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August 28, 2004Festival set to make wavesPWC races will cap Midwest WatercrossByRecord-Eagle staff writer TRAVERSE CITY - Russell Schindler looks out at the neon colored buoys bobbing in West Grand Traverse Bay. It doesn't look like much, he said, but the bright buoys mark the twists and turns that riders competing in this weekend's Midwest Watercross Tour races must follow. The races are among the events that make up the first Michigan WaterFest. The festival begins today at the Holiday Inn West Bay and Sunset Park with personal watercraft exhibitions and races, sand castle contests and demonstrations of all sorts of water toys. "The best thing about this is that it's on a weekend that traditionally... would be dead, nothing going on," said Schindler, festival director. Schindler operates a catamaran charter service in Traverse City. He asked a race promoter several years ago why Traverse City didn't host personal watercraft races. "It is a perfect site, right in front of the Holiday Inn, with great viewing areas. The water is nice, the beach is nice," said Patrick Mell, a coordinator with the American Power Boat Association, which sanctions the races. About 150 racing teams will compete in 32 racing and freestyle events in the waters of West Grand Traverse Bay today and Sunday. The race is the final event in the Midwest Watercross Tour and helps determine regional finalists who will qualify for the national championships. Mell said 30 buoys mark the football field-sized course, with different colors signaling drivers which way they should turn. The staff of Eastern Mountain Sports in Traverse City will participate in the festival by conducting a kayak exhibition. Staff will be on the bay today beginning about 9 a.m. Kiteboarders will also show off their water know-how, said Keegan Myers of Broneah Kiteboarding in Traverse City. The festival will also feature water skiing exhibitions, boater safety classes, boat safety checks and various environmental and water quality exhibits. Entry to WaterFest is free.
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