Ice sailing

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Ice sailing on the Müritz

When ice sailing is on frozen rivers and lakes sailed , with very high speeds can be achieved because of the very low friction on the ice. As in sailing in general, there are many different types and classes of boat, some of which differ significantly in their shape and size. The best known and most widespread ice sail sledge is the DN sledge developed in the 1930s.

history

Ice sailing on the Müggelsee , Berlin, 1929

The origins of ice sailing are in 17th century Holland, where sailors looked for a way to use their boats on frozen water. The first ice sailors were therefore small cargo sailors with runners mounted on their flat underside . With these simple means, a possibility was created for the boats to continue to sail normally in the water and on the ice.

Like sailing in general, ice sailing found the interest of "pleasure sailors" around 1850, that is, amateurs who no longer pursued sailing as a professional necessity, but as a pastime. In 1865 the world's first ice sailing club was founded on the Hudson River , and the first ice yachts (in contrast to the work sailors) were built. In the early days of the sport, the then very large and therefore expensive ice yachts were very rare. Since there was no real competition for races in the first years of the sport, the ice sailors in the USA drove races against railroad trains that ran along the rivers.

In the 1930s the need arose for everyone for a small ice yacht that could be easily transported and, above all, built by yourself. At the suggestion of the Detroit News , the DN sled was designed, which has since spread worldwide and is the most popular ice yacht ever with over 2000 class members.

The sailing rules for betting have been established since 1953 by the International DN Ice Yacht Racing Association (IDNIYRA), which was founded in the same year .

distribution

Ice sailors on the Dümmer near the Olga harbor

Ice sailing is a sport that is naturally limited to a few areas. It has only found noteworthy distribution where suitable waters, cold winters and a certain maritime tradition can be found, such as Holland. Thus, with a few exceptions, ice sailing is limited to Northern Europe (Great Britain, Norway, Finland, Sweden), the Baltic region (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia), Russia and Central Europe (Denmark, Germany, Poland, Switzerland, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary), as well as the northern USA and Canada.

Boat classes

As with all sports that use a relatively complex piece of sports equipment, ice sailors cannot necessarily be compared. To enable races with equal conditions for all, classes were created. In the case of ice sailing, however, these leave a lot of leeway in terms of construction and equipment.

In the course of the development of ice sailing, different classes have emerged in North America and Europe. European classes are practically unknown in North America and vice versa. The reason is that ice yachts are too bulky to be transported by plane. Although they can be transported over long distances by car (and have spread all over Europe and North America), the Atlantic is an almost insurmountable hurdle for larger ice yachts. An ice sailor who builds a yacht "from the other continent" , would have no competition for regattas in his home area, this is another reason why the classes do not spread across their home continent. Since good designs can be found on both continents, there is no motivation to laboriously "import" a foreign class.

The continent-restricted classes belong in Europe

  • the monotype - XV ice yacht. She is the only two-seater ice yacht in Europe with which European championships are regularly sailed. Erik von Holst (1894–1962) (Estonia) built this ice yacht in 1932.
  • the somewhat smaller 12 m² ice yacht. It was intended by the EEU (European Ice Sails Union, which was founded in 1928 by Erik von Holst) as a “people's ice sail”, and von Holst drew it in 1937.

and in the USA

  • Skeeter
  • Nite
  • Renegade
  • "Big Boats", the classic large yachts from the turn of the century

Only the DN sled has become widespread on both continents. The reason lies in its small size (it can be transported on a car roof) and in its simple construction, which makes it possible to build a DN in any well-equipped hobby room.

However, you can also go ice sailing without an ice yacht. Ice surfing is relatively common , where a surf rig is either attached to a small board with blades or carried directly by an ice skater. Similarly to kiteboarding , a kite is also suitable as a means of transport for ice skaters. These simple types of ice sailing have found international distribution on both continents, but less so than the DN sledges with their much higher speeds.

Ice sailing is closely related to land and beach sailing. In the German Sailing Association it is therefore organized in the “Ice, Land and Beach Sailing ” committee.

Competition sailing and records

Ice sailor Torsten Siems at the 2011 European Championships in Kaarma

Ice sailing regattas are organized and carried out according to similar standards as regattas on the water. So-called up and down courses are sailed, that is, the start takes place exactly against the wind to a turning mark in windward direction, and then to a leeward mark which is close to the windward side of the start line. After a fixed number of laps around these marks, the finish line follows the start line. A significant difference to regattas on the water is that in ice sailing, the starters stand at the start line. When the starting gun is fired, the pilots push their boats to accelerate them and only get in when the boat has reached a speed at which the sail itself provides sufficient propulsion. The "flying start" known from sailing on the water is not necessary for ice sailing as the pilots can hold their boats on the ice.

Another competitive field is the hunt for speed records. The very high speeds compared to water sailing have always aroused the desire to measure the speed achieved and compare it with others. In the early days of the sport, it was limited to measuring the time it took to travel a known distance, until later radar guns and then GPS devices made it possible to measure more precisely. The record speed of 143 miles per hour (230 km / h), allegedly set in 1938 by the debutante of John D. Buckstaff on Lake Winnebago, is often cited. However, on closer inspection, this information appears highly unlikely: the heavy "Big Class" yachts like the debutante would probably have broken at 230 km / h due to the forces that occurred, the cotton sails would hardly have withstood the wind at hurricane strength , and the crew would have found it difficult in their open cockpit, an unprotected platform at the stern of the boat.

The highest reliable measurement (GPS or radar) in 2009 was 135 km / h, set up by a skeeter , a modern class with much more effective sails than they were available in the 1930s. There are certainly credible reports of higher speeds, but these were determined by individual values ​​read from GPS devices while driving (no continuous recording of the speed) or from cars driving next to the yacht.

Record hunters like the Greenbird project have been trying for years to break the record of 135 km / h with the latest equipment.

technology

The acceleration and speed (about 100 km / h with the DN, 135 km / h with modern ice sailers so far) cannot be achieved in any other wind sport on the ground. The maneuvers required are radically different from anything that applies to water sailing. Thus, for example, almost entirely jibe with dichtgeholtem boom driven (headsail there are usually none). The difference becomes clear from the fact that ice sailors always protect themselves against injuries with appropriate safety equipment.

See also

literature

  • Markus Joachim Tidick: On a maddening runner. A cheerful and serious book of ice sails. Grenzlandverlag G. Boettcher, Pillkallen (East Prussia) 1936.
  • Markus Joachim Tidick: Faster than the wind. Manual of ice sailing. Race, training, classes, racing regulations. 1st edition. Klasing, Bielefeld 1958. (4th edition: (= Kleine Yacht-Bücherei . Volume 12). 1977, ISBN 3-87412-012-0 )
  • Erik von Holst: The ice yacht . (= Yacht Library. Volume 18). Klasing & Co., Berlin 1925.
  • Willy Göpferich: Ice yacht (= How do I build myself? No. 196). Verlag Hermann Beyer, Leipzig 1924. (Reprint: Verlag Survival Press, Radolfzell-Liggeringen 2007, ISBN 978-3-937933-14-6 )
  • Winfried Klemmt: Ice sailors. In: form + Zweck. Issue 4/1986, pp. 29–30, published by the Office for Industrial Design Berlin (GDR).
  • Peter Lewinski: Ice sailor with windsurfer rig. In: practic. 1, Berlin (GDR) 1985, pp. 8-10.
  • William D. Jackson: Cold Lightning- a 100 mph-plus Skeeter Class Ice Boat. Craft Print Project No. 302, Craft Print Dept. Science and Mechanics, New York.

Web links

Commons : Ice Sailing  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Constitution and Racing Rules of the National Iceboat Authority. October 31, 2015 (PDF; 283 kB). on: iceboatracing.com
  2. ↑ greenbird.co.uk : Greenbird website (English)
  3. ↑ https://webforum.zwedenweb.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=7293#.VVgRyUvUZcw ZwedenWeb Forums, TV-overzicht 22 januari - 29 januari 2006. Retrieved May 17, 2015.