Even as we wait to get back on the lake, ice sailing shops have been keeping busy. The DN Western Region ATV gets a complete make over thanks to 4LIYC Skeeter sailor, Ken Whitehorse.
Via 4LIYC Commodore Daniel Hearn:
Not sure what it is about ice sailing that attracts people with little use for idle time and a penchant for ingenuity, but the sport is flush with such individuals. In Madison, Ken Whitehorse matches the profile perfectly. I always call him Kenny. Probably because it feels to me more fitting for his youthful spirit. He’s one of those guys who is older than he looks, with the same mischievous sparkle in his eyes that I see in my grandson. And a head of hair worthy of a rock star. Honestly, I don’t know Kenny well, but I know he’s got a huge heart. If it were not for Kenny, we wouldn’t get to see PK (Paul Krueger) on the ice ripping it up anytime 4LIYC is in action.
If you’ve ever been to Kenny’s shop, you’ll learn instantly that he is also Madison’s MacGyver. The “Past Champions Iceboat Shop” is housed in a building that used to be a Whitehorse Body Shop. Back in the day, I’m told it was stuffed with race cars, when the bill-paying cars were pushed out of the way. Now it’s stuffed with decades of ice sailing gear, each with a unique story Kenny would be happy to tell. And various motorized vehicles seemingly close to successful ignition, but just not quite there yet. Kenny has a very impressive “To Do” List.
I am certain his personal list would be shorter, if he weren’t doing stuff for others all the time. Over the last couple weeks he’s created the DN Western Region ATV Version 2.0. Thanks to Kenny, this machine will now be the envy of the ice sailing world. V2.0 is sporting a shiny new muffler, even though a local dealer told us it couldn’t be replaced. And that 4WD that wasn’t working? A new switch assembly made the orange 4WD indicator light shine like a Christmas tree. With the remaining maintenance items addressed, it was now time to macgyver. First up was the hitch. It’s always been kinda janky, so Kenny welded up a heavy duty reinforcement bracket. Even for “that-hurts-my-back” tongue weight, the hitch is now good-to-go. And for the “don’t-kid-yourself” tongue weight trailers, the Kenny Tongue Jack Sled, which he created last season, now has a rock-solid place for attachment.
Not satisfied with just rear-end upgrades, Kenny MacGyver decided V2.0 needed a combination boat pusher and fold up scoring table on the front end. This machine is now MONEY! If you’re a DNr, buy Kenny a PBR the next time you see him. If you’re not a DNr, buy him a PBR anyway. You’ll be particularly grateful when V2.0 shows up to push you back to the pits when the wind dies.
The Wisconsin Skeeter Association President, Ken Whitehorse, has been doing everything to find ice for the Skeeters. He thought he had a site lined up on Lake Petenwell in central Wisconsin with the prerequisite bar and restaurant at the landing, but “nothing fickler” came into play. Looks like Madison area lakes received another dose of snow yesterday meaning we wait for the big Zamboni to roll through again. I’m in Stockholm, soon heading to Latvia for the DN European Championship. The weather over here isn’t making it any easier either.
The Wisconsin Skeeter Racing Championship Race is called off. The Director of Competition, Tom Hyslop advised me to evaluate the smoothness of the racing surface. The surface is race worthy provided there is light wind velocity. However the racing surface is more than 1 1/2 miles out. We would need a safety committee and vehicles. This is a mammoth lake and there are very few sports people on it. Today people drove their trucks all the way across. 12″ to 14″ of ice is the report. If the ice surface were closer to the shore and the Lure Restaurant launch site you can bet M-197 and M-165 would be rippin’ it up this weekend. Let see what happens during this week. Fair winds to all!
-Ken Whitehorse
Ken WhiteHorse problem solving the DN Western Region ATV
Via Ken WhiteHorse:
We had the Western Region DN ATV at the Past Champs ICEBOAT shop for repairs. I was just about to cut out the flux capacitator with the blow torch when 4LIYC Renegader and DN racer Chris Gordon walked in with battery boosters and various electrical analysis gadgetry. He says, “Hold your horses there WhiteHorse!” He started at the battery and worked his way forward, testing for open circuits, fried wires, and relays. Within an hour, he found the problems! We turned on the key, and yes, the lights came on! Pushed the green button ✅ yes, the starter engaged! The powerful Ka-ma-sa-ki! rice burner fired to life on the second revaluation! Even so, I still recommend replacing the flux capacitator in the very near future. Ken WhiteHorse, PAST CHAMPIONS ICEBOAT SHOP
Via Daniel Hearn:
I didn’t know our talented DN World & North American Championship photographer, Cathy Firmbach, could also wax poetic about something as utilitarian as our racing marks. Oh, what an interesting group we are!
But, man, are we rough and tumble. Talk about taking a beating! In spite of Pat Heppert’s efforts to protect the stoic fixtures, they took on more damage than a fraternity house during rush week. Delta, Delta, Delta pledges, no doubt, as they were clearly the recipients of excessive hazing. Good thing we have a bunch of handy types here in the Western Region. We’ll get them patched back together before our next rodeo.
Chris fluxing the capacitators.
You may have also heard that the Western Region ATV decided to check out during the events, as well. Thanks to Kenny Whitehorse, with help from Chris Gordon, our chariot is back in business, and better than ever. A faulty winch switch fried a couple of fuses. Our machine was dead on the ice in the middle of the lake. A super cool ice fisherman loaned us his ATV to tow our wounded sled back to the pits. We thanked him with a case of beer the next day. He said, “Mama enjoys a cold Lite by a warm fire!”
K. Whitehorse Enterprises insisted that I come over to inspect the work in progress. Fortunately, the fuses saved the wiring from further damage. With most of the plastic off, we agreed it was the perfect time to put on a new muffler. Current muffler has a sizeable hole, and a local shop wouldn’t fix it last year when their mechanic couldn’t just slap on a direct replacement. (Ever wonder what happened to problem solving? They don’t seem to make Kenny Whitehorses and Paul Kruegers these days!) We’re also going to drill a hole through the plastic into the air intake, so we can easily squirt some starting fluid, if our machine is ever grouchy on a particularly cold morning.
Many thanks to Ken and Chris for donating their talents and expertise. I’m going to meet up with Kenny on Friday at the “Past Champions Iceboat Shop” to help with reassembly and to sweep the shop floor. It’s always good to align tasks appropriately with skills!
Jim Smith, Ken Whitehorse, Steve Schalk, Mary Jane Schalk
Better late than never! Ken Whitehorse presented the 2022 Wisconsin Skeeter Association B Skeeter trophy to Steve Schalk of the Skeeter Iceboat Club yesterday on Lake Kegonsa. The 2023 ISA and Renegade Championship begins today. Follow the action and scoring here.
Paul Krueger M165, Ken Whitehorse M197, and Bill Mattison M143. Class A Skeeters, c. 1980s
The subject of sailing on Lake Koshkonong, about 30 minutes south of Madison, came up recently on the 4LIYC Facebook page. Koshkonong looks inviting as you drive past. It was a reasonable question to ask, why not Koshkonong?
Well, 4LIYC members and other ice sailors just “know,” and here’s how:
C Skeeter sailor Pat Heppert remarked, ” When I lived in WI, I spent years driving by and checking it. So tempting many times when it looked like glass ‘from the road.’ But whenever you walk it, all sorts of WTF problems show up. I finally gave up and concluded Koshkonong is just not meant for iceboats. The root source of the problem is the highly variable water level, which causes all the subsequent problems.”
The definitive proof came from a Mattison-Krueger-Whitehorse adventure on Koshkonong back in the 1980s.
Ken Whitehorse:
Ken, Bill, and PK
There was a big setup area. PK and I went tearing out to the lake. We saw spring bubbles to port and starboard. It was a gauntlet of spring water bubble-ups, like aerators. There were so many we could only turn around once we found a big area. As we sailed back to shore, we couldn’t follow our old runner tracks too closely because we had already busted through the ice on the way out. Bill Mattison said he was ready to push off and shook his head. ” I tried to tell you guys about this place, but you guys shamed me into it. “But How Would You Know”
We had a 24′ rake back mast, so we only needed 3 to set up the Skeeters. We considered ourselves so fortunate to get out of there that no one said a word about it as we went into the smoky tavern for a dipper.
