This winter in North America has been pretty brutal for nearly everyone in any corner of the country, so naturally, as spring FINALLY arrives, kite flyers begin contemplating which of the big festivals to attend as the weather warms up and the sun is out longer. One of the first festivals that comes to mind is a long running affair held on the banks of Lake Michigan, the Great Lakes Kite Festival. This year is the 19th running of this hugely popular festival and judging by the schedule of events and performers, it promises to be another memorable one. Running from May 16th to May 18th, 2008, expect to see a large variety of kites, from sport kites to huge inflatables and everything in between.

Some of the sights you can see daily will include the daily Giant Octopus and Trilobyte launch and demos by some of the area’s best kite teams and individuals, including Chicago Fire and former AKA National Champion Lam Hoac of Ontario, Canada. Also scheduled to be in attendance are Lee Sedgewick, Sam and Anne Ritter, the Kings and Queen of huge stacks of Revolution Quad lines kites. And making a return appearance to the GLKF will be one of North America’s premier Quad kite teams, iQuad, featuring 6 flyers from both the US and Canada. This year, they will be holding an impromptu Rev skills workshop on the Friday down at the lake, and over the weekend, they will be holding a Rev mega-fly with as many as 16 revs in the air at once, flying as a coordinated team. And once again, look for Detroit's own Windjammers kite team who will be flying their large stacks. There will be demos by all of these people and more across the entire festival weekend. You can even catch some kiteboarding demos out on the lake itself, with the Naish Team putting on a show all weekend long. You may even want to try it, provided you can brave what I suspect will be some pretty cold water. Add onto this some fighter kite activities and you’d be hard pressed to find an end of kiting that is not represented at this festival!

Each evening of the festival brings a different happening, with Friday night being an indoor kite competition, featuring some of the most talented indoor flyers in the country. This takes place close to the beach at White Pines Middle School. Saturday evening features a night fly down at the beach so be sure to bring lit up and apparently, spotlights are encouraged as well. With a little wind, these night flys can be a dramatic memory of the festival. You can also find a large Family Fun Tent, filled with Arts, Crafts and games to keep small ones entertained and amused. It also acts as a fundraiser for The Children's Leukemia Foundation of Michigan, who take care of both children and adults with leukemia and other related diseases. And, if nothing else, you can certainly tire them out by setting them free in the Moonwalk and Inflatable Obstacle course.

The festival is sponsored by Prism Kites, Revolution Kites (both of who will have factory representatives with dedicated demo fields) and Mackinaw Kites and Toys, with a store located right in Grand Haven. For further information on where you can book a stay at Grand Haven for this event, check the following web sites, and check Mackinaw Kites and Toys website for up-to-date schedule and festival information. Last year's was a great event and this year promises much more of the same, so dust off those kite bags and we hope to see you there!