Illegal bubbler puts brakes on Moto On Ice
Moto On Ice has been hosting and organizing motorcycle races when Cedar Lake freezes over every winter. A lot of planning goes into the event to make sure it can be safe for the racers and the spectators alike.
This year proved more challenging, however, and according to event organizer Tim Jenkins, Moto On Ice was hamstrung by an illegal bubbler on the north side of the lake throughout the season, which also caused them to cancel their Feb. 23 race.
Jenkins made a presentation to the Cedar Lake Town Council at their Mar. 4 meeting.
Jenkins first thanked the council for their support over the years, the Cedar Lake Chamber of Commerce for their help in advertising the events and the Cedar Lake Police for their service, adding that they have been fortunate they have never been needed. He also thanked town manager Jeff Bunge for his assistance in filling out the paperwork needed to make the races happen, as well as keeping up on all the contracts.
Unfortunately, this will be the first year since Moto On Ice relocated from the South Shore to Cedar Lake they won’t be able to give back to to the community. Jenkins indicated the shortened race season meant the revenue simply wasn’t there.
“This was a hard decision for us,” Jenkins said, “but the way the weather was this year, we should have had three, possibly four races this year.”
The illegal use of bubblers on the north side of the lake caused the ice to not thoroughly freeze, thus making it too dangerous to race, Jenkins explained.
Instead of four races, the sole race they ran was on Jan. 26, which was marred by an incident involving a Polaris ATV breaking through the ice near Pottawatomi Park, which in turn attracted a motorcycle to the scene which also fell through the ice.
Nevertheless, the event still attracted approximately 500 people, with some coming from as far away as Northern Wisconsin and Southern Indiana, according to Jenkins. He also noted the age of the racers ranged from 4 to 74 years old. He said the event organizers even took a couple from the Dominican Republic around the track. Jenkins expressed his frustration at the incident.
“It was very unfortunate that these actions of one group and one individual ruined something this season that no one close to Cedar Lake even has to offer,” Jenkins said.
Upon a request for further clarification from councilman Bob Carnahan, Jenkins said the bubblers are only permitted to be in operation from Mar. 1 through Nov. 1.
The next council meeting will be at 7 p.m. Mar. 18.