Greetings!

Hello fellow skiers!

We hope this letter finds you looking out your window at knee-deep snow. Here in Hayward, we received 4-6” in late November, but lost it quickly. Just a few, hardy blaze orange clad skiers ventured out for a taste of the white stuff during Wisconsin’s traditional 9-day Gun Deer Season. Luckily, the Hayward area received 4-5" of new snow last weekend and we're back on the trails! Just rock skiing right now, but a few more inches and we'll have great skiing. Now that deer season is over and the ground is frozen, we’re ready for the big snow - bring it on! Here are a few notes to keep you up-to-date...

2012 Birkie Is Full!

The American Birkebeiner reached their registration limit of 9,000 skiers in record time again this year. The Birkie office announced the closure on November 21, also noting that there may still be space in the Prince Hakkon 12K event. The growth of the Classic division of both the Birkie and Korte are key factors in the increased popularity. If you didn’t register in time this year, there are still many great reasons to attend – The 5K/10K Family Fun Ski at 2PM on Friday February 24th is a relaxing, non-competitive way to soak up the Birkie atmosphere. There’s also the Elite Sprints, Barnebirkie, Junior Birkie, the Giant Ski Race, and other fun events as well. If you haven’t volunteered at the Birkie before, they’re always looking for enthusiastic helpers. Give ‘em a call at 715-634-5025 or email birkie@birkie.com, and you may have your most memorable Birkie ever.

New Moon - Fischer Carbonlite Demo Center

New Moon is again partnering with Fischer Skis as a Carbonlite Demo Center for 2011-2012. We are proud to offer Fischer Carbonlite Skis and Boots for you to try before you buy! This great program lets skiers compare various sizes and flexes of Fischer’s top models – a unique opportunity for both discerning racers and skiers upgrading to top-shelf equipment. Stop in and discuss your goals and needs, and we’ll hook you up with some great options to test out!

Toko Gloves Missing In Action

Sad news for all of the faithful Toko Glove customers out there... due to problems with production, Toko gloves will not be produced or imported for the 2011-2012 season. New Moon has tried to secure additional glove inventory from other respected Nordic brands like Swix and Craft to meet demand. We’re happy to help you find a substitute, just give us a call at 800-754-8685. Hopefully, things will be worked out for next season. Stay tuned...

Stone Grinding at New Moon

Our stone grinding program is running and ready for your skis! Check out the 2011-12 pricing and other program details. Be sure to take advantage of discounted hotboxing rate with a stone grind. We welcome bulk stone grinding batches for teams and programs—please email or call us at 800-754-8685 for more info.

Upcoming Events

Here are just a few important events around Birkie Country over the next few months. A comprehensive calendar can be found at Skinnyski.com.

Saturday, December 17th: New Moon Ski Shop Ladies Wax Clinic 4-6PM. Are you new to skiing and need to learn how to maintain your skis? Are you an experienced skier who wants to check out the latest & greatest waxing techniques? Are you mystified by all the wax types & colors? Do you love to socialize & share experiences with other like-minded skiers? Did you know that a proper wax job could make those Birkie Trail hills easier?

If so... New Moon is holding a FREE, WOMENS ONLY waxing clinic on Saturday 12/17 from 4-6pm. Come join us after a great day on the trail! New Moon has 4 of the fastest local female skiers on our team: Cindy Bijold, Cindy Storm, Marcia Engbretson, and Jane Bidwell . Join us as these awesome women share their waxing secrets for a great ski season! The clinic will consist of several informal demonstrations for both classic and skate skis, basic and race caliber, and include hands-on opportunities as well as plenty of Q&A. If you have specific questions, feel free to bring your skis along and we’ll be happy to help! If you have been skiing & waxing for years, we welcome your expertise as well!

We are still making plans, but expect to offer some special discounts on wax & hopefully a few prizes (TBD!). Feel free to bring an appetizer or treat to share and/or a beverage of your choice. It would help us greatly in our planning if you could let us know if you think you might come and if you are interested in classic or skate waxing – or both! Let us know, too, if you have any specific topics you are curious about – like roto-brushes, fluoro-waxes, klister, structure tools, etc. We’d like to tailor this clinic directly to those who attend and will survey the group at the beginning of the clinic. Whether you are just starting out on one of the local high school teams, or a seasoned vet, or anywhere in between, we’ll provide a great environment for learning about waxing & asking questions. While RSVP is not required, if this event sounds up your alley, please save the date on your calendar & reply to this email when you can. Otherwise, just show up for a few hours of fun geared to make you a better, faster skier! This will be held on-site at the shop . Please direct questions to amy@newmoonski.com. See you there!

Wednesday, December 28th: 25th Annual Double Birkie 90k. Come join us for the 25th Annual Double Birkie trail ski on Wednesday December 28th at 8 AM at the Fish Hatchery parking lot. Show up at 7:30-7:45 to the Fish Hatchery so we can depart as close to 8 AM as possible. We will ski leisurely to 'OO', pick up some other skiers and then continue on for lunch at Telemark Lodge (they know we are coming). After a sumptuous lunch, we will head back south from the Telemark lodge, departing at about 1 pm and ski into a glorious western sunset to finish off the 25th Double Birkie epic. I suggest dropping some food, energy drink, and dry base layers at both 'OO' and Telemark Lodge just to cover all weather conditions and options. Wednesday night, after we finish, we will head over to the Sawmill Saloon to share some camaraderie and good cheer. Contact Tom Schuler for more info.

Saturday, December 30th: FREE New Moon Ski Shop / Fischer Carbonlite Demo at OO, 10pm-2pm. We’ll have our Fischer Demo Center fleet of equipment at the Birkie OO trailhead. All skiers are welcome to stop by and test the best! Carbonlite Skate Skis equipped with both Pilot or NNN Xcelerator bindings will be available. Bring your own boots or try the new Carbonlite Skate Boot. Contact Chris at chris@newmoonski.com.

Sunday New Years Day, January 1st: FREE New Moon Ski Shop / Fischer Carbonlite Demo at OO, 10pm-2pm. Spend New Years Day trying some amazing new equipment from Fischer! See listing above for details.

Friday, January 13th 5:30-7pm. FREE Seeley Hills / Toko Wax Clinic at New Moon Ski Shop with Olympian John Bauer. John will share his wealth of knowledge with racers with an emphasis on kick waxing for the Seeley Hills Classic. All questions are welcome! Contact Joel at joel@newmoonski.com.

Saturday, January 14th 10am. Seeley Hills Classic 42/22k. New Moon is proud to sponsor “The Queen of the Classics” (no disrespect intended to Paris-Roubaix) again for 2012. Free Swix hats to the first 400 entrants. Go to their website for more details.

Saturday, January 21st 8am. Birkie Trail Tour. "Open Track" non-competitive ski tour on the Birkie Trails. Distances of 22 – 51 km, skate or classic. Start at Telemark from 8 – 10 a.m. This one’s a lot of fun. Give it a try! More information at the Birkie Tour page. Contact the Birkie Office at 715/634-5025, email birkie@birkie.com for more info.

For those who have snow, ENJOY! For the rest of us, THINK SNOW!!!

The crew at New Moon