A Conversation with Mike King, the Mind Behind Lake Effect

Flyin' high over Lake Superior at Mt. Bohemia.| Lake Effect photo.

You might think
the only good snow in the US is in the west, but that’s all about to change. Mike King’s newest film, Lake Effect, A Michigan Ski Film, is a two-year long project that, for the first time in recent memory, illuminates the unique, untapped terrain, ski culture, and the people thriving in his home state of Michigan.

Lake Effect, dropped just a couple days ago on the TGR YouTube Channel and TGRtv, and since then we hopped on the phone with Mike to dive deeper into this project, hoping to glean some of the dirty details of how this film was made, what this story behind the film means to him and the mid-west skiing community, and hopefully to learn a little bit about ourselves, too.

Mike had spent the past 20 seasons skiing out west. To it's credit, there is some sweet terrain out there, but much the same can be said for the slopes in Michigan | Lake Effect photo.

For years, Mike King had spent his winters chasing powder all across the western US and Canada. “That’s just kind of how most people do it in the states,” he explains. But when COVID-19 hit in 2020, Mike wasn’t really sure what to do. So, as I’m sure many skiers did, Mike decided to head home and make a ski film.

When COVID hit, Mike had a lot to ponder. Deciding to head home and try filming out there was ultimately the call| Lake Effect photo.

“I was coming back to Michigan,” he explains, “thinking I’m going to make this super fun ski film, and it’s going be just rad and rock and roll, and it's going to make people from the Midwest excited.”

But that’s not exactly how it went down…

Choosing to head home wasn't always clearly the right choice. There was a lot of pressure to get clips, and in the first season of filming there just weren't great conditions | Lake Effect photo.

“Once I got here,” says Mike, “my priorities were just changing so much - everything was - and I was really being fulfilled with skiing here. I realized that I should probably tell this story of how I'm feeling and how everything that's going on in my head. So, the film kind of turned into just trying to tell that story and trying to tell it as authentic as possible.”

“I’m still trying to figure out what this story means, honestly, but I’m happy with the result.”

With the focus of the project pivoted, Mike looked inward to the lifeblood of Midwest ski culture, hoping to show the rest of the world how skiers her get down.

Making it work with what he had was part of the deal. There were times when he basically had to film himself.| Lake Effect photo.

“I hadn't been back in 20 years! Of course, I had a lot of friends that we’re telling me ‘Oh, dude, you got to come ski! We're up to a bunch of really fun stuff.’ And I’m thinking, yeah, sounds great, but I'm about to go cat skiing over Tellac.”

Despite his hometown buddies’ telling him to come ski, Mike had visions of grandeur skiing out west – where the pros do it. It took him decades to revisit the terrain of his home state in Michigan. But when he did finally get that familiar taste of a Midwest winter, he was blown away.

The scene at Mt. Bohemia was as epic and authentic as anything. Camping out in the sub-zero weather before hitting the slopes the next morning is all part of the fun. | Lake Effect photo.

“Just showing up there in the parking lot” he says, “there's full on tents set up, and campers and everything. There was this hardcore crowd of gnarly skiers here, and on hill, the skiing was really difficult and challenging. The trees are so close together, but we had amazing snow, and it was just an absolute blast. I never expected to get all these feelings of skiing in the mountains right here at this little ski area.”

“It's kind of like a rediscovery for me. This was happening with or without me, and I just wanted to help show the rest of the ski community that this is happening, and that this is special and deserves some acknowledgement.” 

The Ransom Brothers get after as much as anyone. “I want to be like that when I grow up.” | Lake Effect photo.

Part of this rediscovery was liking up with two old family friends, the Ransom brothers in the Upper Peninsula.

“Those are like my dad's friends that we got to hang with,” he explains about Chip and Scott Ransom. “They taught us Kings, how to ski when we were kids. I hadn’t spent much time with them since then until, I was there filming. I called them up, and they were out, mountain biking in the snow that day, but told me they were we're going on a cross country ski the next day. They told me I could come if I wanted, but, you know, that's what we're doing.”

Eat, ski, sleep. It's a simple life for the Ransoms, but it's beautiful. | Lake Effect photo.

“Getting to spend time with the Ransoms, and looking at their lives, I found myself thinking I want to be that when I grow up. Like they are just so cool. And they’re just absolutely tearing it up. Whether it's backcountry skiing, or going to the ski areas, or just cross-country skiing, they're just getting it as hard as anyone I've ever seen!”

The Ransom way of life is rather indicative of the ski community at large in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It started with Chip, Scott, and Chris but the connections Mike began garnering with this community proliferated quickly, and Mike found himself feeling as though he was a part of the Michigan scene again.

John Dee, another part of the ski community out in Michigan gives his heartfelt definition of the lake effect. Rest in Peace. | Lake Effect photo.

“That’s when things really started to change for me,” Mike told me on the phone.

“I started putting out content and letting people know, I'm making a film in Michigan and so many people reached out or came up to me at the ski areas or around town and they were so excited and gave me so much support.”

I realized that I could have such an amazing impact on this community here. When kids, young and old, caught word of Mike's new film, he received overwhelming support. | Lake Effect photo.

“Some were adults, but a lot were kids and their parents. This is when I realized that I could have such an amazing impact on this community here. Compared to anything I did when I was out west and heli skiing and like skiing with my idols and stuff. Here, I can actually see the smile on these kids’ faces and the excitement. It was really a turning point for me just to realize that people are excited. They're excited to ski and they're excited to see someone putting effort and energy into the scene here. It's kind of a surreal experience really; realizing the fulfillment I could get from skiing here.”

Despite the recognition Mike began receiving for this project, Mike only feels gratitude for the opportunity to help represent his home and the people that shred there.

No bad snow days! Shenanigans on King Orchards became a big part of the first season of filming Lake Effect | Lake Effect photo.

“I feel so lucky just being able to apply the love that I’ve put into skiing over the years here in Michigan. We put this film out, and we have this amazing premiere tour of live shows in Michigan, and they're all sold out! I felt a lot of gratitude for people that come on support, but more so it felt like the Midwest was just waiting for a film like this regardless of who it was that made it. I was just lucky enough to be to be making a film at this time and I’m just happy to be a part of it.”

"You begin to realize  the importance of these stories. That's what I want to put my focus into. And I hope I can do that with skiing. But if I do it in other aspects of it, well, that's awesome, too." | Lake Effect photo.

Lake Effect is a banger of a film, and Mike King is a banger of a man! He so beautifully represented his home state just by doing what he loves and doing it well. The decisions he made throughout filming Lake Effect reveal his authentic love for the snow (and water), his home, and the people that reside there. He tells me he has plans to continue on ripping it and putting out content in Michigan – cannot wait for that, Mike!

Michigan skiing sucks. Like, that's just the narrative. And it's crazy. | Lake Effect photo.

Seriously, if you haven’t gotten then chance, pull up Lake Effect on any of TGR’s platforms and enjoy one of the more unique, heartwarming and most importantly EPIC ski films of the year.

Cheers, Mike!

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