ICE ROAD RACERS. International Ice Racing Association drivers competed on Lake Altoona in this photo from 1997. For the first time in more than a decade, cars will again race on the frozen lake – in January as part of the Northwest Wisconsin Winter Fest and Games.

Getting out and embracing a Wisconsin winter can mean a lot of things. There’s the beloved Midwestern pastime of ice fishing, of course. There’s cozying up for a game of cribbage, snowmobiling across the frigid landscape, or playing broomball on a frozen lake. Or, if you’re gutsy enough, you can turn the lake’s thick, ice-covered surface into a huge, slippery racetrack, put on a helmet, and gun your Dodge Neon for a ride you’ll never forget.

All these activities and many more are part of the first-ever Northwest Wisconsin Winter Fest and Games, which will be held on Lake Altoona Jan. 23-25. The festival, sponsored by the Eau Claire Press Co., publisher of the Leader-Telegram, will help you shake off the winter doldrums while raising funds for United Cerebral Palsy and other local charities. Over the course of three days, there will also be food, beer, live bands, DJs, a Christmas tree bonfire, a “Winter Chiller” softball tournament, and a fat-tire bike race hosted by the Chippewa Off-Road Bike Association – all of it free. Saturday and Sunday will also feature ATV, motorcycle, and automobile ice races, for which a small gate fee will be charged.

This is really going to be something that’s totally different – just a totally new experience for people to get out in the winter.” – Brian sandy Winter Fest and Games organizer

Festival organizer Brian Sandy says the event will give people a reason to get out of the house during a time of year when cabin fever often sets in. “There’s just not a lot of activities going on in the Chippewa Valley region during the wintertime,” says Sandy, marketing and promotions manager for the Eau Claire Press Co. “You look at our communities in the summer and it’s just weekend after weekend of music festivals … and other opportunities to enjoy events. This is really going to be something that’s totally different – just a totally new experience for people to get out in the winter.”

Most of the activities will take place on the frozen surface of the lake, where the ice is well on its way to being thick enough already, Sandy says. Visitors will be able to arrive by car, shuttle bus, and even snowmobile (Two snowmobile trails – one existing and one brand new – run to the lake.)

The auto races will be sanctioned by the Minnesota-based International Ice Racing Association. “It’s pretty crazy to think that people are running down a straightaway at 100 mph and then coming into a corner at 70 mph,” explains Pete Tavernier, the association’s president. “I think that’s pretty nuts. But I do it. I love it.” Racers are mainly from Minnesota, and they compete not for prizes but for bragging rights in four classes: two-wheel drive stock and modified, and all-wheel drive stock and modified.

Lake Altoona, 1991

“It’s a road course, so it’s not like an oval course,” Tavernier explains of the winding route that will be plowed on Lake Altoona. “They’re usually a mile and a half plus. A lot of times they’re variations or miniature versions of an existing racetrack somewhere in the world.” Unlike traditional road courses, however, racers are skidding across ice and periodically losing visibility in clouds of pulverized ice and snow.

It’s been more than a decade since cars have raced on Lake Altoona – the International Ice Racing Association held several events there in the 1990s – so Chippewa Valley racing fans will be able to get their fix of pulse-pounding cold-weather action for the first time in years.

Tavernier says the association added a new racing class last season for street cars without roll cages or racing belts in which (helmeted) drivers race against the clock. Potentially, that means you could take the family sedan for a spin in the ice – if you dare. If that’s a little too adventurous for your tastes, however, you can still get a little thrill with your car: Parking for the festival will be on the lake’s surface, too.

Northwest Wisconsin Winter Fest and Games • Friday-Sunday, Jan. 23-25 • Lake Altoona • FREE for all events except ice racing (racing ticket prices vary) • event includes a hospitality tent with food, beer, and seven bands over three days; an ice fishing contest with a $5,000 prize fish; auto, ATV, motorcycle, and bike races on the ice; softball and broomball competitions; Chippewa Valley Cribbage Club Tournament; and much more • see winterfestandgames.com or ad on page 38 for more details