Some good videos and stories here to while away the time until the snow melts….

At The Front – February 2021 (adobe.com)

All but the very youngest of us (Milo) had blackboards in school. Some of those boards were green. Randy Rice found a beautiful stretch of perfect mirror-smooth Green Ice. Take a look as it will be under a white blanket of grr show soon. We look forward to hearing from Randy when Winni and the surrounding lakes come back into play.

When sailing is not an option, most of us can’t help but skate, walk, or ski on or around our favorite local bodies of water. The Covid grip has pushed us to explore smaller venues closer to home. Even if not sailing, I have not been disappointed in the wonderful winter scenes.

As veteran DNers and former NEIYA commodore, Eben Whitcomb said to me after returning from a skate recently, “it’s nicer outdoors”. Till our ice returns get out there and enjoy what the cold has to offer us all.

Think Ice,

John
DN5023
John@neiya.org

Frosty, Karen, T, Ron, Rhea – Great day of practice!

Hello,

After six straight days of sailing, I woke up this morning with my brain was saying…"I am Living the Dream." My joints were saying, "Stop! Please!"

Yesterday, David Frost, Rhea Nicholas, and I had the incredibly benefit of an on the ice private coaching day with James "T" Thieler and Ron Sherry. Two of the very best….

We set up marks, the breeze filled to 10-12mph, and the drifts seemed a bit smaller. Scratch racing, switching boats, and mark rounding practice all afternoon. During Nationals my mast inverted several times during tacks. That is not fast because you have to bear off a ton and let out a lot of sheet to get it to pop over. I am sure that allowed for boats to zoom by me a few times. So, I asked Ron for tacking advice.

He broke down how he tacks and said I was probably tacking too fast. Ron heads up very gently/slowly. Then scoots forward, bends his knees, eases his body and his head under to slide under the boom, uses his knee to push the boom over to help the mast to rotate, then let’s out a TINY bit of sheet. As soon as the sail fills he straightens his legs by pushing hard on his steps and pulls the sheet hard back in. It worked. I was easing way too much sheet and going into the tacks way too fast. My tacks improved dramatically and no more mast inverting.

So, then I asked him about gybes. At the speeds we were going during Nationals, I felt my boat was floating a bit during gybes so I avoided doing too many gybes. That also probably cost me a few boats in various races. Ron said he does not let out any sheet when he gybes. He scoots forward, gets under the boom, and gybes. Boom. It worked. I felt my boat was staying down on the ice and I felt much safer.

The highlight of yesterday was beating Ron and T in a two-lap race. Maybe they started late. Maybe they were taking it easy. I don’t know. I raced really well and Ron’s tips were extremely helpful. I hope they will be to you, too.

Fun day as the picture shows. Today was a no wind day so no sailing. Joints are happy. We are here in northern Michigan for a few more days. With snow predicted everywhere else in the next few days maybe we are in the perfect spot to sail more.

Cheers,

Karen
DN 5630

Sorry for the late post but was waiting for some additional intel. The late returns did not pan out but I was ever hopeful. Hopeful that there would be some choices in other states but New Hampshire. We are out everywhere but NH. There was scouting on Winni but the results were not great and or require further scouting.

Wentworth is back in a limited way but it has been sailed over the past couple days. And what appears to be the best game in town. There are frozen drifts ranging from 1/2 to 3 inches in depth and firmly anchored to the surface ice.

Think Ice and be safe,

John
DN5023
John@neiya.org

Before you go:

• Be aware of and adhere to all local, state, or federal regulations.
• If you have any symptoms get tested and be negative before you go. If in doubt, stay at home!.
• Practice Social Distancing – Easy gauge, the length of a DN plank is eight(8) feet.
• Keep congregating and socializing in the pits and parking areas to a minimum.
• Wear your mask or face covering while setting up, transporting gear to and from your car or trailer, and while setting up.
• The NEIYA will NOT be holding any official after ice activities so plan accordingly.
• Let’s all be safe and keep the safety of others in mind in everything we do.

16F felt so much warmer than yesterday’s 2F and despite a forecast for light wind, it piped up quickly once we walked a mile out to the plate. The race committee hoped to get in three races for the gold and silver fleet, but with changing wind direction, blowing snow, and huge puffs each fleet was only able to do one race before racing was halted for the day and the regatta called completed. When asked about the racing conditions T said "Hurtling down the downwind leg was equally exhilarating and terrifying! It’s a fine line."

Congratulations to James T. Thieler for placing 4th overall after 9 races, Ron Sherry for placing 1st, Chris Berger for placing 2nd, Eric Smith 3rd place and Steve Orlebeke for his 5th place finish. View the results http://iceresults.org/dn/2021NATIONALS.htm

Here are the conditions on the ice when racing was called due to conditions. This picture does not do it justice. YOU HAD TO BE THERE!

A huge thanks to the race committee for three days of difficult and freezing conditions!

See you New England soon,

Karen Binder
DN 5630

At the launch this morning the thermometer read 2F, but the wind was 0 mph. Racing was delayed for quite some time. By 11:00 am I noticed a head stay telltale flying straight out and said as much to a few guys in the pit, but no one was convinced. So, the guys gabbed and I forged out to plate. It’s about a 1.5 mile push through snow and very rough ice. It’s exhausting.

By the time I reached the sailable ice, the wind was definitely blowing a steady 10 mph and the race committee was just setting the windward mark. That gave me a lot of time to get settled and set up before others arrived. After one lap I was happy with my runner choice, but saw dark clouds and snow showers on the horizon so switched to my ABSS sail. A good call as the wind just got bigger as the afternoon progressed and at times racing was delayed due to white out conditions and marks falling down. T felt the wind was a steady 15 mph with gusts in the 20s. With blowing snow, he said the conditions were not for the faint of heart.

All of that made the racing really really fast. I thought yesterday was the fastest I’d ever gone in my boat, but today I reached a new kind of speed downwind. I felt like my boat had a jet engine and it was going to go insanely fast whether I wanted it to or not. It almost felt like it was ready to lift off the ice and fly. While I was working hard to race well, I didn’t focus too much on my place in the fleet. I took it as another good day to work on sailing in big wind. My last race was my best race, but I still lost two boats on the last downwind leg. ARGH. I did hear a few guys comment on how challenging the conditions were and so for me to stay in control, finish all the races, and beat a few gold fleet boats made for another great day of sailing.

A few of us at the end of the racing said out loud to each other how fast we all felt and then just shook our heads in disbelief that the top guys (Ron, Chris, T, Steve, JR) still finish a leg in front of us. How fast must they be going?

Tomorrow has us doing three more races to wrap up the Nationals. The wind is predicted to be light.

Cheers, Karen DN 5630

Sometime yesterday there was a collective sigh heard amongst the New England iceboating community. The white stuff has fallen across our region covering up some of the best sailing this season.

In case anyone needs a reminder about taking advantage of good ice as soon as it’s available. Bantam came and went in a matter of a few hours yesterday. Sailors set up early sailed and marked the hazards and a couple hours later they were forced off the plate due to accumulating snow. The wait continues.

Let’s post some first hand info into the comment section below or if you prefer our Forum. https://theneiya.org/forum/

We are sorting through rumors of areas of ice that have missed the brunt of the snow. With a little luck some people could be sailing for the weekend or sooner.

Think Clean Ice,

John
DN5023
john@neiya.org

Hi folks,

Today was the first day of Nationals with 52 competitors traveling from as far as North Carolina, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Florida, and New York. Black Lake is located in Northern Michigan and the lake is large. The day had big winds with gusts to 20 at the start of the day and the temperatures hovered at the upper teens. Snow was whipping around and the pitted ice made sailing pretty exciting. T and I arrived early on Sunday and managed to practice both days. Given the limited sailing back east, it was nice to have two solid days on the ice before the racing began.

I squeaked into the gold fleet after finishing 12th in the qualifying race. For me, today was about sailing with confidence in big wind which has always made me very nervous. I started with my heavy 90 degree inserts and my flatter sail. I surprised myself with solid starts by sitting more back in my boat and hiking a bit until I was two blocked. I made good lay line decisions both upwind and downwind, and my mark roundings especially at the leeward mark were at good speeds but always in control. In one race I had a great start and rounded the top mark in 5th place just behind T, but what I am learning in the gold fleet is that these really experienced gold fleet sailors just ZOOM-ZOOM away while I watch from behind and wonder why?! It must come down to better and constant sail trim both upwind and downwind. T said he is constantly playing his sail. I tend to lock in and let her ride.

By the 3rd race I felt I could sail a bit faster so I switched to my 95 degree inserts. The wind was fading a bit and that was causing big slow-downs when hitting the drifts. That really helped a lot in my other races. Yes, my finishes are still at the bottom of the fleet. But given the very challenging wind and ice conditions I definitely sailed the fastest I have ever gone in my boat and I had a lot of confidence at those speeds. Last year, I remember being terrified in big wind. Today, frankly, it was a total rush.

More tomorrow!

Karen Binder
DN 5630

It’s on!

https://www.idniyra.org/2021/01/23/2021-u-s-nationals-called-on-for-black-lake-in-michigan/

Although completely snow covered on arrival this morning lake Sunapee showed herself in fine form today. Some uncommonly brave new sailors inhaled their first ice chips at speed and a light gaggle of cold blooded veterans got a handful of mother natures rowdiest winds coming down from the northwest. I overheard one sailor say they measured a gust of over 40mph and I heard others say they were ringing the bell at 40-50mph at speed…. and that is on 3/4” of hardening snow base! Crazy. I’ll forever recall the 80’ snow contrails blazing up from Kate Marones runners as she looked so calm at the tiller. An amazing day.

First, the good news…. nobody got hurt. We did have a couple of cartwheelers and a bit of hardware was pushed beyond its limit but we all made it back to the pits with pre Covid type ear to ear smiles. The bad news is that toward early afternoon it became inherently unsafe. More like vicious. Survival mode for those without storm sails. So in light of higher winds forecasted for tomorrow (gusts high 40’s) I can’t say in good faith it is wise to sail at all. We were not able to race today as it was way too sketchy and tomorrow will be worse. I for one don’t want to break my boat so I will not be there.

Stay tuned to this NEIYA homepage. Word has it new ice is forming on the big lakes and the forecast looks to be settling nicely after tomorrow.
Elbows in!

Contact me if you lost a single black rubber ice gripper.

VC Jay Whitehair

The latest and greatest…. stay tuned

https://www.idniyra.org/2021-us-nationals/

Our VC Jay Whitehair will be sailing on Lake Sunapee tomorrow Saturday, Jan 23rd. Launch from State beach park. Excellent space for parking and setup. There are hazards so check with those who have been out before venturing on your own. Launch info below.

Plenty of room for all to cruise and there will be some marks to round as well.

Speaking of marks we have not given up on some regular regattas but the complex web of Covid regulations is making a difficult process even more complex. More on that later.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir//Mt+Sunapee+State+Park,+86+Beach+Access+Rd,+Newbury,+NH+03255/@43.3428806,-72.1317978,12z

Lake Wentworth remains good but there are active hazards so be careful. Check with locals. No word on Monomonoc in Rindge NH but will post as soon we know.

There are BIG winds forecast for the region so be careful out there people.

Think Ice, Sail Fast, and Be Safe

John Stanton
NEIYA, Commodore
john@neiya.org

Covid-19
While we are all anxious to get out and sail, especially as our season begins, While Covid-19 is still amongst us, we MUST all practice Enhanced Personal Responsibility. Basically, take the personal responsibility that we iceboaters already practice and turn it up a few notches.

Before you go:

• Be aware of and adhere to all local, state, or federal regulations.
• If you have any symptoms get tested and be negative before you go. If in doubt, stay at home!.
• Practice Social Distancing – Easy gauge, the length of a DN plank is eight(8) feet.
• Keep congregating and socializing in the pits and parking areas to a minimum.
• Wear your mask or face covering while setting up, transporting gear to and from your car or trailer, and while setting up.
• The NEIYA will NOT be holding any official after ice activities so plan accordingly.
• Let’s all be safe and keep the safety of others in mind in everything we do.