Iceboating

It’s that time of year…. WINTER!

Yea, yea, most of the time boaters don’t really find winter appealing.  But sailors…. that’s a different story.  Not only do many sailors also ski, but sometimes winter also affords one of the most exciting disciplines in the sport – ICEBOATING!

Typically, its hit or miss at Buckeye Lake whether or not we’ll get the right conditions for iceboating.  Not only do you need good, thick ice (safety first!), but in order to go well, you also need smooth ice.  However, for our friends up north at the Toledo Ice Yacht Club and the intrepid year-round residents at Put-in-Bay, iceboating is a regular activity  in the winter.  both Maumee Bay and the inner harbor on South Bass Island currently have good, smooth ice and they’re taking advantage of the opportunity.   Here are a couple of videos of Tom Thanasiu – a year-round PIB resident familiar to many of us at BLYC – sailing his DN iceboat at Put-in-Bay…

Will We Get Good Ice at Buckeye Lake?

It remains to be seen, but the latest ice reports from Doug Stewart suggest that we just might get good, solid ice this year.  Whether or not it’ll have a smooth surface to sail, however, remains to be seen.  But we can be ready!.  Chuck Bendig has an Arrow iceboat, both Don & Steve Harris each have DN iceboats, and there are a few more scattered around the lake.

Time to get the boats out, sharpen the blades and be prepared to get out on the ice?

Iceboating has been a part of life at BLYC since the early days.  CLICK HERE for an article on the history of iceboating at BLYC by P/C Harris.