The lit-up street course looked like a snow globe as fat flakes fell on some of the Midwest's most impressive up-and-coming riders at the 2025 Red Bull-sponsored Jibba Jabba snowboarding competition.
Huron Street in downtown Houghton, Michigan, on the Keweenaw Peninsula, filled with thousands of spectators as some of the best riders in the Midwest threw down on the urban playground. Energy remained high all night as 35 riders, including eight females, looped the urban course.
Jibba Jabba began in 2010 by the local skate and board shop but faded after a few years. In 2022, Oregon’s Jenn and Dustin Reed revived the competition, with Jenn taking the reins as the organizer and Dustin handling design and build. Snowboarding is a community staple in the Keweenaw, and Jenn wanted to make Jibba Jabba a cornerstone event.
The course is created by Dustin and a small team of local builders, with sponsorship from the local tourism board, Visit Keweenaw. This year marked the first time Red Bull stepped in, adding two additional $750 “Best Stomp” prizes on top of the male and female overall grand prizes.
Photos: Brian Posten
The grassroots nature of Jibba Jabba, combined with strong community ties, has solidified its place in the local scene. With Mont Ripley ski area just across the canal, the area is steeped in snowboarding culture.
The first section of the course featured a steep drop onto a battleship rail followed by two down rails with an aggressive kink, leading into a tunnel that riders could go over or under, designed to resemble a mine—a nod to Houghton's mining history—complete with oil lanterns inside. This creative setup challenged riders to showcase their versatility and creativity.
The overall winners were Jayva Johnson, 22, and Nate Bujarski, 24, each earning a $1,000 cash prize.
Johnson, hailing from Duluth, Minnesota, clinched the best female rider title for the second consecutive year. As a member of the Trollhaugen park crew, she impressed the other riders with a smooth boardslide pretzel, despite an earlier slam that had shaken her up.
Reflecting on the event, Johnson said, "All of the riders here are friends, and we're just riding the set and hyping each other up." She noted improvements from the previous year, particularly regarding speed on the course: "It was so much fun this year; the tunnel was super sick and very creative—you don't see that often!" Johnson is set to compete in Red Bull’s Heavy Metal event in Boston next weekend.
Bujarski, from St. Cloud, Minnesota, took the men’s champion title, riding with style and confidence all night. His standout trick was a cab 270 onto the down rail in the first section of the course. Reflecting on his win, he said, “Obviously getting the W was huge, but just the atmosphere, the people, and stepping up on top of the drop-in and looking at the crowd and the energy with all your friends—it was a really cool experience.”
He described the course as both “challenging but hittable,” adding, “It was intimidating at first, but you could get comfortable on it.”” Bujarski also shouted out some of his fellow standout riders of the night. “Jay Mac, for sure—that’s my dog. And then the homie Chuck Wagon. He’s the local legend for sure, and he was killing it.”
Gabe Gilbertson, 25, from Anoka, Minnesota, won Red Bull’s inaugural “Best Stomp” award for a snowboarding competition.
Riding primarily at his local resort, Elm Creek, Gilbertson has been snowboarding for most of his life and began riding street four years ago. This was his second time at Jibba Jabba, an event he loves. "The way the people of Houghton show up blows my mind!" he said. "The course was pretty crazy. Some heavy kinks along with no skirting on the rails were definitely a little scary, but the park crew's vision and execution were amazing."
Although he aimed for a front 270 transfer that he couldn't quite stick, the judges were impressed by his frontside 50/50 transfer to back boardslide pretzel 270 on the first section of the course. Gilbertson plans to compete in the Lord of the Ropes competition, a head-to-head bracket-style contest at Trollhaugen this upcoming weekend.
Photo: Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce
Houghton local legend Charlie Vandemark, 23, aka "Chuck Wagon," won the second “Best Stomp” award of the night.
This was the rider's third year participating in Jibba Jabba, and he said this setup was by far the best. His award-winning stomp occurred on the second section of the course, which featured a down-flat rail to a set of train track rails.
Vandemark executed three seamless transitions: a 50/50 on the down-flat, transferring to 50/50 on each of the train track rails, earning him a $750 prize and a Flava-Flav-style chain and pendant.
As a grooming supervisor at Mont Ripley, he had spent the entire night before in the snowcat, logging just six hours of sleep over the last three days. Despite the exhaustion, Wagon delivered an outstanding performance and also plans to compete at Lord of the Ropes next weekend.
Ryan Paul, professional snowboarder and the night's emcee, also shared his highlights.
“Two of the most memorable moments for me were when JayMac (Jake McPherson) jumped onto the roof of the pavilion at the bottom of the course and when Chuck Wagon (Charlie Vandemark) did a triple tail transfer between the down-flat rail and the double-slide rails. Those were both incredible and had the crowd going crazy!” He added that he loved the creative options for riders on the course, saying that it was a “good mix of difficulty and danger.”
The riders judged themselves for the overall best male and female awards, voting on who they thought did the best. "It's a cool concept," said Jenn Reed. "Snowboarding can be so subjective, and we really want this event to be fun for everyone and rider-controlled, so it's all about them."
Looking ahead, Reed sees the Jibba Jabba event continuing to grow and gain momentum in upcoming years, potentially moving to a bigger street, increasing the cash prizes and giving riders more opportunities. "I think it's just going to keep getting bigger and better. And always with a premium course that throws people through a loop."