2020 Northwest Ice Yacht Racing Association Information
March 13-15,2020
Lake Waconia, Minnesota
Iceboats in Art: ROCKET & JACK FROST by Michael Scherfen
Here’s an exquisite watercolor that any iceboater would hang on the wall, recently shared on the Rocket Ice Yacht Foundation’s Facebook page:
Watercolor of the Rocket and Jack Frost racing on the Navesink River in 2015. The Jack Frost won the races that day and proudly flies the daily pennant from her main! Bob Pulsch commissioned a local artist Michael Scherfen.
March 16, 2026: Skeeter Components in WI
Class A skeeter runner plank, 24’6″ Sitka, $1000.
Mast pole 26′ carbon $1000.
I was going to build a stern steer with them. Great shape.
Fast Ice Boat Speed Shop is having a sailathon! Class A Skeeter sails, 26′ 75 sq ft. $200 each or buy all 6 for $600!
Great race winner sails!
Madison, WI
Call Kenny 608-212-4482 at the Fast Ice Boat Shop.
4LIYC Meeting News & The Fat Lady Is Singing (At Least Around Here)
Some of you may remember this older video, which seemed appropriate to dust off again. For us locally, the fat lady has sung. LINK
However, the season may not be over everywhere. Minnesota and other northern areas could still get a shot if the ice and weather cooperate, so don’t completely give up.
Closer to home, we’ll wrap things up with our final club meeting of the season at Breakwater in Monona.
4LIYC Meeting
Wednesday, March 11
Time: 6:30 PM
Breakwater
6308 Inland Way
Monona, WI
Save the Date: 4LIYC Spring Banquet
That one day…
This was one of those local seasons where we just weren’t lucky.
The Ice Gods gave us a beautiful sheet to look at on Lake Monona, but it never quite came together. The MARY B was set up on Lake Mendota for Frozen Assets Festival, but by late February, warm temperatures and rain finished off what had looked like a promising season.
Still, many of us managed to get sailing in by traveling where the ice was good, and we did get that one memorable weekend on Lake Kegonsa.
In spite of the short season close to home, let’s get together and celebrate the past winter and the seasons ahead.
Save the date:
4LIYC Spring Gathering
Saturday, April 25, 2026
Breakwater
6308 Inland Way
Monona, WI
More details soon.
A Good Day for Runner Tracks
It’s a gray, rainy day in Madison and it’s highly likely the ice season here is officially over. It’s a good day to sit down with the latest issue of the DN newsletter Runner Tracks. There’s something in it for everyone.
This issue includes two rookie race reports from sailors who found their way into the DN class by very different routes, along with articles on rules and tactics, the protest committee process, speed insights, proposed new DN plans, and the AGM minutes.
We’re also honored to include a contribution from US Sailing Herreshoff Award recipient Gordy Bowers, and grateful to Rachel Bartel from Harken for her beautiful photography throughout the issue. LINK
Regatta Watch: WSSA Postponed to Dec 2026
MARY B draws a crowd on Lake Monona c 1955. From the Carl Bernard Collection
The Wisconsin Stern Steering Association regatta has been postponed to December, 2026, due to deteriorating ice conditions. The next update will be early December. Check back here at that time. In the meantime enjoy slow sailing while dreaming of iceboating during the soft water season.
Andy Gratton
WSSA Secretary/Treasurer
Regatta Watch: 2026 Northwest Canceled
Lake Winnebago, February 2026.
The Race Committee decided after review of sites and the upcoming weather forecast, that the 2026 Northwest is just not going to happen. The shoreline access is the main site issue, with all locations getting much worse with high temperatures and rain in the forecast everywhere.
Steve Schalk
Secretary/Treasurer
Northwestern Ice Yachting Association
A Winter the Media Noticed
This season, major media outlets rediscovered ice sailing.
A few weeks ago, before the latest storm buried the East Coast in snow, strong ice and clear wind brought the Van Nostrand Challenge Cup back to the Navesink River in Red Bank. The historic race ignited a wave of attention. Reporters from The New York Times, The New Yorker, and NPR took notice of ice sailing. Historic iceboats and clubs filled social media feeds with photos and video. The audience expanded in a way we rarely see.
That attention helps recruit new sailors and preserve historic clubs whose traditions stretch back more than a century. It reminds the public that this is not a curiosity, but a serious winter sport with deep American roots and active fleets from Montana to Maine.
For decades, people have asked: why not the Olympics? In the late 1990s and early 2000s, there were formal discussions with the International Sailing Federation about bringing ice sailing into the Winter Games. Meetings were held. Surveys were conducted. A purpose-built Olympic ice yacht was even considered. The effort ultimately stalled, largely because the Olympics require certainty, and ice does not cooperate on a fixed schedule. Here’s an article about the situation with more detail in the DN Newsletter Runner Tracks: LINK
This season demonstrated that when conditions arrive in highly visible places, the story of the sport travels farther.
- The New York Times – Ice-yachting race on the Navesink River (Red Bank, NJ)
- The New Yorker – “Move Over, Olympics—Iceboating Is the Hottest Sport”
- NPR (via KUOW) – What to know about ice sailing ahead of the North American championship
- WISN 12 News (Milwaukee) – Ice boaters chase wind and smooth ice on Geneva Lake
- FOX Weather (YouTube) – Ice Boater Rich Stearns joins FOX Weather (video)
- CBS News Boston – Ice boaters on Nantucket make most of Arctic blast
- Red Bank Green – FIRST SAIL OF 2026 (iceboats return to the Navesink)
- Nantucket Current (ACK.net) – Video: Nantucket Ice Boating (drone video)
February 28, 2026: B Skeeter in WI
1992 Bob Pegel-built B Skeeter
Clean Boat
Sitka spruce
Great Runners
New Vermont Sailmakers Sail (2025)
Excellent race boat
Road worthy trailer
Southern Wisconsin
$13,500.00
tim@heineconstruction.com
February 28, 2026: DN Components, Covers, and Masts in WI
DN Components and Covers
The finest DN parts in the world are now in-stock and available for immediate shipment in North America. Made by top-level Gold Fleet racers in Estonia. LINK
Contact madmountssales@gmail.com for US pricing. US webstore in the works.
Hamrak Full Carbon DN Masts
End of season closeout of remaining Hamrak IceWise masts in stock in Madison, WI. Models available–one Hamrak 50 and two Hamrak 60s.
Price $3,600 including shipping, VAT and padded travel bag. Hounds also available at additional cost.
Contact madmountssales@gmail.com
SOLD! February 27, 2026: Runner Sharpener in WI
SOLD! Original Tool Craft runner sharpener. Won many regattas for the red and white Skeeter fleet. Own a piece of history. Heavy duty bench included.
$100
Madison, WI
No 4LIYC Racing for Feb 28 – March 1
Unseasonably warm weather across southern Wisconsin has taken a toll on the ice. Many lakes, including Lake Mendota, are now candled with shoreline loss and unsafe for racing. (Some of our members have had firsthand experience with candling on Mendota recently.) As a result, there will be no 4LIYC ice sailing on February 28 or March 1.
Candling occurs when solid ice breaks down into vertical columns and loses strength, even if the surface still appears intact. Learn more about candled ice here: LINK
In the meantime, here is an ice sailing sighting from an unexpected place.
This video captures the Range Rover campaign featuring Daniel Hearn’s C Skeeter running inside the Oculus at the World Trade Center in New York City. The Oculus serves as the main transportation hub for Lower Manhattan, with thousands of commuters passing through each day.
LINK TO VIDEO
SOLD! February 2, 2026: Recreational DN in MI
SOLD! 1970 (estimated) DN
Stainless hardware. Wood mast & boom.
Coldwater, MI
$950 (cash only)
Regatta Watch: WSSA Postponed to March 8-9
Twin-masted stern-steerer with the DEUCE in the background. Oil painting by Harry Whitehorse.
The Wisconsin Stern Steering Association regatta has been postponed to March 7 and 8, 2026. The next update will be Sunday, March 1. Check back here at that time. The Northwest Ice Yacht Association regatta takes precedence.
Andy Gratton
WSSA Secretary/Treasurer
Regatta Watch: Northwest Postponed to March 6-8
We Sure Do!
The Race Committee was unable to locate a suitable racing area that had ice surface conditions and launch access for the Annual Regatta for February 27th. The search continues for March 6th. Next update is March 1, 2026.
Steve Schalk
Secretary/Treasurer
NIYA
Little Brother at the Pickle Factory
Via Pat Heppert from Lake Pepin’s Pickle Factory on the 4LIYC Facebook page:
“If it’s less than 75 sq. ft. and less than a 28-foot mast, they’re all Skeeters.”
Parked next to his C Skeeter DRIFTER, this little blue homemade (aren’t they all? – Ed.) iceboat looks like the kid brother tagging along. With enough wind, who knows.
February 21, 2026: Nite in WI
Nite – complete set up with nice trailer
Hull has been completely restored by S&R, brand new steering, and new wheel, new cushion, new bulkedheads. Harley Davison screaming eagle orange/black wrap on hull and springboard
Custom trailer with new tires
Includes everything…..
Blades/box
Refinished mast in black (aluminum track), black boom, great plank
All New hardware including racing stays, sheet,
Harken Full deck cover in great shape
Quantum Sail (owned by Jimmy Gluek) has a few races, outstanding shape, race battens, new window. Like new #84
Southern Wisconsin
$5950
Jim Tews – (262) 290-0391
Or
Brian Jones 262-239-0961
Battle of the Brands
Both commercials have already made the rounds in the ice sailing world. The Range Rover spot filmed in Minnesota last March with Daniel Hearn at the helm. The Škoda commercial shot in Finland in May with Lukas Zakrzewski driving.
This was simply a good excuse to get the two of them in one photo at registration for the 2026 DN World Championship in Sweden.
Regatta Watch: WSSA Postponed to Feb 28 – March 1
Photo: Maureen Bohleber
The Wisconsin Stern Steering Association regatta has been postponed to February 28 and March 1, 2026. The next update will be Sunday, Feb 22. Check back here at that time. The Northwest Ice Yacht Association regatta takes precedence.
Andy Gratton
WSSA Secretary/Treasurer
Regatta Watch: Northwest Update – Starting From Scratch
Green Lake, WI. Photo Jim Stevenson
The wind did not cooperate or obey the computer wind models this weekend (February 13 – 15.) Nobody got chilly, but the DNs and A skeeters got only two races in, and the Renegades, Stern Steerers and B/C Skeeters only got one. The races sailed are discarded, and we start from scratch starting Friday February 27th.
The locations possible range from somewhere on Green Bay, through Madison and out to Lake Pepin.
Steve Schalk
Secretary/Treasurer
Northwestern Ice Yachting Association
Gallery From Jim Stevenson
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