Perfect day graces Cabin Fever skiers

By John Burbridge, sports@charlescitypress.com

 CHARLES CITY — Cross-country skiing is breeze. Just ask Emma Zirbel.

The Charles City 4-year-old completed a multi-mile trail circuit in and around Wildwood Park without breaking a sweat.

Now her mother Lacey Zirbel, who was pulling Emma’s sled while actually working the skis and poles, was a little more winded.

“I’ve done this many, many times,” Lacey said, “but only about two times in the last 15 years. And this is the first time pulling her.”

Emma, Lacey and much of the Zirbel family were out in force at Wildwood on Saturday as part of the annual Cabin Fever cross-country skiing event.

“It’s great to be outside as a family,” Lacey said. “You don’t get too many opportunities this time of the year.”

Angie Ayers also loves to be outside, though the weather is not always accommodating like it was that afternoon.

“At least we have snow this year even though it’s warm enough to be out here in a T-shirt,” said Ayers, who tries to cross-country ski everyday whenever the conditions comply.

“I just love the snow,” the Charles City resident said. “I ski all the time around my home, but there are no groomed trails out there like there are here, and that makes it easier.”

For Ayers, it’s an annual tradition to ski the annual Cabin Fever event with her friend Lorraine Winterink, who is the brainchild of Cabin Fever.

“Yep, I’m the chairperson of this three-ring circus,” Winterink said. “During the summer, Charles City has all these great events but there wasn’t really much going on during the winter. So we got together to try to change that.

“Winter can be fun, too, like today.”

For the fifth-straight Cabin Fever, CrawDaddy Outdoors out of Waverly was on hand to offer equipment rental and sage advice.

“This is our biggest turnout since coming out here,” said CrawDaddy owner Darrin Siefken, whose business organizes cross-country ski trips to prime locations in Wisconsin.. “You could never tell. Sometimes there’s no snow. Sometimes there’s snow but it’s brutally cold. Today, we just happened to get a perfect day.”

Husband and wife Daryn and Erica Schmitt took advantage of the “perfect day” after coming in from Fredrickburg.

“We never did this before, but we thought it would be fun,” said Erica, before Siefken helped suit her and her husband up and sent them down the double-grooved path. “I heard about (Cabin Fever) through a friend a work. So when we saw it was a nice day to go out and get some exercise, we made the trip to give it a try.”

“It’s going to be a little different than tennis,” Daryn said.