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Spark Greetings from Creswell, OregonThe photo shows me with a kicksled on the Mississippi River South of LaCrosse, Wisconsin in 1992 |
The following article from Janurary-29-95 was published in the Norwegian language newspaper Western Viking, Ballard, Washington USA.
The Norwegian spark stamp inspired me to write about my long interest in sparks and to invite others to try this fun and healthy winter activity.
Spark-Støttingen or kicksled or Kick Sled, Spark for short.
My first encounter with a spark was the winter of 1964-65 on the Pestua farm in Betna Nordmøre Norway. Betna lies on a slope above the end of Skolvik Fjord at a T intersection. I found an old broken spark in the barn of my Uncle Arthur. With baling twine and glue I repaired the old spark to serviceable condition. A spark looks like a chair mounted on two parallel ski shaped rails. Stand on one rail and kick backwards for propulsion. The rest of the winter I scooted all over the icy roads of Halsa Commune, often with my cousin Hans. I am a dedicated bicyclist and this was a great winter substitute for the bicycle. Hans and I would take turns pushing each other 3km up the hill to our Aunt Harriett who when she saw us coming commenced to make a double batch of bakkeler or heart shaped waffles. Harriet took great satisfaction in stuffing us with bakkels. I am not sure how the extra weight affected our speed but we usually went so fast we would lose control at least twice and run off the road on the down hill. I have happy memories of my sparking trips. My next spark experience was In the early 80s. In Creswell and Eugene we had a big ice and snow storm, the roads around my home had over one inch of ice, it was time for sparking. I had some steel bar and lots of wood so I built a spark (photo and dimensions). My children and I scooted all over on the little spark. My daughter vividly remembers and laughs about the time we hit a bare spot and I did a somersault over the handle bars landing very surprised on my back. In 1989 I bought a new factory made spark(photo and dimensions) which I used during the winter on the Mississippi and around Lacrosse and Norskedalen. My wife Shari and I have been able to use the sparks in Creswell every time it snows. I just returned from sparking with a friend in Manning Park British Columbia. We traveled many miles over the packed trails through the mountains stopping at times to sit on the front to visit or admire the scenery. My dutch friend does not ski so this was an easy and safe way for him to enjoy the snow. We even rode the sparks down some alpine ski runs, that was exciting!
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