February of the year gave 99 heat records in Norway. Overall, the scale showed 2.1 degrees above normal. The largest was the deviation in Northern Norway, where some weather stations have had 7-8 degrees too much. In Bodø, Skjalg Dreyer sees over the town hall square. He is the general manager of Marcialonga Bodø. In two weeks, the world elite will go to the finish here. But the abnormal winter creates challenges for both him and the participants: There is hardly a snowflake in sight. Do they have to cancel, or is it possible to get a miracle? Stroller and walker currently slide better than cross -country skiing in the center of Bodø. Photo: Sondre Skjelvik / news Hourly in the middle of the garage The Eternal Optimist Skjalg Dreyer refuses to give up. – If you come here. Look at Junkerfjellet, he says, pointing in a northeast direction out of the center of Bodø. – There is 25 centimeters of snow. The highest point under Marcialonga Bodø is on Junkerfjellet. Photo: Sondre Skjelvik / news news pulls in the car and drives north. Partly towards Junkerfjellet. After three or four kilometers we meet super-moved by Gro Thomassen. The grass outside the house is covered by a thin layer of snow. She has just completed the Vasaloppet. In two weeks she will go Marcialona Bodø. How on earth do you manage to train for long runs when there is almost never snow? There have been a few hours in the garage through the winter … – This is my faithful friend. Well invested money, says Thomassen, pointing to a black donation in the middle of the garage. The fucking machine. – How many hours have you spent a week in this season? “The worst weeks I’ve probably had six to seven hours in here,” she replies and laughs a little stated. – The snow is wet. This is probably gone tomorrow. For us skiers it’s sad, says Gro Thomassen. Photo: Sondre Skjelvik / news Do you need a miracle? Thomassen says she loves skiing. That is why she can handle an hour after an hour with a feast. But there are still real goods, proper skiing, which really tempts. And several important ski resorts have been thin with snow this year. The mother race of Marcialonga in Italy was surrounded by grass and bare ground. – It is not useful to be negative, then I think you get tired of this training quite quickly. I think and hope we get the winter back, as an eternal optimist. What do you think of less winter? It is absolutely cruel! Winter means snow !! It’s nice, I like it getting hotter. Don’t care! Show result for the general manager of Marcialonga, Skjalg Dreyer, the bad winter is not about several hours in the garage. Will it be run, or not? – The weather forecasts in the future are positive for us. It gets a bit colder. Snow comes, says Dreyer. Last year there was rather a lot of snow in the center of Bodø, but a cold season in advance saved the event through snow production. Photo: Sondre Skjelvik / news As of now, there is actually not enough snow in the field around Bodø for the race to go. In addition, the organizers must have eight days of minus degrees to produce enough artificial snow for the last bit in the city center. – We kick in the gravel here, do you need a miracle? – Last year we did, it was a success. There is no reason to believe that we should not be able to copy what we did last year. Marcialonga Bodø is not alone. Even Renn even further north now has the alternatives ready because of the miserable winter. Rain and sleet have been characterized by Bodø lately. There will not be much skiing out of it. Photo: Sondre Skjelvik / news Not seen in 40 years The northernmost event in Ski Classics consists of two runs, Reistadløpet and Summit 2 Senja. Chairman Jørn Erik Berntsen says the former will go without major problems as conditions are now. – When it comes to Summit 2 Senja, as the conditions are now, we must, over on plan B. That means starting at Bardufoss, but not getting to Finsnes. Cause? Little snow. Jan Erik Berntsen says this year’s winter is completely extraordinary. Photo: Linda Pedersen / news – How will you summarize this year’s winter? – I have been arranging the Reistadløpet for over 40 years. I have never experienced a winter where we have arrived on February 15 and we have such great challenges. Skjalg Dreyer in Bodø also has a plan B. – If it is green we cannot arrange here. Valnesfjord is a reserve arena and there has snowed 25 centimeters of snow in recent days. During this week, the decision will be made. Will there be a run in Bodø or in Valnesfjord? And the decisive week starts with a thin snow layer, so maybe everything resolves. Still, Dreyer is a little worried about the future of skiing. This is not the first time a run in Bodø has faced major challenges. NM in 1991 had to be moved when Grandmaenga ran away: – What do you think about the future of national sports? – We face some challenges, but I’m still screwed together so I think better winters will come. news has the rights to Marcialonga Bodø. Here you can see the broadcast from last year: Published 10.03.2025, at. 10.16
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