Wintercade Wrap Up

The 16th annual Wintercade Ice Fishing Contest took place on Lake Ripley in Litchfield on a very mild February 14th. An estimated 800-to-900 people attended the event.

Daniel Lease says it was a beautiful day and the ice was still thick and in good condition – and the top prizes awarded include the Bobcat UTV to Jesse Anderson, $2,000 to Barry Anderson, $1,500 to Chris Guggemos – all of Litchfield and $1,000 to Dorene Johnson of Watkins. He says they also handed out cash prizes in four fishing categories.

Lease says 90 bluegill were caught, along with 11 crappies, 1 bass, 25 northerns and 6 perch. He says they handed out over $30,000 worth of door prizes and kid’s prizes during the event which helped raise $25,000 which will be given to veteran’s organizations and other non-profit groups.

Lease says they will distribute checks to those groups during a special ceremony on March 9th and details will be posted on the Wintercade Facebook page. He says he’d like to thank all of the sponsors, participants and volunteers who help to make this event possible each year.

Lease says the Wintercade Committee begins meeting each year in September and the meetings get more frequent as the event gets closer in February. He says in 16 years, Wintercade has helped to generate over $225,000 which is given back to organizations in the community.