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Show A14 Castle Valley Review, February 2009 The combination of good snow, rolling hills and steady winds have made Skyline Drive a world-class destination for snowkiting. SOARING ON SKYLINE Continued from Page A1. surfing and in the past several years the sport has steadily been growing in popularity, both as a sport to participate in and a sport to draw excited shouts from spectators as snowkiters push the limits of not only their abilities, but the boundaries of gravity. “The roots of snowkiting trace back to the earl 1970s with arctic expeditions, but modern snowkiting started around 2000 when companies It’s just good like Ozone started making snow specific gear,” said fun. I’ve never Brain Schenck, who with his handed a kite wife Heather owns Windzup, to someone and a distributor of Ozone power kites. “From 2000 on we have them hand started exploring locations looking for more spots and I it back and say think we came across Skyline ‘this just isn’t in 2002 or 2003 and started coming here more and more. for me. I moved to Mt. Pleasant two - Brian Schenck years ago.” Brian started kiting in Las Vegas on the open desert on kiteboards and in the summer he takes to the ocean for kitesurfing, but it is flying through the powder on Skyline that he just can’t seem to get enough of. “Skyline is definitely a world class destination. We based our operations down in Mt. Pleasant, where we basically have a national distribution company. Kites come in from our factories and we ship them out from Mt. Pleasant all over the world. We use Skyline as a testing facility for designing new product and perfecting it. It’s a good location because “ ” of the hills and the snow and the good wind we get up here,” he said. Skyline Drive has become a destination for snowkiters and its popularity is growing every day. “I think Photo by James L. Davis there are a lot John Regan from Friendsville, MD., Kasey Campbell from of kitesurfSan Diego and Heather Schenck from Mt. Pleasant get ers on the coastlines ready for a day of snowkiting. of the country and as came out here to kite. He got so hooked they’ve learned about the sport they’re he started exploring back home and actuanxious to come and try the snow. Utah ally has some farm fields that he can ride is a ski destination so a lot of these guys on when they have snow. But he loves are planning a ski vacation and take a coming out here because of the deeper couple of days to come down here and snow. He comes back on an annual piltry snowkiting,” Brian said. grimage,” Brian said. Since Brian and Heather spend so While kitesurfers may hold fast to much time on Skyline testing equipment their sport as the ultimate, their enthusifor Ozone, they decided to offer snowkitasm for snowkiting is obvious. ing tours and lessons and opened Kite Kasey Campbell, from San Diego, Utah. “We actually instruct across Utah but we focus here at Skyline,” Brian said. standing in the mountains with his hiking books stuffed in plastic bags, grins The winter kayakers were a couple at his improvised snow boots. “I’m a of his former students who have become surfer, so I love the water, but this is hooked on the sport, but they aren’t the amazing.” only ones. It’s an endorsement Brian has heard “One guy came out from West Virginia. He wanted to get into snowkiting Continued on next page. and so instead of hitting the resorts he |
