Two decades previous, the Hall of Fame honored Michael Knight with its Distinguished Service Award for his work in helping to establish Muskegon’s Winter Sport Complex. Twenty years later, Knight might not recognize the facility, now known as the Muskegon Luge and Adventure Park. Much of the reason is tied to the efforts of Jim Rudicil. As hands-on executive director of the park for the past 22 years, he and his staff have worked to transform the small non-profit facility into a year-round destination, built around outdoor activities. Those who use the complex know him simply as “Jim” – the guy who does it all, from icing the luge track at 3 a.m. to jumping on a snowmobile to go out in a blizzard and set cross-country ski tracks. In 2021, the park opened 1,400 foot dual zip lines to the mix of entertainment options. Soon to come will be a year-around multi-sided rock-climbing wall.

Rudicil, a Reeths-Puffer High School graduate, grew up sledding on the hills that now make up the facility, and he and his friend Mark Grimmette (a two-time Olympic medalist in luge) helped construct the original luge run that originally put the complex on the map. For Rudicil, the adventure park is not a job, it’s a passion and a way of life – a spirit that made him an ideal choice for the 2021 award.