“Hanging 10 in Big Ten country: Yes, Great Lakes surfing (hold the salt, please) makes waves — especially now that fall/winter is here”
You might not expect it, but fall and winter are the best time of year for Great Lakes surfers.
“We’re still surfing right now. We’re still out there, even though there’s 5 or 6 inches of snow on the ground,” says Ryan Gerard, owner of Third Coast Surf Shop.
The response to the New Buffalo, Mich., pro surf shop in its first season has been promising, Gerard says. After the Tribune article ran in October, he says the shop was inundated with inquiries.
The list for surfing lessons filled up, then overflowed.
“Demand far outweighed the supply” of available lessons, he says. “Once [the weather] started to cool off, we didn’t really have the proper equipment for everyone who wanted to do it.”
That will change next season, Gerard says.
“Word is definitely getting out,” he says. “We’re kind of spearheading the whole scene.”