We've had a totally exciting morning! Homer called very early to let us know the clock had stopped, ending the Ice-Out Contest. Fred picked up Bill Rossi and they went to Homer's to verify the time - the clock had stopped on April 20 at 10:21 p.m. We got in touch with Karl Couillard, who logged in our tickets, and found the winner is Ash Desmond, who lives in Richmond, Vermont. Ash guessed 9:37 p.m. and will receive $4,965.

We were stunned that things happened so fast. Nobody had any idea anything was going to happen for at least a week. Fred and I were watching the ice in back of the islands and now know that the reason it looked white after turning so dark over the weekend was that the south wind was shoving all the ice in the pond north. Fred and Bill took pictures this morning. Here's a slide show - a combination of pictures Fred and Bill took.
Clock Stops

We've all been running on adrenalin today. After we know when the clock stops, we have to find out the winner. This year that was very clear, but here's the thing: More people (704) chose 4/20 as the date than any other; but nobody was right on for the time, as happened to four people last year. Mr. Desmond had the closest guess, and nobody else had picked that time. This was verified by Dave Parker as soon as Karl Couillard located the winning ticket.

There was some delay as we tried to reach the winner before actually giving any information to the media, but turns out he was at a conference out of the state and eventually got Dave's message and called us. We released all the information, calling our ticket sales outlets and the media. Homer said people had stopped by this morning and realized the clock had stopped, so the news was spreading like wildfire and our phones began to ring. It has quieted now, Dave and I have both spoken to Ash Desmond and I'm hoping to set up a news conference thing to present the check to him on Friday afternoon.

Here's a link to a story WCAX did on April 17th: WCAX

Spring has officially begun - the clock has stopped and the ice will be gone VERY soon. I guarantee.