Damp but cheerful would-be buyers honed their shopping strategies and as they waited for the doors to open.
In the end, when the clock struck 10 a.m., the race for bargains became an elbow-to-elbow polite-but-assertive grab and run extravaganza.
“This is good way to get good gear and a great price,” Bailey said.
“It's better than garage sale shopping, where you have to go place to place and might not find anything,” chimed in Tracy Leatherman. “This is all in one place, there's quality items and it saves on gas.”
The 40-year-old gear swap is an annual event that offers significant deals on used new and used equipment, and the best deals always are usually found in the first 30 minutes of the daylong sale. Over the years, its also become something of a giant reunion party for skiers and snowboarders, and chance to learn what's new this year Montana ski areas.
Saving money and getting a good value for their dollar was on most people's mind.
“The economy definitely puts some emphasis on my coming here,” said Traci Sylte. “I'm grabbing large handfuls of clothes I normally wouldn't buy here.”
Loaded with her finds of the day - ski poles, winter boots, a jacket and long underwear for her 3-year-old daughter - Sylte said she will probably do more cross-country skiing this year because of the cost of lift tickets has gone up at most - if not all - Montana ski resorts and because of the high price of fuel.
But most ski areas within a few hours drive from Missoula are making efforts to sweeten the sting.
Snowbowl, Lost Trail Powder Mountain, Discovery Ski Area, and Whitefish Mountain Resort were all on hand Sunday to talk about discounts on season passes, single day tickets, and how to find special rates throughout the winter.
Lost Trail Powder Mountain will be offering more ski discount specials this year, and the best way to find those is to log on www.losttrail.com, said Scott Grasser, owner of the ski area. Before lifts open, the area hopes to have a plan in place to give discounts to skiers and snowboarders who carpool to the mountain.
Whitefish Mountain Resort's strategy this year is a more aggressive campaign of specials, most of which are multi-day specials, such as three days of skiing for the price of two, said Donnie Clapp, resort public relations manager. Specials and other discounts can be found at www.skiwhitefish.com.
Like Clapp, management at Discovery have seen a record number in season pass sales.
For them, the sales have produced this unscientific theory: No matter what the economy is doing, skiers and snowboarders will always take to the hills. The sales, they said, indicates more Montanans are staying closer to home this year because of the economy and choosing to ski locally instead of traipsing off to big name resorts in Utah and Colorado.
Discovery is sticking to its tried and true business plan - to offer great skiing at a fair price, said Ciche Pitcher, resort director. The resort has worked closely with Philipsburg and Anaconda hotels to provide pocketbook-friendly ski & stay packages throughout the season. To learn more about those options, go to www.skidiscovery.com.
This year marks the inaugural season of the resort's new terrain park, which Pitcher described as “high quality.”
“We are pretty excited about it,” he said.
Brad and Ronnie Morris, owners of Snowbowl expect another great season at the Missoula ski area.
A lot of on-the-hill improvements have been made, including the thinning of tree stands to create three new runs.
Two of the runs are just off the Grizzly chair, in the general area longtime Snowbowl skiers called the “outhouse,” and the third area new run connects the bottom portion of Longhorn to the Grizzly Chute.
For skiers who are keeping a close eye on their bank accounts know this: Discounted pre-season passes are on sale until next Sunday, discount single tickets are on sale until Dec. 1. For more information about Snowbowl and its seasonal specials go to www.montanasnowbowl.com.
Saving money on snow sports is more important than ever this year, said Lisa Weinreich.
She works two jobs, so she can't take advantage of season pass savings. Instead, she finds her bargains in used gear.
On Sunday, Weinreich struck skier's gold, snatching a pair of telemark boots, backcountry skis and a brand-new pair of Dynastar alpine skis - all for $170.
“Money - saving it - is always a priority,” she said. “I'm always thinking about it.”
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Alexandra wrote on Dec 3, 2008 12:52 PM: