In 1206 a group of Birkebeiner party soldiers, who fought for Sverre Sigurdsson and his descendants in the Norwegian civil war, smuggled the illegitimate son of Norway's King Håkon Sverresson from Lillehammer to safety in Trondheim.

In the Norwegian Birkie, classic ski participants still carry 3.5-kilogram (7.7 lb) packs symbolizing the weight of the young child-prince, Haakon.

The American Birkiebeiner Ski Foundation In 2013, registration was capped at 10,000 skiers, with an additional 20,000 spectators on the sidelines cheering on the competitors.

In the early years of the race, the Birkie began with a climb up the alpine slopes of Mount Telemark, mainly as a publicity stunt, but larger field sizes made this impractical.

The trail rises steeply to the crossing of County Road OO (Referred to as "Double-Oh") which, at 22.8 km (14.2 mi), is the unofficial halfway point of the race.

After 40 km (25 mi) is the aptly named "Bitch Hill" where spectators cheer skiers up the steepest climb of the race.

Over the course of hours, thousands of tired and proud skiers make their way past three blocks of cheering spectators lining Hayward's Main Street.

Warm conditions have occasionally required the finish line to be moved to a flat field just east of the lake.

Despite low snow in 2024, the American Birkiebeiner Ski Foundation created a 10 km (6.2 mi) lapped course.