How do you guys up north do it?

[1956olds]

Ive seen the lights ,crossing lake huron on sleds last year the gf and i coming back from mackinaw island on the ice bridge that was cool with the bridge all lit up at night behind us .

 

[1956olds]

Oh and i freeze the walley i catch ,im going to be reminiscing with a few of them in about an hour with some fresh baked cornbread on the side.

 

[HIRISC]

Winter ≠ summer, but this is fun too.

Lake Gogebic MI - About ready to pull the trigger on a 13 mile run down the lake

Everyone who sleds the U.P. has probably seen 'the bus'.

 

[VTSeaRay]

Im so jealous that you guys have such wide expanses of ice! I love bringing the sleds on the frozen lakes up there and opening them up (pic of my wife in previous post ripping). Down here, the ponds and small, non flowing lakes freeze up, but it has been a very long time since the lake we boat on froze enough to carry heavy weight :-(

We hope one day to retire on Winnipesaukee, and that lake gets nice and frozen I have heard as well.

Enjoy it!! Youre lucky!

And, of course, there's a limit.... This guy thought he'd go out where it couldn't support him. This is on another section of the lake, maybe 8-10 miles from where I was.

 

[VTSeaRay]

Oh and i freeze the walley i catch ,im going to be reminiscing with a few of them in about an hour with some fresh baked cornbread on the side.

Oh my... Walleye! Those are soooo good!

-VtSeaRay

 

[1956olds]

yes they were, so was the cornbread and brussel sprouts .I cooked for gf as i had half day off and she had all day off and cleaned the house.mmmm now for a bit of spar varnishing.

 

[douglee25]

Winter ≠ summer, but this is fun too.

Lake Gogebic MI - About ready to pull the trigger on a 13 mile run down the lake

Everyone who sleds the U.P. has probably seen 'the bus'.

I'll be up there next week! I can't wait!

Isn't that bus near the hot dog stand?

Doug

 

[HIRISC]

I'll be up there next week! I can't wait!

Isn't that bus near the hot dog stand?

Doug

No, I don't think so.

This bus (red dot) is due west from the Gogebic Lodge (blue dot).

If you haven't stayed or stopped at the Gogebic Lodge, it's a worthy waypoint.

 

[VTSeaRay]

Winter ≠ summer, but this is fun too.

Lake Gogebic MI - About ready to pull the trigger on a 13 mile run down the lake Everyone who sleds the U.P. has probably seen 'the bus'.

How thick is the ice there?

 

[HIRISC]

How thick is the ice there?

I'm guessing +/- 18" mid-winter on Gogebic. They have a number of springs on that lake and the ice can be thinner in areas. A bunch of friends and I got onto a soft spot a few winters ago - lot's of yelling over the 2 way radios.

Great for sledding, though I've rarely seen trucks on Gogebic.

In MN, people are driving cars/trucks all over the lakes. :wow:

 

[douglee25]

No, I don't think so.

This bus (red dot) is due west from the Gogebic Lodge (blue dot).

If you haven't stayed or stopped at the Gogebic Lodge, it's a worthy waypoint.

Nevermind, we're in totally different areas. I'll be up at my friend's place in Nevin's Lake. I'm due East from you about 200 miles. Nevin's Lake is between Melstrand and Grand Marais.

Doug

 

[Westie]

When the boats put away for the winter I strap on my skiis and head out for a tour of the nearby mountains.

 

[VTSeaRay]

I'm guessing +/- 18" mid-winter on Gogebic. They have a number of springs on that lake and the ice can be thinner in areas. A bunch of friends and I got onto a soft spot a few winters ago - lot's of yelling over the 2 way radios.

Great for sledding, though I've rarely seen trucks on Gogebic.

In MN, people are driving cars/trucks all over the lakes. :wow:

It was about 14" or so thick ice where we were skating, there are springs and river mouths here that you have to be aware of. I know where most of them are. Where we were skating it's about 180' deep or so, so little chance of a spring affecting us there, closest river mouth is about 3-4 miles away. About where that truck went thru another person went thru there last year, and wasn't so lucky. They found him a month or so later. It's not real deep there, but deep enough, maybe 14-20' if I recall.

 

[VTSeaRay]

When the boats put away for the winter I strap on my skiis and head out for a tour of the nearby mountains.

Very nice! I also hit the mountains near me with skis and snowshoes, but they aren't quite that tall!

 

[Days away]

I do alot of maintanance in the winter,engine rebuilds run through my outdrives work the wood over and by mid march im down on Lake Powell(Bullfrog marina)
I am just about ready oh boy oh boy I cant wait :smt038 :grin: :thumbsup:
Haveing two boats and two jetskis is a full time job
Plus the canoe

 

[HIRISC]

Nevermind, we're in totally different areas. I'll be up at my friend's place in Nevin's Lake. I'm due East from you about 200 miles. Nevin's Lake is between Melstrand and Grand Marais.

Doug

Probably some great snow over there. The farthest East we've sledded is Iron Mountain.

Enjoy and ride safe.
:thumbsup:

 

[1956olds]

The hot dog stand is west of paradise mi.I cannot find my pics though or id post the bra tree thats next to it!

 

[billandamy]

And, of course, there's a limit.... This guy thought he'd go out where it couldn't support him. This is on another section of the lake, maybe 8-10 miles from where I was.

lol...yea, people do push the limits of a frozen lake! I dont think Id trust anything heavier than a sled unless it was a truly cold winter!

 

[AKBASSKING]

The ultimate snowmachine race : The Iron Dog. This is a 2000mile + race from Wasilla to Nome back to Fairbanks.....

Now to include ladies...so cool:thumbsup:

Women team up to run the Iron Dog snowmachine race

[FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF][SIZE=-1]By MIKE CAMPBELL[/SIZE][/FONT]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]mcampbell@adn.com[/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]

[/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF](02/17/10 23:06:05) [/FONT][/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Shane and Tammy Barber have been together 18 years now, 16 as a married couple. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]But next week, the pair will have new partners as they pursue identical goals. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]On Sunday afternoon, Willow riders Tammy, 35, and Jana Pevan, 29, will punch the throttles of their Polaris Dragon snowmachines, zoom across Big Lake and become the third all-woman team to start in the pro division in the 2,000-mile Iron Dog, the world's longest and toughest snowmobile race. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Shane, meanwhile, will hook up with new partner Aaron Loyer for his eighth race from Big Lake to Nome to Fairbanks. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Was there ever much consideration of a husband-and-wife Barber team? [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"We couldn't do it without killing each other," Tammy said with a laugh. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]The history of women's teams over the race's 26 years is more short story than tome. In 1997, Lisa Luther and Laura Bedard, now the race's executive director, formed the first all-woman team to start in the pro division, reaching the halfway point in Nome before scratching. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Four years later, Missy McClurg and Jackie Page became the first women's team to cross the finish line, finishing 15th. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"I'm really excited about that (the prospect of becoming the second women's team to finish)," Pevan said. "That's a lot of the drive for us -- and maybe getting more women involved in the race." [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Compared to the media frenzy Danica Patrick's NASCAR debut ignited in recent weeks, the gender-shattering accomplishment by McClurg and Page was barely noted. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]And while Patrick commands the bigger stage, is there any doubt which race is tougher? The Iron Dog trail pierces some of the toughest terrain on the planet, often in sub-zero temperatures with the driver doubling as pit crew. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"Out there, you're not going to have your garage or your pneumatic tools," Page said. "When you drop a screw in snow and it's hot, good luck finding it." [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]No matter their gender, Iron Dog racers face formidable odds. In many years, more racers scratch than finish, victims of the relentless pounding, mechanical failure or a small miscalculation that leads to disaster. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Page, 39, said she and McClurg spent years training before making their bid. Most mornings started with a 200-mile training run before Page clocked in for work at First National Bank. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"Women can do this race," Page said. "By time we did it, I could pull apart a sled and put it back together overnight. You're not going to call a pit crew in the middle of the Alaska Range. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"But I don't know how many people told us before the race we couldn't do it." [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Barber and Pevan have spent much of their free time -- and with three children apiece there's never much of that -- riding the race trail as far as Puntilla Lake this winter. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"We've been out there so much, I think I'm married to (Barber) more than my husband," Pevan said [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Some of their early runs were difficult. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"It took us forever to get up the (Susitna) River," Barber said . "We had to fix our sleds on the trail, which actually turned out to be good learning experience." [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Pevan was happy just to be out there, able to ride. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]During a June softball game, she slid into second base and caught her foot on the bag. "My ankle went pop and exploded," she said. Bones broke. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Now a 6-inch plate with five screws holds the ankle together. Workouts couldn't resume until November. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Although Pevan has ridden snowmachines since she was 5, she wasn't a racer. In fact, Pevan was a sprint dog musher for nearly a decade before having something of an epiphany. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"I like going a little bit faster than a dog team seems to go," she said, "and snowmachines require a heck of a lot less maintenance." [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Barber, on the other hand, has raced snowmachines for 13 years, winning the women's division of the 100-mile Valdez Mayor's Cup three times, competing at Arctic Man and going Outside for Michigan's famed I-500 race. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Now, as word spreads of their Iron Dog bid, anticipation grows. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"It seems like everyone is so excited for us," Barber said. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Even Shane Barber. His advice to his wife: [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"Don't break anything," she recounted. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]And what happens if Tammy triumphs over her husband? [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"If I beat him, he's in trouble," she said. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]She is gratified by her husband's support -- encouragement that Page wishes she had gotten before her 2001 race. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"My boyfriend at the time, he was pissed," she said. "Both of our men were mad because, I think, they wanted to do the Iron Dog themselves. But we both had put in the miles. They were like babies about it." [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]But on the trail, Page said, she got nothing but support and encouragement from racers -- particularly John Faeo, who's tied with Scott Davis of Soldotna for the most Iron Dog victories. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"Faeo is a little angel on the trail," she said. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]Page's and McClurg's 15th-place finish put the women ahead of Polaris drivers Jack Bronner and Mike Lindeen, who brought up the rear. [/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1][FONT=VERDANA, ARIAL, HELVETICA, SANS-SERIF]"Jack told us, 'You girls need to slow down. You're going too fast. I just could not pass you,' '' Page said. Pevan and Barber will earn more than pats on the back if they make it to Fairbanks. In an effort to lure more women to the Iron Dog, race organizers are offering $2,000 to the first all-woman team that makes it to Nome, and another $2,000 for the first to reach the finish line. That alone equals the prize money for eighth place.[/FONT][/SIZE]

 

[douglee25]

I'll tell you what, riding 100 miles or 150 miles a day on a snowmobile is a killer. I can't imagine riding 2000 miles!

Doug