THE BIG RED WIND SLED IS RUNNING...AND DENNIS RODMAN MAY BE CRAZY BUT HE ISN'T STUPID

SUNRISE WITH OVERCAST SKY

THE BIG WIND SLED IS NOW IN SERVICE...

...ALONG WITH SNOWMOBILES

Thursday,  9:00 AM.  -4.5 degrees F, Wind W, light with a few stronger gusts.  The sky is overcast with dark storm clouds moving in from the W.  The humidity is rising, now 80%, and the barometer has fallen to a still high 30.36".  We appear to be settling into a typical northern winter cyclical pattern of extreme cold followed by warmer weather and snow.
   The big red wind sled is now in service to transport students and others to and from Madeline Island.  Private snowmobiles are also in vogue, and are a good means of getting between Bayfield and LaPointe, as long as the weather isn't severe and folks know the ice conditions.  Two winters ago two Islanders left Bayfield on a snowmobile in the dark, evidently got disoriented, and died when they went through thin ice between Madeline Island and Long Island (way off their destination).  The Ice Road has been outlined with christmas tree markers, as is usual, but I couldn't tell if it had been plowed as yet, which is necessary to insure that it freezes thick enough to support vehicular traffic.
   Dennis Rodman, on his personal basketball diplomatic mission to North Korea, may be crazy but he isn't stupid.  He let the Korean dictator's team win the first half of the "happy birthday game", 47-39, before mixing the sides up to finish the exhibition.