The river ice has broken in Bethel.The clock on the Kuskokwim Ice Classic tripod stopped on May 6 at 10:05 p.m.
Bethel Community Services Foundation Executive Director Michelle DeWitt, who helps organize the contest, wrote in an email to KYUK that the winner of the Kuskokwim Ice Classic jackpot will likely be announced by Monday, May 10. DeWitt said that while not all entries have been analyzed yet, she believes that this year’s jackpot will be the largest since at least the early 2000s.
Two winners in another Ice Classic contest have been announced: the winners of minute madness, the contest where people bet on which minute of the hour the clock will stop. This year, there were two of these minute madness contests. The winner of each takes home $10,000. Randy Esmailka of Galena won the first round. In a live video on the Kuskokwim Ice Classic's Facebook page, Esmailka said that he picked minute five based on his son’s birthday, and he plans to use his winnings for an outboard motor. Magnus Laraux of Bethel won the second round. DeWitt said Laraux’s parents, Gux and Lanai Laraux, bought him the winning ticket.
