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Michigan 2009: Mid-Summer Synopsis and the Sail North

Upon my return to the shores of Lake Michigan in mid-May I was greeted by a solid run of good “small kite” conditions...but June 2009 turned out to be somewhat disappointing and uncharacteristically calm – although it was still possible to ride 14 out of 30 days. It seems that the June/July weather patterns around the entire country were somewhat out of whack: cold and wet in the Midwest and Northeast...but lots of wind in Western Florida!!!

So far July has yielded 15 out of 25 days, so you can't complain about that. However these have not been the typically reliable forecasted winds we expect, but rather the kind of winds you need to “be there” for when it's happening – which makes it awfully nice to live 3 blocks from the water. Still with slightly less kiting than normal it has been a great season for sailing boats - regular 7 to 12 kts winds makes for perfect big-boat conditions.

The kiting since I returned here on May 12 has been spectacular. July 15 marked the 50th session since I got back 75 days earlier. That works out to 68% of days kiteable, or roughly 5 days/week! And total kiteable days 12 May thru 11 August: 63 days!

The big lake water did not warm up much until mid-June, and there were many days when water temps were in the high 40's!! but for some reason it didn't seem to bother me at all – I guess all the good kiting kept me warm...plus an Ocean Rodeo Pyro Pro drysuit with lots of fleece layers, a hood and booties.