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Extreme Lake Michigan sports
As the cool winds of autumn begin rushing in come Labor Day, many of us are caught pulling out the winter jackets, tuning up the snow blower, and doing whatever it takes to prepare for the coming winter. For a growing number of extreme athletes, however, cold weather means one thing: SURF'S UP!

IN THE SURF
As the surf craze was spreading throughout California in the early 1960s, Tom Gabrielse bought his first surfboard for $25 from a friend who returned from the West Coast. While only 14, Gabrielse surfed the coast of Sheboygan, Wis. "I grew up 100 yards from Lake Michigan and was a big fan of the Beach Boys," he says. The teenager cruised the freshwater waves in solitude until he learned how to drive. Once he had his hands on the keys, he found other guys surfing the jetties near Sheboygan's North Avenue Beach. "Once we started hanging out, we started scoping out other spots," he says. In 1967, Gabrielse and his friends formed the Lakeshore Surf Club.

In a social studies class in 1968, Gabrielse realized that he wanted to make a living teaching skiing and surfing. "How can you make a living doing that around here?" his teacher and classmates asked. "You're living in the wrong state," they told him. They were wrong; Today, Gabrielse, now 55, is the owner of Snocrest Ski and Snowboard Center in Crestwood, Ill. (www.snocrst.com). Although Gabrielse primarily caters to skiers and snowboarders, he offers private surfing and windsurfing lessons by appointment.

Gabrielse says that when he travels to Maui each year, the surfers there tease him whenever he mentions surfing on Lake Michigan. But the highly acclaimed surf movie "Step into Liquid" changed all that by featuring a segment about surfing the Great Lakes. "People on Maui and around the world know about it now," Gabrielse says.

Surfing on the Great Lakes began in 1945 when an unknown G.I. returning from Hawaii with a longboard paddled into a freshwater paradise off the coast of Grand Haven, Mich. Since then, the sport has grown substantially, in part thanks to the Internet--online communication helps local surfers find suitable waves, new locations and new surfing partners. Gabrielse estimates there are currently between 700 and 800 Great Lakes surfers.

Great Lakes surfers will drive hundreds of miles to find the perfect waves, says Jim Hoop, co-director of the Eastern Surfing Association's Great Lakes District (www.surfesa.org). "I once drove 850 miles to compete in two 15-minute heats during a contest on the East Coast," says Hoop. If you're willing to log in the miles and brave extremely cold water and bad weather, the surf generated on the Great Lakes will leave you hooked, he says. There are literally thousands of surf breaks scattered around all five Great Lakes; some have never even been surfed due to their remote or isolated location. It's a freshwater ecosystem that has 10,900 miles of coastline--more than the East and West coasts combined.

If you want to try surfing yourself, head to Third Coast Surf Shop in New Buffalo, Mich. (www.thirdcoastsurfshop.com). Surfing 101 (waves or not) teaches the basics like warm-up, proper technique, safety concerns like rip currents and severe weather, and how to paddle around, stand up and carry the board. Surfing 102 students get out into the waves on big boards to practice skills they learned in 101. Third Coast, opened by Ryan Gerard, caters exclusively to surfers, offering a wide range of surfboards (including rentals), skimboards, bodyboards, skateboards, wetsuits and related accessories.

GONE WITH THE WIND
Strong Great Lakes winds create optimal conditions for windsurfing, a sport that combines surfing with the tranquility of sailing. Still, "Chicagoans seem to think that Lake Michigan is not suitable for such watersports," says Jackie Butzen, co-owner of Chicago's Windward Sports. That's just not the case: Top beaches for windsurfing in the area are Rainbow Beach, Montrose, Wilmette, Illinois Beach in Zion, Evanston's Greenwood and Dempster Avenue beaches, and Glencoe (must be a resident for access).

Butzen's shop carries surfing, windsurfing and kitesurfing equipment and accessories (www.windwardsports.com). Butzen, 61, has 27 years of experience and teaches private lessons. "Students love the water and think it's cool to be out on it," says Butzen. "Some can't swim, but they want to learn how to windsurf really bad." Butzen says that by learning in a very private setting, students seem to pick up the sport quickly and stick with it.

Another option if you want to pick up windsurfing is Northwestern University Sailing Center's Learn to Windsurf class (www.fitrec.northwestern.edu). Students learn rules of right of way, safety practices, rigging and derigging procedures, and safety.

Karen Girolami-Callam of Evanston signed up to take a windsurfing class because she wanted to do something new and scary for her 40th birthday, she says. The mother of two says it's the perfect escape. "I can take it up all by myself," she says. "I think I am good enough to keep going." Karen's husband, Kirby, says he's never been a fan of the open water, but just hates sitting on the beach. "Wherever we go, we can rent a board and enjoy being on the lake," says Kirby.

NU windsurfing instructor Oren Abeles says that learning how to windsurf is a lot like riding a bike. "Each time you fall, you learn something new," he says. "The key is just to stick with it and work on good posture." After students complete their two-day class, they are entitled to a free one-month membership at the Northwestern University Sailing Center. To buy your own gear, expect to spend about $1,500 for a basic board and rig, which includes the mast, boom and sail. The Callams have another strategy when it comes to their future windsurfing goals: "We'll most likely take turns with the kids on the beach so the other half of us can go out."

LET'S GO RIDE A KITE
Kitesurfing is the latest craze in extreme watersports. It's an action- packed blend of surfing, wakeboarding, windsurfing, snowboarding and paragliding. Kitesurfers ride boards that are propelled across the water using the power of a large kite. It's not uncommon to see some kiters 20 feet in the air soaring above the water. Kiteboarding debuted on to the Great Lakes scene about six years ago and is currently the fastest growing extreme sport in the world.

Montrose Avenue Beach (recently listed as one of the top 10 kitesurfing beaches in the nation) is the best place to see kitesurfing up close in the City of Chicago, especially when the wind blows from the north and the big waves crash along the lakefront. An agreement between local kiteboarders and the Chicago Park District allows kiteboarding only from Montrose Avenue Beach and prohibits teaching beginner kiteboarders. As a result, if you want to learn how to kitesurf, you will need to travel elsewhere.

Fortunately, you won't have to travel too far--Southwest Michigan has two top-notch schools of the sport: Sharkless Kiteboarding in South Haven (www.sharkless.com) or try Mackinaw Kites and Toys (www.mackite.com) in Grand Haven, Mich.

Lindy and Chris Campbell opened Sharkless just this past year after doing business online since 2002. "We opened our shop to try and help people out and prevent beginners from making the same mistakes we did," says Campbell. Lindy says that South Haven has some advantages that provide students with a more friendly learning environment than the ocean. "We don't have any reefs or other hazards you find in the ocean, which makes our beaches very attractive for beginners," says Campbell. "People come from all over to ride here. Our beaches are unoccupied and we have pretty consistent winds." Sharkless offers a chance to check out the sport every Wednesday. "We have a free demo and kiteflying on the beach," says Campbell. "It's a chance to learn how to maneuver a kite (on land) and figure out if it is for you or not."

A PASA Intermediate certification is required to ride at Montrose Avenue Beach and, as Tim Grossnickle of Chicago explains, "It makes riding less dangerous." Grossnickle is one of many riders who flock to Montrose on a windy day because it's close to home. "Guys get up and come here to ride before work," says Grossnickle. "There may be better beaches than Montrose, but it's easy to predict when it will be good."

Grossnickle has been kitesurfing for about 6 years, but comes to the sport from a 15-year windsurfing background. When the winds are calm, the 60-year-old can be found making custom kiteboards in his basement. "The boards I build are a little bigger and wider for our conditions," says Grossnickle. "Some are built with a wood core with a lot of flex to make it though the chop."

With cold weather on the way, these extreme Great Lakes athletes hope that the weather turns sour so they can get their thrills mixed with intense chills. Many extremists come armed with wetsuits up to 6mm thick, including hoods, booties and gloves to brave the extremely cold waters of the Great Lakes all winter long.

If you're still skeptical, check out the book "Surfing the Great Lakes" by P.L. Strazz. The book examines surfing, windsurfing, boogie boarding and skimboarding on all five Great Lakes. "Unsalted," a documentary by Vince Deur takes a look at the lives of Great Lakes Surfers, "one part obsession, one part addiction." If you're interested in kitesurfing, log on to Chicago's premier kitesurfing Web site, www.chicagokitesurfing.com. See you at Montrose Beach!

Mark Urban learned how to surf while attending the University of Hawaii. Since 1989, he has also been an avid bodysurfer, open water swimmer and scuba diver. Mark recently bought his first Great Lakes surfboard since moving back to Chicago in 1995. E-mail Mark with your questions at emily111@comcast.net.