For surfing, wind is the primary wave-producing component on these inland freshwater oceans. When dragged over long stretches of Lake Michigan, the wind pulls up ripples and slants on the surface. Those irregularities become exaggerated, growing steeper and even more receptive to wind drag, rising like sails to collect more energy. The energy of the swells bonds together and travels in groups of waves called sets. Surfers look for patterns, gathering vital information by counting the number of waves in each set, noticing where the waves break and the length of the lulls between sets. Patience is a virtue when determining which wave to choose.
Oftentimes the fourth wave in a set is the most anticipated and largest, but also the most treacherous. Some winds aren’t strong enough to transfer the needed energy into the water, resulting in waves that swell large at the beginning of a set, but then dissipate as they travel to shore. Other sets may benefit from a strong low-pressure storm system to create stronger, bigger, and more consistent waves per set. Lee and Larry always held out for the fourth wave. For them, it’s always been the most rewarding.
In the thickening fog that hung atop the white-capped Lake Michigan waves on that cold autumn morning in 2012, Lee and Larry struggled to count the number of swells in each set. From their perch on the stone-lined pier that jetted out from the sandy Sheboygan beach, visibility was almost zero. In the past, they would have been in the water on surfboards the moment they awoke to such adventurous conditions. Nowadays, they opt to watch from the sidelines more often than not.
In recent years, the rigors of age have reminded them on several occasions that they are surfing on borrowed time. A few years ago, Lee almost lost more than his board to a raging set of waves that pulled him under multiple times. Larry needed to only look down at his self-proclaimed “Milwaukee Tumor”—what most would term a “beer gut”—to realize age and a slowing metabolism were catching up to him. The difference between the brothers and those finely tuned athletes who ignore Father Time is that Lee and Larry respect how their lives hang in the balance. When the bodies of athletes start to break down, they can walk off the field. If Lee and Larry weren’t careful, they’d end up floating into shore.
The thrashing Lake Michigan waves—rushing and hurdling against one another toward land—kept taunting the reluctant surfers with an inviting wink. Their rationale said to stay put, but their senses were being assaulted and persuaded otherwise. They could smell the swells rolling past. Their faces tickled from the condensation of the crashing waves. Their ears could hear everything—from the traffic passing by on Broughton Drive to a group of teenage surfers experiencing Lake Michigan’s unapologetic water temperatures for the first time. Their awed reactions echoed those of the Williams brothers four decades earlier.
Although the teens were outfitted with modern, state-of-theart wetsuits and longboards, Lee and Larry admired their resiliency and determination that morning. For several years, they had considered the prospect of passing along the golden trident of Sheboygan surfing to the next generation. They just didn’t know when. At that moment, the sun began to peek through the foggy haze, illuminating the Sheboygan shoreline in shades of orange and pink and the handful of Sheboygan’s most determined teenage surfers standing at its edge with longboards nestled under their arms. The swoon of the surf was inviting them to play, just like a siren’s song attracting an eager pirate. Lee and Larry, with their eyes once again fixed on the horizon, heard it too as they watched the youngsters patiently await the next great wave.
“Want to grab our boards out of the car?” Lee asked his brother.
“Of course! We might be old,” Larry chuckled, “but we still like it cold.”
Acknowledgments
When I first learned of the Dairyland Surf Classic and how Lee and Larry Williams transformed Sheboygan into the Malibu of the Midwest, my reaction was, “Who surfs on Lake Michigan?!?!?!” Although I grew up just forty-three miles south of them in Mequon with Lake Michigan literally in my backyard, I never once considered surfing to be a rational form of recreation during even the muggiest of summer afternoons in Wisconsin.
Over the next few years, their freshwater surfing exploits continued to fascinate me from afar. But it wasn’t until Paulo Leite, a lifelong California surfer, discovered I was from the same corner of the world as “those guys from Step into Liquid” and couldn’t stop asking me questions about what it was like to surf Sheboygan. That’s when I realized the Williams’ story had a universal appeal beyond the novelty of surfing in the Midwest.
When first meeting Lee and Larry over a couple of beers (okay, maybe a dozen), I was flattered by how much they entrusted me with their story. As we collaborated on every phase of the book—from outlining the initial plot on a bar napkin that evening through each version of the manuscript as it evolved—their cooperation knew no bounds. Because of their generosity, this book truly defines what a team can accomplish.
After Lee and Larry introduced me to their family as if I were a lifelong friend, Kerry, Mady, Trevor, Teresa, and Cheri were willing to share their most embarrassing and intimate stories. Neighbors Rosie and Sarah Goltry, childhood friends Andy Sommersberger, Kevin Groh, and Teek Phippen, fellow Great Lakes surfers Bob “Doc” Beaton, Vince Deur, Jim Gardner, Jamie Ziegler, Lester Priday, and Dave Cole, as well as dozens of other folks I had the pleasure of chatting with during the past few Dairyland Surf Classics, generously took time to share their favorite anecdotes, memories, and impressions of the Sheboygan surf scene.
As anyone who has had the pleasure of speaking with Lee and/or Larry knows, the brothers are never short on words, so I would be remiss if the transcription team of Barbara Krultz and Associates weren’t applauded for efficiently and accurately transcribing the numerous hours of recorded interviews.
The journey this book took to find a permanent home at the Wisconsin Historical Society Press couldn’t have had a happier ending. I’ve truly cherished the friendships I’ve made with the entire team through the years, from top to bottom. Thanks to the tireless efforts of the triple-K team of Kathy Borkowski, Kate Thompson, and Kristin Gilpatrick, my stories will continue to have an opportunity to take on a life of their own.
As someone who encourages collaboration in every phase of my life, I have received endless words of encouragement and guidance from numerous friends and mentors through the years. I’m grateful to those who continually offer their experience and expertise toward improving my writing, including Bill Brummel, Bob Buege, Raul Galvan, Jack Heffron, and Kate Thompson.
Finally, I would be remiss not to mention how my family—from Mequon to Coloma—continues to support all of my endeavors, especially my wonderful wife, Kate, and two boys, Jackson and Cameron, who fuel my passion for happiness each and every day.
About the Author
O’CONNOR PHOTOGRAPHY
Native Wisconsinite William Povletich is the author of Green Bay Packers: Trials, Triumphs and Tradition (Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2012), Milwaukee Braves: Heroes and Heartbreak (Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2009) and Green Bay Packers: Legends in Green and Gold (Arcadia Publishing, 2005) as well as numerous magazine articles including the award-winning Liberace: The Milwaukee Maestro. The Emmy Award-nominated and Peabody Award-winning documentary filmmaker also produced A Braves New World for PBS’s Milwaukee Public Television, E!’s Botched, and the Food Network’s Trisha’s Southern Kitchen.
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