The 'sport' of ice sailing probably evolved in the mid 19th Century, starting in Holland and North America. In Europe, the flat bottomed Dutch ice boats evolved into three bladed craft with the steering blade at the front while in America and Canada, the boats evolved very differently, preferring the 'stern steerer' configuration. Below is a picture of a very early ice yacht, taken in 1896 on Lake Mendota.

 Below is one of the largest ice yachts and is still sailing today, Taku..

 The Most popular racing ice yacht is the DN, pictured below. The International DN can reach speeds of up to 70 mph and is popular in North America as well as Northern Europe. Fleets of many hundreds of boats can turn out for a regatta, providing excellent competitive racing.

Pictured above, is Stefan Dalberg from Calgary sailing on perfect ice on Ghost Lake, Alberta. There are of course natural hazards sailing on ice and below is a great illustration of what happens when the ice runs out!

 

 The fastest of all the racing classes are the modern Skeeters, Which can reach speeds of around 100 mph, pictured below.

Dan Clapp's 'Insanity' is one of the fastest, most competitive and successful ice yachts  

The 'Deuce' next to a modern class 3 yacht.