A Perfect Match: M-State’s Brittany Ohnstad Turns Love For Lake Life Into Passion For Powersports Technology

Growing up, Brittany Ohnstad spent a majority of her summers at her cabin on Big Cormorant Lake. Unlike most girls, she enjoyed getting dirty, working on hands-on projects, and fixing things.

When it came time to start looking at colleges, Brittany says she knew that she wanted to look into 2-year programs. “I wanted to start a career that I have an interest in without spending 4+ years in school.” she says. After reading about M-State’s powersports program online, she scheduled a tour where she met, her now instructor, Kent Reisenauer. “Immediately after meeting with him, I knew it was something I wanted to do.” With scholarships in hand, she took the leap to starting her career without having any experience on the mechanical side of powersports.

Being a woman in a traditionally male dominated pathway, Brittany imagined she was going to get a lot of negative reactions from others when she joined the Powersports field but she says it hasn’t been that way at all. She says her instructors have truly inspired, encouraged, and supported her throughout these past two years in college. “Attending college has taught me everything I needed to know in order to get a job in this field as a Powersports technician. I have learned more than I could have ever imagined and still learn every day, both in class and at work.” 

I have learned more than I could have ever imagined and still learn every day, both in class and at work.

Brittany Ohnstad

This past summer Brittany got a job working as a Sea Doo Technician at Moorhead Marine. She is currently working there part-time until she graduates in the spring and then plans to work full-time again. “I am very grateful for my job and my awesome coworkers and bosses.” Brittany says that her coworkers have been a positive influence and are always willing to guide her in the right direction when working on something new. “They push me to be better every day.”

Brittany says the best part about being a technician is working on the things she loves most. This past summer she was able to work on her family jet ski and is excited to continue to work on more projects at the lake. She says one of her favorite things to do is to cruise around the lake on the pontoon with her family on a hot July day. When she’s not at the lake you can find her at a concert, enjoying the races, or spending time at home with her fiancé and their Goldendoodle, Finnley.

You can thank her dad and grandpa for inspiring her to be who she is today. She says “They both worked so hard to get where they did with their company, O.K Tire Store. I admire their strong work ethic and the vision they had.”

Brittany says her advice for women is that “If you work hard enough for something you’re interested in, it doesn’t matter how strong you are, or whether or not you have any experience, you can achieve it. There have been many times I have questioned my ability to do this type of work, sometimes because I am a woman, but I know that I can do this and I love what I do. There is no better feeling than that achievement.”