Spring-like weather warms up IceFest

Publication Date: 1/27/2002

By Carmen M. Henderson
chenderson@coxohio.com
Reprinted with permission by the Journal-News

Driving through downtown Hamilton to run errands on Saturday morning, the Thomas family returned to spend their afternoon watching ice carvers create works of art.

"It's a nice day to be outside. The sculptures are beautiful," said June Thomas of Millville, who was accompanied by her husband, Ron, their daughter, Leah, 13, and son, Cody, 7.

The Thomases were among the many spectators who watched 10 competitors carve 350-pound ice blocks into various creations at IceFest in downtown Hamilton. Saturday's event, the first ever, was sponsored by several area businesses.

Ice carvers turned out from throughout the Midwest, South and even Canada for the one-day event. Each of the competitors had four hours to complete their sculpture.

Roy Calo of Detroit, Mich., won first place and $1,000, Mike Vosburg of Richmond, Va., placed second and won $750, and Ramon Rodriguez of Dayton finished third and won $500.

Sunny skies and warm temperatures that reached 52 degrees helped bring out large crowds. Organizers said several thousand turned out through the day at Courthouse Square and Journal Square.

But the weather posed a challenge to many competitors, who consider the ideal ice-sculpting temperature to be one-third of Saturday's high.

"It was nice and cold this morning, but I knew it was going to be a warm day. You have to have two different ideas when the weather is like this. You want to create something more vertical so it melts together," said Mike Stoddart of Lexington, Ky., who won fifth place.

He created a sculpture called "Nature's Breakfast," consisting of an eagle fishing for salmon.

But the spring-like weather wasn't the only problem for the carvers. Wind gusts of up to 20 mph caused some sculptures to be blown off their platforms and shattered to pieces.

"It's brutal competition for these guys, but you really have to work hard," said Matt Williams, co-owner of Artic Diamond in Forest Park, who assisted organizers. The company also supplied 100 ice blocks for the competitors.

"A lot of people are fascinated by the images made out of ice," he said. "We can immediately create something into art."

Williams and co-owner Jeff Stahl will compete in ice sculpture at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games next month in Salt Lake City, Utah. Williams came in fourth place in the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.