Jim Moldenhauer has taken his love of pontoons to a new level and in the process has redefined the term ‘man cave’
By Per Peterson
A billiards room has a billiards table in it so naturally something called the “pontoon room” has a pontoon in it, right?
As bizarre as it might sound, that’s exactly the case in the Renae Zachman and Jim Moldenhauer abode on Lake Shetek.
While all “man caves” are customized to suit the needs of its main occupant, the retired Moldenhauer’s takes it to another level. How? Half of it is a pontoon.
“I love pontoons, obviously — some of the best times I’ve ever had have been on those,” said Moldenhauer, who lives on Valhalla Drive. “We built this place here … my son wanted me to build a bar based on Valhalla, which is where the Vikings go to die — a place where you sit around for eternity and revel. Sounded like a good idea, but I have friends with bars and a lot of times the bars just sit there and gather dust.”
Oh, Moldenhauer built a bar alright, and it sits parallel to the real main attraction in his basement — a full-sized pontoon built into the floor of the house.
“I wanted to do something completely unique, so I Googled all over the place and never saw anything like this,” he said. “I thought, ‘What the hell …’ My wife said, ‘Do whatever you want.’ Little did she know …”
Moldenhauer thought that while a bar would be nice, why not create something his grandkids can enjoy, too?
“My wife gave me three weeks — and this was a completely blank room,” Moldenhauer said.
The pontoon replica is 20 feet long and fits perfectly in the 20 foot, 3 inch room.
For more on this article, see this week’s Headlight-Herald.