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4LIYC Meeting : November 2025
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Celebrating the Women of Ice Sailing
Happy Mother’s Day to all the women involved in ice sailing. The day provides a chance to share some history of women in ice sailing. The first woman who comes to mind for most of us is Skeeter Ice Boat Club’s Jane Pegel, pictured above, who has won many ice sailing titles. Ron Sherry sent this article about Detroit Ice Yacht Club’s Garwood Regatta published when Jane won the Scripp’s Trophy for DNs, a reminder of the time when the idea of “housewives” accomplishing anything was considered a novelty.
Women have been key members of iceboat race management for many years. Below is an article shared by Jack Jacobs about his mother and the other women of the Detroit Ice Yacht Club who
made things run smoothly so that ice sailors could concentrate on racing and socializing. Much of what is written about scoring iceboat races in this article remains true 68 years later such as keeping the chatter to a minimum and the writers keeping their eyes on the score sheets while they miss the excitement of the racers rounding the leeward mark.
Distraction of the Day: Curious & Rare & BERZERKER
Ye Olde Party Boat
Museums and archival websites have flung opened their virtual doors and allowed access to their archives to help us while away the hours. Stumbled across this print dated from around 1600 on the British Museum website. It’s purported to be the earliest representation of an iceboat – Dutch, of course. The artist took some liberties because a 10 person iceboat would need some good breeze to get going not to mention the impossibility of handling the boat around such a twisty narrow track.
Seeing this 10 person iceboat brought to mind one of the greatest ice sailing projects ever seen, executed by the Toledo Ice Yacht Club in 2007, the BERZERKER. She was built to be a one-weekend party boat, a stern steerer assembled from what ever they found laying around. BERZERKER gave many people their first iceboat ride during that Winter Carnival weekend on Lake Erie.
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Picture of the Day: Pewaukee Northwest 1973
Photo by Gary Whitehorse. That’s a lot of horsepower! Stern steerer iceboats start on race at the Northwest regatta which took place on February 2-4, 1973 on Pewaukee Lake in Wisconsin.
UPDATE: The photo was originally taken by Gary Whitehorse and uploaded to the 4LIYC Facebook page.
Peter McCormick (via Andy Gratton) forwarded this picture to the iceboat.org inbox this week wanting to confirm if these stern-steerers were on Pewaukee Lake and when this regatta took place. I started looking into the files and realized that I was there with my brother and dad, Dave Rosten and that my Dad won the Class A Skeeter trophy. Another 4LIYC skipper, Peter’s dad Bill McCormick, won the C Stern Steerer trophy that year as well.
If you have any information on the stern-steerers or the regatta you’d like to share, please drop a line. debwhitehorse@iceboat.org
UPDATE: 30 April:
“I was 16 years old at the time and won the DN junior trophy. Chuck Miller was racing a DN in the regatta called “Chicken Little.” He got a big kick out of racing against me in the regatta. Ever since that time I always felt that Chuck Miller was a really nice guy, someone who really loved his sailing and iceboating.”
Susie Pegel, formerly DN 905
Andy Gratton, WSSA Secretary: “Max Runge sent me this old photo. …There are some boats I don’t recognize, such as the C skeeter, the black mast, the yellow mast, B9, and what appears to be a round backbone second from the far end. V83 is the D skeeter that got turned around and ended up in Fond du Lac in the 1980s with Herb Bankstahl. He named it FIDDLESTIX, I think it came from Sternkopfs. Who is pushing ROSEMARY?”
Peter McCormick, stern steerer (TWINBEDS) and Renegade sailor: “I remember my dad [Bill McCormick] telling me how he took TWINBEDS to Pewaukee on a lumber truck for either a Northwest or WSSA regatta.”
UPDATE:
Tom Hyslop: “Not sure about the lake or the year as some of the Pewaukee boats were not built until the late 70`s.
B9 was CLANCY owned by John Olson.
V83 was a Sternkoph boat.
Yellow mast with red V is COUNTRY WOMAN owned by me.
Black mast with V is ECLIPSE owned by Ric Sternkoph and Mike Hasse.”
1973 Northwest Results
STERN STEERERS
Class A: No Race
Class B: CLANCY, John Olson
Class C: TWIN BEDS, Bill McCormick
Class D: DEE WHIZ, Bill Osenga
Skeeter Class A: Dave Rosten, PIRATE
FREE FOR ALL: No Race
DN Class: George Timmons
DN Class Junior: Susie Pegel
Renegade Class: Elmer Millenbach RENEGADE III
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Distraction of the Day: Hey! It’s S8 Open Class!
These Russian S-8 Open Class stern-steerers are a blast to watch. Video was shot in March 2020 on Syamozero Lake in Karelia, Russia which is about a 6 hour drive northeast from St. Petersburg. Their class website is here.
Tip of the helmet: Andrey Ivolgin
420 On 4/20
Obligatory
Picture of the Day: 4LIYC Commodore Don Anderson rounds the leeward mark in his Renegade EASY RIDER on Lake Mendota.
Not Liquid Yet
Moosehead Lake in Maine on April 17, 2020.
The Ice-Out Fat Lady continues her quarantine. Congratulations to the Chickawaukee ice sailors up in Maine who eked another day out of the season to make it a six month run. Read Bill Bucholz’s report here.
If the Canadian border was open, Pat Heppert and his C Skeeter would be sailing Thunder Bay this weekend. Mike Madge reported 2 feet of ice there on April 16th and they appear to still be sailing. Follow along on the Thunder Bay Ice Boating Facebook page.
Nites Go Grand Prix Style
2020 Nite Nationals on Green Lake. Photo: Rob Resnick
Nite Class Announcement
Following the end of our season which was at the 2020 National Championship we as a BOD were tasked with looking at a response to dealing with boats that were lapped on the race course in conditions that may have been marginal. Though rules exist in other iceboat classes that deal with this same issue, it tends to be in a more broad manner. We felt that in the best interests of the class and both experienced and less experienced sailors we have come up with a better solution. This solution is now known as the Grand Prix Rule.
This new rule will be in place in our sailing instructions going forward, it was voted on and passed by the BOD. The use of the Grand Prix Rule will also allow for the race management teams to apply it as needed. The insertion of the new rule in the Sailing Instructions made more sense then the Bylaws as it was a regatta management issue.
The rule reads as follows:
Grand Prix Rule
1. In regatta conditions consisting of marginal wind speeds and warm air temps or with both conditions in effect, the Grand Prix Rule may be instated for all competitors who are sailing within either fleet. This rule allows for lapped boats to be retired off the course.
2. The Head Judge and/or the race committee have the option to use this rule for all races meeting the criteria. Notification of the Grand Prix Rule in effect must be announced prior to the start of that race. A lime green flag will be displayed to competitors that have been lapped. Those individuals will accept their place and withdraw off the race course. The race committee can withdraw its use of the Grand Prix Rule for further races at any time if the conditions have improved, however races that have been sailed under the Grand Prix Rule may not be rescinded as long as all time limits and laps criteria have been met.
3. Scoring for boats that have been lapped shall be as follows see addendum 1.
We look forward to future events and the use of the Grand Prix Rule at Nite Nationals and also Nite Regattas. We hope this improves the already great events we have and allows for the enjoyment of sailors in all skill levels.
Nite BOD
Thunder Bay, Baby
DNer Mike Madge executes a fly-by maneuver on Thunder Bay in Ontario, Canada on April 11.
Distraction of the Day: “Winter Has Its Share of Skeeters”
Paul Krueger’s RAMBLIN’ A Class Skeeters spanning 40+ years: From left, c. 1970, c.1980, 2015
Your ice sailing distraction today is an article published in Madison’s Wisconsin State Journal in 1976 about the Four Lakes Ice Yacht Club, our members, boats, and boat development. This article was written shortly after Paul Krueger introduced the concept of the rear-seat Skeeter. Charlie Johnson who was a club member for many years was also interviewed and shared the club’s long history which began with the stern-steerers.
Tip of the Helmet: Don Sanford
Paul Krueger, iceboating enthusiast from McFarland, set out to make some rather drastic changes in his iceboat for greater safety. He wound up with the greater safety he sought, and another plus. The boat turned out to be faster and he went to cleaning up at the races. Continue reading (pdf file).
Carl Bernard, Norm Braith, and a young Charlie Johnson with the MARY B on Lake Monona, c. 1950s.
Crash Test Dummy
The Spaight Street Syndicate and Russell Aviation collaboration begin the testing phase of their new powered kick-sleds.
Previously: “Get On Your Bad Motor Kicksled and Ride”
Much to the displeasure of the Director of Product Development, Jeff Russell, the marketing team showed up in the lab to take glamour photos, even before any product testing was conducted. Seizing the opportunity, Russell lured the unsuspecting Director of Marketing, Daniel Hearn, into a test dummy role. “Looks great, doesn’t she,“ crowed Russell. “Sure does,” Hearn replied, “can’t wait to give her a go.” “It’s your lucky day,” exclaimed Russell, with a twinkle in his eyes!
There being no other gas handy, the sled was filled with high octane aviation fuel. “She might go just a little faster than usual, but I’m sure a stud like you can handle it,” he assured Hearn. Moments later, Hearn was flying down the test track unable to control the speed with no throttle yet installed. Russell claimed it was on back order. And the 20-tooth front sprocket may have generated a bit too much speed. “You should audition for next Jackass movie,” Russell suggested.
Today, with a 10-tooth front sprocket installed and standard fuel in the tank, the sled designer was ready for a spin.
You’ll want one.
Online Ship’s Store
National Iceboat Authority Web Page
4LIYC Governing Documents
Click for 4LIYC Meeting Dates
- January 2 THURSDAY Honor Roll Nominations
- January 15 Deadline for By-Law or Racing Rules Amendment Submission
- January 29
- February 12 Business Meeting
- February 26
- March 12 Last Meeting of the Season
Location: In person at the Elks Lodge 711 Jenifer St, Madison, WI 53703
Time: 6:30 PM
YOU ARE SKIPPER NUMBER
TO ROUND THE MARK SINCE NOVEMBER 1999.
