Nenana Ice Classic

I bought two tickets for the Nenana Ice Classic this morning at the Trading Post in Peters Creek. Tickets are $2.50 each to guess what date and time Breakup will occur.

The folks in the town of Nenana, which sits at a bend of the Tanana River 75 miles north of Denali (Mt. McKinley), have been betting on the Breakup since 1917. It has grown considerably since then. During a 3-day festival in March, they erect a giant black and white striped tripod in the middle of the frozen river. It's attached to a trip cable. When the ice starts to breakup and has moved a certain distance (like 100 feet), the cable trips and stops a clock, indicating the exact minute of Breakup. Generally it occurs between the end of April or beginning of May.

People buy tickets and mark their date and time of choice for a chance to win a jackpot of over $300,000. Last year, 8 ticket holders had the exact date and time down to the minute (5:29pm on May 2nd). They split the pot.

This isn't just a little betting pool. It's in the legislative statutes for the State of Alaska, and has been since the first session in 1960. Proceeds from the classic benefit all sort of things including the Special Olympics of Alaska.

You can read more about it at http://www.nenanaakiceclassic.com/.

If you'd like to bet on the Breakup, drop me a line and we'll set something up!