With years as a pro snowboarder, event planner and course builder under his belt, Ryan Neptune set out on his most lofty proposition yet: To own and operate a ski area. But with a little research, he quickly realized his plan had some flaws. “As I built a business plan around purchasing a ski resort, I found that it didn’t make economic sense in any world. If I wanted to purchase a ski resort, I would be one of the biggest fools, ever,” he said.
So instead, Ryan set out to create a neighborhood snowboarding experience. Inexpensive, accessible and with a little something for everyone. Gateway parks was born. The idea behind Gateway Parks is simple. Turn unassuming hills in city parks into legit, maintained and lift accessed snowboard parks that anyone can enjoy. To be an ideal location for a Gateway Park, a city just needs to have low enough winter temperatures, as the snow they use is mostly manmade.
“In any city, the largest land owner is generally Parks and Rec, so we work with the cities to find a location. It’s an opportunity to use land that would otherwise sit vacant in the winter months, so most cities are excited by the possibility.” With close proximity to population centers, these parks are not just for the established park rat. In fact, the facilities are also designed for learning. To make them even more so, Gateway partnered with Mervin Manufacturing and Windells to complete the experience. Mervin provides all the rental equipment – high quality snowboards and skis designed to make the learning experience a pleasant one, and Windells provides world class coaching. And if you’ve never skied or snowboarded before, the entire cost to get started is just $10 a day. In the frigid wasteland that is Lansing, Michigan, the first Gateway Park, Hawk Island Snow Park, has been bustling for two seasons now. Don’t be fooled by the 80′ of vertical, this place actually has a little something for everyone. 
Hawk Island awaits you. Photo: Michigan Boarder
“The crew there is really dedicated, and some real talented riders, so the builds tend to be more on the upper intermediate to advanced stuff,” Michigan boarder and blogger David Zemens said. “Sometimes it’s a bit intimidating, but damn if it doesn’t make you a better rider for it. I mean there’s always a few beginner features, but who wants to just keep lapping a ride-on rainbow?? Not this guy.” And it’s not always just the same park, either. “We can change the park overnight,” Neptune explained. “It only takes a few hours of cat time. Mountains don’t have that opportunity because they have so much space to maintain. Kids are mind blown when they come back day after day and it’s a whole new park.”
The second Gateway park opened this winter in Eagle, Idaho, right outside of Boise. Upon approval of the project, Gateway had set up the snowboard facility, including a magic carpet, within a matter of weeks. And they’re not done yet, the full facility will include a cable wake park, mountain bike trails and more. 
Eagle Island, open for fun! Photo: Idaho Statesman In addition to giving the locals something productive to do with their time, Gateway parks stand to help the snowboard industry as a whole, getting more people hooked on the sport. “If you give people the best gear and the best coaching and give them a place with an ideal set up, there’s no way they won’t be into it. ” Gateway Parks is currently at work on a third facility in Rockford, IL and is looking at other locations in cold cities such as Brooklyn. If a town is interested in getting its own facilities, all they have to do is contact Ryan at http://gatewayparks.com/.