Local skiers and snowboarders will be showing off their skills tomorrow at the Cricket Wireless Campus Rail Jam Tour.

The event begins at 11 a.m. in the parking lot of the Fresno Indoor Soccer Arena on the northwest corner of Cedar and Shaw avenues.

More than 30 people are expected to participate in the Rail Jam, said Adam Roche, president of the Fresno State Ski and Snowboard Club.

Fifteen members of the club will be competing in tomorrow̢۪s event.

Roche was contacted by Galvanic Design, the management company that is helping put on this event in seven different states on the West Coast.

Fresno will be the sixth stop on the 14-campus tour and Roche said he expects the turnout to be great.

“We’ve done a lot of advertising and promoting for the event,â€Â Roche said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun.â€Â

The competition is open to anyone who wants to participate, not just Fresno State students.

The youngest participant is 14 years old and has a lot of potential, Roche said.

Along with the unique style of each rider, the competition will be paired with music, art and free prizes for the audience.

Evan Halstead, a communication major, has been snowboarding for seven years and will be competing tomorrow. He expects to see a good turnout.

“I think there will be a lot of people coming to support the Fresno State Snowboard Club,â€Â Halstead said.

Although the event cannot be held on campus due to conflict of sponsorship contracts, the location is still in proximity of Fresno State and will bring exposure to the Fresno area, Halstead said.

“Fresno has a large population of snowboarders,â€Â he said. “We are less than an hour and a half from a great mountain and this is the kind of big exposure we need.â€Â

The Ski and Snowboard Club has been around for about seven years and has really taken off in the last two years, Roche said.

There are more snowboarders than skiers in the club, which has over 200 members, but the rivalry that is often seen between the groups is no where to be found in this club.

“Everyone gets along great,â€Â Roche said.

The club is open to anyone who enjoys skiing, snowboarding or would like to learn.

Membership is open year-round at meetings, and all club members receive discounts at The Boardroom at Herb Bauer̢۪s, a ski and snowboard shop.

Along with the Rail Jam event, members of the Ski and Snowboard Club go on about two trips a year.

This past semester they went to Northstar in Tahoe and are planning a spring trip to Bear Mountain.

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