The final-round song Ruby Ericson sang for the 2026 Klondike Kate competition felt particularly appropriate for the role she went on to win as the bawdy songstress of Winter Carnival legend.

Ruby Ericson from White Bear Lake reacts to being sashed as the 2026 Klondike Kate at the annual Klondike Kate contest at Inwood Oaks Event Center in Oakdale on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

“We say, bring on the men / and let the fun begin! / A little touch of sin / why wait another minute?” Ericson belted out to the enthusiastic crowd of several hundred, from the 1990 musical “Jekyll & Hyde.”

Four women competed for the title of Klondike Kate on Wednesday, Jan. 7, at Inwood Oaks Event Center in Oakdale. The contest, inspired by a real-life Gold Rush entertainer named Kathleen Rockwell, has chosen a new “mistress of fun, frivolity and good fellowship” before the Winter Carnival just about every year since 1971.

This year’s winner was decided by a nine-judge panel including several former Kates and local musicians Wayne Hamilton and Cate Fierro. As always in recent years, the competition was emceed by KSTP-TV anchor Matt Belanger with live piano accompaniment from Kates musical director Dave Swanson.

The 2026 St. Paul Winter Carnival kicks off on Thursday, Jan. 22.

The two runners-up for the 2026 competition were fourth-time competitor Kat Connery, a voice actor and fiber artist from Robbinsdale, and third-time competitor Bonnie Lopez of West St. Paul. Although first-time competitor Ericka Golden was eliminated prior to the final round, she wowed the crowd with renditions of songs by Guns ‘n’ Roses and Aerosmith that departed from the Kates’ typical bawdy cabaret-style repertoire.

Ericson, of White Bear Lake, has been a member of women’s singing group Sweet Adelines International since 1987 and is an active member of a contemporary church ensemble group. She has also previously been a karaoke host and delivered singing telegrams with the local organization Eastern Onion.

After Ericson was “sashed” as the 2026 Klondike Kate, we caught up with her between photo-ops to ask some questions.

Q: This was your third year competing for the title. What was it like being back this time around?

A: I love being onstage. And for me, the gals that I was singing with tonight are so like family, so it’s fun to share the stage with them.

Q: What was the first moment in your life that you remember feeling that you might want to become Klondike Kate one day?

A: Probably when I was 6 years old. Mae West, for me — not a Kate, but she was pretty sassy, and I thought that would be someone fun to emulate! And the St. Paul Winter Carnival was such a staple in our family.

Q: Whether we’re talking about karaoke or singing telegrams or choral performance, why has singing been such a central part of your life?

A: It frees my soul, and takes me out of my shell. When I have moments of sadness or when I’m feeling down, music just lifts me.

Q: What are you looking forward to in terms of carrying on the legacy of the real Klondike Kate over the next year and beyond?

A: I would love to inspire young ladies to take on this challenge and become Klondike Kate, too, or even pursue a career in music. I want them to follow their dream, whatever it is.

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The deed is done, as they say: The Pioneer Press Treasure Hunt medallion has been hidden — and now you’ve got some “noodling” to do.

Related: Get the clues here.

The object has been tucked away in secret locations around Ramsey County every winter since 1952. This year, to celebrate the 140th anniversary of the St. Paul Winter Carnival, the clever hunter who figures out the clues and finds the medallion could win $15,000, the largest prize ever offered.

First-time clue solvers and multigenerational family teams alike, take note: Some rules have changed for this year’s hunt, which is sponsored by Cub and the Winter Carnival. So make sure you’re up-to-date before heading out into the cold — and good luck!

How to find the medallion:

1. Follow the clues: New hints are published every day until Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026, or until the medallion is found. Clues will appear daily on TwinCities.com and in the print edition of the Pioneer Press, and will also be released early in person at Shamrocks (995 W. Seventh St.) at approximately 11:30 p.m. or slightly beforehand each night of the hunt.

2. Go to the right place: The medallion is hidden on public land in Ramsey County — with a few exceptions. The medallion will not be hidden on the State Capitol grounds, at Como Zoo & Conservatory, Rice Park, Silver Oaks Park, Maplewood’s Preserves and Open Space, Wakan Tipi/formerly Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary, Wicahapi/formerly Indian Mounds Regional Park, nor Hansen Park in New Brighton. It also will not be under any skating surface, ski trails, on a golf course, nor under or on any artificial turf surface or at any construction site.

3. Be a courteous hunter: Please do not destroy anything to find the medallion! We’re serious about this. When you’re hunting, you must abide by all laws and requests of police officers or local officials. All medallion hunting is done at your own risk. The Pioneer Press reserves the right to discontinue the contest any time if public property is destroyed.

4. Some fine print: No purchase is necessary to win. And if the medallion is not found by 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 29, 2026, the hunt ends and the Pioneer Press may donate the prize money to a local charity.

If you find the medallion:

Call the phone number on the back of the medallion right away. We’ll tell you what to do next. (Please let us know before you tell others, so we can officially verify your win!)

If you find the medallion itself, you can win $5,000. An additional $5,000 will be awarded if the finder has a registered 2026 Pioneer Press Treasure Hunt Patch. Then, if the finder also has a 2026 Winter Carnival button in addition to the hunt patch, they will win the final $5,000 prize, for a total possible package of $15,000. (Please note the prizes are sequential, i.e. a finder can claim the final reward for possessing a Carnival button only if they first possess a registered patch; no exceptions.)

Unlike in previous years, finders will not be required to provide print-outs or clippings of each clue to receive the initial $5,000 finders’ prize.

Please note a few more rules: If you find the medallion, you must complete the appropriate eligibility and release forms within 24 hours. Those under 18 may participate with a parent or guardian’s permission, but if the medallion is found by a child, an adult must provide authorization and claim the prize on their behalf.

Finally, while hunting in pairs or groups is certainly allowed, the Pioneer Press will recognize one individual winner. Groups cannot share a registered patch; each hunter should have their own patch registered to their name. To claim the full prize, Pioneer Press Treasure Hunt Patch registration must be tied to the winner’s name; it’s their responsibility whether or how to share the prize.

Full rules for the 2026 hunt are available online.

Keep up-to-date with the hunt:

By phone: at the automated medallion hotline — 651-228-5547 — to know whether it’s been found

Online: at twincities.com/treasurehunt

On Facebook: at facebook.com/PPtreasurehunt

In the forum discussions: at facebook.com/groups/TreasureHuntForum

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By STEPHEN WADE

If winning gold medals were the only standard, almost all Olympic athletes would be considered failures.

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A clinical psychologist with the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, Emily Clark’s job when the Winter Games open in Italy on Feb. 6 is to help athletes interpret what it means to be successful.

Should gold medals be the only measure?

Part of a 15-member staff providing psychological services, Clark nurtures athletes accustomed to triumph but who invariably risk failure.

The staff deals with matters termed “mental health and mental performance.” They include topics such as motivation, anger management, anxiety, eating disorders, family issues, trauma, depression, sleep, handling pressure, travel and so forth.

Clark’s area includes stress management, the importance of sleep and getting high achievers to perform at their best and avoid the temptation of looking only at results.

“A lot of athletes these days are aware of the mental health component of, not just sport, but of life,” Clark said in an interview with The Associated Press. “This is an area where athletes can develop skills that can extend a career, or make it more enjoyable.”

Redefining success

The United States is expected to take about 235 athletes to the Winter Olympics, and about 70 more to the Paralympics. But here’s the truth.

“Most of the athletes who come through Team USA will not win a gold medal,” Clark said. “That’s the reality of elite sport.”

Here are the numbers. The United States won gold medals in nine events in the last Winter Games in Beijing in 2022. According to Dr. Bill Mallon, an esteemed shoulder surgeon and Olympic historian, 70.8% of Winter and Summer Olympic athletes go to only one Olympics.

Few are famous and successful like swimmer Michael Phelps, or skiers Mikaela Shiffrin or Lindsey Vonn.

Clark said she often delivers the following message to Olympians and Paralympians: This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. Focus on the process. Savor the moment.

“Your job is not to win a gold medal, your job is to do the thing and the gold medal is what happens when you do your job,” she said.

“Some of this might be realigning what success looks like,” she added. “And some of this is developing resilience in the face of setbacks and failure.”

Clark preaches staying on task under pressure and improving through defeat.

“We get stronger by pushing ourselves to a limit where we’re at our maximum capacity — and then recovering,” she said. “When we get stressed, it impacts our attention. Staying on task or staying in line with what’s important is what we try to train for.”

A few testimonials

Kendall Gretsch has won four gold medals at the Summer and Winter Paralympics. She credits some of her success to the USOPC’s mental health services, and she described the value this way.

“We have a sports psychologist who travels with us for most our season,” she said. “Just being able to touch base with them … and getting that reminder of why are you here. What is that experience you’re looking for?”

American figure skater Alysa Liu is the 2025 world champion and was sixth in the 2022 Olympics. She’s a big believer in sports psychology and should be among the favorites in Italy.

“I work with a sport psychologist,” she said without giving a name. “She’s incredible — like the MVP.”

Of course, MVP stands — not for Most Valuable Person or Most Valuable Player — for “Most Valuable Psychologist.”

“I mean, she’s very helpful,” Liu added.

Vonn: “I just did it myself”

American downhill skier Vonn will race in Italy in her sixth Olympics. At 41, she’s coming off nearly six years in retirement and will be racing on a knee made of titanium.

Two-time Olympic champion Michaela Dorfmeister has suggested in jest that Vonn “should see a psychologist” for attempting such a thing in a very dangerous sport where downhill skiers reach speeds of 80 mph (130 kph).

Vonn shrugged off the comments and joked a few months ago that she didn’t grow up using a sport psychologist. She said her counseling came from taping messages on the tips of her skis that read: “stay forward or hands up.”

“I just did it myself,” she said. “I do a lot of self-talk in the starting gate.”

On sleep

“Sleep is an area where athletes tend to struggle for a number of reasons,” Clark said, listing issues such as travel schedules, late practices, injuries and life-related stress.

“We have a lot of athletes who are parents, and lot of sleep is going to be disrupted in the early stages of parenting,” she said. “We approach sleep as a real part of performance. But it can be something that gets de-prioritized when days get busy.”

Clark suggests the following for her athletes — and the rest of us: no caffeine after 3 p.m., mitigate stress before bedtime, schedule sleep at about the same time daily, sleep in a dark room and get 7-9 hours.

Dani Aravich is a two-time Paralympian — she’s been in both the Summer and Winter Games — will be skiing in the upcoming Paralympics. She said in a recent interview that she avails herself of many psychological services provided by the USOPC.

“I’ve started tracking my sleep,” she said, naming Clark as a counselor. “Especially being an athlete who has multiple jobs, sleep is going to be your No. 1 savior at all times. It’s the thing that — you know — helps mental clarity.”

Ditto Clark.

“Sleep is the cornerstone of healthy performance,” she added.

Follow AP’s Be Well coverage, focusing on all aspects of wellness, at https://apnews.com/hub/be-well

Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s series, Staff Favorites. Each week, we give our opinions on the best that Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems.)

Humans have been using drugs since the beginning of recorded time, and historian Sam Kelly can prove it.

The witty and engaging “Human History on Drugs,” by author Sam Kelly, explores how substance use and abuse shaped figures like Queen Victoria, Richard Nixon and Sigmund Freud. (Provided by Plume)

In his book “Human History on Drugs,” Kelly provides an “utterly scandalous but entirely truthful look at history under the influence,” as the book cover states. Since it came out last July, it has been one of my favorite reads not only because the subject matter is fascinating but also because the format makes it a noncommittal nightstand staple.

Kelly explores prominent figures throughout history – from Alexander the Great and Marcus Aurelius to Queen Victoria, Elvis Presley and Steve Jobs – and their relationship with substance use and abuse. Each one is spotlighted in a concise yet engaging story that typically lasts a couple of pages. You can pick up the book sparingly or jump around the various chapters without feeling like you’ve missed anything.

Ultimately, “Human History on Drugs” is a piece of entertainment that you can tune out and drop into for a few minutes when you’re in need of a lighthearted distraction. Plus, the stories will make you rethink everything you learned in history class.

Kelly was initially inspired to dig into the ways history’s tastemakers used drugs while discussing Sigmund Freud in his first college psychology class. He recalls the lecture turned to how, despite shaping the field, some of Freud’s beliefs are no longer accepted in mainstream psychology.

“Some of his stuff is pretty odd,” Kelly said in an interview. Admittedly, it piqued his interest, so Kelly dug into some of Freud’s lesser-known work. He found “Über Coca,” written in 1884, in which Freud advocates for cocaine as a miracle drug and explores the myriad ways humans could benefit from using it.

“I couldn’t help but think, whoa, this is a fascinating thing that Freud is really into cocaine. How into it is he? It turns out that for like 12 years, almost day in and day out, the guy is doing tons of cocaine,” Kelly said.

It made him wonder where else in history class he may not have gotten the full story. Kelly, who is autistic, spent seven years poring over records and historical texts in hopes he could paint a more complete picture. After all, it’s likely that people’s state of mind, however altered, influenced what they did and the decisions they made.

“All you have to do is pull on threads, follow some rabbit holes and it is amazing how many things you will find, even about people who are well known. Certain parts of these people’s stories don’t get told very often,” Kelly said. “It became clear to me that there were a bunch of different major historical figures whose substance use is very pertinent, and a lot of mainstream accounts will bat it away like it’s not interesting.”

Take, for example, Pope Leo XIII, one of the longest-serving popes and one of the most prolific, writing about 90 encyclicals during his tenure. Scholars have always marveled at Pope Leo XIII’s output, Kelly said.

But the pope may have had help from one of his favorite beverages: Vin Mariani, a wine laced with cocaine.

“In fact, he loved cocaine wine so much that he decided that he needed to honor the man who invented it. He summoned winemaker Angelo Mariani to Rome and presented him with an official Vatican gold medal for his remarkable achievement in the field of cocaine vitnery,” Kelly writes. The book features a print advertisement in which the pope endorses the product.

Though cocaine, which was legal in the 19th century, was the vice of many in the book, many other substances make an appearance, including cannabis, amphetamines, alcohol, acid, painkillers and even yellow paint. Chapters include “Queen Victoria was the biggest drug dealer of all time,” “Elvis Presley was a narc,” and “Andrew Johnson was a blackout drunk.”

Kelly believes a book like this hasn’t been written before because people weren’t ready to hear the truth – as though acknowledging these famous people’s complete life experiences would be besmirching their legacies. But Kelly doesn’t think so, and I don’t either. Perhaps it helps make more sense of history’s complex personalities, and explains why “Richard Nixon wanted to nuke everyone” and “Friedrich Nietzsche thought he was Jesus,” as two other chapters explore.

The book also shines a prominent light on how attitudes toward certain drugs have changed over time by showing when and where they were embraced. It’s a long, strange trip, I promise you that.

“Human History on Drugs” is available for purchase online via Barnes & Noble and Amazon. Kelly also features snippets from the book on his TikTok page (@Human_History_On_Durgs) and Instagram (@Human_History_On_Drugs).