The American Birkebeiner 2013 - 40th Anniversary!!Disclaimer! This post is a BIG ONE!! As many of you know, my family & I go on an annual trek out to the North Woods of Wisconsin each year in February. My father-in-law started doing this cross country ski marathon, called the "American Birkebeiner" back in the late 90's, and about 5 years ago my husband Keith decided to go out and do it with him! The story of that 1st "Birkie" trip is lengendary, and perhaps someday I will post about it...(suffice it to say, our 3rd child, Bella, was 2 months old, the older 2 kids got totally sick the day we arrived, enter a blizzard, husband leaves to go "up north" with his Dad...leaving me with the infant and sick children, got lost driving up north, once at the remote cabin, our middle daughter throws up in her sleeping bag, drive 2 hours away to laundromat to clean aforementioned sleeping bag, sub-zero temps, and virtually no sleep, due to aforementioned infant daughter... you get the picture!) ANYWAY - subsequent years have greatly improved and this year was by far the BEST! All three of our kids participated in the Barnebirkie (the kids races), and I got an unprecedented opportunity to photograph many of the events that took place during the 3 days of this amazing event. The images below represent my attempt at a photo essay encapsulating this very special year - the 40th Anniversary of the American Birkebeiner! I truly hope it gives you all a feel for this unique race. The sense of community that can be felt during an event that includes literally thousands of people is hard to explain, but I believe these images may give you a sense of it. At least, That what I'm hoping for!
The Barnebirkie - kids races 1K, 3K and 5K
Our Son, Caleb. His first year doing the skate skiing rather than the classic! He loved it and did very well in his race. There were over 1100 kids skiing the Barnie, and probably 400 or so doing the 3K (which is what Caleb did). He came in among the top 20 in his race. Not too shabby buddy!!
A gorgeous sunny day in Hayward.
Oh my gosh...how cute are these twins?!!
Something really special... you'll notice in the images below: there are several handicapped kids who did the Barnebirkie in sit-skis! Super inspiring!!
The Hayward Highschool Cross Country Ski team always skiis the flags representing all the countries out at the beginning of the Barnebirkie.
LOTS of mini Birkebeiners...and the official Birkebeiners and Queen Inga (Prince Haakon's mother) played this year by Chris Lawn, Tom Lawn, and Lori Househere's a little note about the legend that is the basis for the Birkebeiner: The Birkie was named after the Norwegian Birkebeinerrennet, which commemorates an important historical event. In 1206 a group of Birkebeiner party soldiers, who fought for Sverre Sigurdsson and his descendants in the Norwegian civil war, smuggled the illegitimate son of Norway's King Håkon Sverresson from Lillehammer to safety in Trondheim. In the Norwegian Birkie, skiers still carry packs symbolizing the weight of an 18-month-old child. The packs also contain extra food, clothing and survival gear to protect against unexpected weather changes in the harsh sub-Arctic mountains that the skiers cross during the race.
plenty of colorful outfits!
My girls...coming in to the finish line!!
The Elite Sprints:This is an event I have never watched in previous years. We normally leave right after the Barnebirkie. But this year, I stayed in town on my own and had the chance to see these world class athletes compete! Below is an image of Caitlin Compton Gregg...winner of last years Birkie (for the women), and yes - winner of this year's too!! She won this year's with a time of 2:28.56. Amazing! She came in 3rd in the Sprints featured below and is just an overall amazing competitor.
Martina Stursova...second place finisher for the women.
The Giant Ski. Again, an event I had never had the joy of seeing before. And may I just say - HILARIOUS!! The idea here as you will see, is to have a team of 4-6 people, all strapped in to 2 GIANT skis! Working together as a team, they move the skis forward and race against other teams. Let's just say, not much time goes by before someone is falling down. And heaven forbid it's the poor soul on the back of the skis...'cause it might be a while before the rest of the team realizes, and meanwhile...you're being dragged down Main Street!! Ahhh...good Nordic FUN!
The Nikkerbeiner I do believe this was the first year for this particular event. And if anyone cares about my opinion - it was MY FAVORITE!!! The idea here was to have folks come out dressed in the old-time ski apparel: nikkers and colorful sweaters, and the like. Also, you had to ski on the old wooden skis. No fancy Salomon or Swix here, thank you! Well, seeing as it was the 1st year, I heard organizers feared a low turn out. But in typical Nordic fashion, scads of folks came out clad in the most fantastic outfits, ready for 5K worth of a great time!! Check them out!
Queen Inga came out to join the Nikkerbeiners!
And here, perhaps my favorite moment of all...As this adorable gentleman crossed the finish line, the announcer introduced him: George Hovland, Jr. He represented our country in the 1952 Olympic Games in Oslo, Norway!! He is a four-time Central USSA four-event champion (jumping, cross-country, slalom, and downhill) He has completed in every Birkebeiner with the exception of the first one. and has been the age group winner approximately ten times! And - he is 88 years old. WOW.
RACE DAY!! The 40th Annual American Birkebeiner,(50K Skate, 54K Classic) Kortelopet,(26K) and Prince Haakon (12K) Cross country Ski Races
Telemark Lodge. This is where it all begins. You drive to Telemark and PRAY you get into one of the parking lots. From there you hop on big yellow school buses and get bused up to the lodge. Not done yet. Disembark the buses and you still have a 20 minute hike to the start line. All I can say is Thank you Lord...it was 28 degrees this year. Last time I did this - it was 12 below!! Yeah - BELOW. For a girl who serious dislikes the cold - that was not fun!
hiking to the Start...
What a cute little trooper!
The Start Line! We got here just in the nick of time. I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off for about 5 minutes until I finally found Keith who was about ready to take off. The skiers go off in waves. He was in the 4th wave. The 3rd had already left and there were literally minutes left to go when this pic was taken!
At this point, I'm waiting for my brother-in-law, Jason, to go. He raced in the Prince Haakon race...a 12K. There's about an hour between Keith's departure and his, so I just hung out at the start line and captured the following images - a real "slice of life" of the Birkie! All ages, shapes, sizes... it's AWESOME!
Simply Stunning!! Mystifying. His bib is a Birkie bib...the full 50k. And he has one arm. I am in awe!
The "Gatekeeper," so to speak. He stood at the opening to the start line letting skiers in, but was very sweet to let me go in and kiss my hubby before he left! Thanks Guy in the Awesome hat!!
Jason's turn! My niece, Hannah, carries her Dad's skis for him. The Hannah and Chloe ran to the announcers table and gave him a sweet send off over the loud speaker!
The Finish! Just imagine. 15,000 spectators lining both sides of small town Main Street in Hayward. Hundreds of cowbells ringing...lots of cheering..absolute craziness! :)
Here's the thing about the finish that is so great... just like at the start line, you really see all kinds. And you see their stories. The "Birch-leggers" who've been doing it for 30 years, the mother who just gave birth 6 months ago and carries her babe across the finish, the paraplegic who muscles his way across the line on his sit-ski. It's moving. Inspiring. Wonderful!
The American Birkebeiner 2013 40 years Strong! I hope you enjoyed this photo essay as much as I enjoyed creating it!
Heidi Shannon - headshots!
I posted this on my Facebook page on Wednesday:
"For those of you who know me...you know that I LOVE my business, but that right now it is pretty low key. I work in natural light, outdoors...or (in the winter) out of my home. I don't have a studio... but it works for my lifestyle. For example - today I am taking headshots of an absolutely GORGEOUS lady...and she's bringing her 2 sweet daughters along to play with Bella.
Well...all I can say is, I love my job! Heidi Shannon stopped my house on Wednesday morning with daughters, Ella and Laiyla. And it was just delightful! Bella and the girls had a great time playing Barbies with some occasional "Nemo" watching in the background. Meanwhile Heidi and I laughed, & chatted about motherhood, Trader Joes, and of course...the reason she was here - headshots. Heidi is a gorgeous woman with a soprano voice to match her God-given beauty. She often performs with Lancaster Opera and various other outlets. As such, she needed an updated headshot for upcoming performances. I was more than happy to oblige! Heidi is as lovely inside as she is outside and I truly see that shining through everyone of these images!
Simply Stunning! Thank you Heidi for a wonderful session! Headshots Baby!!When I started out on this photography business journey...I envisioned working with families, children and brides & grooms! All lovely! However, one area of my business that I did not anticipate or dream about was "Headshots." I'm not sure why headshots weren't included in my vision...but I am so happy they've found their way into my portfolio! My brother is a professional actor, and my mother has been involved in local theater for as long as I can remember. The world of actors has always been one I loved sitting on the periphery of...watching as they work their magic. So in retrospect, it seems completely natural for me to want to work these wonderful folks! But as I opened my door to headshots, I realized that it is not only actors/performers who need this service. Professionals of all sorts need polished headshots for myriads of purposes...from websites, to marketing tools, etc. This week, I had the chance to work with two great people...first, an actor; Mr. Jeff Hackenberger. Jeff was a dedicated music teacher in the Eastern Lancaster County School District, and often participated in local theater. Now in retirement he is pursuing acting in full force. Having had experience doing commercials and film, he is looking to expand on these accomplishments! Jeff was a pleasure to work with and a man of great talent. I believe his headshots tell the story! And the other session this week was with a professional. This particular client was easy to book and a JOY to work with. Not to bad to look at either! (take it easy... he's my HUSBAND!!) Yes...we have been saying for years that Keith needed to update his headshot. He had one done when he first opened his business...(in 1992!!!) We've been putting it off for too long and even though the weather is no longer nice enough for a natural light, outdoor session, I think we made it work inside. My opinion is OBVIOUSLY biased...but I think he looks pretty darn handsome! Before I post some pictures of these two fellas for you... I just want to conclude by saying, shooting headshots has quickly become a favorite for me! In all of my photography, I truly love to capture people as they are. true. organic. real. Shooting headshots is much more intimate and calls for my subjects to be feel relaxed and be open. When that happens, what you see in their eyes and expressions is powerful...and that's why I love it!
Mr. Jeff Hackenberger
Dr. Keith Krueger
The "Baby Plan!"So, if you know me, you know - I LOVE babies!!! I had the privilege of doing several infant shoots last year and just fell in love. So naturally I'm trying to think of how I can do more and more of these shoots. A girl has to get her baby fix in somewhere, and once a month in the infant nursery at church just isn't cutting it!
As I thought about it, I looked back on my own life as a mom of 3 babes. I thought about how important it was to me to capture their first year. Of course I was taking snapshots all the time..."look he's rolling over, look he's eating peas, look she's got the craziest bed-head hair this morning!' snap - snap- snap... And I treasure those shots. But I also made it a point to have professional images done at the milestone marks throughout that 1st year. However, when I got photos of my children, I didn't know anyone who did the personalized, non-studio-look type images. I just went to Penney's, or Walmart and got the standard blue background. (kind of boring.) But you know what - I still love those images, because they recorded a moment in each of my children's babyhood that I treasure. And let's be honest mom's... (especially moms with more than one kiddo), that time goes by so quickly and it is EASY to forget what they were like!
So here is my Win-Win plan. A "Baby Plan" for the first year of your little bundle's life. But when you choose Sally Belle Photography, you get a personalized, custom session at each of the milestones:
And here is what makes the plan really win-win! My normal session fee is $150 and includes a DVD containing your images for your personal use. If you were to book these three baby sessions individually, the total over that year would be $450. But if you purchase "The Baby Plan" you save $100!!! The Baby Plan is specially discounted at $350 and still includes your DVD of images. I will spend as much time with your little one as we need to create beautiful, treasured images and I promise...we'll have fun!
So Moms, and Moms-to-be... keep the Baby Plan in mind! Or perhaps your kids are past the baby years, but you have friends or family that may be interested in the Baby Plan...feel free to pass it on!
A few images from last years sweet babies!
The LaSala Family!One of the reasons I LOVE my job, is the fact that I get to capture moments for people that they will look back on in the coming years, and those heartstrings will be pulled, smiles will crop up...perhaps there may even be some tears. Memories. Family. Togetherness. That's what it is about! And this past weekend I was so privileged to be able to do that for the sweet, tight-knit LaSala family! Last weekend was one of the only times in recent memory and perhaps in the near future where the entire clan would be together. One daughter, Meredith, and her husband Jeff are both in the Navy and are often far from home. Another daughter, Morgan is in college and therefore also far flung! So family portraits capturing this very moment of togetherness were of utmost importance! The location they chose...also incredibly meaningful. We shot at the Shuts Environmental Library in Lancaster County Park. It is a place where this family spent a lot of time during their childhood years. As a homeschooling family, they took advantage of the many fantastic programs offered at the Library and have loads of happy childhood memories there...so it was only fitting! From the moment I started the session, it was obvious how much these people loved one another, and how very much they enjoyed being together. You have only to look at these images and you'll see it! And to top it off...there was a BABY!!! A super adorable little 8 month old - Gracie Mae! Needless to say I had fun, and I hope you will too as you look through this collection of images of the LaSala Family!!
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