iceboating.net Minnesota Ice Sailing Association

Temperatures as they are around the midwest, there's the possibility the Nite Nationals will be sailed nearby this year. The scheduled dates are January 13-14. It's hoped that many of the local Minnesota Nite owners who enjoy their cruising will sail.

Class website: www.pyc.org/nitehome.htm.

Also, first-time Nite racers may find this article helpful in boat tuning and racing rules: www.pyc.org/PutYourRaceFaceOn.pdf

Just a general question. Do you guys strictly race only one-design classes? If someone shows up with an odd iceboat are they allowed to race ... even if it's only academic? If allowed, are the odd boats just an irritation to the one-design classes?

All I have at the moment is an Isabella style boat. My next boat won't be any one-design boat either.

Thanks,
Dave

Cool Story, Good Pics.

On Line Copy: On Line Copy:

I followed the link but had to search "iceboat" to find the story

4695

Update Tuesday, Dec. 11:

From Iceboat.org (Madison, WI):

The Grand Slam Regatta has been postponed until Dec. 30-31st because of lack of conditions. Final confirmation will be on Thursday, December 28. Please mark your calendars. We have adjusted the race schedule to accommodate our out of town skippers. Saturday's racing will begin at 11:00am Sunday's racing will begin at 10:00am and will finish around 1:00pm. All fleets are welcome and the entry fee is only $10!

Races 1-5 are now available on the Kattack web site www.kattack.com. If you already have the player, they should just show up at the top of the list. If you don't have the player, you can download it once you've registered on the web site - it's free(www.kattack.com).

We didn't have GPS units on all boats, only a few from each fleet. Maybe next event we can get more.

Top boat speed on Saturday went to Ron with a peak speed of 51.8 knots.

Hint: The player was designed to replay "softwater" sailboat races and replays the races at 10x clock speed. This makes the iceboat races go pretty quick. You can slow things down by stopping the races and single steping forward and backward using the buttons on the bottom of the screen or the spacebar and "GreaterThen" & "LessThen" keys.

All in, A RECORD 61 DNers launched the 2007 North American DN Season in Minnesota... and for the second time in event history, with a turn perhaps only iceboaters would understand...have risen before dawn, broken camp and moved 50 people and boats 180 miles south to better ice and forecast; all in less than 12 hours, half way thru the event.

Legends of Iceboating were abundant in both boat parks, and on the starting lines, 6 or so past Continental or World Champions, Standing tall among them 5 time former world champion Jan Gougeon from Bay City MI, and Jeff Kent, setting the driving record at 1750 miles one way! Leading in everything but the 4th race, Current World Champion, and long time supporter of the Great Western Challeng Regatta Ron Sherry,

The Great DN Western Challenge Regatta shall start in Sturges Park, in Buffalo, MN (MN 25 South of Monticello... the first lake on your right).

11:00 start... as is customary the first boat set up at the launch site shall set the windward mark.

ask about the short course experiment

4695

This is a pretty cool weather site that sent to me yesterday by one of the photo shooters who'll probably be catching some of the action this weekend at the Great DN Western Challenge Regatta, home of the Hottest Ice on Earth!

Aviation Sports Weather

Looks like everybody's going to get enough of everything they're coming for.

Ice!

4695 the IceMaker

Update
Fergus Falls, Mn
Saturday 8:00pm
In a move that would only make sense to iceboaters... we're moving the regatta to Buffalo, MN... Sturges Park, MN Hwy 25 Buffalo, MN

Start, Race 1 11:00 don't be late...

Consensus wake up calls for 0500, boat tear down in Dead Lake, Shuffle off to Buffalo, and get together an do it again. Hmm. coffee, personal hygene, xx min 25 min to the launch, 30m min for boat tear down, a tank of gas, a little food, 3 hours in the car, half hour to set up... leaves about nine minutes to sail out to the course and check the wind.

As alway... sailors of all abilities are welcome at minnesota ice sailing event.

I work for a guy who has a cabin on the big peninsula that divides the east and west arms of Dead Lake. A friend and I have Nites and are driving there Fri. to do some sailing and watch the regatta. There are two extra beds available and a big living room if anyone wants to crash on the floor in sleeping bags. 50 feet to the ice. There's also a boat ramp on the east side of the peninsula. It could also be used as a place to warm up during the regatta. -Craig Young, Nite 483 Hudson WI 651-261-3196 biplanes.forever@earthlink.net

I hope you all are up for some camera time this weekend, as we will be shooting footage on and off the water er...uh..ICE!. I will have a few cameras on the race course and will be looking for interviews with as many of you as possible over the course of the regatta.

I am in talks with a few networks about a 6 episode series titled "Frozen Adrenaline" The Quest For the DN World Championship Title. If we arent going to do the show I will be turning the project into a documentary film so either way a great project is in the works that will benefit the sport of iceboat racing, more importantly DN iceboat racing! I hope to gather some incredible footage this weekend, so your support is greatly appreciated. Don't be shy!

You're sick of hanging around and you'd like to travel...

Might as Well...

You know all the rules by now
and the fire from the ice...

Takes time - you pick a place to go
and just keep Truckin on...

We need a travelling sound track for all you guys coming up for the regatta, we'll try to get something put together...

:) Who else, the Grateful Dead, for our Dead Lake Regatta Sound track.

4695

We're expecting a huge event, unprecedented indications of attendance from sailors around the world, Join us in Kicking Off the 2006/2007 North American DN Season

Intial feedback from sailors, 65 have confirmed they expect to be on the ice, 5 or 6 Europeans, an Aussie skiff sailor, 6 former Continental or World Champions ... we expect it to be a great fleet, great event on great ice.

If you're planning on sailing, please advise... we have things to plan that really require something of a head count.

Restating pertinent details as they currently stand... no change from Now ammended Notice Notice

I am pleased to announce the 2006 Great DN Western Challenge Regatta is ON. Starting Dec 1, 2006, the primary site is changed to Collins Landing, West Arm Dead Lake, Maine, Minnesota

The lake was sailed by 3 gold fleet sailors on Sunday Nov 26 who characterized the site and ice as "Sweet"

Given we're have four frozen lakes also under observation, that are potentially suitable and a now very favorable forecast (I don't know what that really means in the face of a major iceboat regatta) We're pretty darn sure it'll be Epic.

The event headquarters is the Fergus Falls MN Best Western Motel, 925 Western Avenue, Fergus Falls, Minnesota, 56537-4803, Phone: 218-739-2211 Fax: 218-736-2533

I'm a reporter with the St. Paul Pioneer Press and I'm interested in doing a story about ice boating in Minnesota in general and about the Great Western Challenge Regatta next month. I'd like to talk to some Minnesota sailors. Can you give me a call at 651-228-5560 or e-mail me a number and a good time to reach you? Thanks.

Richard Chin
Staff writer
St. Paul Pioneer Press
rchin@pioneerpress.com