Thursday, April 17, 2025
Michael McFadzen
There are so many great Birkie stories. So many families have made the Birkie a part of their lives.
The Tom and Sue Lawn family from Plymouth, WI, started their Birkie experience decades ago. Tom, age 70, is skiing his 37th Birkie while wife, Sue, has knocked off 13 Kortes, going back to the days of wearing wool knickers. Son, Chris, is skiing his 27th Birkie with 5 Kortes to boot. Chris Lawn’s daughter, Madelyn, 19, is skiing her 2nd Birkie and was the top women collegiate club (MCSA) skier in 2022, skiing for the University of St Thomas in St Paul, MN. The rest of the Lawn family is skiing, too: 3 grandkids are in the Junior Birkie, with one granddaughter skiing her 5th Korte. This became a national event as daughter Katie is flying in from Denver to ski her second Korte.
Tom and Chris strapped on old wooden skis and portrayed Skjervald & Torstein as the Forerunners in the 2013 Birkie. It’s in their blood. And don’t forget about the support network that Sue Lawn and daughter-in-law Sarah bring to the table. There are lots of meals, planning, shuttling and cheerleading going on. “The Birkie has been a Lawn family tradition for almost 4 decades,” Sue Lawn told Silent Sports. “Now we have 3 generations of the Lawn family skiing this week. And it’s not stopping any time soon!” It all began in 1973, when 35 determined skiers gathered at the start line for the inaugural American Birkebeiner. Little did they know they were about to change everything. Today, the Birkie provides year-round, healthy and active lifestyle events for thousands of adventurous spirits of all ages and abilities, bringing generations of family and friends together!
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