Lakes at Stake Wisconsin

04/29/2026

The Minnesota show Prairie Sportsman did a nice overview piece on the wakesurfing situation in the Midwest. The main researchers from St. Anthony Falls Laboratory - SAFL talk about their research work.

If you have friends not familiar with the wakesurfing issue this is a great primer for them to watch. Please share.

The segment is cued up at the YouTube link below.

Memorial Park Powerboat Impacts | Prairie Sportsman (1708)

04/26/2026

The new 2026 model that George is standing in front of has a dry weight of 7,200 pounds and you can add another 4,050 pounds in water ballast to make your surf waves. It holds up to 18 people. A wakeboat dealer in Wisconsin has one in stock for the list price of $426,151.

The boats get bigger and more powerful each year. Unfortunately, the glacial lakes of Wisconsin stay the same size.

Look who stopped by the shop today to look at some boats!! Thanks for coming in George and see you tonight !! 🤝🤠👑

04/08/2026

We need to salute the voters in the Town of East Troy. Tonight they elected two new board members, Brian Fons and Ben Smith. A major reason for these two running was the fact the current Town Board did not listen to their constituents last year regarding concerns of damage caused by wake surfing on the lakes in the Township (including Lake Beulah).

At the Town annual meeting last April the residents voted overwhelmingly for the Town to prohibit wake enhanced surfing on all lakes in the Town in an advisory vote. Rather than listen to their voters, the Town Board elected to not take any actions on this front. So new candidates emerged and were strongly supported by the residents as reflected in today’s results.

We salute Brian and Ben for their commitment to protecting the lake resources enjoyed by all in East Troy!

02/26/2026

Some very good news from our neighbors in Michigan. A State Senator today introduced a wakesurf bill that requires enhanced wakesports be done 500 feet from shore and in at least 20 foot water depth. Link to SB 812 is below.

We’re working to learn more about the bill. Not sure of its prospects but good to see some Michigan legislators go on the offensive to protect their lakes!

Summary (2026-02-26) Watercraft: other; wake boats; define and regulate. Amends secs. 80104 & 80146 of 1994 PA 451 (MCL 324.80104 & 324.80146). [Referred To Committee On Natural Resources And Agriculture]

02/26/2026

All right folks, the big wakeboat lobby is at it again, but this time in Connecticut. Last summer the three towns surrounding 656-acre Lake Waramaug went to the polls. They voted overwhelmingly to prohibit wakesurfing to protect the lake.

So, big wakeboat hired lobbyists in Connecticut and greased the wheels to get a 200-foot bill introduced—a bill that takes away local control statewide and specifically mentions eliminating the Lake Waramaug local ordinance.

You can read the bill at the link below. Public hearing next week on March 4th.

The folks in Connecticut are ready to stop this like we did in Wisconsin last week. Go Connecticut lake advocates! Protect your local waters! Wisconsin stands with you!

02/23/2026

We put out a new edition of our newsletter this morning. In depth discussion of what all went down in Madison the past week. Read more at the link below.

We’ve stopped the wakeboat lobby (for now) thanks to all of you!

Welcome to the Lakes at Stake Newsletter. We are a nonprofit volunteer organization dedicated to protecting Wisconsin’s glacial lakes from the damaging impacts of wakesurfing.

02/21/2026

Hello Folks!

We are working on a newsletter in the coming days with much detail of what all went down in Madison. But make no mistake, this was a major win for our side.

The wakesurf lobby had pulled out all the stops to see if they could jam AB 1033/SB 1025 through in the final weeks of the legislative session.

While our good bill (SB 1024) won't advance this session, we laid extremely important groundwork in Madison for a bill in the future. Of even more importance, YOU stepped up and let your legislators know that you want Wisconsin's glacial lakes protected. The thundering herd of voters prevailed over the well funded out-of-state wakeboat lobby.

Tell your friends to follow us on Facebook for future updates. Our side has momentum and we will continue to press the issue as we head into the spring and summer season in Wisconsin!

02/20/2026

We just got back from a long but good day in Madison. We'll do a full summary in the days ahead. You and all of us around the state sent a strong message to the legislature that having out of state wakeboat manufacturers dictate Wisconsin natural resource policy is a bad idea.

The best summary here is the news report from FOX6 News Milwaukee. Give it a watch for the craziness in the Assembly.

No bill is ever dead nor is a powerful special interest ever defeated. But we believe that bad bill SB 1025 is dead for now. And while good bill SB 1024 is also dead, we made a lot of progress educating legislators and the public on the challenges with unfettered wakesurfing across Wisconsin.

A last minute push to regulate wakesurfing in Wisconsin took an unexpected turn. The statewide debate over wakesurfing has split the Republican Party down th...

02/19/2026

We are still at the Senate Committee hearing. Probably another 3-4 hours of citizen testimony to go.

Sadly the Wisconsin Assembly passed the bad bill (AB 1033) on a VOICE VOTE earlier today. This is controversial because the opponents asked for a roll call vote to put Assembly members on record. The motion was denied.

Additionally, to get the votes needed to pass AB 1033 the sponsors added an amendment to allow a sandhill crane hunt. Tell us what a sandhill crane hunt in Wisconsin has to do with a wakesurf bill. Unreal.

Stay tuned for more updates. All action now turns to the Senate.

02/19/2026

We are here at the Senate Committee hearing on the bad wakesurf bill (AB 1025) and the good wakesurf bill (AB 1024).

It is a spirited discussion that will go more hours. You can watch live on wiseye.org. Committee on transportation and government.

Meanwhile the full Assembly is on the floor voting on bills. We think they will pass it. Keep the calls coming your assembly representative.

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