100-year-old tradition continues in Lake Geneva with mailboat jumping tryouts

LAKE GENEVA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- For over 100 years, houses on Geneva Lake have been getting their summer mail waterside.

College and high school students try their feet at jumping off the S.S. Walworth onto piers to deliver the mail. Only a handful of mailboat jumpers will be hired as the seasonal letter carriers for Lake Geneva.

If Michaela Fletcher makes the cut, this will be her third year as a mailboat jumper.

“We have a very small group trying out and all of these girls have jumped at least a couple times in the past, so I think it won’t be too difficult for the judges to make a decision,” said Fletcher.

One unique thing about Lake Geneva’s mail delivery is that jumpers are also tour guides for others who want to go for a scenic boat ride during deliveries. Fletcher says being fast and athletic is just one skill required for the job.

“You also need to be a public speaker, because you do need to give a tour throughout the whole thing, so you need to, like, jump off the boat, get back on and give the tour immediately,” she said.

Tours are offered daily with Lake Geneva Cruise Line from June 15 to Sept. 15.

CBS 58 rode along with jumpers as they tried out. We asked Fletcher how she thought her tryout went:

“I expected to be a little faster but, ya know, I made it back on the boat so that’s all that matters,” she said.

For jumpers and those taking the tour, part of the fun is seeing who might miss the boat as they go from dock to dock.