The seventh annual Kites on Ice Festival took flight this weekend on Lake Mendota in front of Memorial Union, with highlights like the extreme sport of \snow kiting."" Hundreds of Madison families participated in workshops, admired exhibits and watched kite performances. Pilots from around the world showcased their abilities for the largest crowd of any kite festival in the United States.
Angela Dupont, an event coordinator for Madison Festivals Inc., said Kites on Ice is a non-profit event designed to introduce kite-flying to the Madison area.
""Kites on Ice is a festival where we bring in professional kiters from all over the world. We have about 75 kiters total that we brought in, and several of those are from Germany, Canada and Switzerland,"" Dupont said. ""They come in to fly their kites and several of them also provide workshops where they teach kids how to build kites or they teach them about kite history and other different subjects on kites.""
This year's theme was ""Sky Sports,"" which highlighted extreme snow kiting. Skiers and snowboarders flew across Lake Mendota at high speeds, performed tricks and flew off ramps-all while being pulled by their powerful kites.
""[Snow kiting] is an extreme sport where guys are on shorter skis or snowboards and they're pulled by kites,"" said Dupont. ""It's kind of like skateboarding mixed with hang gliding. That was the new thing for this year.""
Natalie Perrigo, a UW-Madison sophomore, thought the Kites on Ice Festival was well-attended and great to watch.
""My favorite event was the extreme snow kiting,"" Perrigo said. ""It's pretty amazing. The professional kiters flew off of snow ramps and did lots of loops with their kites. It's also nice to watch if you're on a date with bad conversation.""
Child icon and avid kite flyer Ronald McDonald also visited the festival, signing autographs and flying kites with children.
The Memorial Union offered many indoor activities as well. Art- kite exhibits, sled-kite making and kite-building workshops entertained the crowd, while the dance show ""Unconditional Connection"" celebrated the arts of kiting, dancing and animation. Some of the kites on display were as large as semi-trucks.
Jenny Kempen, a UW-Madison sophomore, could relate to some of the indoor exhibits.
""Seeing all those kites reminded me of those nice, warm days when I used to go fly my kite with my dad,"" Kempen said.
In addition to Kites on Ice, Madison Festivals Inc. also produces Mad-City Marathon in May and a Taste of Madison on Labor Day weekend.
