Sisu Ski Fest
About this race
Welcome to the 18th annual SISU Ski Fest, a premier cross country ski race, held in Ironwood, MI January 9, 2027.
2027 Highlights:
30K SISU & 15K Heikki Lunta ski races.
Five year age groups, more prizes, and cloth bibs!
Capacity is 940 registered.
Summer race course improvements include adding curves to a few sharp corners and widening the Highlands Aid Station area.
Larger indoor warming area near Start Line. There is now a 15K "Low Snow Loop" located completely at ABR that can be used in case there is not enough snow to facilitate finishing in downtown Ironwood.
"Finnish" Line in Ironwood's Downtown City Square.
5K Hauska Hiihto Fun Ski, and Depot Dash for kids on Friday.
While the COVID-19 pandemic seems behind us, we do still ask anyone with symptoms of illness to remain home.
Sisu is a Finnish cultural concept encompassing strength and determination in the face of adversity. It involves a combination of stamina, perseverance, courage, and determination held in reserve for hard times. We honor our local Finnish heritage by borrowing this term as the name of our event, and demonstrate our sisu by training for and participating in these events despite cold temperatures, snow conditions, hilly courses, competitive pressure, and the anxieties of living in these challenging times!
Pick your distance
Skiing
30K SISU - Classic
Point-to-point 30K classic ski race from ABR Trails to downtown Ironwood.
30K SISU - Skate
Point-to-point 30K skate ski race from ABR Trails to downtown Ironwood.
15K Heikki Lunta - Classic
Point-to-point 15K classic ski race from ABR Trails to downtown Ironwood.
15K Heikki Lunta - Skate
Point-to-point 15K skate ski race from ABR Trails to downtown Ironwood.
5K Hauska Hiihto Fun Ski
Noncompetitive point-to-point 5K classic and skate ski through the Miners Memorial Heritage Park to downtown Ironwood, on the last 5K of the SISU race course.
Race-day daylight
We have no recorded weather for Ironwood yet, but sunrise and sunset follow from the venue and the date.
The sun rises at 7:42 AM and sets at 4:32 PM local time (CST) in Ironwood on January 9, 2027 — 8h 49m of daylight.
Course
No course map published yet.
The organizer hasn't released a route for this event, and we don't publish guesses. If you're the organizer, send us a GPX file and we'll draw the profile.
Reviews
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Where this page comes from. Race details were last updated on . We re-check listings regularly and again in the week before race day.
- Entries, prices, waves and inclusions — the event's official registration page
- Temperature and humidity — Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)
- Elevation and terrain relief — Copernicus DEM GLO-90, ESA (CC BY 4.0)
- Comparisons and counts — Race Discovery calendar, 1 Ironwood event
Spotted something wrong? Tell us and we'll fix it.