As if there were any doubt by this point, our spring meeting has been canceled. We will award trophies and appoint directors, which we do at the spring meeting, at the fall meeting instead. It’s too bad because we had lined up the use of the dining hall at Camp Kieve, with a nice view of Damariscotta Lake. Hopefully we can hold it there next year.

And while we’re down we’re getting kicked by the forecast from the northern lakes. They still haven’t wet out, and the nights aren’t going much below freezing for the foreseeable future. It looks like they will just slip quietly away. If I’m missing anything, please holler. Denis and Frank expect to sail again this coming weekend on Lac Ste. Francois, just across the closed Canadian border.

The closed border is a minor irritation to we iceboaters in Maine. Many countries in Europe are also closing or tightly controlling, the borders. But the real way to beat this is at a personal and community level. Simply don’t go out unless absolutely necessary, and then only with taking the precautions with which we’ve become so familiar. Did you know that the better quality shop dust masks carry the 95 level that we’re supposed to use in public? Check your shop: you might be pleasantly surprised.

Stay in touch with your iceboating buddies. Talk ice, boats, travel, plans for next year. Take this time to go through your boat and take care of that list you’ve so carefully made over the winter of repairs and improvements. Do it now while you have time on your hands and the season is fresh in your mind.

Keep the season in your mind by laying down, closing your eyes and re-running the film of some of the season’s most memorable sails. You’ll hear the clickity clack of the runners and your fingers and nose will begin to freeze.The G forces are what’s most heavily imprinted for me. Maybe it was an epic run to the the downwind mark and a perfect rounding if you are a racer, or doing fast figure eights around two islands if you’re a tourer. Or best yet the camaraderie in the pits after a great day on the ice. We all have them: keep them alive!