Fox becomes new wake zone

Brandyn Flack, 20, of Crystal Lake grabs his board and catches some air Wednesday while wakeboarding on the Fox River near Broken Oar Marina in Port Barrington. Representatives from Chicago MasterCraft are at the location each Wednesday evening through Aug. 5 to introduce new riders to the sport with lessons and exhibitions. (Travis Haughton – thaughton@nwherald.com)

E-mail this story

Print this story

Share

PORT BARRINGTON – The Fox River has become a breeding ground for area wakeboarders.

Companies offering free and reduced-cost lessons at the Broken Oar in Port Barrington and Kief’s Reef in McHenry have spawned a generation of enthusiasts in recent years.

Mark Michelini, of Chicago MasterCraft in Prairie Grove, has watched the popularity of the sport flourish while offering free wakeboarding lessons at the Broken Oar on Wednesdays after 4 p.m. throughout the summer.

“The sport has really grown in this area,” he said.

Raging Buffalo also offers a wakeboard school and lessons Wednesdays at nearby Kief’s Reef in Burton’s Bridge, owner Keith Duck said. With both operations running, wakeboarding is a common sight on the Fox River most lesson-day afternoons, even when it’s raining.

On an average Wednesday, Michelini and a group of experienced riders would turn a dozen or more newbies into devotees of the sport. Each week, anywhere from 15 to more than 50 people take advantage of the free lessons.

“I don’t even know how many we’ve taught to wakeboard,” Michelini said.

The lessons give Michelini an opportunity to share his passion for the sport and build a customer base from the ground up for Chicago MasterCraft and equipment dealer Liquid Sports.

For beginners such as Melissa Sommerfield, it’s a way to get started without spending money on equipment or a boat. It’s also a chance to get some expert advice.

Sommerfield, 18, of Crystal Lake had tried wakeboarding once before, but her skills improved rapidly Wednesday under the tutelage of Laura Lohrmann, a 33-year-old professional rider from Antioch. Sommerfield was able to get up on the board right away. After a few tries, Sommerfield was going in and out of the boat’s wake with ease.

“I learned a lot,” she said afterward. “That was way fun.”

First-timers much younger and much older than Sommerfield have learned to wakeboard at the Broken Oar in the past five years, said Michelini. And most are successful.

“If they come out here, we get them up,” he said.

Lohrmann, who has been riding for 11 years, is a skilled rider and coach. She grew up water skiing and then moved into wakeboarding. She has competed professionally for nearly a decade.

“A few lessons will really help most beginners,” Lohrmann said.