The Netherlands experienced another record warm year in 2007. But in the week before Christmas, the temperatures plummeted. On the 21st of December, it even dropped to minus 8 deg Celcius. Brrr. Winter water sport enthusiasts were enthralled.

We hope you enjoy this brief glimpse into “hard water sailing” and read more about it further down the page.

We live next to the Oostvaardersplassen in The Netherlands. It’s a beautiful (and normally peaceful) wetlands nature reserve, which like the rest of Lelystad and surrounding area, used to be the sea. The Flevopolder (as the large island is called) was man-made in the 1950′s.

The largest marshland area (±6000 hectares) in Holland, the Oostvaardersplassen consists of several lakes and large ponds that are interspersed with thick reed banks, woods and savannah-type grasslands. A large amount of water birds use it as brooding grounds. Heck cows, roe deer, red deer and wild Konik horses also call it home.

During this frosty December week, the dyke (water barrier that also functions as a road) was amazingly busy – there was even a traffic jam! You see, natural ice is highly sought-after. Aside from football and cycling, ice skating is a top national sport and hobby (also see “FlevOnice Outdoor Ice Skating Course“).

Even the visitor’s information centre opened its gates onto the lake (normally kept closed because of the wildlife) for skaters to enjoy. On the other side of the dyke however, sails glinting in the sun caught my eye. I’d seen ice sailing on tv before, but not in real life. I was drawn down to the pond, Het Bovenwater, to take a closer look.

With a little trepidation, I stepped onto the ice; a myriad of horror stories racing through my mind. I’d not been on natural ice before. Sinking through a melted ice rink of limited depth isn’t half as scary.

I was suprised by the sound the ice made as people and machines scurried across the surface. It seemed to be a mixture of a sonar ping and a large crack … periscopes breaking through the Arctic shelf.

Summoning courage up from the depths (okay, the lake’s only a metre or so deep), I moved further onto the hardened water, observing the ice beneath my feet, and filmed some boats along the way. Soft cracking noises “encouraged” me away from the edge near the island … gulp. Was there anyone else with an uncomfortable look of panic? No, just me.

Then I lost justment of the distance between me and an approaching boat as I got too engrossed in finding great angles. Luckily before running me over, the sailor warned me in time so that I could dart out of the way. Phew. That was silly. Professionals must get really annoyed when novices and non-focussed film-makers get in the way.

But, all’s well that ends well.

I’m quite keen to try ice sailing sometime, and found a few tidbits about the sport:

• it began in the 1700′s in The Netherlands as commercial winter transport (with this amount of water and canals, where else?)
• ice boats are made of epoxy resin and stainless steel, and can weigh about 45 kg, they can be self-made or bought (pre-owned boats are also available)
• boats can reach 100 km / hour (rumours of 150 km’s??)
• there are various types of boats e.g. DN / Blokart / S10 Class III / etc. and are sometimes called a coffin (because of the shape or possible death?)
• races are held in 20 countries around the world, with a maximum of 60 sailors at the start (obviously this depends on the available ice surface)
• minimal requirements are: ice (at least 15cm thick), as little snow as possible, wind, wind-proof clothing (preferable) and of course, the boat.

Our video shows the tame side of the sport – but to give you an idea what an experienced ice sailor can achieve, check out this video by fast sailor, Pär Johannson in Sweden.