There’ve got to be 50-100 ice boats flashing across Lake Monona today. One of my co-workers tells me that the boaters operate something like big wave surfers. When conditions are right, the word goes out and everybody flocks to the “perfect” lake. Apparently this lake had a partial thaw which took off the snow, and then a re-freeze to make a smoother surface.
Rumor has it they may move over to Lake Mendota tomorrow, which is much larger.
I’m jealous. Smooth back ice with a nice breeze is ideal. And yes, they will flock from all over to find the best conditions.
Years ago I lived in Madison and had a bit of a go at ice sailing, but did more ice boarding - windsurfing on the ice. A basic iceboat like a DN can get up to 40mph without too much trouble. Ice windsurfers can do the same or more. Really high performance ice boats can hit 100mph.