iceboating.net Minnesota Ice Sailing Association

since west postponed. if. if green lake west end freezes tonight? + and quite cold. sail there mon tue wed before snow? thurs. then regatta? whos in. looking for someone retired or iceboat flu. to travel with. tom meyer

Daniel Hearn, Area Commodore DN Western Region
Dear Ice Sailors:

Are your runners sharp?

The smart money says we will sail the DN Western Regional Championship regatta this coming weekend, January 6-7, 2018. Several sites are being considered, including Minnetonka. Keep an eye on DN North America (http://na.idniyra.org/) for details. Think Ice.

The 4 Lakes IYC's Grand Slam Fun-Regatta scheduled for December 30-31, 2017, has been called OFF due to "frostbite inducing temperatures."

The actual air temp this morning in Cotton Minnesota was a negative 41 degrees. International Falls, the nation's ice box, was a mere negative 36. Minnetonka was a balmy negative 4.
But, to quote the old adage, it's not the heat its the humidity. Erie Pennsylvania received a total of 34 inches of snow on Christmas Day shattering the city's previous single day snowfall record. Erie then picked up another 24.5 inches of snow on Tuesday, bringing the two-day tally to a record breaking 58.5 inches.

The December 2017 issue of the IDNIYRA's official magazine, Runner Tracks, is now out. Read it at: http://na.idniyra.org/runnertracks/
Think Ice!

Before we talk about Sun, today was just awesome. Nites, Skeeters, DNs, Kites, Ice surfers, Skate sails and skaters all took advantage of a rare day. Simply spectacular!
Sunday promises to be excellent as well, if your schedule and family permits. Some boats were pulled today but several sailors plan to sail Sunday morning. All are welcome. But, be careful. There are several working seams on the main lake. I recommend you stay in Tonka Bay and Guideans Bay. Both are as good as it gets. Never sail alone. Wear ice claws. Enjoy!

The fun continues. This is the 7th(!) consecutive week of iceboating in Minnesota. It won't last forever. Get that boat out on the ice. Tonka Bay and Guideans Bay remain excellent choices. If you sail anywhere else be sure to scout the ice. Never sail alone. Wear ice claws. Enjoy!

Several of us are moving down the lake and setting up Friday about noon at the fire lane next to Harry's house. The plan is to scout the main lake with hopes of scrub racing there. We can always sail back up to Tonka Bay if the main lake is not safe or if it's too rough. First boats on the ice must scout the main lake. The main lake has not ben sailed or scouted. Nobody knows if the ice on the main lake is safe. SCOUT THE ICE BEFORE YOU VENTURE OUT. Never sail alone. Wear ice picks.

Conditions look very good, barely any small snowy patches, very few pop-up ice houses. One small open or late freeze up area (maybe 50ft x 50ft) NW of Coney Island. Launch at DNR ramp on NE side of lake along Hwy 92 at Hwy 155. Warm up at Vandy's Grill (11-9 T-Th, 11-10 Sat, 11-2 Sun) at Island View Golf course a couple miles south of launch on Hwy 92.

Monday was a ton of fun. We saw serval Nites, two pocket Skeeters, Maloney with his vintage skeeter, an awesome looking J-14 and 8 DNs. Many have committed to sail again on Tuesday starting at 1 pm. Join us. The ice is awesome. Launch at the ramp at Wehkota Beach and Park just west of Tonka Bay Marina or park on the road on the west side of the park and carry onto the ice. We have been asked by the City of Tonka Bay to keep cars and trailers of off the sand beach. Please respect their wishes. Also, do venture beyond Tonka bay or Guideans Bay. The rest of the lake is not safe.

The forecast is for decent wind so many DN'ers plan to sail Tonka Bay on Monday. Call in sick, take a vacation day, quit your job or retire. This could be the day of sailing you've been waiting for. Scrub racing starting at about noon. Sailors of all abilities are welcome to join us. Launch at the ramp at Wehkota Beach and Park just west of Tonka Bay Marina or park on the road on the western side of the park and carry onto the ice. Stay in Tonka Bay. The lake is not safe and has not been scouted. Never sail alone. Wear ice picks.

Meyer and I walked from Sunrise Pt, halfway to Gale Island on really nice ice.3.5-4 inches thick everywhere. 5 + inches at landing we are going to use. Wehkota Beach and Park. Right next to Tonka Bay Marine. A small access allows us to back trailers on the ice. Park vehicles in the circle drive. If it gets crowded, park on the other side of the park on the road. It’s a short carry to ice. Ice has a few scattered pieces of snow. Most are no issue. The largest ones have 2.5” snow, easy to steer around or blast-em.

silver and tonka which froze sun night with no open spots. meyer and miller to scout fri. if tonka bay not safe silvery should be

Our epic run of consecutive weeks of sailing now stands at 5! Several DNers and Drifter, sailing his C Skeeter, spent a good part of Sunday back up on North Long Lake in Brainerd. We scrubbed race till 1 pm and then called it a day as the wind gradually turned off. The DN's stayed off the ice on Saturday so the big kids racing real iceboats could compete in the Western Skeeter Challenge Regatta. Local sailors dominated the event. Highlights include Drifter winning race three over the heavily favored Dennis boat. All three Minnesota Skeeters finished on the podium.