The 15th Annual Minnesota Vikings Arctic Blast Snowmobile rally, scheduled for 12-13 February on Mille Lacs will have one noteworthy absence -- a stop on Mille Lacs Lake's south shore. After stopping at Izatys and BayView in recent years, this year's event will reduce two blast points -- Eddy's and BayView -- making the rally a Northwest and Eastern Lake affair.
Stops are now at Blue Goose, Castaways, Buzzy's on the Bay and Grand Casino.
BayView's Rand Syverson wasn't fond of the decision by event organizers, stating that BayView had registered among the most participants and had raised funds commensurate with other bars that host the event.
"They decided both us and Eddy's were off the list this year," Syverson said after sponsoring the event since Izatys filed bankruptcy in the fall of 2007. "We did a ton of business and it was very popular here."
2010 will mark the 15th year of the Arctic Blast as thousands of snowmobile entusiasts ride sleds to raise money for upper Midwest childern the Viking's Children's Fund supports. Through the Arctic Blast event, support is also generated for several environmental organizations in the Lake Mille Lacs Area.
Blastpoints are located along the approximately 100-mile route of well-groomed snowmobile trails around the Lake Mille Lacs area. With paid registration, riders receive a prize ticket when they check-in to a minimum of three Blast Points. Prize tickets may be turned in for a chance to win the thousands of dollars in prizes that are awarded at the Prize Party held on Sunday, wrapping up the Artic Blast event.
In addition to being your gateway for prize tickets, each Blastpoint also serve as an opportunity to get autographs from and photographs with Vikings players, alumni, coaches, Viktor the Viking, and the Vikings Cheerleaders. Throughout the event, participants can also enjoy a number of giveaways and games.
Participants can pre-register or register day of event at any of the Blast Points.
Additional information for the 2010 Arctic Blast XV event will be posted upon availability.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Ice Fishing in Bays Should Be Ok This Weekend
Surfing around the various web sites around the lake, Eddy Lyback reports that most bays now have 4-5 inches of ice and should be fishable with portables and foot traffic by this weekend (Dec. 12=13). Thanks to a recent cold spate and more cold weather on the way, Ice Fishing Fanatics will be able to get back out on the Big Pond soon. Many are predicting a better ice season on Mille Lacs, including Lyback. See our ice fishing reports by clicking on the ice fishing link.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Off-year For Muskies on Mille Lacs, says guide
Matt Treno knows a thing or two about Muskie fishing on Mille Lacs. The young guide from the south shore works at Thorne Brothers Muskie Shop off highway 27 and takes plenty of folks out in search of the elusive giants each year. He also talks with a host of other guides around the lake. And he's been at it for a more than a few years. Treno echoed the sentiments of many I've talked to this year, saying the Muskie catch was way off in 2008. He said about a third of the usual amount of Muskies were caught. He said Gene Miller, the legendary guide and Isle Postmaster, caught only 35 fish this season in contrast to more than 100 he has caught in recent seasons. "It was pretty slow by most accounts," Treno said last week. He did mention a recent 55-inch catch on the big pond but had few other details about it. "There are still a few die-hards out there fishing."
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Anderson Resorts of Leech Lake Eyeing Izatys
An outfit with major experience in the Minnesota resort business toured Izatys Resort grounds on Wednesday, November 18th. Anderson's Family Resorts owns six resorts on Leech Lake and was able to talk with Mike Edin, Golf Course Superintendent as well as acting General Manager Jason Tollete, who is also listing the resort for Meyer Commercial Real Estate. Four men toured Izatys, which was bought by Commerce Bank and partners at a Sheriff's Sale late last year. The resort closed for winter on October 20tha and is scheduled to reopen for business next spring under bank supervision. A consortium of local business owners stepped up and helped operate the various entities of Izatys this spring-summer and early fall. They operated Club 19, Blackbrook Golf Course, the Links Lodge and Walleye World. Commerce Bank has had several recent offers on the property but has not announced any deals to sell the resort. To get a glimpse at Anderson's holdings, go to http://www.andersonsleech-lake.com/ and you will see that they have holdings all around Leech Lake. There was no word on if the group made any offers.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Izatys 2009: A Pleasant Surprise
When Jason Tollette announced that a pair of local businesses were going to join him to open Izatys Resort in April 2009, skeptics grinned.
Since the resort filed for bankruptcy and closed abruptly in October 2007, there just wasn't much to be positive about.
Until this summer.
With Blackbrook Golf Course in its best shape in a few years, Izatys opened fully and has been a pleasant surprise this summer season.
The pool was opened thanks to cash from Izatys Townhouse Association and the Village Timeshare teams. Club 19 reopened after a long draught. The hotel opened and filled to capacity on most weekends. Walleye World and the venerable Izatys "Lady of the Lake" came out of a long slumber. And the golf course outperformed all expectations, netting nearly 15000 rounds to this point.
All in all, it was a upbeat situation in a down economic period. There are many people to thank. It starts with Jason Tollette who, with some help from his father, Dick, put all the key pieces together.
There was Rand and Kathy Syverson and Brandon and Lori Niesen along with a new crop of workers who staffed Club 19, opening the pool bar, operating with a small, but decent menu of entrees.
Also pitching in to make it a winner was Bill and Kathy Lundeen and their daughter, who opened Walleye World and ran launches, rented slips, sold bait, supplies and gas to a rejuvenated fishing/boating contingent.
Thanks to Commerce Bank, which is trying to sell the resort after taking it after the bankruptcy. They paid past due taxes, updated broken and unservicable equipment and provided funding to reestablish Black Brook Golf Course as one of the area's best golf courses.
But perhaps the MVP of the season is golf superintendant Michael Edin. He and a staff of about 10 golf course maintenance guys redid sand traps, nurtured sagging greens and repaired countless irrigation problems to restore the crown jewel of the once venerable resort.
Working 70-plus hour weeks, Edin treated Black Brook like he owned it, supervising every phase of the operation. Many men's league golfers, who have spent years playing Black Brook, labeled it the comeback golf course of the year. Several said it regained the luster that it boasted back at inception minus some budget-driven no-mow areas.
We'd be remiss if we didn't mention Sherry Tollette, who helped restore the Izatys web site, served as a marketing manager and did just about every job one could imagine at the 28-room hotel.
And the final ingredient of it all was a spirit of cooperation that brought townhome owners, timeshare owners and the teams mentioned above together as the resort business blossomed after a cool and windy May and June. Some folks planted and maintained flowers.
Folks like Rob Wilsey and some of his staff spent countless hours volunteering to mow unkept fairways of the now-closed Sanctuary Golf Course. He and his staff revamped the Sewage Treatment Facility with new equipment doing mega-mowing and never-before-done upkeep to fencelines and holding ponds.
Just what is in store for Izatys isn't yet clear. Tollette and Commerce Bank claim Izatys will be open for business next April after closing for the season on October 19th. First and foremost, is the potential sale of the resort.
A deep-pocketed ownership group has not yet been found after nearly two years on the sales block. It does appear to be only a matter of time until the resort does sell, and a new chapter of Izatys will be written. As many locals will tell you, a healthy and vibrant Izatys is key to making everything else go on the South Shore of Lake Mille Lacs.
Since the resort filed for bankruptcy and closed abruptly in October 2007, there just wasn't much to be positive about.
Until this summer.
With Blackbrook Golf Course in its best shape in a few years, Izatys opened fully and has been a pleasant surprise this summer season.
The pool was opened thanks to cash from Izatys Townhouse Association and the Village Timeshare teams. Club 19 reopened after a long draught. The hotel opened and filled to capacity on most weekends. Walleye World and the venerable Izatys "Lady of the Lake" came out of a long slumber. And the golf course outperformed all expectations, netting nearly 15000 rounds to this point.
All in all, it was a upbeat situation in a down economic period. There are many people to thank. It starts with Jason Tollette who, with some help from his father, Dick, put all the key pieces together.
There was Rand and Kathy Syverson and Brandon and Lori Niesen along with a new crop of workers who staffed Club 19, opening the pool bar, operating with a small, but decent menu of entrees.
Also pitching in to make it a winner was Bill and Kathy Lundeen and their daughter, who opened Walleye World and ran launches, rented slips, sold bait, supplies and gas to a rejuvenated fishing/boating contingent.
Thanks to Commerce Bank, which is trying to sell the resort after taking it after the bankruptcy. They paid past due taxes, updated broken and unservicable equipment and provided funding to reestablish Black Brook Golf Course as one of the area's best golf courses.
But perhaps the MVP of the season is golf superintendant Michael Edin. He and a staff of about 10 golf course maintenance guys redid sand traps, nurtured sagging greens and repaired countless irrigation problems to restore the crown jewel of the once venerable resort.
Working 70-plus hour weeks, Edin treated Black Brook like he owned it, supervising every phase of the operation. Many men's league golfers, who have spent years playing Black Brook, labeled it the comeback golf course of the year. Several said it regained the luster that it boasted back at inception minus some budget-driven no-mow areas.
We'd be remiss if we didn't mention Sherry Tollette, who helped restore the Izatys web site, served as a marketing manager and did just about every job one could imagine at the 28-room hotel.
And the final ingredient of it all was a spirit of cooperation that brought townhome owners, timeshare owners and the teams mentioned above together as the resort business blossomed after a cool and windy May and June. Some folks planted and maintained flowers.
Folks like Rob Wilsey and some of his staff spent countless hours volunteering to mow unkept fairways of the now-closed Sanctuary Golf Course. He and his staff revamped the Sewage Treatment Facility with new equipment doing mega-mowing and never-before-done upkeep to fencelines and holding ponds.
Just what is in store for Izatys isn't yet clear. Tollette and Commerce Bank claim Izatys will be open for business next April after closing for the season on October 19th. First and foremost, is the potential sale of the resort.
A deep-pocketed ownership group has not yet been found after nearly two years on the sales block. It does appear to be only a matter of time until the resort does sell, and a new chapter of Izatys will be written. As many locals will tell you, a healthy and vibrant Izatys is key to making everything else go on the South Shore of Lake Mille Lacs.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Check Out Ripple River Gallery
Ripple River Gallery Feature: "Northern Flight"—woodcut print by Charles Beck
Exhibit features new work by Charles Beck
Once you’ve seen a woodcut by Charles Beck, you’ll never see the Minnesota landscape the same again.
New paintings, woodcut prints and bird forms by Fergus Falls artist Charles Beck will be featured in an exhibit at Ripple River Gallery, Aug. 12 to Sept. 13. A reception for the artist is planned from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 16.
“This is the fifth exhibit we’ve hung of Charlie Beck’s work since we opened the gallery in 2000. Each new body of work reveals more about the environment and the artist’s relation to it,” said Bob Carls, co-owner of the gallery.
Best known for his woodblock prints depicting the farm lands and forests of northwestern Minnesota, Beck also “sketches” small oil paintings to capture the landscape and brief moments in time. Beck’s carved bird forms, which he considers an extension of the landscape, are a sculptural distillation of the animal’s essence.
From his studio outside of Fergus Falls, Beck looks out on the edge of the Red River Valley, with its horizon and sunsets and feeling of vast space. To the east Beck can turn to the woods and lakes for inspiration. “I suppose I’m influenced most by the horizon, the separation between the sky and what I call vertical space and horizontal space,” Beck said. “I seem to always need that in my landscapes.”
“We live in an area where there is great variety over the course of a year,” Beck said. “That’s what makes it so exciting.” While some artists might seek the awesome majesty of a mountain peak or a crashing waterfall, Beck finds as much to discover in an old barley field in Minnesota. “It depends on how you look at it and what you see.”
Following his service in the Naval Air Force, Beck received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Concordia College, Moorhead, in 1948. In 1950 he received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Iowa, Iowa City. He began his exploration of woodcut prints at the University of Minnesota in 1953.
Beck and his wife, Joyce, returned home to Fergus Falls where he served on the faculty at Fergus Falls Community College for 27 years. In 2006 the college (now Minnesota State Community and Technical College - Fergus Falls) honored him by naming the school’s new gallery the Charles Beck Gallery.
Beck’s work has been exhibited at museums across the country and at colleges and universities around the region. A pair of his life-sized carved turkeys are included in the permanent collection at the Minnesota Historical Society in St. Paul.
“One must only look to experience the patterns, textures and colors of the land and sky, the hills and woods, the weeds and flowers,” Beck says. “My hope is that in some small way I have helped open the eyes of others to this diversity.”
Ripple River Gallery is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday; and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays. The gallery is located five miles south of Deerwood on Highway 6, then 3 miles east of Ruttger’s Bay Lake Lodge on County Road 14 to Partridge Avenue; or south of Aitkin on Highway 169 to Bennettville, then 3.2 miles west on County Road 11 to Partridge Avenue.
For more information call 218-678-2575 or e-mail ripriv@mlecmn.net.
Exhibit features new work by Charles Beck
Once you’ve seen a woodcut by Charles Beck, you’ll never see the Minnesota landscape the same again.
New paintings, woodcut prints and bird forms by Fergus Falls artist Charles Beck will be featured in an exhibit at Ripple River Gallery, Aug. 12 to Sept. 13. A reception for the artist is planned from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 16.
“This is the fifth exhibit we’ve hung of Charlie Beck’s work since we opened the gallery in 2000. Each new body of work reveals more about the environment and the artist’s relation to it,” said Bob Carls, co-owner of the gallery.
Best known for his woodblock prints depicting the farm lands and forests of northwestern Minnesota, Beck also “sketches” small oil paintings to capture the landscape and brief moments in time. Beck’s carved bird forms, which he considers an extension of the landscape, are a sculptural distillation of the animal’s essence.
From his studio outside of Fergus Falls, Beck looks out on the edge of the Red River Valley, with its horizon and sunsets and feeling of vast space. To the east Beck can turn to the woods and lakes for inspiration. “I suppose I’m influenced most by the horizon, the separation between the sky and what I call vertical space and horizontal space,” Beck said. “I seem to always need that in my landscapes.”
“We live in an area where there is great variety over the course of a year,” Beck said. “That’s what makes it so exciting.” While some artists might seek the awesome majesty of a mountain peak or a crashing waterfall, Beck finds as much to discover in an old barley field in Minnesota. “It depends on how you look at it and what you see.”
Following his service in the Naval Air Force, Beck received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Concordia College, Moorhead, in 1948. In 1950 he received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Iowa, Iowa City. He began his exploration of woodcut prints at the University of Minnesota in 1953.
Beck and his wife, Joyce, returned home to Fergus Falls where he served on the faculty at Fergus Falls Community College for 27 years. In 2006 the college (now Minnesota State Community and Technical College - Fergus Falls) honored him by naming the school’s new gallery the Charles Beck Gallery.
Beck’s work has been exhibited at museums across the country and at colleges and universities around the region. A pair of his life-sized carved turkeys are included in the permanent collection at the Minnesota Historical Society in St. Paul.
“One must only look to experience the patterns, textures and colors of the land and sky, the hills and woods, the weeds and flowers,” Beck says. “My hope is that in some small way I have helped open the eyes of others to this diversity.”
Ripple River Gallery is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday; and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays. The gallery is located five miles south of Deerwood on Highway 6, then 3 miles east of Ruttger’s Bay Lake Lodge on County Road 14 to Partridge Avenue; or south of Aitkin on Highway 169 to Bennettville, then 3.2 miles west on County Road 11 to Partridge Avenue.
For more information call 218-678-2575 or e-mail ripriv@mlecmn.net.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Timely Rains Keep Mille Lacs Green/Lake Level Up
If you are a Tuesday men's league golfer, you might be miffed at the recent spate of rainy Tuesdays in the Mille Lacs area. By 8 am today, we've already received 1.5 inches of rain here on the Big Pond and it's coming down in sheets yet. It rained so hard and so long last Tuesday into Wednesday that Izatys shut down Blackbrook Golf Course due to overland flooding which quickly receded and did no real damage.
On a positive note the recent rains have kept the Mille Lacs lake levels up, kept the water temperature of the lake right around 66 degrees (cool nights have helped). It's also given sprinklers a rest and kept lawn mowers busy trying to keep up with the unusual late July growing green grass.
OTHER NOTES:
Garrison Play Days
It's is Garrison Play Days this weekend. There are a ton of neat events, including a Taste of Garrison, raffle for 4 wheeler, various team sporting events and beer gardens. Go to garrisonmn.com for more information and an hour-by-hour preview of the weekend.
Fishing Update
I talked with Bill Lundeen who owns Lundeen's Tackle Castle and manages Walleye World at Izatys on Monday afternoon. He said the bite has been hit and miss. He had a group out the other day and got 10 keepers. He has mostly been slip bobbering but indicated he will be trying spinner baits with crawlers soon.
The weekend weather at Mille Lacs hasn't been the kindest for area businesses with windy, cool and rain recently. While the number isn't exact, sport fisherman have harvested about 87000 pounds of walleye from the lake according to DNR estimates to this point. Coupled with a tribal record harvest of 100,000 pounds earlier, anglers are not even near the record 2007 season.
On a positive note the recent rains have kept the Mille Lacs lake levels up, kept the water temperature of the lake right around 66 degrees (cool nights have helped). It's also given sprinklers a rest and kept lawn mowers busy trying to keep up with the unusual late July growing green grass.
OTHER NOTES:
Garrison Play Days
It's is Garrison Play Days this weekend. There are a ton of neat events, including a Taste of Garrison, raffle for 4 wheeler, various team sporting events and beer gardens. Go to garrisonmn.com for more information and an hour-by-hour preview of the weekend.
Fishing Update
I talked with Bill Lundeen who owns Lundeen's Tackle Castle and manages Walleye World at Izatys on Monday afternoon. He said the bite has been hit and miss. He had a group out the other day and got 10 keepers. He has mostly been slip bobbering but indicated he will be trying spinner baits with crawlers soon.
The weekend weather at Mille Lacs hasn't been the kindest for area businesses with windy, cool and rain recently. While the number isn't exact, sport fisherman have harvested about 87000 pounds of walleye from the lake according to DNR estimates to this point. Coupled with a tribal record harvest of 100,000 pounds earlier, anglers are not even near the record 2007 season.
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