NIYA

Northwest Ice Yachting Association An iceboat regatta first sailed in 1913 in Menominee, Michigan.

Stern Steerers

The NIYA was originally a stern-steerer regatta organized to determine ice yacht supremacy in the Midwest. A,B,C,& D stern-steerers continue to compete in the NIYA.

Skeeters

Class E Skeeters first raced the NIYA in 1936 when Lake Geneva sailor Harry Melges won in MICKEY FINN.

DN Class

Skip Boston of Detroit was the first winner of the NIYA in the DN class in 1954.

Renegade

First sailed as a seperate class in 1958 and won by “Mr. Iceboat”, Elmer Millenbach.

NIYA Centennial

The NIYA celebrated 100 years of iceboat racing in 2013 on Green Lake in Wisconsin.

2020 Northwest Ice Yacht Racing Association Information

March 13-15,2020
Lake Waconia, Minnesota

iceboat.org On the Road: DN North American Championship Day 2

Time lapse video from Jeff Kent’s 40 hour journey from Boston to Montana. Jeff and his traveling partners Charlie Blair of Martha’s Vineyard, MA and Bernd Zeiger of Kiel, Germany drove nearly non-stop and completely avoided winter storm Jacob with a wide rounding maneuver. 

The scorers practicing counting boats on the line.

A quick update before heading to the launch. Our caravan pulled in to the hotel at 9 PM Sunday evening. The winner to the race to Montana goes to Jeff Kent and crew who arrived a few hours ahead of us. The drive was fairly uneventful with a few miles of black ice to deal with in Minnesota. We stopped near sunset at Keelboat Park on the Missouri River in Bismark, North Dakota to let it sink in that we had reached the west.  Heading to the launch in an hour and will update later.  At breakfast, Peter Johanson, IDNIYRA Vice Commodore Jody Kjoller, and Trey Rose appeared after having driven straight through from the Toledo area. They stopped at the launch before coming to the hotel and planted the TIYC colors.

One giant step for the Toledo Ice Yacht Club.

Regatta Watch: ISA, Northwest & WSSA Postponed


Via ISA & NIYA Secretary Steve Schalk:

Green and Geneva are both wide open with only a little ice in the east end of each, so there is hope in two weeks. No place to go for January 24th. Both regattas are postponed until January 31, February 1 – 2, 2020. Next update Sunday, January 26, 2020.

WSSA Postponed:

The Wisconsin Stern Steering Association regatta has been postponed to February 1 and 2. The next update will be Sunday, January 26. Check back here at that time. Perhaps Green Lake or Lake Geneva will be ready by then.
Andy Gratton

WSSA Secretary/Treasurer

iceboat.org On the Road: DN North American Championship: Day 1

Go West

We were somewhere around Alma Center on the edge of the snow line when the coffee began to take hold and the wireless hotspot was strong enough to post. We should make Montana sometime tonight, Glasgow to be specific, population 3300. Lewis and Clark traveled within 15 miles of our sailing site on Fort Peck Reservoir, which has to be another first for an iceboat regatta.

ice sailing is not new to Montana nor Ft. Peck. Canyon Ferry is legendary for ice boating but this will be the first major regatta west of Minnesota. Our ice sailing friends in Montana, John Eisenlohr, Dave Gluek, and Dale Livezey have given advice and done some legwork that will result in a bunch of hardcore ice sailors converging on a 350 square mile sheet of ice. Fort Peck DN sailor, Tim, has scouted ice in brutal temperatures. Thank you all, for everything and for the adventure.

With apologies to Hunter S. Thompson, every now and then when your life gets complicated and the weasels start closing in, the only cure is to load up a pile of 440 stainless and then drive like a bastard from Madison to Montana with the music at top volume and at least a pint of ether (for the lock de-icer.)

All official information on idniyra.org.

 

Patience

Fort Peck Reservoir: Waiting for the show? 

The snow storm that rolled through the Four Lakes area is now headed east to temporarily cover up any sailable ice they may have. In the good news department, Joe Norton, the Admiral of Green Lake, WI, reported on his Facebook page that the  “west end of big Green is still open! East end may blow out if wind comes up. We may have dodged a bullet!”

Co-PRO Joe Norton, event chair Daniel Hearn, myself, and the rest of the race committee of the DN North American championship are patiently waiting for confirmation that some of the only ice in North America is suitable for the regatta. If it happens, we’ll experience some serious seat-time as we drive to Fort Peck Reservoir in northeast Montana, a 15 hour drive from Madison (longer than a flight to Europe!) DN sailors from Nova Scotia, the east coast and beyond are driving west, taking the gamble that it will all work out. They don’t want to miss being part of something historic, the first continental iceboat regatta ever sailed in Montana. Where ever we go, I’ll post my personal updates here. Following along at the IDNIYRA and New England Ice Yacht Association websites.

 

From the Archives: “Downwind to the (New York) Frozen Apple”

Shown here from left to right doing their best to make the ordinary extraordinary are: Don Ermer, Don Sanford, Steve Arnold, Lady Liberty, Ty Reed and Ken Kreider. 

Ken Kreider, who raced Skeeters with the 4LIYC back in the day and now lives in Marinette, WI, called and reminded me of this story written 11 years ago by 4LIYC Nite skipper Don Sanford. It’s Monday, the lack of ice has kept the club from racing, and there’s more snow is in the forecast which means it’s the right time for a mood lifter. The photo has become an iconic part of our club history.

Some of you are wondering why and how the Statue of Liberty rose from Lake Mendota’s ice. “The original statue made its debut in February 1979, fulfilling a campaign promise from Pail and Shovel Party candidates to bring wackiness to UW–Madison’s Wisconsin Student Association if they were voted into office. After claiming victory, party leaders Leon Varjian and Jim Mallon spent $4,000 to construct the statue’s head, crown, arm and torch on frozen Lake Mendota, creating the illusion that Lady Liberty was rising from the lake’s waters.” Read more.

Downwind to New York the Frozen Apple

By Don Sanford c. 2009

Thirty Years ago this week, five members of the Four Lakes Ice Yacht Club (4LIYC) sailed from Madison to icebound New York City (this was in the era of global cooling) on an ice-checking mission and a once-in-a-lifetime photo opportunity.

 

As I recall, 1979 had not been the best for local conditions. Midwestern iceboaters were desperate for some sailable conditions. In that pre-internet and pre-cell phone era, rumors had been flying about a huge glacier that had formed just east of Madison, covering the entire landscape right to New York harbor. The air at that week’s meeting of the 4LIYC was thick with the possibility that perhaps there was some good ice to be found “out East” if only someone could get there to check it out and report back. By the second (or third?) pitcher that night, a handful of us realized that the fate of that season’s regatta schedule was hanging in the balance. Regatta officials Bob Pegel and Paul Krueger needed a scouting party and we were it!

 

The long-range forecast called for a generally northeasterly breeze, cloudless sky and a full moon for a couple of days. We realized that we had our window. We stuffed our coverall pockets with some trail mix, beef jerky, a few cans of beer, a flashlight (for nighttime sailing), and other choice provisions we could trade with the locals we expected to meet on the way out and back. Then we strapped on our creepers and just after dawn, pushed off down icebound I-94 towards the towering ice sheet that loomed just west of Milwaukee.

 

Of course none of us had ever sailed uphill, so climbing up on the glacier around Pewaukee was tricky going. Once we were “up top” we found ourselves in a fine northeast breeze and crossed Lake Michigan on a close reach. That ice was at least a 10, maybe 11. Years later we’d call those conditions “Hollywood Ice,” but that’s a story for another day. Most of Indiana was maybe an 8. I recall that we got up into a hike just east of Milwaukee that lasted almost to Toledo. Just thinking about sailing downwind for 300 miles on ultra-perfect ice makes my goggles fog. It was the longest downwind leg of my life.

 

Crossing into Ohio and through Pennsylvania, we were wishing we could trade our Nites and the Renegade for the plush accommodations that could only be found aboard the stern steerers Mary B, Fritz or Ferdinand the Bull. Those big boats with their 30+ foot runner planks deliver the Cadillac ride, but they weren’t an option for this trip. The ice covering Pennsylvania was rough, barely rating a 5 on anyone’s scale. And getting around some of those hills… Talk about shifty. It was worse than the narrows at Lake Geneva.

 

For a time we considered making a few tacks and sailing a bit upwind over Syracuse and up towards Oswego, both buried far below the glacier’s surface. Our fate was sealed though when we picked up a huge puff that carried us out of the Catskills and towards the Hudson Valley on a screaming reach. Bearing off and sailing ever deeper downwind, we began to make out the twin towers of the George Washington Bridge in the distance. No traffic jams on the bridge that day for only the top 30 or 40 feet of those grand granite towers rose above the ice. A quick jibe sent us around the top of the Empire State building. Then, with just an hour or so of daylight left, Lady Liberty herself came into view. We were spellbound. Luckily I remembered a camera and snapped this image.

 

OK, if you believe that one, perhaps you’d be interested in one of the remaining choice lots an uncharted island on the other side of Lake Mendota with a Capital view…

 

Here’s the rest of the story.

 

In February 1979 an astonishing sight appeared on Lake Mendota when the top of the Statue of Liberty emerged through the ice. She quickly became a celebrity in the local media. But many of us knew that something else was required to make her a real sensation. 4LIYC members know that no wonder on the ice, natural or not, is ever complete without an iceboat or two nearby. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Don

Regatta Watch: WSSA Postponed


Via Wisconsin Stern Steerer Association Secretary Andy Gratton:

he Wisconsin Stern Steering Association regatta has been postponed to January 25 and 26. The next update will be Sunday, January 19. Check back here at that time.

Regatta Watch: ISA Postponed


Via International Skeeter Association Secretary/Treasurer Steve Schalk:

The ISA Championship Regatta is postponed to January 24th, 25th and 26th 2020. There are no sailable locations at this time. There are many sites with open water that will freeze after the upcoming snowfalls. The Northwest Regatta takes precedence now that both are scheduled on the same weekend. Next update is on Sunday, January 19, 2020.

Regatta Watch: Northwest Postponed


Via Northwest Ice Yacht Association Secretary/Treasurer Steve Schalk:

The Northwestern Ice Yachting Association Championship Regatta is postponed to January 24th, 25th and 26th 2020. There are no sailable locations at this time. The weather forecast is snowy, but there are many of our regular sites with open water ready to freeze, hopefully after the snow. Check back on Sunday, January 19 for the next update.

Pepin Update


It was a cold day on Lake Pepin. Temperatures climbed out of the single digits late morning but the sunshine and blue skies made it manageable. Several Minnesota DNS arrived and explored the lake. Daniel Hearn spent the morning reassembling and reattaching his C Skeeter bubble which had flown off the boat on Friday. (Most iceboaters can relate to the hotel room surgery photo below.)We set up some marks for some scrub racing. The wind was moderate, maybe 7 – 8 mph. Enough to keep everyone happy. We’ll enjoy one more day in Lake City tomorrow before heading back home.

 

No 4LIYC Racing Jan 11 – 12

Not Home Ice

We are still waiting for the ice to appear here in the Four Lakes area. Kegonsa and Monona are in various states of ice and open water and a snow storm is on the way. We’ll know more after the storm.
Meanwhile, here’s the current view of Lake Pepin from Lake City, MN. The ice has not been sailed yet. Will report more later on the particulars.

 

Pepin Pop Up Regatta Jan 11-12

2019 ISA on Lake Pepin in Lake City, MN Photo: Steve Brown

Mayor Mark and AmericInn Host, Justin are rolling out the red carpet to have us back this weekend for what we’re dubbing the Pepin “Pop-Up” Regatta…unscheduled, unsanctioned, unscored…and undeniably among the best ice sailing venues anywhere!

 

Does it have a sail? Does it have runners? Does it have a loose nut at the helm? You’re in! Just show up and have fun. We’ll scrub race, trade secrets, tell stories and test the ice for a possible ISA and/or DN North American Championship. If the stars aligned like that, wouldn’t that be unbelievable!?

 

Here are some pictures and a description of the ice conditions yesterday, January 7, 2020.

Ramp could use more ice, but 15 feet out 5-6″ thick. At 50 – 100 ft. out, 8-9″ thick. No pressure ridges as far as I can see. Pretty smooth. I can bring the 4LIYC ramps and Deb can bring the DN Western Region ATV and trailer.”

 

It’s subzero there right now, so the landing will be even better and the ice even thicker. Small amount of rain in forecast for Thursday, which should help Zamboni the decent ice we have already. Temps. in mid to upper twenties Saturday and Sunday with winds 10 – 15 mph.

 

Justin has even offered an under-the-radar rate of $75/night at the AmericInn just down the street from the Lake City Launch. So pack your long undies and call the hotel at 651-345-5611 and book your room.

 

Doesn’t this sound like one that would be unfortunate to miss?

Unofficially Signed,

Daniel Hearn
US 5352
R 506
M-177

Greg Whitehorse Nominated for 4LIYC Honor Roll

Greg Whitehorse sailing his Renegade BLADE RUNNER on Lake Monona

At the last 4LIYC meeting, Greg Whitehorse was nominated for the club’s Honor Roll, something that was long over due. Besides sailing and building ice boats nearly his entire life, Greg has been designing our 4LIYC graphics for many years. He also wrote a club newsletter for a while, peppering it with his  wry sense of humor. In your internet travels, take some time to read or re-read The Blade Runner where you will find the finest writing about ice boating anywhere.

Jerry Simon and Greg McCormick nominate Greg Whitehorse to be inducted into the 4LIYC Honor Roll. Greg has been an active club member for over 40 years and has served as Commodore or Vice Commodore on multiple occasions. As club historian, Greg has collected, maintained and preserved club records, artifacts and memorabilia.

An active racer with a long history in both the skeeter and Renegade fleets, Greg competed against and chronicled the stories of the sports greatest champions. Greg highlighted the victories and losses and penned tales of triumph and tragedy in his newsletter: “The Blade Runner.” Greg captured (in real time) races, events and conversations that would have otherwise been lost or forgotten.

Greg has generously shared his artistic talents, creating several club logos in the form of patches, hats and glassware, all promoting the 4LIYC and the sport of iceboating. Greg’s contributions to the sport will be appreciated for generations.

Regatta Watch: WSSA Postponed


Via Andy Gratton WSSA Secretary/Treasurer:

The Wisconsin Stern Steering Association regatta has been postponed to January 18 and 19, 2020. We need some January weather to achieve thickness, not more of this April weather. The next update will be Sunday, January 12. Check back here at that time.

Andy Gratton

WSSA Secretary/Treasurer

Regatta Watch: ISA Postponed

A Class Skeeter Photo: Jann Klin

Via International Skeeter Association Secretary/Treasurer Steve Schalk:

The ISA regatta is postponed until January 17-19, 2020. Check back on Sunday, January 12, 2020 for the next update.

4LIYC Sailing & Ice Check Update

The 4LIYC Bloody Mary Eye Opener Trophy – Ready for 2021

There will be no 4LIYC racing or Bloody Mary Eye Opener race for January 1, 2020 because we are still waiting for the ice to come online. The club may check ice on Kegonsa Friday, January 3, 2020 so stand by for news.
In the meantime, revisit the history of the infamous Bloody Mary Eye Opener from the venerated 4LIYC newsletter, Runner Tracks, written by Greg Whitehorse in his story, “Krueger Kops Kegonsa Klassic“.