Updates
July 4, 2013: maiden voyage successful. The Minot Daily News is reporting:
The Three Affiliated Tribes' new 149-passenger yacht marks a first in North Dakota.
Tex Hall, tribal chairman, said the 4 Bears Casino, a facility west of New Town owned by the Three Affiliated Tribes, is the only casino in the state with a boat.
After a ceremony Wednesday afternoon at the 4 Bears Marina and dock, west of New Town, about 75 special guests boarded the yacht for its maiden voyage an excursion trip with dinner and entertainment on Lake Sakakawea. Calvin Grinnell provided the cultural interpretation for the trip and Jackie Bird entertained with her singing.
Original Post
The Nation with a bit of oil in the Bakken is getting ready to sail.
The Nation: the Three Affiliated Tribes, New Town, North Dakota.
The boat: a 96-foot yacht.
Why: because they can.
The Minot Daily News is reporting:
Earlier this year, the tribes' Class III Tribal-State Gaming Compact was amended. It expanded Class III gaming on tribal trust lands and waters within the exterior boundaries of the reservation and allow the tribes to conduct gaming on Lake Sakakawea.
Scott Wilson, of the 4 Bears Casino & Lodge, said the yacht, a 2002 model, is from Skipper Lines Corp. in Wisconsin. He said it is 96 feet in length and will accommodate 149 passengers.
He said a captain and crew from Wisconsin have been contracted for one year and they will also train people for the yacht while they are here.
Just one more example of how the Bakken is affecting economies across the US. In this case: the yacht-building industry in Wisconson .Wilson said first, the yacht will be used for dinner and entertainment. The dinners will be catered by the Bison Room, a newly renovated restaurant in the 4 Bears Casino & Lodge. The entertainment on the yacht will be located on the upper level where there is a bar.
