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Tahoe Cross-Country celebrates 20th anniversary

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Roughly 100 of the area’s Nordic skiers gathered at Tahoe Cross-Country on Sunday to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the nonprofit ski area.

Locals and visitors have been cross-country skiing around Burton Creek in Tahoe City since 1975, then called the Tahoe Nordic Center. Tahoe Cross-Country Ski Area, however, first began operating in 1999.

The area was originally developed in the 1970s by Skip Reedy, who groomed trails by snowmobile. Reedy eventually upgraded to grooming machines and added trails out to fiberboard freeway, while also developing the 65 kilometers of skiing the area has today.

Reedy also served as operational support for one of the area’s longest running Nordic races, the Great Ski Race, which takes athletes from the Tahoe Cross-Country ski area on trails to the finish line in Truckee.

“What a great way to tie Truckee and Tahoe City together and quell competition,” said Reedy on Tahoe Cross-Country’s webpage.

Reedy operated the area through a lease with the Tahoe City Public Utility District, and after decades of being the only person to bid on the lease, he was outbid in 1993 by Mike and Rose Wolterbeek.

The Wolterbeek’s renamed the area Lakeview Cross-Country in 1994 and ran it for five years. When the concession agreement with Tahoe City Public Utility District came up again, according to Tahoe Cross-Country, one of the new requirements was that bidders must be a nonprofit entity. Since the Wolterbeeks ran a for-profit ski area they reportedly did not submit a qualifying bid. Instead a group of local residents, business owners, coaches and athletes joined together to form the nonprofit, Tahoe Cross-Country Ski Education Association, and in 1999, took over operations at the Nordic area.

They developed new programs, including free skiing for local students and support of North Tahoe cross-country teams.

Two decades later, as the nonprofit embarks on its 21st year in the area, Tahoe Cross-Country already has many of its trails open for the season. The center also offers free beginner lessons on Mondays and Wednesdays.

For more information on upcoming events and updated trail openings, visit http://www.TahoeXC.org.

Justin Scacco is a reporter for the Sierra Sun. Contact him at jscacco@sierrasun.com or 530-550-2643.

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