Ice Out 2019…

“When you are in any contest, you should work as if there were – to the very last minute – a chance to lose it.”  Dwight D. Eisenhower

“There’s only one winner in this contest.  The rest, losers”   H. Gordon Bastable 

Some might say it’s a bit harsh to categorize those who fail as “losers”.  I only use the term in the way Mother Nature intended.  A herd of deer who are overtaken by a pack of wolves would not refer to the slowest deer as “a winner”, nor be recognized for it’s “participation”.  That deer has lost, it is the loser.  Harsh but true.  Unlike the deer, your participation in this contest will not result in you being torn to shreds, physically.  Some of you may be left emotionally scarred.  That is the chance you take to aim for greatness, and for some swell VBL swag (the winner gets his / her choice of any nifty lodge fashion item…excluding our line of spandex musky fishing pantaloons).

So about now you are probably wondering how you too can win big in this contest.  Here’s how it goes.  The winner is the first person to email me the correct date that Vermilion Bay will be ice free (as judged by a panel of experts…me).  Understand this critical point.  You may pick the correct date BUT if you are not the FIRST person to send me that guess, you will not win. 

Now for the strategy.  I will be posting updates on the ice conditions.  Should you wish to bide your time, take stock of the conditions, monitor my posts, and then take a rational informed guess, that might result in victory.  However, those who throw caution to the wind may, in the end, beat you to the punch.  What to do?  Don’t ask me, I haven’t won the contest ever!

Remember all guesses are kept confidential.  Email Gord with your guess.

Now for some nonrelated fish pictures to remind us that spring is coming…..