One more ride with Rick Hennig aboard the mighty DEUCE. Fair winds to a giant of ice sailing. Link to Video
Rick Hennig passed away after a long illness on Friday, May 15, and the ice sailing community has lost a giant of a man who sailed a giant of a boat.
Rick Hennig came to define the world’s largest stern-steerer, DEUCE. Rick didn’t originally build DEUCE, but over time the boat and the man became inseparable. Towering in stature and personality, Rick seemed born to handle the wheel of a machine like that.
In 2005, Rick spearheaded the effort to build a new hull for DEUCE. Looking back now, it was about far more than rebuilding a boat. Rick brought together ice sailors from across the Midwest. Everyone showed up, and the project became a gathering point for the community itself. I realize now how important that was.
Rick was equally at home on soft water. He raced and won in some of the Great Lakes’ classic distance races, including the Chicago to Mackinac and Port Huron to Mackinac.
What also stood out about Rick was the respect he showed to the elders of ice sailing. He always honored the people who passed on their knowledge to him, especially Bill Mattison and the Pegel family, whose influence on DEUCE and stern-steerer history he never forgot.
I know many of you sailed with Rick, built with him, raced against him, or shared time in the shop, at regattas, and around DEUCE. If you have a memory, story, or photo, please share it in the comments or send me a message. I would like to include your recollections in a longer remembrance of Rick’s life.
There will be more to come in the next few days, including memories from Rick’s family and friends.
Rick was a passionate guy on the sport of sailing, whether it be water or Ice. Someone who cared about the right to do in life, never taking a shortcut, always there for you to to lend a hand & solve problems. Hauling out of Racine WI, Rick was a lifelong, competitive sailor and a good one at that. Most people here at iceboat.org remember Rick as the proud owner of the Deuce and who did a beautiful job of rebuilding her. What I remember most was his love of sailing / racing his soft-water keel boats, winning prestigious races as the Chicago Mac, Trans-Superior, Queen’s Cup, & Hook races. He enriched and taught many sailors crewing for him on the various boats 60’-70’ he owned and campaigned through the years. His boats were always the best-maintained, and he took pride in that. He valued and appreciated friendship and those around him; he was generous, well-liked, and respected. Our community lost a good one. Smooth Sailing
Eric Jones
Our condolences to the Boston family on the passing of William “Spike” Boston. Obituary
Spike was part of iceboating’s well-known Boston family of sailmakers, long connected to the sport. In the 1950s, his family built a scaled-down skeeter called PINK PINK. It wasn’t a toy, but a real iceboat, proportioned like the big boats. It wasn’t a full-sized racer, but one of the most memorable Skeeters of its time.
The short clip above shows him as a boy with the boat at the 1952 Northwest regatta sailed on Lake Monona. The photos that follow place it in context. Pink Pink alongside Ferdinand the Bull, the big stern steerer. The boat at the 1952 Northwest Regatta. And Spike standing with the winners, small among them.
BULL & PINK PINK, the Boston family mini-Skeeter on Lake St. Clair in Detroit
Spike Boston’s miniature Skeeter, PINK PINK
1952 Northwest Winners. I believe this may be Spike in the front row.
From Yachting World
By Toby Heppell
April 30, 2026
To understand what happened in Red Bank, New Jersey, in the first 10 days of February this year, you first have to understand the cold.
This wasn’t a regular winter. This was a freeze for the ages. A polar vortex settled over the US North-east like it had nowhere else to be, sending wind chills plunging to 20 below zero and locking waterways in ice that hadn’t been this thick in decades.
The Hudson River froze. The East River froze. New York Harbour froze. NYC Ferry suspended all routes. The Seastreak ferry – a lifeline for Jersey Shore commuters heading to Manhattan – needed a tugboat to crush a path through the ice in front of it just to make its daily run to the city.
Rivers that normally flow became roads. Bays that normally ripple became glass. The Navesink – the wide, tidal river that curls through Red Bank like a signature – became something it hadn’t been in over 20 years: a frozen stage for the oldest trophy race in American ice yachting. Continue reading.
A Night to Remember: 4LIYC Spring Gathering Honors Krueger and Simon
The 4LIYC Spring Gathering at Breakwater turned into something better than a banquet and more like a family reunion with old friends, new sailors, and people who had not seen one another in years. What made the evening even more meaningful was that it unfolded as a surprise for Paul Krueger and Jerry Simon, a room full of people gathered to recognize them without their knowing it in advance.
The turnout reflected the depth of the club, with many making the trip from a distance to be there. There were too many to name without risking leaving someone out, but the effort it took for people to show up was not lost on anyone in the room. The evening focused on honoring two longtime members whose influence runs through both the club and the sport, Paul Krueger and Jerry Simon.
Paul Krueger
Greg Whitehorse traced Paul’s path back to the 1950s, when he was introduced to iceboating by Tom Krehl, and followed it through decades of racing, building, and leadership that shaped not only his own career but the direction of the Skeeter class itself. Along the way, Greg pointed to a strong connection between ice sailing and open wheel auto racing, a world in which Paul was equally accomplished, running a successful midget racing team and later earning recognition in both the Badger Midget Auto Racing Association and the National Midget Racing Hall of Fame. That crossover between ice and track has long been part of the culture, and Paul stood at the center of it.
Paul’s influence extended well beyond results, reaching into the evolution of design as he helped move the class from under the boom configurations to rear seaters and forward into the modern era, adapting as conditions and materials changed and often anticipating those changes before others did.
For nearly forty years, Paul served as Secretary Treasurer of the International Skeeter Association and the Northwest. Greg described him as someone who, in sports often driven by strong personalities, had a way of keeping things running smoothly by settling disputes and unruffling feathers. Read Greg’s full tribute: LINK
Jerry Simon
Jerry Simon
If Paul’s legacy reflects continuity and leadership, Jerry Simon’s reflects a lasting contribution that continues to show itself in the boats on the ice and the work behind the scenes. During his racing career, Jerry won two Renegade Championships and one Northwest Championship, yet his influence did not fade when he stepped away from competition.
Instead, Jerry made sure the boats he built found their way into the hands of sailors who would keep them active, and he turned his attention toward supporting the club and the Mary B and Iceboat Foundation, taking on the work that holds things together. In his own words, the reward has been simple, seeing the boats he built still sailing, which for him remains the best possible outcome.
He also brought attention back to a piece of club identity that once marked its presence at regattas, the red jackets worn in the 1970s that made it clear who you were and where you came from. His call to bring them back carried both humor and intent, a reminder that tradition does not maintain itself without someone willing to carry it forward. Read Jerry’s full remarks: LINK
Our Community
Throughout the evening, one idea surfaced again and again, not as a slogan but as something understood through experience, people show up. That idea came into focus through the story of the MARY B recovery, when honeycombed ice and a warm spell contributed to the MARY B and its trailer sinking into the ice at the landing. A call for help went out, bringing a response that included a large construction crane, waders, tools, and a group of sailors willing to spend the time and effort required to get the boat and trailer back to shore. (Somehow, the entire episode stayed off social media!)
There was also a glimpse of the future in the room. Daniel Hearn’s grandsons, both under six years old, brought energy that was hard to miss as they moved through the crowd. Whether they remember the night or not, they are already being steeped in the rhythms of the ice sailing community, and it was a pleasure to watch them take it all in.
The Season That Was
There was not much local sailing this winter, though one weekend on Lake Kegonsa delivered the Grand Slam. The season opened with a missing man formation for Renegader Tim McCormick, setting a tone that carried through the gathering. Grand Slam winners in both the Renegade and DN fleets were recognized, along with highlights from the ISA regatta in Green Lake, Wisconsin.
Looking Ahead
This night made it clear that the club is not defined by conditions alone. It depends on people, those who built it over time, those who continue to carry it forward, and those just beginning to find their place within it. When the ice returns, as it always does, the group will be ready to meet it again.
All-around ice sailor Andy Gratton will be giving a Zoom presentation about our sport.
He’s part of a free webinar series hosted by The American Schooner Association and The Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race on Thursday, April 16 at 6 PM CT / 7 PM ET
Andy has sailed just about everything and owns nearly every class of iceboat known. If you’ve spent any time around iceboating, you’ve likely seen him giving rides in his vintage WISCONSIN stern steerer.
This is a good introduction to the sport for sailors who’ve never stepped on the ice, and a reminder of why we keep coming back.
Rick Hennig passed away after a long illness on Friday, May 15, and the ice sailing community has lost a giant of a man who sailed a giant of a boat.
Paul Krueger
