2020 Northwest Ice Yacht Racing Association Information
March 13-15,2020
Lake Waconia, Minnesota
Iceboat Swap Meet Mega Weekend- Nov 2-3
Looking to attend an iceboat swap meet? We’ve got you covered across iceboating country, from east to west. If you are new to the sport or a seasoned veteran, swap meets are the perfect place to kick the tires, shop for parts, and meet ice sailors. Have a boat or parts to sell? Take them to your local swap meet.
EAST:
New England Ice Yacht Club
Saturday November 2, 2019
10 AM with lunch at noon
Hudson-Concord Elks Hall
99 Park Street, Hudson, MA 01749
More information.
CENTRAL:
West Michigan Swap Meet at the Muskegon Yacht Club
Saturday, November 2, 2019
9 AM – 1 PM
3198 Edgewater St, Muskegon, MI 49441
WEST
Skeeter Iceboat Club Swap Meet
Sunday, November 3, 2019
9 AM to Noon
Lucke’s Cantina
220 N. Elkhorn Rd. (WI Hwy 67), Williams Bay, WI.
More information
FAR WEST
Minnesota Ice Sailors Swap Meet
Saturday, November 2, 2019
9 AM – Noon
Sailcrafters
7450 Oxford St., St. Louis Park, MN 55426
More information
2018 SIBC Swap Meet: November 4, 2018
Get them fresh and hot!
Another milestone that brings us closet to the season! If you are looking to buy an iceboat, don’t miss this important event.
Via Jane Pegel:
Skeeter Ice Boat Club: 33rd Annual Swap Meet
Date: Sunday, November 4, 2018
Time: 9:00 to noon
With a free raffle at 11:30 a.m.There is no charge for participating.
Location: Lucke’s Cantina
220 N. Elkhorn Rd. (WI Hwy 67), Williams Bay, WI.
Map
For more info, email sailing19@charter.net
This is the day to swap, buy, and sell new and used iceboats and equipment. Boat builders & hardware manufacturers will display new products. Breakfast and/or lunch will be available at Lucke’s.
Display area:
Items for sale can be set up on the black top parking area at Lucke’s
and in the vacant lot to the south of the old Sailing Specialists building.
Please do not park your cars in the display area.
Please do not park or set up your displays adjacent to neighboring businesses. A short distance to the north there is a municipal parking lot located at the intersection of Elkhorn Rd. and Stark St. (on the north side of Stark St., opposite Burrough’s Floor Coverings).
4LIYC Fall Ice Sailing Event
For well over 50 years, this iceboat club has kicked off the season with some sort of fall gathering to get iceboating back on everyone’s minds. For many years, we’ve hosted picnics. Two years ago, we held a very successful iceboat show at Dick Lichtfeld’s property.
This year, we are excited to announce an event in conjunction with Hoofer’s Sailing Club at the famous University of Wisconsin Memorial Union. (Sailing iceboats on Lake Mendota to the Union for lunch is part of what makes Madison a unique ice sailing center.)
DN ice sailor Dideric van Riemsdijk H467 from the Netherlands (where it all began) will present a program on the annual ice sailing regatta that takes place every spring at one of the planet’s most remote places, Lake Baikal in Siberia. We will have iceboats set up in historic Tripp Commons on the 2nd floor of the Union.
Please join us on Sunday, October 14, 2018 for this free event where you can meet up with old friends or learn about the Four Lakes Ice Yacht Club and how to get started in the sport. All are welcome including area iceboat and sailing clubs. The planets have aligned (at least here in Wisconsin) because there’s no Packer game that Sunday.
ICE SAILING LAKE BAIKAL
A Free Program & Iceboat Exhibit Sponsored by the 4LIYC and Hoofer’s Sailing Club
Date: Sunday, October 14, 2018
Time: Noon to 3 PM Program at 1 PM
Location: University of Wisconsin Memorial Union, Tripp Commons, 2nd Floor of the Union
800 Langdon St, Madison, WI MAP
DETAILS
Parking: Helen C. White Parking Garage MAP
State Street Campus Parking Garage MAP
Food: Your favorite Wisconsin beverages and food will be available for purchase at Der Rathskeller and other restaurants located in the Memorial Union.
Questions? Please email us: debwhitehorse@iceboat.org
SOLD! October 27, 2025: DN in WI
SOLD! DN 2128 has carbon fiber mast, bull nose profile runners, race sail, and hull cover
$1,800
Southern WI
The Bubble Expands & a World Champion Joins the Skeeter Fleet
Two Clapp-built Class A Skeeters with deep pedigrees.
The world’s fastest iceboats, the Class A Skeeters, the Formula One of iceboat racing, have grown their fleet this season with two new Clapp-built additions. Both boats come from the shop of Dan Clapp, innovator of the renowned bubble boat design that transformed Skeeter performance back in the 1990s.
PREDATOR Finds a New Home
The Class A Skeeter PREDATOR has a new owner, Fritz Good of Pewaukee, well known in Scow sailing circles from his years sailing on Pewaukee Lake. PREDATOR was most recently owned by Rob Evans, from whom Good acquired the boat. Welcome to the fleet, Fritz, and congratulations on bringing PREDATOR back on the ice.
Clapp shared some of the boat’s storied history:
“PREDATOR was the first bubble boat, COMING ATTRACTION. I won my first ISA with this boat on Lake Geneva in 1991. Afterwards, I sold it to Art Apy, who renamed it GOTCHA. A few years later, the boat was sold to Rick Stavola and became MONA LISA. Rick raced it successfully for many years before selling it to Rob Marsh, who renamed it ILLUSION and modified the rear deck to match the newer slant-back design. Eventually, the boat was sold out West.”
Struble Steps in to the Bubble
Perhaps the biggest buzz of the season comes from the DN ranks. DN World Champion Matt Struble has thrown his helmet into the Class A Skeeter ring, purchasing the bright yellow AMPHETAMINE from Pewaukee’s Tom Hyslop.
Clapp recalls building the boat:
The yellow boat was built for Jack Jacobs. It was the first slant-back-deck bubble boat. I built it alongside BALLISTIC (for Bill Stavola) and MADJAKE (for myself) around 1998. It originally had a 26-foot mast and 22-foot plank. Later, Jack bought my all-carbon MADJAKE and renamed it MERLIN. He wanted both boats to be identical, so I built him a new mast and plank for MERLIN that matched the carbon boat. I then took the original shorter mast and plank in trade, painted them orange, and used them on INSANITY for many years. Tom Hyslop bought MERLIN from Jack and renamed it AMPHETAMINE II or III. He experimented with mast and plank lengths before settling on a setup with a new mast by Jay Yaeso and a 22-foot plank I made for him.
Now the distinctive bright yellow Skeeter returns to the line with Struble at the helm, a DN sailor stepping up to the elite level of A Skeeters. Struble’s arrival in the Skeeter fleet is sure to turn heads and raise the competitive bar.
Dan writes, “Here’s a Gretchen Dorian photo of me at Lake Geneva following Buddy around in the Northwest. I ended up 2nd. No matter what I did, I couldn’t beat him that day….on his home ice. Jack (Jacobs) owned the boat at the time. I was “testing” the new 30’ mast and 25’ plank.”
PREDATOR (Rob Evans) and HELLSBELLS (Mark Isabell) sailing on Lake Monona, a living bubble boat history lesson.
Video by OVJ Photography. Link to video.
Skoda Meets Iceboating
Iceboats in Advertising Archives
Marketing cars with iceboats has a long history. Even the DN itself is named after The Detroit News, and over the years this site has shared plenty of examples from the “Mad Men” era, when Detroit advertisers paired cars with wind power to sell speed and style.
This video came out today from Skoda featuring a well-known Polish DN champion, Łukasz Zakrzewski, who has sailed our own lakes more than a few times.
Video link.
SOLD! October 24, 2025: A Skeeter in WI
SOLD! AMPHETIMINE
Front seat Class A Skeeter w/ tandem trailer
Complete with:
28 ft mast
Boom
22’ plank
23’6″ plank
3 sets of runners
5 sails
Covers
Ready to race
$13,000
Southern Wisconsin
October 30, 2025: 2 Vintage DNs in NY
Complete with sails and runners in mint condition. Great recreational boats.
Boats stored inside
Asking $1,000 for the pair
Contact: James Tyrrell 646-334-7505
First 4LIYC Meeting: Zoom on Nov 5
The War Room awaits orders from the Fleet.
4LIYC 2025–2026 Meeting Schedule Announced
Pay DuesYour 4LIYC governing group, with help from Renegader Don Anderson, has finalized plans for the upcoming season’s meetings. Our first meeting will take place via Zoom on Wednesday, November 5 at 6:30 PM.
Don is coordinating with Breakwater Restaurant in Monona for in-person gatherings, with the Four Lakes Yacht Club as a possible alternate location. Watch for details about a special meeting on November 19.
Please make sure your 4LIYC dues are paid. We will email the Zoom link to all members on Wednesday, November 5. This is a great opportunity to reconnect, especially with members who live farther away.
2025–2026 4LIYC Meeting Dates
Time: 6:30 PM (in-person or virtual)
- November 5
- November 19
- December 3
- December 17
- January 14
- January 28
- February 11
- February 25
- March 11
October 27, 2025: DN in WI
DN 2399: Carbon fiber mast, Sarns 36” standard/J14/Alligator profile runners, aluminum boom, race sail and hull cover
Southern WI
$2,500
414.559.6503
October 24, 2025: Nite Sail in WI
Inland Nite Sail #534 with bag. Good condition, low hours.
Asking $450
Southern WI
Lbarber@baird.com
608-628-6189”
October 24, 2025: Gambit in CT
Two place Gambit in excellent condition. It has always been stored indoors Three sails: main, DN, and storm, 36” runners, slush runners, extra spring board and plank, standing and running rigging, s.s.cables, alum.mast.
$3,500
Connecticut
860-267-4693
johnsonmillwork00@gmail.com
Attention Iceboat Clubs: NIYA 2025–26 Dues Notice
2025 Northwest. Photo – Jim Stevenson
Iceboat club secretaries and treasurers, take note! It’s time to send in your Northwestern Ice Yachting Association 2025–26 club dues. Details in the PDF.
The Best Ice Comes Early: 2025 ISA Updates & Dues Reminder
Photo: Rick Myslinski; Class A Skeeter Tom Hyslop and Ken Whitehorse
ISA Home Page
Via International Skeeter Association Secretary/Treasurer Steve Schalk:
Greetings everyone,
While the 2024-25 season is still not complete, it is time for the fall dues notice for next season. Dues are $25 and are payable by November. You can send a check or use the on line payment on iceboat.org. There is a Paypal fee for that, so a check is your low cost option. Click here to pay dues online.
Remember that the 2025 ISA is going to happen in December most likely in Minnesota. News on that will come out each week beginning shortly after Thanksgiving.
The best ice in Minnesota is always in December!
Steve Schalk
Secretary/Treasurer
International Skeeter Association
SOLD! September 14, 2025: Ice Flyer in NJ
SOLD! Used once. In good condition.
$800
October 20, 2025: Vintage Mead Skeeter in WI
C Class vintage side-by-side Mead Skeeter with trailer.
$500
Southern WI
jeff.seeboth@gmail.com
SOLD! October 17, 2025: Vintage Skeeter in WI
SOLD! Restored vintage Skeeter with all hardware but no sail.
It will be at the Lake Geneva swap meet Sunday 10-19-2025.
Located in WI.
$500 or offer.
Swap meet on!!! 10 am at Lake Geneva Yacht Club tomorrow!!! Oct 19
Lake Geneva Swap Meet — Sunday, October 19, 10 AM
Lake Geneva Yacht Club
1250 S Lake Shore Dr,
Fontana-On-Geneva Lake, WI
Via our southern friends at the Skeeter Ice Boat Club in Lake Geneva:
Hey Iceboaters!
Weather forecast just keeps improving! Rain should be gone by 8am followed by an awesome NW breeze to dry things out.
1250 S Lakeshore Drive, Fontana is your address. PLEASE PLAN ON ARRIVING NO EARLIER THAN 9AM! Folks will be on the grounds to help you get parked and unloaded. Mary Jane Schalk has, as always, been invaluable. She has arranged food and beverages for the event and sent me a photo of where we intend to set up things.
A special thank you to fellow ice boaters and LGYC leaders, Tom Lothian and Maru Urban. Tom has helped us get use of the club and supplied beverages while Maru has worked his butt off moving boats and clearing space for our event. Thanks, guys! Maru is cleaning up building storage and moved several of our member NItes down to the pad. If you store your Nite at LGYC come use the event as a tune up. SR Marine and Dave’s Machining will be on hand so come get your boat ready to sail this season.
Nites on parade.
Incidentally, I saw that Maru posted a picture on the Nite page of the aforementioned boats he lined up. Be advised! These boats may not yet be for sale?? ( but slipping your business card into the cockpit with an offer might be worth the trip).
We like tacos.
Again, come hungry! The food will be awesome as will the bloody bar… See you all tomorrow.
Jason Thompson
Past Commodore SIBC
SOLD! August 22, 2025: Recreational DN in WI
SOLD! Recreational DN in good shape and stored inside.
$800
$200
October 17, 2025: DN Mast, Sails, Battens in WI
Sherry Carbon whip with wires $800.00
Doyle FO1 sail with tapered foam-core battens $650.00
Banks Speed sail, Eric Wilson built with foam-core battens $650.00
Both sails low hours, still crispy.
$1800.00 takes it all
Can bring to Geneva swap meet.
dougkolner515@gmail.com
October 16, 2025: Nite in WI
Nite, sail number 156. Boat is in excellent shape and has been stored inside. New North Sail only used 3 times.
Asking $4,000
Waukesha County, WI
Tom Touchett
414-254-9023
A Captain for All Seasons: Erik Sawyer
From Great Lakes freighters to iceboats on Lake Monona, Captain Erik Sawyer keeps the season going year-round aboard MICHIGANDER. Photo by Gretchen Dorian.
Erik Sawyer likes big boats, whether he is at the helm of a Great Lakes freighter or behind the wheel of his magnificent modern Stern Steerer, MICHIGANDER. Fellow Stern Steerer sailor and WSSA Secretary Andy Gratton recently toured the Soo Locks and was surprised to spot a photo of his friend Erik, recognized as the captain of the first ship to arrive at the Soo Locks for the 2025 shipping season on March 21. Perfect timing, right around when the ice went out. Andy and his wife Ann left a note for all to see, proudly pointing out that this captain also commands on the hardwater.
Swap Meet This Sunday, October 19 @ Lake Geneva Yacht Club
Via Skeeter Iceboat Club’s Jason Thompson, a friendly reminder to save your Sunday morning for one of the biggest and best iceboat swap meets in the world!
Find a swap meet in your area here.
Lake Geneva Swap Meet — Sunday, October 19, 10 AM
Lake Geneva Yacht Club
1250 S Lake Shore Dr,
Fontana-On-Geneva Lake, WI
Iceboaters,
COME HUNGRY! 10am this Sunday kicks off our iceboat season with the SIBC swap at LGYC (1250 S Lakeshore Drive. Fontana).
Oh, we got a good one for you… Breakfast and lunch burritos with a bloody bar on demand! Been awhile since you have been to LGYC? Come tour the place to check out what has changed. We are pulling out a lot of iceboats from deep storage at the club– should be fun.
Got a Nite to sell? You will do it if you come to the swap. The hottest fleet going at SIBC is our Nite fleet and sailors are looking for boats.
Got a trailer that fits a Nite? You can sell that too.Two B skeeters, DN sails, skeeter sails helmets, track spikes are some of the items we have heard about. Send items you are looking to buy or sell TODAY.
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