As winter lingers, some outdoor lovers look for new ways to enjoy the cold. CBS reporter Noel Brennan heads out onto frozen Geneva Lake in Wisconsin to try a different kind of boating — one that runs on ice instead of water. When the fish aren’t biting, these sailors chase the wind.
Local veteran Rich Stearns keeps his craft ready each season. With the ice a foot thick, his sledlike boat — fitted with three steel runners — is primed to glide. From Chicago, regular rider Jerry Ring drives up to climb aboard. At 79, Ring admits he’s an adrenaline seeker; nothing beats the thrill of a lightweight hull, razor runners and no brakes as the lake blurs beneath you.
Iceboating has Dutch origins but was quickly embraced in America. Even Theodore Roosevelt owned a large iceboat and sailed the Hudson. Today, skippers race in classes designed for various boats, and the power of a good wind is astonishing: iceboats can reach up to five times the speed of the breeze, translating into speeds on par with a highway.
Drivers swap stories about top runs — Ring’s GPS once logged 72 knots, roughly 80 mph — but you don’t need a record to feel it. Runs of 50 mph are common, and the combination of speed and silence across hard, smooth ice delivers a unique rush. Some participants come for the spectacle, watching sleek hulls flash past stately lakefront homes while crews and onlookers enjoy the winter scene.
Whether racing or cruising, iceboaters chase the same prize: clean, cold wind across open ice. When the call goes out to go iceboating, enthusiasts answer, so long as the lake holds its freeze. Noel Brennan, CBS News, Fontana, Wisconsin.