Recently, Deb Whitehorse sent out a membership renewal reminder. The IDNIYRA By-laws define the membership year as November 1 through October 31st and only members in good standing may vote on Association affairs, per the IDNIYRA Constitution.
In the last column in Runner Tracks I said that we hoped to have simultaneous postal votes on the EPIC Agreement in North America and Europe this November. The new IDNIYRA EU is now operational and accepting memberships, so the simultaneous postal vote will happen! You should expect to receive ballots about the second week of November and will have to return them to the IDNIYRA Secretary on or before 29 November. Note well, to be counted, your ballot must be back to the Secretary, not just postmarked, by 29 November. This is a shorter turn-around than normal for postal ballots so that the result of the ballot can be reflected in the 2020 yearbook if the measure passes.
Background: In 2018, the North American and European Governing Committees jointly developed two documents, the EPIC (Established Procedures for Iceboat Competition) Agreement and the Regatta Management Agreement. We then published them in Runner Tracks to enable member feedback. These agreements (published in full at here ), if approved by the membership, would satisfy a several goals:
That we continue to sail the same DN in both North America and Europe
That we organize racing the same way in both North America and Europe
That we strengthen our trans-Atlantic relationships so that the DN continues to be the strongest iceboat class world-wide
That we replace the current Specifications Management System so that we can vote electronically on all matters, including technical specifications
That membership in the class be on the same basis in North America and Europe, i.e., an individual paying a fee to IDNIYRA or IDNIYRA EU.
If a 2/3rds majority of IDNIYRA and IDNIYRA EU member ballots approve the EPIC and Regatta Management Agreements, this will be the last postal vote conducted by the DN Class. Warren Nethercote KC3786 Commodore IDNIYRA
2019 Gold Cup & NA
Read 2019 Gold Cup champion Michał Burczyński’s fascinating account posted on the Ullman Sails website. of how bad luck turned into good luck thanks some help from the DN ice sailing community.
We (the Polish team) had a few days head start in sending our iceboats to the USA, in case of any unforeseen problems. Our equipment got held up at the Paris airport. Our appeals to the shipping company went unheard. And just when things were looking up, our bad luck continued, as the plane which was supposed to bring our gear three days before the start of the Championships, failed to take off because of a malfunction.
We were very nervous. Further calls to the shipping company yielded no results, I gave up and just accepted that my ice boat would not arrive on time. All that was left was to just treat my stay as an opportunity to catch up with other iceboaters and a tourist trip. I tried to borrow an iceboat, just to appear at the starting line and finish the races.
Syracuse man, 68,races in national regatta at Wawasee CHARLOTTE STEFANSKI | The Journal Gazette
When Rick Lemberg moved from Chicago to Syracuse, he was asked by his friends on Lake Wawasee if he had ever tried ice sailing.
It was the most expensive boat ride he ever took.
Now 68, Lemberg is the owner of many boats, including his DN ice yacht, which he races with as many as 50 other sailors at a given time.
“It’s just an adrenaline rush. It’s just like racing a stock car. The speed is unbelievable,” Lemberg said. “And of course the camaraderie. I’ve known a lot of these guys for a long time, and it’s just a huge, international club.”
The race came to him last month, when the DN North American National Championship moved from Lake Indian in Ohio to Lake Wawasee. Continue reading.
INK FREE NEWS – KOSCIUSKO COUNTY’S ONLY DIGITAL DAILY NEWSPAPER
February 22, 2019
By David Hazeldine
SYRACUSE — A crowd of nearly 100 tired but jovial ice boat racers from all over North America and Europe gathered in the Oakwood Resort on Lake Wawasee in Syracuse Friday, Feb. 22, to honor the winners of the 2019 International Detroit News Ice Yacht Racing Association North American Championship Regatta. International DN-style ice yachts are the most popular ice racing boats in North American and Europe. Continue reading
Congratulations to the fleet winners of the 2019 North American Championship: Gold: USA Ron Sherry US44 Silver: Canada Jacek Marzenski KC5247 Bronze: USA Pete Johns US2360
Senior Trophy for Over 50 1st Gold – USA – US44 SHERRY RON
Masters Trophy for over 60 1st Gold – GER – G890 PETZKE HOLGER
Keeper for over 70 (Grand master) 1st Gold – GER – G551 SEEGERS CHRISTIAN
Elliot Sharp Trophy for Top Junior Skipper 1st Gold – EST – C20/US49 MAALIN RASMUS
Meade Gougeon Trophy for Top Woman 1st Gold – GER – G390 FIEDLER ANJA
Thank you to the Race Committee volunteers for dedicating a week of your lives to ensure that over 100 ice sailors from 10 countries had the best racing and social experience possible – Central Region Commodore and Regatta Chair Rob Holman, PRO John Atkins, PRO Bob Schumacher, Vice Commodore Dave Elsmo, Commodore Warren Nethercote (who tabulated and published race results off site – way off site – in Nova Scotia), the scoring, measuring, and weather mark team, and everyone else who helped.
Below is Jane Pegel US805’s North American regatta report:
Good evening iceboaters….
The 2019 DN North American Championship at Lake Wawasee, Indiana, has been completed.
U.S. sailors moved to the front of the fleet—
Ron Sherry won the Gold Fleet and attributes his success to taking time to tune against his son, Griffin, who
placed 18th. Ron previously won the North Americans in 1989, 1991, 1992, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2009,
2010, 2012, 2014, 2017, 2018. Ron won the DN Gold Cup in 1998, 1999, 2002, 2005, 2011. He is a past
champion of the Renegade class and also borrowed a Skeeter to win the Northwest Free-For-All. Ron’s first regatta
race win came when he was twelve years of age and sailing in the Northwest on Mendota. He nipped me out at the finish.
The DN is most popular iceboat in the world. Whether you are a racer or cruiser, your $25 membership in the IDNIYRA helps to promote the art and skill of DN ice yacht construction and the sport of ice yachting on all the hard waters of the world.
