January 24,25 2004
Saturday - We had two 15 meters sailing until one of them smoked out and broke its tiller-post. Hear it was a spectacular event. A few DN's and a Renegade also sailed, but the drifts were kind of like running hurdles at a track event. Too much stress on boat and skipper.
Sunday -Wow what a day it was. 15-25 MPH winds. We had about 8 DN's, a Sweet-16, an Arrow, a Skimmer, and the legendary Roast Beef all sailing at break-neck speeds. This was not about how fast you could go, but staying in control. The snow slowed us down a bit during tacks and jibes, but there was just so much speed you never had to get out and push. I didnt witness it for myself, but Ryan "Crash" Lashaway said the ole Roast Beef was going faster than the Arrow that day. Around 4PM everyone got cold and tired and began de-rigging. Ah, but we all had one more shot at it on the Skimmer! What a hoot!. Nat Kolling was trying to stay hiked up and got knocked all the way over, giving himself a nice raspberry on his arm. It was pure entertainment. After everyone had a turn (who was nuts enough) we went in to warm up. The wind had now increased to the point that it was blowing the snow off the ice and it was like a great white dust storm out there. Corey Wisniewski suited up again just before dark and made a few more runs on the skimmer before putting it away. We all stood, safe and warm inside and watched and laughed as the little craft shot around the bay, occasionally spinning out. This was not a day for beginners for sure, but a lot of fun for everyone to watch. We also had some cut-throat boot hockey games - gotta practice for next weekend. Click here to see the video of the skimmer in action. (allow time for download).
Thanks to Harold Hoffman for additional photos.
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Sweet-16
Monday 1/26/04- Got a call from Nat Kolling declaring an "Ice Boat Emergency" he said the water was up and any boats within 20 feet of shore would be frozen in if they were not dug out soon. I dropped what I was doing at the shop and headed over to find he was not exaggerating. The snow had drifted around the boats then the water came up and saturated the snow. With the help of John and Eddy Gibson and Ryan Lashaway, we dug out 6 DN's, the front runner of a Renegade and the steering runner of the A-Frame "roast beef". Both 15 Meters had to be put back on their horses. We did pretty well, as we saved almost all the horses, and even rescued Bob Foellers firepit. One of the DN's suffered some deck damage and had its bobstay plate ripped out when it was pulled out of the ice. Mine got one good gouge in the paint when the shovel deflected off the ice.
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