The Clear Lake Fire Department responded to a report of a house on fire at 713 N. 11th St. at 6:35 a.m. Tuesday morning, Feb. 5.  
    Upon arrival, firefighters saw fire venting from the roof of the single story home owned and occupied by Maxine Funk.  The fire was reported by Bob Funk, who lives in the residence at 713 1/2 N. 11th St.
    The fire was located primarily in the attic of the house, but heavy smoke and heat damage was found throughout the structure.
    Fire Chief Doug Meyers said a great deal of time was spent removing cellulose insulation from the attic.  The cause of the blaze was determined to be an electrical short in fixed wiring in the attic space that ignited the insulation, according to Meyers.
    Thirteen firefighters in four companies were on the scene until 9:10 a.m.  They were assisted at the scene by the Clear Lake Police Department and Alliant utilities.
    No injuries were reported.

by Lowell Washburn
When it comes to knowing exactly where and when the fish are biting on Clear Lake, no one knows better than Dan Fjeld.
Fjeld is the official DNR Creel Clerk for Clear Lake. Rain or shine, summer or winter, he’s out and about conducting hundreds of angler interviews while recording the numbers, size, and species of fish those anglers catch. Biologists use that information to make hatchery, stocking, and other fish management decisions.
Although ice fishing ranks as the most unpredictable period of the year, angler numbers and angler success have remained high at the lake throughout the winter.
“People were able to get out on good ice early in the season, and they immediately began to find good numbers of walleyes and yellow bass,” says Fjeld. “Angler success remained high, the word quickly spread and crowds grew.”
By mid-January, Clear Lake’s ice shanty village had grown to around 100 permanent houses. During late afternoons, the number of structures often doubles as anglers install portable ice houses in preparation for the evening bite.
This winter, angler numbers appear to be holding into February. Last Saturday, for example, a late afternoon crowd of more than 800 gathered in hopes of bagging a sunset walleye.
“Most people just want to catch fish and are happy with either yellow bass or walleyes,” says Fjeld. “I’m not seeing huge catches of yellows, like in the spring, but the fish that are being caught are very acceptable. Eleven-inch yellow bass weighing up to one pound are pretty common. A lot of people are taking anywhere from a dozen to 15 of those fish per trip. That level of success definitely keeps anglers coming back.”

    The Ventura School Board voted Monday night to place a $2.75 bond issue on the ballot again in July.
    The measure to support renovation and expansion of the district’s high school fell just short of passage in a special election Dec. 4, 2007.  At that time, the issue received 59.96 percent approval.  Sixty percent approval was needed for passage.
    The School Board voted unanimously to repeat the vote in a special election on July 1, rather than wait for the next regular school election in September.  Members noted the costs associated with the proposed project continue to rise and waiting until a September decision could delay a construction start in 2008.

Rave on

To borrow a phrase from a Buddy Holly song, fans are raving on and on about the music and fun they had during this year’s Fifties in February at the Surf Ballroom.
“If I had to characterize it, I’d say ‘there you go again, Clear Lake,’” said Jeff Nicholas, one of the event co-chairmen this year for the Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce. “All the volunteers-- and the community as a whole-- did a fabulous job hosting the entertainers and fans joining us for the celebration this year.”
Nicholas said he and others who worked on the event met Monday afternoon at the Surf to begin wrapping up the 2008 event and looking toward next year, when the Surf will mark 50 years since Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson played their final concert at the Surf Ballroom.
“We sold a few more tickets this year, but the event wasn’t quite a sell-out. But gift shop sales and all other areas were up in revenues,” said Nicholas. “All in all, it was an amazing weekend.”
Expect a 2009 sell-out Given the great time and great entertainment this year’s crowd enjoyed-- combined with a 50 year commemorative event in 2009-- Nicholas said he expects a quick sell-out next year. He gave the weekend crowds notice to place next year’s dates on their calendars. He also said mailings and emails to this year’s ticket holders, as well as press releases, will give fans at least a week notice of 2009 ticket sales.

It was a busy week of basketball for the Ventura girls, as they competed in three games in as many days.

NSK 71, Ventura 25
The Lady Vikes hit a buzz saw when they faced North Sentral Kossuth on Thursday, Jan. 31, in Fenton.
Despite a good first quarter, where the Lady Vikes were able to handle the Eagles’ press and get off some high percentage shots, NSK dominated the rest of the game on their way to a 71-25 victory.
“We turned the ball over too many times, which was also a result of us only getting 32 shots off in the game,” said Coach Lucas Kreuscher. “I thought NSK really got aggressive in the second half and didn’t let us make the pass.”
Kaley Imhoff led the Lady Vikes with 11 points and four rebounds for the night. She also connected on one three-point shot. Rounding out the scoring was Brittany Boehnke with six, and Morgan Welp, Megan Schuler and Blair Berhow-Goll each had two points.
Amber Smith led the team in assists with three and Welp led the team in rebounds with five. Boehnke also grabbed four rebounds and Hannah Vavrik had three.

Harris-Lake Park 43, Ventura 37
The Lady Vikes had their chance on Friday, Feb. 1, when they hosted Harris-Lake Park in a Cornbelt Conference showdown.
Ventura only trailed by five points at halftime, but they couldn’t make up the deficit and fell, 43-37.