Boat U.S. - March 2009 - (Page 64)

meets. Here’s where people get started. Tune-up banter hums along while old gear and boats are sold or traded. Master craftsmen are there, able to furnish a custom or production iceboat, or a kit for do-it-yourselfers. Sherry quit sailmaking after 15 years and now runs Composite Concepts, building iceboats, masts, and more, with a deep commitment to apprenticeships. All you need is a roof rack; he’ll supply a racing machine ready to accelerate you well over 50 miles per hour. Ice boating is filled with well-known names from mainstream sailing and boatbuilding. At 19, Tom Woodhouse practiced on Hudson Bay with Meade Gougeon’s younger brother Jan. In the ’60s, Gougeon Brothers Boatworks laminated wood veneers with epoxy. Their West System brand was the first effective moisture barrier easily applied over wood, and fiberglass — a revolutionary development in the boatbuilding world, a seismic shift in the realm of ice boats. The fuselage weight could be cut in half, becoming stronger, faster, more portable, easier to sail. The Gougeons built hundreds of DNs, and Saginaw Bay and Detroit’s Lake St. Clair were covered with ice sailors every weekend. “I haven’t missed a North American Championship in 50 years,” says Gougeon, who, like most ice sailors, is pro racing as it’s safer to sail where regatta organizers survey wind, weather, and ice conditions. “There are no brakes,” he explains. “To stop you have to come head-to-wind, and you need lots of room.” Bumpy ice surfaces bring suspension into play. In sailing, the centerboard resists sideways motion. In iceboating there are runners. The faster you go, the less runner blade (centerboard) you have on the ice. In a turn, or Iceboating Links: www.idniyra.org www.iceboat.org www.nsibyc.com BoatU.S. Magazine January 2009 on a heel, you fly a runner. The speed limitation depends on how well you engage runner with ice. Ron Sherry loves the sport so much, in addition to DNs he also builds — are you ready? — ice Optimists for kids. “Anyone who tries it will love iceboating. The sport prepares you for life. You must know the rules, the preparations, and your competition. If you focus, the details get you through. There’s a network of scouts and hotlines. Everyone is welcoming,” he says. Jeff Brown holds the GPS world record of 62 miles per hour on a free skate — a windsurfing sail mounted on a board with blades! “If only I’d had more room,” he laments, “I could’ve gone faster.” This winter, devotees — including my family — have been hitting the ice on boats, boards, and skis, outfitted with sails, kites, and wings, using many of the same skills needed for traditional sailing. My first time iceboarding was to impress my then-boyfriend, on New Year’s Day 1999. Alex told me he’d been hooked as soon as he’d felt the adrenaline rush of a smooth acceleration in the bracing open air and he’d reached 40 miles per hour, knowing there were no brakes. Now that we’re married, I stare across our little lake in New Hampshire, pondering the merits of a two-seater Nite, with its enclosed cockpit, our own little bubble, a thermos of tea in my tummy. It was Buddy Melges who sweetened me on this idea — “It’s real cozy, isn’t it?” Indeed, Buddy, it is. Trixie B. Wadson is a freelance writer, photographer, and publisher of the annual art and literary journal “Balancing the Tides — A Newport Journal.” Think Ice, by Lloyd Roberts and Warner St. Clair Ice, by Mariana Gosnell The Twisted Web, by Tom Grace Ice devices, sailmakers, arctic ice, etc: www.wissa.org www.kitewing.com www.conceptair.com www.wissa2009.org Further Reading: http://www.wissa.org http://www.idniyra.org http://www.kitewing.com http://www.iceboat.org http://www.conceptair.com http://www.nsibyc.com http://www.wissa2009.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Boat U.S. - March 2009

Boat U.S. - March 2009 Contents Reader Forum Boat U.S. Reports What’s New In The Brew? The Perfect Paint Job Launch Into Spring Boats Gear Wheels One Mom, Two Teens, No Exit So, Nigel Had This Idea Ice Devices It Was A Club Of Their Own Expanding The Boating Universe Tech Connection A Case Study In Getting Results Let’s All Do This Together Classifieds Member Benefits/At Your Service

Boat U.S. - March 2009

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