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34th Annual Lake Lucerne Bottle Rocket War

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February 3rd through 9th, 2025

Last week started off warmish with highs reaching 32°F. That changed fast. After the change, we enjoyed highs that struggled to get to 20°F and sub-zero lows. The new weather was not so good for tanning, but perfect for building forts and fighting during the seminal event of the winter: The annual Lake Lucerne Bottle Rocket War. When it came to building forts, the bar's wild turkeys were of little to no help at all. On Monday, when the temperature was close to 32°F, the walls on the front of the south fort were being extended to protect against noggin shots. The walls of the south fort were done by Monday's sunset. The northern fort was started on Tuesday. Just before sunset, the northern fort was 80% complete. Finishing work was done on Thursday during a strong wind event. Gusts of over 40 mph tested "Wind Walls". A special fort was built between the two main structures. The "Fort of the AWOL Rocketeer" was underbuilt as an anti-tribute to those that chose comfort and responsibility over adventure. The southern fort boasted an antechamber and two war rooms. The north's fort had an extended wind wall and a single war room. Aesthetic touches to the southern fort included "Blue Orbs of Coldness", a "Purple Orb of Frustration" mounted on top of an anti-skip shot wall, and icicle spikes. There were also a few "Ice Jewels of Distraction" mounted in the top wall. As launchers were lined up, we couldn't help notice the lack of artistry reflected in the northern rampart. In addition to a real tamper, the use of straps on the forms to take some of the pressure off the pins turned out to be quite the innovation. Pulling the pins on a finished wall, a feat of strength in the past, became almost trival. Predicted snow on Saturday pushed the war into a snowless Friday night. Three cameras were set up to capture images and movies from the event. The main camera dutifully took pictures of the entire event. Due to an error in the set-up, most images looked like this. I was having too much fun from the start and forgot to set up a second camera. The third camera took a movie of the event from the right side of the southern fort. Stills from the result are okay, but the actual movie was great. The summary page compiler is not yet smart enough to deal with mp4s. Until it is, here's a <a href='/WeeklySummaryPages/2025/0209/4.mp4' class ='defaultlink2' target='_blank'>link to a one minute clip</a> of the battle. A late after war bar night on Friday, Saturday snow, and a dump run pushed the great stick pickup into a very sunny Sunday. The brutalist architecture of the northern fort showed much evidence of Friday's conflict. The "Fort of the AWOL Rocketeer" was not left unscathed. The artistry of the southern fort was chipped and scarred. One of the first shots on Friday night exploded in the upper right corner of my window. After it hit and the startle wore off, it was remarked that this disrespect for the southern fort will not stand. The forts, now stripped of their guns, windows, and chairs, are all that remain of one of the best winter events ever. Again, the north end turkeys were no help with any facet of the event. After the clean up, a quick check of the lake ice was made. Lucerne is holding at 15.5 inches. The ice has very little embeded air. It's super clear. In addition to making the remaining fort construction...interesting, the big wind the day before the war polished the plowed surface between the forts. When there's snow between the forts short shots bury themselves and emit a dull thud. This year, they skipped and continued onward with many hitting a front wall with report. Good times. I'd like to thank the many people who attended the post-event bar night and made it the funnest (and first) of the year. Now we wait for the highs to push into the 40s°F and the lows to drop only into the 20s°F which marks the start of the 2025 maple sap season. We're thinking around Saint Patrick's Day. Until then, <a href='/WeeklySummaryPages/2025/0209/2.mp4' class ='defaultlink2' target='_blank'>here's another minute from the war</a>.<br><br><br>-Nemo's dropping the price on a 2 bed room, 1 antechamber, very airy B&B in the northeastern corner.

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