Racing on Sundays in January & February, weather permitting. Registration for drivers from 9:30-10:45 am inside Sinissippi Lake Pub in Hustisford. Racing begins at 11.
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Updated article from the (Fall/Winter 2012-2013 LSA Newsletter)
Sinissippi Ice Racing was started in 1988 by "Diesel" Dan Bamke. He had already tried softball and golf on th
e ice to bring in business to his bar Lone Pine Tap. They started without any official rules and evolved from there. The first season championship began in 1990. The ice racers tried many different things to get traction such as chains, metal (like saw blades) welded on rims, walnut shells molded in the rubber and even gluing sand on the tires. It was finally decided to allow rubber only tires. Most racers today use very soft retread tires and add extra weight to their car for traction. The track is usually plowed into a third mile oval just out on the lake from Sinissippi Lake Pub (formerly Lone Pine). A great deal of work goes into grooming the track, and several times a week it is dragged with a homemade drag trailer to rough up the ice. Then water is pumped out and sprayed onto it so it will freeze rough on Saturday night. Sunday morning racers come early to register, around 9:30. The cost to race is only $20 per class. From that $20, drivers get 3 races (2 heats and a feature). There is a drivers’ meeting on the ice before the races begin to review the rules. There are three classes of racing. Drivers must race front wheel or rear wheel class before they can race in the open class. The open class is both front wheel and rear wheel drive cars racing together. Drivers earn points based on their finishing positions, and that determines where they are in the line-up. The top four finishers in each heat and semi feature/feature are awarded with payout (which comes from the $20 registration fees) and the winners of each feature are awarded with a trophy sponsored by local businesses. At the end of the season, the points champion in each class is awarded with a plaque. There are also other awards given out, too. There isn't a lot of money involved in this kind of racing. People mostly do it because it's fun and something to do in the winter months. It's probably the least expensive kind of racing there is. When Sinissippi Ice Racing began nearly 30 years ago, it was mostly local racers. Today we have racers coming from many miles away to race here. They come from all over: Saukville, Madison, Waunakee, Whitefish Bay, Fox Lake, Monroe, Chicago-area, and other places. Our small town racing organization has had quite a following since we started our website www.sinissippiiceracing.com, page and YouTube channel. Our number one priority is safety, not only for the racers, but also for spectators and the lake as well. We don’t have many restrictions about what can be done to a race car. Most of our rules pertain to safety and not polluting the lake. We require carpets under the cars in the pits, and if something does begin leaking, we require them to leave the lake until the leak is fixed. Clean-up is done immediately so the toxins do not melt into the lake. We adamantly check the thickness and conditions of the ice to make sure no one falls through. We drill small holes in the track, surrounding area and the pits to measure the thickness and determine if it is safe to be out on the ice. Ice Racing has been a great winter tradition for people to enjoy the outdoors around Hustisford. It also helps our local economy by supporting businesses in and around Hustisford. Most of our races can be viewed on YouTube. Current ice conditions, as well as results and pictures are on our website. It’s a collaborative effort with lots of behind the scenes work that goes into each season. We have flagmen, score keepers, track maintenance, videographer/photographer, webmaster, and of course the bar for allowing us to use the landing. If you have any questions, you can contact us through Facebook, our website www.sinissippiiceracing.com or email [email protected].
