Junior Nationals Preview

Junior Nationals return to the Midwest for the first time since the 2022 competition at Theodore Wirth.  The weather brings up memories of the last time JNs was in Cable, back in 2016, as it was a very warm week of competition that required a herculean effort by the organizers.

Memories of 2016

Full recap of 2016 Junior Nationals Coverage

Weather

The weather is looking quite warm for Sunday/Monday, but near normal for the rest of the events - should provide some fast racing as the week progresses.

• Wunderground
• NWS

Schedule

• Sunday, March 8 Opening ceremonies - Downtown Cable
• Monday, March 9 Freestyle Individual Start
  
  
• Wednesday, March 11 Classic Sprints
  
  
• Friday, March 13 Classic Mass Start
• Saturday, March 14 Relays

Courses

All the races will be run on the snowmaking trails, and with the now extensive snowmaking operation at the Birkie Trailhead all events should be held on the planned courses.

Teams

• Midwest
• Great Lakes
• New England
• Far West
• Alaska
• Mid-Atlantic
• Rocky Mountain
• Pacific Northwest
• High Plains
• InterMountain

Results

The official timing page wasn't up at the time of this winter, but PrimeTime Timing is the timer, and you should find the event results and participant links on their RaceResult.com timer page.

Official Website

The American Birkebeiner is hosting Junior Nationals, and they have the official 2026 Junior Nationals page with full schedules, maps, and the latest info.

Coverage

While there is no dedicated livestream, the Birkie does have a number of livestreams.      And Skinnyski plans to post same day coverage for most of the races.