8/12-8/13 Lake Michigan Portage Lake

[MikE mAy]

got two days in on lake michigan near portage lake. it was amazing. i did a boat assisted 3 mile downwinder with very marginal wind conditions. it turned into a downwinder becuase the wind wasn't strong enough to stay upwind in the waves. i can only imagine how great lake michigan could go off if the wind cooperated. i was also amazed at how big the lake is! what a great spot if you have a boat.
tried to hook up with the broneah guys, but didn't happen. i was powered to underpowered on my 16 out on the lake. also got a good hour session in on the lake portage right in the backyard of where were were staying. what a great place. no need for wetties, and very cool 70 degree weather. it made it hard to come back to no wind and high 90's. i also learned how to slalom waterski which just pales in comparison to kiteboarding. why anyone would routinely go through the motions to waterski baffles me...

[bordy]

Swwweeetttt.

[Lisa Moss]

Yeah, Lake Michigan is awesome for kiteboarding. I used to help manage MACkite Kiteboarding (Grand Haven, MI) and usually kiteboarded in the Grand Haven & Muskegon area. If you ride right next to a pier, you can find some glassy conditions and in the fall there's a ton of days with 6 foot waves for some awesome wave riding. Summer can be kinda iffy with wind but spring and fall I was always riding a 7m. The waves can make it tough to learn in though.

I love Utah, but i really miss the kiteboarding and surfing back there.

Lisa

[Kenny]

I used to always want to take trips to kite other places, but I honestly like the conditions here better than anywhere else. The only thing we lack is good breaking waves. The snowkiting here makes up for it in spades IMHO. I like the flat water and lighter wind. Sure I still like a 9M day, but I would rather be on a 16M riding glass water at Rush or SSB than Kanaha every day in the chop. Utah has some beautiful riding locations.

You do need another sport to supplement the non-wind days. I think mountain biking or climbing in the summer and skiing/snowboarding in the winter will give you a solid workout and still let you enjoy the beauties of UT.

The best part about riding in Utah is the local crew. Last Friday, I had a miserable day at DC, but it was so awesome to ride with Jake, Billy, and Spencer. I had a leading edge rip open, lines that were too long on a new bar, a tangled bridle, I was tired, and wind doing the 10-30 thing. I was about to leave after my leading edge opened up when Billy offered me a 15 to use. I then didn't inflate the leading edge enough (I was being overly cautious after my 16M ripped open) this caused the bridle to tangle after a crash. Jake actually switched kites with me on the water. How cool is that? We have an awesome local crew! That is one example of how the local crew makes kiting here better than anywhere else. I could give you plenty more examples of kindness and goodwill shown by Utah kiters and sailors.

One more thing we have is Craig's daily forecasts. We are so very fortunate to live and ride here.

[Lisa Moss]

Yeah, Kenny I know exactly what you mean.

It was pretty funny. When I went to Maui, i was pretty disappointed with the kiteboarding (too crowded, not a good vibe, and I really should have had a 5m). When I arrived back in Utah after a red eye flight, the first thing I did was head out to Rush to get in some riding (had an awesome session - way better than Kite Beach).

The crew out here is awesome. I just need to find a new sport for the non-wind days in the summer.