Sounds like the Maine-iacs had a good day on Great Pond!

Great Pond 3/21

Hello All- if you are interested in de-quarantining this weekend take a look at the CIBC site…

https://iceboat.me/2020/03/20/sailing-possibities/

Every year brings change to all of us in the ice boating world. For me, I noticed that some of my happiest moments out on the ice this season came when I spotted new sailors. One thing that I noticed right off was that each and every one of them were smiling ear to ear. I well recall my first experiences on the ice under sail, lots of minor mechanical fails, a couple of bumps and bruises, and then of course the first feeling of rush…. wow! now how do I slow this thing down!! Ice sailing is always such a thrill. It does not matter what class you sail, whether you build your own boat, or have just purchased the oldest or newest boat in the fleet. It does not matter your skill level, beginner or sledgehammer racer…. it’s all about the smiles, the fun, being out and about in the fresh air, and of course the great company!

As the 2019-2020 season winds down its a great time to think about the new sailors of next year. Who can I share this game with? What kids can I invite into to the fold and how can we get them up and running for first ice of next season. I hope to see some new young faces out there and I pledge to finally get this loaner DN out on the plate for anybody to try when we cross paths…. I hope you will connect with me and bring some young folks out too!

I’d like to recognize Rosemary Pope (seen here with her father David) for being among the youngest pilots in New England this season! I know she had other family members on the ice too but she went whizzing by so fast I couldn’t get many details!

Also spotted out on the ice were the Atkins family with some notably young skippers – hopefully next year we can grab a photo or two?

On the deck of the pink boat is a well familiar face to many at this point – that’s Bella Langley! Her program has been supported by her father Brian who many know as an extraordinary builder of many fine ice boats. We hope you’ll see them both on the ice again next season and if you have questions about getting started they are wonderful connections to make!

For the sailor kids I missed in this post get ready for next season… and if you see my camera out for goodness sake slow down so I can take a snap or two and collect some details!

Here’s to the new sailors of 2020-2021

Jay Whitehair
Vice Commodore – New England Ice Yacht Association

Have to see these! Click and take a look- Shamelessly stolen from the Four Lakes Ice Yacht Club website- Many thanks!

Ben Franklin’s Ice-Boat Drawings – iceboat.org

This is amazing. Deb Whitehorse has done it again- She has delved into the archives of God Knows Where and found out that Ben Franklin and John Adams had the iceboat bug. Well, Adams maybe not so much….

Click and read, this will blow your mind.

When Ben Franklin Ordered Iceboat Plans – iceboat.org

John Pepper writes in with a cool tech tip- if you have a boat that is on the heavy side to lift read the description and check out the photos-

Seems like the sailable ice is out of range for me, it was a good season.

Maybe this can be the first tech tip of the building season??

Here is something I used the last time out. My Skeeter plank is overbuilt, so lifting was a chore. This helps. It worked on the springboard too. Not sure the minimum number of blocks needed, but might be workable with double blocks vs the triples I employed. It needs to have lots of rope, and start essentially flat, this just barely cleared when sitting on the chocks. The cleat held it up and was easy to lock and unlock.

I may integrate the blocks, using the plywood legs as the block housing for a future and flatter version. It would look spiffy with maple sheaves set into a series of slots in the plywood. I can send sketches.

Regards,

John

Check out this little puff coming over the hill in Baikal….

https://www.iceboat.org/2020/03/17/may-the-wind-take-your-troubles-away/

Sounds like the annual expedition to Lake Baikal is a little less than ideal this year.

This makes sense if you think about it; after about ten near-perfect years in a row it seems like a less than optimum one was due. Sailors and iceboaters know not every day can be perfect!

That said, the gang seems to be making lemonade from the lemons they’ve been given. Unpredictable winds and less than perfect ice will not ruin the party!

That said it sounds like coronavirus may be cutting it short as some sailors are pulling the plug and heading for home before quarantines take effect, borders close and airlines start cancelling more flights.

Ugh. We live in interesting times indeed.

But here is the latest in Mike Bloom’s own words!

“Yesterday is why you travel to Baikal. When the winds called the Baikal Beast exceeded 17m/s [33 knots. Just have to point out that a New England sailor wouldn’t flinch.] and racing was cancelled.

I was invited to visit the Stupa on the big island out in the lake. So I put on my spikes for a 7 km walk in winds so strong it could blow us off our feet.

Dedric organized the day and we were joined by his wife Alexandra, Chris Berger and Marci and two other Dutch sailors both named Hans.

A Stupa is a religious structure containing the remains of Buddhist monks and is used as a place of meditation.

The shape of the stupa represents a Buddha, crowned and sitting in meditation posture on a lion throne. But a local guide said the stupa may represent the five purified elements: land, water, air, fire, and sun.

We honored the Buddhist tradition of circumambulation which is an important ritual of walking three times around the Stupa. As a result, Stupas have a path around them.
We also left a small token at the alter. Surrounding the Stupa were many prayer flags. Being there was a moving and spiritual experience.

We then walked back to the ice and walked to the tip of the island to view a famous rock outcropping in the shape of a dragon.

From there we walked around edge of the island to seek shelter as the winds really picked up. We stopped in a beautiful spot with an amazing view of the lake. The rock outcroppings were covered with ice and Dideric and Marci surprisingly produced a bottle of Baikal vodka and glass shot glasses. We all briefly spoke about how fortunate we are to sail in Baikal and to be together with friends from around the world.

We drank a toast to Mark (Doctor) Christensen and then a separate toast to fun and friendship.

As we started the 7k/m trek home suddenly four dirt Buggy’s were heading straight for us. They were incredibly loud and appeared to be having way too much fun. Turns out they were sent by Jörg to find us.

After a couple of high speed 360’s they stopped and offered three of us a ride to see some ice caves, mountain goats and another large spiritual rock shrine. So without hesitation Hans, Hans and I jumped in. After all, what could go wrong traveling at freeway speeds on a sheet of ice in dirt buggy’s driven by a bunch of crazed iceboaters!

Some three hours later we were back on shore for the regatta’s international dinner. Each sailor brought food from their home country.

Jorge brought eel. Hamrak brought salami and herring. Jost brought bread and sausage. Marci made delicious American baked beans. The Swiss brought Cheese and chocolate while I have no idea who brought the rest.

After a very fun dinner the music started, as did the dancing. Young and old joined the festivities and international boundaries were no longer relevant.

Sailing continues today. The ice has gotten slightly better. Not sure about the wind though.

I made the difficult decision to join Berger and Marci and return home today. Air travel out of Irkutsk is getting difficult. European borders are being closed to foreigners. My airline reservations keep getting cancelled. Many others have already left.

My trip to Baikal was everything Ron Sherry, Jörg and Dideric promised it would be. The people, the culture, the geography is indescribable. It was truly a remarkable journey. One I will remember forever.

Think ice.

Mike Bloom

Chris Berger and Marci had this on the table five minutes after racing f was called off.

The trekkers…

Party in Siberia

Dragon head rocks

The Stupa

Bohn and Bloom

Gretchen Dorian was on hand out at the DN NA champs this year- Her work has been posted at last! If you are under quarantine and need to pass some time or if you are just a fan of really good ice boat photography take some time and have a long look!

Day 1
https://www.idniyra.org/2020/03/16/north-american-championship-photo-gallery-day-1/

Day 2
https://www.idniyra.org/2020/03/16/north-american-championship-photo-gallery-day-2/

Day 3
https://www.idniyra.org/2020/03/17/north-american-championship-photo-gallery-day-3/

Day 4
https://www.idniyra.org/2020/03/17/north-american-championship-photo-gallery-day-4/

Congrats to Ed Demerest on his new hot-rod style DN! He just picked it up late last week and was able to take a spin on Great Pond last Sunday.

He reports that it has a whole different ride and feel compared to his original DN and he can’t wait to get it on the race course next season- we will be helping him get it tuned up in the off season.

You may recognize the hull- it was sailed for a season by Peter Mcgowan before we lost him to a rare illness just about a year ago. Seeing the boat back on the course will be a great tribute!

It’ll be good to see Ed making his way up the results too!

Stay tuned…

Saw some very tasteful art on the side of a U-Haul trailer in RI this morning….

Mike Bloom just sent an update- looks like a feast or famine situation there…. From not enough breeze yesterday to 10 meters per second today! That’s just shy of 20 kts to those of us on this side of the ocean. Anyway they are delayed for a little while until things calm down a bit.

Hang in there Mike! Good conditions will arrive soon…