MUSKEGON, Mich. — Hundreds of surfers will take to the big lake this weekend as the Great Lakes Surf Festival returns to Muskegon.
Last minute preparations were well underway at Pere Marquette Beach Friday afternoon, with crews setting up tents, barriers and everything else the massive gathering would need to go on as planned.
The festival goes up Saturday afternoon along the Lake Michigan Shoreline.
Organizers said several thousand turned out last year.
Now in year four, they said the buzz was bigger than ever.
"We've had an amazing career in the board sports industry and we want to give back," Co-Founder Joe Bidawid related. "We are trying to empower the second generation of surfers and paddleboarders."
"We also promote water safety and how to be safe on the water with the boards and all of the different water sports you can do out here," Jimmy Hegedus, the organization's board chair said.
The festival was slated to feature music, yoga on the beach and raffle giveaways including surfboards, paddleboards and more.
Organizers said the grand prize this year would be a surfing getaway out in Costa Rica.
For more details on the festival and the classes available, visit the Great Lakes Surf Festival website.
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.
