Lowercase ’silent sports’ is big business in any case
Traverse City, Michigan – home to the Vasa trails, so popular among cross-country skiers and mountain bikers, not to mention a base for great paddling in Grand Traverse Bay – is coming to grips with its identity as a “silent sports” destination.
The subject made the Sunday business section of the Traverse City Record-Eagle in an article titled, “‘Silent sports’ growing in region: Kayaking, biking and other activities popular.”
To get a sense for the greater regional trend, reporter Bill O’Brien spoke to the editor of Silent Sports magazine and looked at the latest findings of the Outdoor Industry Association.
In the five midwest states including Michigan, for instance, outdoor recreation generates close to $62 million in economic activity annually, close to 700,000 jobs and more than $7 million in tax revenue, according to the OIA.