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TRONDHEIM, NORWAY — Chris Grover, the U.S. cross-country ski program’s director, was wearing his backup clothing against the heinous weather Wednesday at the World Championships here. His first set, he said, was still drying.
The clothing, he said, was a casualty of a team van extrication from an event parking lot that, after a week of unrelenting rain, sleet and snow, has become a quagmire.
“We were able to get ours out with six of us pushing,” Grover said, noting that other teams’ vehicles had to be rescued by a tractor. “But we paid the price: getting absolutely coated in mud.”
The central Norwegian region of Trøndelag is known for its inclement weather; per an ongoing tourism campaign, while “the food is iconic,” the weather is “chronic.”
But the past week in Trondheim has been special even by local standards, and not in a good way. The city, according to Norwegian media, has to reach back more than a century to find a wetter five-day stretch than the one it just experienced, with 4.5 inches of precipitation.
The last time the weather was this bad, Norway and Sweden were both ruled by the same king, Oscar II. It would be 44 years until the birth of Kare Høsflot, grandfather of the star of the current World Championships, quadruple gold-winning Trondheim native Johannes Høsflot Klæbo.
“There’s only one thing we can’t do anything about, and that’s the weather,” Trondheim’s mayor, Kent Ranum, said Wednesday. “I’ve tried. I even called both of the bishops. But so far, they are struggling a little bit.”
Ranum spoke in an interview at Granåsen, Trondheim’s racing venue, that an aide helpfully arranged to take place in the shelter of a large bridge.
The mayor said he hoped the championships had experienced the worst of the weather by that point. But later that evening, organizers sent an urgent bulletin: Thursday’s competitions were being postponed a few hours due to wind that, in some areas, could reach hurricane force.
The weather has been a high-profile topic of discussion in Scandinavian media, with a Swedish columnist proclaiming Trondheim the “place that the weather gods forgot” and saying it should never host a championships again.
But Granåsen’s crowds have shown exceptional persistence, turning out in hordes wearing wool, rain slickers, ponchos, rubber hats and heavy boots to ward off the damp and chill.
FasterSkier spent part of Wednesday’s team sprint race investigating how Granåsen’s denizens have, and haven’t, been staying dry for the past week. Here’s what we found.
JC Schoonmaker and Gus Schumacher, U.S. team sprint competitors
What do you guys start the day wearing?
Gus: Pretty, like, normal today. Thankfully, at the last second I put a second race suit, second pants, second everything in there. Normally, I don’t bring extra pants or a race suit — well, these days, I guess I do.
JC: Same, normal stuff — I borrowed (teammate) Zak Ketterson’s rain pants today, which was pretty nice. He was just finishing training when I was getting up here, which was good, because I didn’t bring two pairs of pants. But today was also the first time I’ve ever brought a second race suit to a race, honestly.
How would you describe what’s been coming out of the sky for the past 72 hours?
Gus: I think it’s crazy how it can be, like, snowflakes but also rain at the same time. It’s not like every flake is a mix of snow and rain. It’s like, there is snow and there’s rain in the same skies at the same time.
In the race, it’s pretty normal clothing?
Gus: We’re out there for 15 or 20 minutes, and you don’t notice the rain.
So, we’re the ones that get screwed waiting around for interviews here.
Gus: For sure. We were in the athlete cabin, just enjoying the cozy cabin-, sipping-hot-cocoa vibes while everyone was out here still — I was like, ‘God, people will get hypothermia today.’
JC: It’s, like, not bad at all for us. I just feel more bad for you guys, the techs and all the fans.
Gus: I mean, it’s a little bit bad. In the middle of the day, I was like, ‘I’m really looking forward to being inside.’
JC: But for racing, it’s just, like, fun.
And if you had to describe your level of moisture right now?
JC: Uhhh. Medium wet.
Gus: 40%.
Stadium reporter Andreas Ryggvik Karlsen
You look pretty prepared.
I’m standing outside all day, and I’ve been pretty cold the last couple of days. So today, I changed it up a bit.
So, what do you have? Start at the bottom.
Right now, I have my Fubukis. I’ve got my Swix pants. And I’ve got a poncho. I’ve also got a down jacket with some wool underneath, and then a Super — it’s like a Swix, technical kind of material. And this is my rain hat. Nothing breaks through.
How are you feeling right now?
I’m wet. Even though I came fully prepared, I’m wet. But I’m excited — it’s a world championship in my home city, so, I love it.
This is your home city, but you’re still wet?
Yeah. But you can’t prepare for the weather that we have had just now. Everything breaks through. You have no possibilities of keeping realllllly dry.
Fabian Mauz, Australian team ski technician
The question for everyone today: How are you handling this?
When I realized this weather forecast last week, I bought a couple of shoe dryers, which heats up our cabin and gets our gear dry within minutes. So, be prepared.
What are you wearing right now?
Well, the third pair of cross-country clothes of the day. That’s it.
How dry are you?
Now? Feet are totally wet. Otherwise, it seems to be moist, not that bad. But it will come, for sure.
Oh, I like these gloves, too.
This is the best thing you can have under these conditions. It’s not Swix gloves. It’s working gloves from Bauhaus. German imports. If you have wet gloves, it’s just disgusting. This is rubber stuff, so you can go driving with it — probably diver’s gloves would be perfect today.
Devon Kershaw, Eurosport commentator and FasterSkier podcast host
What are you wearing, dude? How are you staying dry?
I’m not staying dry. But I’m wearing, like, what, an ankle-length rain jacket, with three layers under that? And this is my third pair of mitts, which is soaked all the way through. So, I’m not moving to Trondheim, let’s put it that way.
And what are those boots?
Dude, those are Sorel’s. Trump probably wants to tariff the shit out of them. But, like, Canadian-made, baby.
Jenny Hansen and Jesper Lyngner, fans
Tell me about how you’re handling the weather.
Jenny: I have, I think, four layers. A lot of wool. It’s good.
Those pants do not look very waterproof, though.
Jenny: I know. I left my pants at home in Oslo.
What were you thinking?
Jenny: I don’t know. I had a short time packing.
Are you really regretting that now?
Jenny: Yeah.
Are these scarfs or sweaters?
Jesper: It’s a sweater. Really clutch.
How dry are you right now?
Jesper: From one to 10, maybe seven? Pretty dry.
How would you describe the situation with the weather?
Jesper: I think it’s the worst that it could have been, actually. It would have been better if it had been -10, if it was dry. Now it’s 2 degrees and really wet.
Jenny: It makes you cold when the wind is blowing. But we are Norwegians, so we’re pretty used to it.
Linnea Myklebust, security guard
Is your stuff waterproof?
I think so. And then under my shoes, I have this.
Oh! Is it little plastic bags?
Yeah.
All the way under your feet?
Yeah, it’s good. I don’t get wet.
Yngve, stadium police officer
How are you doing?
Everything is going okay. We have the Gore-tex. We have good shoes and good gloves. So, the weather is, yes, as it is.
Are you wet?
No.
Not at all?
A little bit, on my head. But I’m using my hood.
Kevin Bolger and Alayna Sonnesyn, American athletes watching Wednesday’s race
Tell me what you guys are rocking today.
Kevin: I’ve got the Fubuki boots. With the U.S. Ski Team puffy, and a poncho on top. I think it’ll play.
How confident are you guys that this is going to keep you dry for 90 minutes?
Alayna: I think I’m lacking the boots. I’m in running shoes.
That was a bad choice.
Alayna: This is going to be my limiting factor today.
Is it actually going to limit you, or are you just going to have wet feet?
Alayna: TBD.
Kevin: I think our saving grace, also, is: We love our men, very dearly. But we’re here to cheer on the women. And then we’re here to get out of here.
I won’t tell Gus and JC.
Nathaniel Herz
Nat Herz is an Alaska-based journalist who moonlights for FasterSkier as an occasional reporter and podcast host. He was FasterSkier's full-time reporter in 2010 and 2011.
