words and photos: Jeff Malin

The sun was shining, the leaves were beautiful, and the ghosts and goblins were out in full force at Hawk Island Snow Park in Lansing, Michigan this past Sunday. Coming off their first full season of operation last year, what better way to celebrate than having an all-day rail jam? There were good tunes, positive vibes, food, and heavy boarding. It was a true example of how Michigan does snowboarding; making something out of virtually nothing.

Hawk Island Snow Park officially opened their doors (rope tows?) last year and stayed open well into April. Hawk Island is a very small hill hidden within Lansing, but don’t let their size fool you. The hill has well over fifteen features at any given time of the year, and the park crew changes up the layout every couple weeks to give everyone a ton of variety throughout the season.

For the Haunting at Hawk rail jam, the crew put in a donkey rail, drop down rail and a wall ride. There were a few pretty aggressive falls to start the day out, but overall, there were tons of skilled riders and lots of heavy tricks. A few riders were bold enough to rock costumes and makeup. The Halloween-themed decorations and music along with the grill going all day really gave this rail jam the best preseason stoke around.

The structure of the jam contributed to how rad the event was. It wasn’t a contest, so there was no pressure to be the one going the hardest and get the most laps in. It was meant to get everyone stoked on the upcoming season and to have a great time. Everyone got to ride and focus on getting back into the swing of things before winter. There was a ton of swag being passed out to people getting extra heavy on the set up by Murder Mitten, Flanel Lifestyles, O’Neill, and Airblaster.

Haunting at Hawk allowed riders of all ages to get their first chance at some jibbing, and parents got to see where their hard-earned money is going. Overall, it was a fun day of hanging with the homies and getting high on winter. Don’t forget about the Midwest when the snow starts flying–there is some heavy talent coming out of the area and you’ll definitely see some rad edits later this season.