Great Lakes Surfer Magazine

Great Lakes
SURFER
.
Volume 1 Issue 1
+ Non-Stop to NY
+ WINTER RECAP
+ Costa Rica Tube Fest
Summer 2008
NW Indiana starts to open up.photo:
+
Mike Killion
PHOTO
GALLERY
photo: mike killion
you can
SURF
on the
?
GREAT
LAKES
That’s
right.
Surfing
on
the
Great
and
pathetic
wipeouts
-
catching
us
Lakes has been around since the 1940’s
at our worst moments, never
and is definitely here to stay. With
what happens when no one is looking.
more people joining the lineups each
So it’s time to take it into our
year,
as
wetsuit
technology
showing
gets
own hands. It’s time to show the real
better and better, it seems freshwater
power and beauty the Great Lakes holds.
surfing is catching up to the ocean...
And it’s time to show what the Mid-
almost.
West has to offer, for all of those
Every winter, local news stations send
willing to take on the consequences.
out their mics and cameras to try and
from getting arrested to almost dying
catch a glimpse of what us lake surfers
from
hypothermia,
the
love
miles
of
offers
to
do.
literally
freezing
our
coastline
over
10,900
plenty
of
faces off to experience some of the best
obstacles still waiting to be conquered.
sessions of our lives, the news never
It’s
just
up
to
you
to
find
them.
seems to give us the justice we deserve.
often showing rides on just whitewater
4 | GLS
-Mike Killion
GLS | 5
photo: mike killion
GLS
1
st
Great Lakes Surfer
M AG A Z I N E
Issue
Volume 1
Summer 2008
Editor/Creator: Mike Killion mike@greatlakessurfer.com
Photographers: Eric Berglund, Justin Bruursema, Nathaniel
Clarke, Burton Hathaway, Mike Killion, Ben Leitschuh, Jason
Lukas, Rusty Malkemes
Writers: Vince Deur, Ryan Gerard, Burton Hathaway, Mike
Killion, Ben Leitschuh, Rusty Malkemes, Mark Urban
12/
WINTER RECAP
A Southend timeline of this
past winter season, showing
how all that fetch is worth the
wait.
40/
COSTA RICA TUBE FEST
Ben Leitschuh documents some
of the best surf hes ever seen in
Central America.
54/
NON-STOP TO NY
Photog Mike Killion travels east
for the ESA NE Regionals, only
to find it gets better when the
contest ends.
6 | GLS
also inside
8/
APRIL FOOLS BBQ
and beach cleanup
presented by Third
Coast Surf Shop
26/
PHOTO GALLLERY:
Three photogs show
what Lake Michigan has
to offer
48/
ALL ABOARD THE
L-TRAIN:
Burton, Rusty, and Will
find themselves in over
their head at one of
Superior’s notorious
breaks.
68/
FEATURED:
Local artists and bands
just doing their thing.
74/
GOT ICE?
Who’s the coolest surfer
in the Mid-West?
GLS | 7
above:
Paul D’Amato
A
glides down another knee high glider.
fter one of the snowiest winters in Chicagoland
history, dozens of surfers broke out of hibernation
to partipate in the 1st anual April Fools Surf BBQ
and beach clean-up, sponsored by Third Coast Surf Shop
and the SouthEnd Surf Club on March 22, 2008. This
year’s event was held at ‘Shooters’ in Whiting, Indiana;
just Southeast of Chicago. The BBQ may have brought an
end to cabin fever for many, but mother nature played
an APRIL FOOLS joke the night before by dumping over a
foot of snow to parts of Michigan, Wisonsin and Illinois. “It
8 | GLS
was the worst driving conditions I’ve ever been in,” says
surfer Mike Killion. “I thought I was going to die every two
minutes.” Some surfers had made the trek from Green Bay,
Wisconsin -we were glad to see everyone made it down to
the Southend in one piece. Surfing was the primary order
of the day and the first crew to hit the water early in the
morning got whacked with windy and choppy conditions...
APRIL FOOLS! “I thought it went well,” says Third Coast
Surf Shop Owner Ryan Gerard. “The surf went from big
and blown to shreds in the early morning to clean and fun
jason lukas
FOOLS
mike killion
mike killion
L
I
R
P
A
BBQ and Beach
Clean-Up
presented by Third
Coast Surf Shop
by mark urban
top:
Walt prepares brats to feed the hungry.
Each sticker makes it five degrees cooler.
bottom:
as the wind backed off for a couple hours before slowly
fading through the afternoon,”. Although there were no
injuries to report at the Gala, Jim Hoop gets top honors
for paddling out and belly sliding despite his popped
knee he got surfing down in Mexico. As the clock ticked
closer to high noon those surfers lucky enough to catch
the dying wind got another dose of APRIL FOOLS.
The sun came out and the waves cleaned up providing
fun conditions for all surfers. Once high noon came the
first beers were cracked open and the smell of charcoal
GLS | 9
jason lukas
jason lukas
top left:
Food
and conversations were shared
while keeping warm upstairs.
top right:
found on
below:
Jim Hoop brings back one of the many tires
the beach.
Fellow
surfers cheer on others in the water
killion
killion
while kicking back with some brews.
smoke filled the air. Some opted for sausages or hotdogs
while one brave and patient soul hand-made 35 turkey
sandwiches. While grinding down on the variety of meat
and brew, many surfers hanging out near the tv set got to
witness the home-video action of surfing around the lakes.
As some surfers left the lineup, more were suiting up,
waxing down, and paddling out into the fading but still fun
swell throughout the afternoon. Those that surfed earlier
in the day or had on their environmental awareness caps
on, joined Unsalted Director, Vince Deur for a beach cleanup.
“There were about 8 of us who grabbed bags and combed
the beach for trash,” says Deur. “ We filled up about ten bags
with plastic and glass bottles, tons of balloons and ribbons,
fast food containers and assorted plastics and a couple tires.”
The beach cleanup was organized by Deur and Gerard; both
members of the Surfrider Foundation-Great Lakes District.
The day ended in grand fashion with a stellar sunset and
a few more ankle-biting waveletts for the surf-starved
individuals. Log on to www.thirdcoastsurfshop.com for
more information about all upcoming 2008 Great Lakes and
ESA sponsored events.
jason lukas
jason lukas
jason lukas
above: a local shooter leaves the gun range while one of the real locals gets one to himself.
Surfers
bring the event to an end, overfilling the garbage can with trash found along the beach.
Want To Help Our Lakes?
There are a couple organizations that make it all the
easier for you to do so. Whether you’re sepnding time in
the water or not, you owe it to yourself to help take part
in saving one of our most valuable resources. Check out
the following websites to see what you can do to help.
Surfrider Foundation: Michigan Chapter
h t t p : / / w w w . s u r f r i d e r . o r g / l a k e m i c h i g a n /
h
10 | GLS
t
t
p
:
/
/
Alliance For The Great Lakes
w
w
w .
g
r
e
a
t
l
a
k
e
s
.
o
r
g
/
GLS | 11
WINTER
RECAP
le
y
t
s
d
n
e
h
t
sou
words
and
photographs
by
Mike
Killion
S
Artem Abakumov
prepares to celebrate
2008. New Years
day
- NW Indiana.
urfing in the winter isn’t all fun and games around the Great Lakes.
Dodging icebergs and hypothermia or waiting for the ice to melt off
your hood so you can change in your bonneville are only a few of winters
inconveinences. It’s so cold that most “normal” people won’t even take
a step outside their house to get the mail. But when you know there’s
30+ knot winds whistling through your hometown, you can’t deny yourself a dip
into some of the coldest water on the planet.
Because just past all that
snow and ice are beautiful, glassy, empty, waves just waiting to be ridden.
All Aboard
S no w s to m ping s u r f m obil e .
the
T u nne l ing in to D u l u t h .
L-TRAIN
By Burton Hathaway ~ Photos by Rusty Malkemes
he t r a in . W il l Wa l l .
G oin g f or a r id e on t
GLS | 49
What’s it all about?
After years of having mid-winter ‘surfer-only’ parties
Larry and Lee Williams of Sheboygan, Wisc. had an idea.
To hold a freshwater surfing competition every Labor Day
weekend to celebrate the beginning of the Midwest surfing
season. Since 1988 ‘Longboard Larry’ and ‘Waterflea’
have watched the Dairyland Surf Classic grow to epic
proportions. In 2006 the Classic touched approximately
4.6 million people (Teamworks Media Stats) who read
newspapers like the Chicago Tribune, New York Times,
and the Honolulu Star Bulletin. In 2007 NBC’s ‘Today
Show’ covered the largest gathering of freshwater surfers
in the world along with National Radio programs, MSNBC
and many filmmakers from around the United States.
The Dairlyland Surf Classic brings in surfers and their
families from around the world for a truly classic event
now sponsored by Corona Extra Beer. There are 22
different breaks along the 5-mile coastline dubbed ‘Malibu
of the Midwest.” According to the Williams brothers,
the Sheboygan surfing scene is never crowded. There are
beach breaks, huge reef and point breaks, secret coves and
everything else to entice even the most adventurous surfer.
Friday night begins in the VIP tent for a surfers-only
free beer extravaganza and live music spectacular. If you
drank one too many (ya know ya did) it’s time to wake up
bright and early for Saturday’s Dawn Patrol at Northside
beach. A surf shop style set-up attracts those looking for
a board, wetsuit or any other surf-related product. The
day continues with an all-ages paddling competition that
includes the infamous Pro-Paddle. First place finishers
walk away with brand new surfboards donated by Corona,
Third Coast Surf Shop and EOS Surf Shop. Saturday night
culminates with a potluck-style-luau on the beach featuring
a huge raffle and awards banquet. If your able to get out of
bed or off that bench you crashed out on, Sunday is reserved
for recovery or perhaps a new surf discovery of you own.
The
of
Joel
Louis
Williams brothers share the stoke
Dairyland
with
Gerry
Lopez,
Tudor, and Dana Brown at the San
Obisbo International Film Festival.
the
To see what happened last year at the Dairyland, visit
http://www.visitsheboygan.com/dairyland/
This year’s 2008 Dairyland Surf Classic will honor the
Lake Superior Surf Club.
-Mark Urban
GLS | 67
Get Out
THERE
Northern Lake Superior ~ Photo: Eric Berglund