Kiteboarding - Wind powered action

Traverse City is a hotbed of kiteboarding activity, a sport that harnesses wind power to pull the participant, feet strapped to a small surfboard, across water or snow at high speed. Using the kite and a control harness, the user can perform wakeboarding moves, launch 30-foot jumps above the lake, carve virgin tracks through fine powder snow, or just ride the waves into a Lake Michigan sunset.

According to enthusiasts, kiteboarding isn't so much a sport as it is a passion. Kiteboarding can be done in many locations around the world, but the lakes and beaches in and around Traverse City are among the best for this sport anywhere. The gear can pack down to the size of a golfing bag, so you can carry your sport to secluded locations like uncrowded beaches along the Lake Michigan shoreline.

Matt and Keegan Myers, owners of Broneah Kiteboarding in Traverse City, offer the widest selection of kite-boarding classes in the world out of their Traverse City store. They teach kiteboarding on water four months here each year and, in the winter, teach a month of snow kiteboarding on the frozen Grand Traverse Bay. They say that many of their students  have fallen in love with the sport.  With the rapid advancements in kite, board, and rigging technology, the learning curve for kiteboarding has been dramatically improved. What once took months to learn now takes hours. Some beginner classes take place right in town, just steps from the downtown shopping district.

The two-day weekend camps offered by Broneah are a great way to learn the basics of this sport. The classes are offered each weekend from June through September and during February. The winter classes are on snow instead of open water, but the skills you learn are the same no matter which season you learn in.

This area's crystal clear fresh water and consistent on-shore winds make Traverse City an almost magical kiteboarding destination!

Photos courtesy of www.Broneah.com