1948 Northwest at Geneva Lake

by | Mar 8, 2017 | NIYA


I came across these photos while searching through the Life Magazine photo archives for the 1962 issue with a Pewaukee Skeeter on the cover. It brought me back to a few weeks ago, sitting on Bill and Mauretta Mattison’s lake side porch with a group of old friends who gathered to reminisce about the stern steerers MENACE, MARY B, and Madison iceboating history. Bill shared the story of the time he crewed for Jim Lunder on FRITZ at the 1948 Northwest and how they won the regatta. The last A stern steerer race was sailed in dimming light at the end of the day. During the race, Bill and Jim sailed into Williams Bay which was not a good place to be sailing an iceboat in near darkness because at that time, ice was harvested there and slabs of ice were piled all over the bay. With a lot of luck, Jim Lunder piloted the FRITZ around the ice blocks without hitting them and made it to the finish line in the darkness. Life’s photos from that regatta are posted here. Northwest regatta winners posted here.

Jim Lunder And Bill Mattison Pushing Their Boat Off To Start A Race
Jim Lunder & Bill Mattison push off the FRITZ
Jim Lunder And Bill Mattison At Northwest
Mattison & Lunder
Evron Kline Photos
Evron Kline photos
2 2 1948 Janesville Daily Gazette
Janesville Gazette Recap
2 2 1948
2 2 1948 2
PROGRAM

1930 & 2002 Northwest Regattas

by | Mar 3, 2017 | NIYA


In honor of the 2016 Vintage Iceboat Show and 4LIYC Annual Picnic, here’s a salute to MISS MADISON, one of the vintage stern steerers that will be set up along with MARY B, MENACE, and other iceboats. MISS MADISON, built around 1927, was the last “Madison style” that Bill Bernard ever built. The Hudson River style of ice yacht, such as the MARY B, ultimately proved to be a faster design. MENACE is also a Madison-style stern steerer.