The 16th annual Wintercade Ice Fishing Contest is coming up on February 14th from 1-to-3 p.m. on Lake Ripley in Litchfield. The frigid temperatures this past weekend made it pretty certain that the ice should be thick enough this year.
James Mickelson says there were just a few tickets left as of this past weekend and those who purchased any of the 1,750 tickets this year will be qualified for a chance to win the grand prize of a Bobcat UV36XL and the cash prizes of $2,000, $1,500, $1,000 and the 4th through 15th place prizes of $100 each. He says there are 4 fishing categories – northern, crappie, bluegill and walleye/bass with cash prizes of $300, $200 and $100 for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in each division.
Mickelson says they also have the perch division with $50 prizes being award for the 1st, 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th and 50th perch caught, and a $100 prize for the 16th perch as this is the 16th year of Wintercade. He says if anyone has an ice auger and would be willing to help drill holes the morning of the event from 8-to-9 a.m., their help would be greatly appreciated.
Daniel Lease says it’s looking like the ice on Lake Ripley will be safe this year, but if something changes or if there are dangerous wind chills on February 14th, they’d probably move the event to the Litchfield Fire Hall. He says they start planning Wintercade in September each year and they appreciate all of the sponsors and volunteers who help to make it possible.
Lease says in the first 15 years of Wintercade, they’ve raised over $200,000 which is divided between veterans’ organizations and other non-profit groups. He says they will have a drawing on February 14th for 3 bronze trophies for veterans attending the Wintercade event, and there are lots of door prizes for both adults and children, and you must be present to win those. For any updates on the event, check the Wintercade Facebook page.
On Saturday afternoon at 3:07, the Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a vehicle partially submerged near the east Diamond Lake boat access off of County Road 137. The driver was able to get out of the vehicle. No injuries were reported. The Sheriff’s Office wants everyone to be aware of ice conditions, despite the cold temperatures we’ve had.
Tuesday, February 3rd is Caucus Day in Minnesota. Meeker County DFLers will meet at the Litchfield Middle School cafeteria at 7 p.m., with registration beginning at 6:30, and Meeker County Republicans will meet at the Litchfield Opera House and at the Dassel History Center at 7 p.m., with registration at 6:30 p.m.
Jeff Niedenthal with the Meeker County Republicans says the Caucuses help the political parties organize at the grass roots level, and elect delegates to go on to the County conventions. He says we all have rights and responsibilities to be politically active and this is the base root of the political process, so if you don’t get involved, you shouldn’t complain.
Niedenthal says he got active in the Meeker County Republican party when he moved up to Minnesota from Virginia 11 years ago. He says the Meeker County Republicans will have their convention on March 16th at 6 p.m. at Shaggy’s. Justin Vold says the Meeker County DFL party will have their convention on March 7th at the 4Bz Event Center in Litchfield. He says during the Caucus meetings on February 3rd they will have straw polls to determine who they favor for various offices such as Governor and U.S. Senator and they will come up with resolutions which will help shape their party platform.
Vold says he got active in the Meeker County DFL party when he moved to this area from Wisconsin. For more information about the Caucus meetings on February 3rd, go to the Minnesota Secretary of State’s website at sos.mn.gov.