Ghezzi is in an awkward position. As the owner of an adventure sports company, his biggest moneymaker the past few winters has been selling gear - kites, harnesses, helmets, and snowboards - to people who want to ride the wind by skimming atop snow-covered fields and frozen lakes. But as a kiter, Ghezzi said he is bound by a responsibility to the sport's close-knit community. Snowkiting is going through a rapid phase of growth "like snowboarding went through 10 or 11 years ago," and as it struggles with land-use and safety issues, there is a concerted effort to make sure newbies know and respect the rules before turning them loose on a kite.
This weekend, beginners who want an introduction to snowkiting get a free pass without having to hunt for a secret location. The fifth annual Kitestorm event in Milton, Vt., is expected to draw 500 participants and an equal number of onlookers to frozen Lake Champlain for free clinics, demonstrations, and drawings.
"It's that feeling of controlled power - speed without gravity," said Rachael Miller, who is the first instructor in the country to be certified in both snowkiting and kitesurfing.
She founded a sports adventure and touring company called Stormboarding in Burlington, Vt., in 2004, and came up with the idea for the first Kitestorm shortly thereafter. (The clinics are free, but participants are asked to fill out online liability waivers at stormboarding.com.)
Although snowkiters can achieve speeds of more than 60 miles per hour and heights above 40 feet, the sport does not necessarily have to be pushed to extreme levels.
"It's a mix between surfing, skiing, and sailing," Miller said. "The whole thing about kiting is that you don't even have to leave the ground. It's really cool just to be able to cruise. What's good about this sport is you're able to get to an intermediate level very, very fast."
