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| Joe Matulis surfing Lake Michigan in Fall 2010 |
Joe Matulis got hooked on surfing while lifegaurding in Southern California, and moving back to Michigan for the school year wasn't going to stop him from fueling his new addiction.
"Waves are more common in Michigan then you might think," Joe said. "You just need to know where to look."
Joe's favorite place to surf back home is on the lake. Lake Michigan is surrounded by private beaches and secret surf breaks.
"The lake is best to surf in the fall. The water is warm and the wind brings in the best surf," Joe said.
The falling air temperature over the warm lake water makes a strong wind the blows across the lake to form waves. Most of the waves on Lake Michigan are 1 to 2 feet, but Joe has surfed it as big as 6 feet.
"When you surf Michigan, you aren't looking for the biggest waves, but for the cleanest. It's an adventure to find where to go. It takes a long time to learn all the breaks and what conditions make them good," he said.
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| Joe Matulis surfing Lake Michigan in the winter |
After years of exploring the Michigan coastline, Joe has finally gotten a good feeling for where the best surf is. The breaks are kept a secret within the surfing community to keep the crowds down. Once you prove yourself in the water, local surfers will to share their secrets.
The best waves might be in the fall, but winter storms can bring surfable waves from time to time. When they do, Joe is there. Not even the chunks of ice floating on the lakes surface stop him from getting in a surf session.
The spring showers might not bring waves on the lake, but it doesn't leave surfers stranded. The heavy rain combined with snow melt floods the Red Cedar River to make a secret spot. Right in the middle of Michigan State University, a few days a year, the river forms a standing wave against the rocks.
Joe learned about the standing wave by Pat Caldwell, a national champion body boarder.
"I didn't believe Pat at first but after looking at it [the river] every day before class I finally saw it!" Joe said.
Joe spent the next few days studying the wave before trying it out. The fast moving water and rocky bottom make the wave tricky and dangerous to surf. It would be easy to get wedged underwater against a rock and drown.
"One time my board purled and got caught against the rocks. I had to dive into the water and pull as hard as I could before it freed itself."
After studying the wave, Joe grabbed his board and became the first person ever to surf the Red Cedar River. People had kayaked and even body boarded the standing wave before, but never had anyone attempted to surf it.
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| Joe Matulis and Remi Hamel wake surfing |
When the wind is dead and the rainy season is over surf a boat wake. As long as the lake isn't frozen, a boat wake can make for a fun workable ride.
Keep checking the local surf because the season is coming up fast and if you see the Matuli paddling out you know you came to the right spot.
