2020 Tripod Down – Clock Still Running


We can’t see the tripod, but the clock is still ticking!
At 2:53 pm today, May 3, the tripod disappeared under water and out of sight. The line is visible until it hits the water- and then it disappears under the surface. Shortly after the tripod submerged, it moved downstream between 25 and 50 feet- but not enough to stop the clock. We’re waiting and watching! We’ve had other tripods sink in the past, and then re-emerge farther downriver. We’ll see what happens with this one!

2020 Breakup Tripod is Up & Phone Sales Are Open!!

The Kuskokwim Ice Classic committee is pleased to announce that 2020 Ice Classic tickets are now on sale! We have some major changes this year due to the threat of COVID-19. To prevent risk to our volunteers, we are requesting that customers use the phone to submit their guesses.

Phone Sales: Due to COVID-19, we are encouraging customers to submit their guesses by phone. Phone sales are open! Call 907-545-8483 to purchase your Ice Classic Tickets over the phone. Please tell the person who takes your call if you want to support a specific group (see list below). If you don’t make the specific request, the sale will ultimately benefit all groups equally.

Ticket Sales Groups: The groups benefitting from Ice Classic ticket sales this year are:

  • Bethel Friends of Canines
  • Delta Illusion Dance Company
  • BRHS Student Council
  • YK Delta Lifesavers
  • Teens Acting Against Violence
  • Aniak Yuraq Dance Group

Deadline: Guesses are due by Monday, June 1 at 7 pm. Customers should pay special attention to the rule that explains the process we will use if breakup happens on or before Monday, June 1 at 7 pm. If breakup should occur on or before June 1 at 7 pm, guesses must be submitted no later than the day before breakup occurs in order to be eligible to win. We will collect and separate guesses submitted at the end of the day each day if it appears that breakup may happen before the submission deadline date. Customers who choose to purchase tickets and wait to turn them in should be aware of weather conditions and the dropbox locations where tickets may be returned, as well as the business hours that allow accessibility to those dropbox locations, to ensure eligible guesses are entered in compliance with this rule.

Ticket Prices: Tickets are $5 for one, or $20 for a book of five guesses.

Jackpot: The 2020 winner will earn 50% of the jackpot raised. Should more than one person win, the jackpot will be split accordingly. Visit iceclassic.org for all the 2020 rules.

Tripod: The tripod was recovered for the SECOND time last year, which means 2020 is this tripod’s THIRD season on the ice! It was placed on the river in front of FNBA in March.  The 2018/2019/2020 tripod was constructed by Eric Whitney and is based on a design by LKSD STEM students. Thanks to the Lumber Yard for donating their forklift to help us raise the tripod. Go check it out sometime, tag @kuskokwimiceclassic in your photos on social media, and remember to keep an eye on the river conditions!

Physical Tickets & Dropbox Locations in Bethel: We expect that at some point during the season, we will have a place where customers can purchase physical tickets. Those tickets will need to be taken home, completed and submitted later. One drop box will be located outside the BCSF office at 1795 Chief Eddie Hoffman Highway. Additional dropbox locations will be announced throughout the season. Please read the rule written above about early breakup and be mindful of the weather and the hours of any businesses that have dropboxes. We don’t want customers who purchased guesses to miss their chance to turn them in!

We look forward to another exciting Kusko Ice Classic season and thank all of our customers for participating. Through your Ice Classic purchases, you are supporting the seven groups around the YK Delta that are listed, plus Teens Acting Against Violence, which is helping with contest logistics. All of this is important fundraising for the groups to support their activities.

Thanks: Special thanks to Eric Whitney for tripod engineering and construction, The Lumber Yard for forklift use to raise the tripod, Stan Corp for the cutouts of our Kusko Ice Classic phone sales people, Steve Carr for helping with Ice Classic shack updates, John Wallace for setting up the webcams, our manager Haley Hanson for coordinating Ice Classic tasks and activities, Kate McWilliams for painting, and the Ice Classic committee for guidance (Kathy Hanson, Paul Basile, Eric Whitney, Bethy Whalen, Patricia Smith, Michelle DeWitt).

 

 

Breakup Bash 2019 – Still Waiting for a Winner!

Hundreds of people enjoyed Breakup Bash in the sun along the river wall in Bethel on April 13. Alaska Commercial Company provided 1000 free hot dogs and buns and Paul Basile coordinated a lineup of entertainment that included the BRHS Dance Group, musician Chris Claus, KuC Dance Group and musician Jeremy Lee on a flatbed provided by Crowley. The bash received an unexpected visit from Senator Lisa Murkowski, who had attempted to travel to Eek but was weathered out. With an opening in her schedule, she was able come celebrate breakup with the Bethel crowd.

While the Ice Classic was able to congratulate the two Minute Madness winners in person at the Bash- Shaun Codman and Cezary Maczynski- there are still thousands of guesses to organize back at Kuskokwim Ice Classic Headquarters. We know our fans are excited to hear who is taking home or splitting that $12,500 jackpot- and so are we- but we just experienced the earliest breakup in recorded history in Bethel. With sales right up until the very last moment and guesses still being flown in from village sales locations, volunteers had no window of time to organize all of the guesses before the river broke up. Thankfully, there’s an awesome team working behind the scenes and efforts every night to organize the previous day’s guesses kept the logistics on track and mean that we will probably be able to determine the winner in a few days. An announcement in less than a week after breakup will be remarkable, given the accelerated timeframe of the 2019 breakup.

So stay tuned, we will have more to be excited about as the week progresses.

And what news of the tripod? It’s now on Joe Lomack beach. The Kusko Ice Classic should be able to retrieve it at the next high tide. Fingers crossed!

Minute Madness Winners

The Kusko Ice Classic is ready to announce the Minute Madness winners!

Our Minute Madness- Original Contest winner was Sean Codman of Bethel, who purchased the very last minute- 02- for sale Friday, April 5 at 4 pm. That wheel sold out, and Sean wins $10,000 for minute 02.

The Ice Classic sponsored a second Minute Madness that opened at noon on Friday April 12 due to popular demand- Minute Madness Round Two. Cezary Maczynski won Minute Madness II. Fifty minutes sold in four hours on that wheel before breakup forced the team to stop selling minutes- creating a jackpot of $8,333.34 for Cezary.

The Regular Ice Classic jackpot is $12,500. The Ice Classic committee and volunteers are still sorting eligible guesses. We hope to announce the winner of the $12,500 jackpot as soon as possible- but because we had to apply our Early Breakup Rule and are still sorting guesses, it may take us a few days.

Stay tuned!

4:02 is the Official Time – Earliest Tripod Move in History

4:02 – Official Time

The 2019 Kuskokwim Ice Classic is over! After tripod fell into the water yesterday, we have been watching and waiting and waiting… And waiting some more!

It feels odd on the 12th of April to be talking about breakup, but it has happened.

All ticket sales are now closed.

According to the rules – ” If an early breakup should occur on or before April 22, 2019 at 7 pm, guesses must be submitted no later than the day before breakup occurs in order to be eligible to win. ”

Winner(s) will be announced soon!

Welcome to Summer!