Author: edmonsondm@outlook.com
https://www.amazon.com/Finn-Sisu-Journey-remarkable-Minnesota/dp/B0G7JZGQQZ