Birgitta Petersson is ready for her fifth Tjejvasan race. Photo: Viktor Petersson

The snow-covered ground crackles with the sounds of skis as the entrants wait impatiently at the starting line. Soon it will be time for Tjejvasan, the world’s biggest cross-country skiing competition for women, to begin. Birgitta Petersson, whose day job is at the regional social insurance office, is taking part in her fifth race. She considers Tjejvasan to be one of the high points of her year: 

“It is so much fun to be with the elite skiers at the same time you are competing against seventy-year old women and teenagers. While some people try to beat the clock, others are exchanging recipes and talking about flowers when skiing. There’s room for everyone, that’s what I like about it,” she says.

Nonetheless, it takes a lot of training to keep the pace on a course that is 30 kilometers [18 miles] long. Introduced in 1988, the Tjejvasan is the “little sister” to the Vasaloppet, which is 90 km [56 miles] long. The women’s race came into being because only ten percent of the participants in Vasaloppet were women. The idea – to attract more women – worked.

Competition organizer Marianne Karlsson Eriksson explains: “Now, more than 8,000 women compete every year. Groups of friends go up there to ski together but they also want to make the competition part of something bigger so they make a weekend out of it.”

Nerves on edge


Elite skiers and amateurs side by side - Tjejvasan in Dalarna, mid-Sweden, is for everyone. Photo: Nisse Schmidt

The skiers in the first groups are breathing hard; however, to make good time, even if you are in a later start group, you have to be on your toes. Birgitta Petersson describes how she places her skis right at the head of her start group in order to “reserve” a good spot. That way, she avoids the beginners known as “blueberries”, and quickly gets underway. 

“I never competed before, but when I am standing there, the competitive instinct takes hold of me. Then I feel good for having trained regularly because I am able to really get into it and I know more or less what I am capable of,” says Birgitta, who has skied almost 200 kilometers [124 miles] this year.

Bearded women skiers
The first Vasaloppet took place in 1520, when Swedish King Gustav Vasa skied the track, together with men from the Swedish region of Dalarna, to prepare for war against the Danish king. Four-hundred years later, this important historic event became a competition, one that has been going on since 1922. Already in the race’s second year, a woman, Margit Nordin, took part. She completed the race, but afterwards the arrangers decided to exclude women from future competition, since it was not considered appropriate and too strenuous for “the fair sex.” The decision to exclude women was made a year after Swedish women got the vote, and it irritated many enlightened citizens. Women had to wait until 1981 to be welcomed back on the track.

The long ban encouraged creativity on the part of some bold women. They tried to compete in disguises such as beards and glued-on moustaches, but were kicked off the track when they were found out by men who were afraid a woman might beat them to the finish line.

The tide has turned, and the competition committee reports that men are now trying to ski the Tjejvasan! It has become an informal custom to ski in all the races during Vasaloppet week. But men are stopped from competing if they are “discovered” before the start of the race or by cameras along the race route.

Family festival along the course
One after the other, hat tassels appear over the top of a hill. After a few kilometers, most skiers fall into a rhythm, swinging and gliding along. There’s a lot of cheering from the edge of the forest along the course.

Birgitta Petersson explains: “A lot of families come here on snow scooters, with their picnic baskets. There’s no question that it peps you up to be cheered on and to know that people think you’re doing a good job. I try to cheer back and talk with them a little bit; after all, we’re here to have a good time.”

Skiers can stop at controls along the track to increase their energy levels with blueberry soup and sweet rolls. But there are tough periods too. Sometimes, Birgitta has suffered with cramps and severe pain in her feet; sometimes she’s had to stop for a massage. It’s all about keeping your spirits up.

“I usually think how lucky I am to be off today and to be able to ski, how fun it is. It is important to think positively.”

Competition arranger Marianne Karlsson Eriksson believes that, for many women in the Tjejvasan, this is their only ski race for the season:

“Among the participants, there is a general philosophy about health; maybe they jog, ride bikes, and do other things the rest of the year. Then they can manage 30 km on skis. It’s just the right distance,” she says.

Chilly tall tales
Birgitta Petersson is most worried about the cold, not the length of the course. It can be -30 ºC [-22º F] during Vasaloppet week and that makes it easy to get frostbitten toes and fingers. But such cold snaps are unusual; they live mostly in the tall tales that are repeated before every race.

For Birgitta, it makes more sense to think about the finish line; this is her most wonderful memory of the Tjejvasan. According to tradition, a boy from the village is waiting there to hang medals around the necks of all the sweaty skiers who cross the finish line.

Birgitta’s race tips:

• Have your skis waxed at a sports store
• Ski down the hills as fast as you can; it is easy to fall if you begin to “brake.”
• Keep your poles by your side as you navigate the downhill sections. Think about the people behind you.

Editor's note:
The Tjejvasan took place February 25 and this year's winner was Elin Ek. Our interviewee Birgitta Petersson did an extraordinary job and reached the finish line at 2.17.56.

Fun facts: Vasaloppet
During Vasaloppet week, competitors drink:
46,000 liters of blueberry soup
40,000 liters of sports drinks
6,300 liters of coffee
12,000 liters of bouillon – all served in 900,000 cups.

They also eat:
800 liters of whole meal gruel
109,500 Vasaloppet sweet rolls
 
Almost 60,000 race numbers, the equivalent of enough fabric to cover two soccer fields, as well as 450,000 meters of sewing thread, are also used for the race. 

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Josefin Olevik, a freelance journalist, writes about culture and travel for, among others Dagens Nyheter and Turist.

The author alone is responsible for the opinions expressed in this article.

Translation: Mireille Key

Classification: A134ENa

© Photos:
Photo 1: Viktor Petersson
Photo 2: Nisse Schmidt