How I got here... · HAILEY SWIRBUL

Born and raised in Carbondale, Colorado, gliding on skis was a natural progression as a mountain kid....but for me, those weren't cross country skis at first. In fact, my earliest memories of cross country skiing include me, freezing and holding back tears, woefully slogging along the ski trail as my dad got in his workout and circled back for me every few minutes. Why in the world are people doing this kind of skiing when my favorite downhill resort is half an hour up the road? I thought. So my parents kept me in ski lessons at the resort and kept Nordic skiing a very-part-time, family-outing type of activity. And that was a-okay with me.

Where my love of snow began: the alpine slopes! I am front row, center. Photo: Megan Hartmann

I spent my summers mountain bike racing with my older brother, Keegan. When I was in 5th grade, Keegan decided that he could stay in shape for biking if we Nordic skied through the winter. Well, Keegan was just about a saint in my eyes, so we both decided to join the Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club Nordic program.

Me (second from right) with my teammates from AVSC in 2011. Photo: Dan Bruder

I skied with AVSC until I left for college in 2016. I attended Basalt High School, but skied for AVSC in Aspen because Basalt didn't have a ski team. After graduating, I moved to Anchorage, Alaska where I skied for and attended the University of Alaska Anchorage for 2 years.

Skiing at Senior Nationals in Anchorage, AK in 2018 representing UAA. Photo: Aurelie Barnel

In the Spring of 2018, I switched teams to join the Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center, but still attend the University of Alaska Anchorage for school in pursuit of my civil engineering degree. I'm expected to graduate in December 2021!

My first Senior National Championships with APU in January, 2019. Photo: Reese Brown

The 2020-2021 season is my third season with the US Ski Team, and first as a member of the A-team. I'm lucky to be a member on some amazing teams and I can't wait to see where this journey takes me... Thank you for being part of it!

-Hailey