When Minnesota lakes start to freeze, lots of equipment comes out of hiding. US321 took advantage of Tim Oelschlager’s US5050 heated underground garage to mount hardware to a new plank. Hopefully, the epoxy will kick in time to scout ice for the first event of the DN calendar, the DN Western Challenge (Dec 2-4, 2022). The DN Western Challenge is an annual informal fun regatta on the best sailable ice in Minnesota. Keep your eye on the Minnesota Ice Sailing website.
Minnesota DN ice sailing is in the good news of the week.
“The speed and acceleration is what keeps me coming back,” says Mike Miller of Mound. Miller has spent the past 20 winters racing iceboats. “It’s a great way to keep the sailing season going. We always get bummed in the fall when we’re packing up our “soft-water” boats, but as soon as that season ends, another begins.” Continue reading.
“Minnetonka, Minnesota DNers sailed Sunday, December 14, 2020 on a lake called Whaletail, just west of Mound MN. 10 boats had a great day scrub racing in 15 mph wind on lightning fast black ice. It’s been a while since any of us had gone that fast!”
As we wait for news of the first unofficial regatta of the season, the Western Challenge, it’s a good time to review one of the earliest and best DN videos ever made by Minnetonka’s Peter Crawford of Head Injury Media/Penalty Box Productions. It’s of a Western Challenge at Buffalo Lake in 2005. Via iceboating.net:
Currently we are checking ice. We have a lake in Albert Lea that looks like it will work. We are checking Buffalo today to see whats left after the snow.
Expect an update on Wednesday December 11.
Any help checking Albert lea is appreciated.
DN Regatta Fri,Sat,Sun
Skeeters Sat,Sun
Please report any new freeze. I know Pepin was water on Sunday.
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