Bike Endos And Upcoming Sales

This is me and my sweet girl Jamie.

This picture was taken in the mountains of North Georgia a few years ago, after a long day in the woods.

We camped overnight with a group of adventure racers and then while I spent the entire next day trekking and mountain biking throughout the area (while doing some navigation training with a team-mate), my husband and dog kept a huge camp fire burning.

It was mid-December, very cold and very damp, and the fire was a hit with both stay-behind family members and freezing cold racers once they came back out of the woods.

I taco'd the front wheel of my mountain bike during that training, when I hit a log that was completely buried in fallen leaves.

I saw the end of the log too late and unsuccessfully tried to maneuver around it at the last second.

I hit the log hard, and my bike came to a screeching halt on the rock and leaf covered downhill section of rutted out trail.

I did a slow endo over my handlebars, went airborne and landed softly in another bed of fallen leaves on the back side of the log.

After picking myself up and standing my bike up again, I looked down at it and my first thought was that I had a flat tire.  It took me a second to realize that my entire front wheel was now in the shape of a taco.

It was close to the end of the day and I told my team-mate to go on and pick up the last checkpoint we were headed for, and I'd meet him back at the campsite.

Good times. 

OAR has been open for three months already.

It's been an interesting, exciting, and sometimes even frustrating time, but we are loving the great outdoor gear and clothing that has come through the door, and are really enjoying meeting great outdoor people!

Our operating hours will remain the same through the month of March (Wed-Sat 9am-5pm).

The week of April 1 we will extend our operating days and OAR will be open

Tuesday-Saturday 9am-5pm.

Check back with this blog later in the week for information on upcoming sales!

Thunder and Lightning

Sometime during my first year of adventure racing, me and two other women signed up for a 12 hour race at a state park west of of Nashville, Tennessee.

It was in the spring, the race started early in the morning and it started in cool but very sunny conditions.

Throughout the morning the sky began to get increasingly cloudy and by early afternoon it looked downright ominous.

We heard it first mid-afternoon and it did not take any of us by surprise - a very loud thunder boomer.

The sky had turned black.

We were not in the middle of the North Carolina or West Virginian mountains as we had been in other races but we were too far from civilization when the hard rain started.

The thunder began and then so did the lightning.

We were on mountain bikes at the time, on a trail surrounded by woods on both sides, and there was no shelter from the storm anywhere.

We did the only prudent thing we could do, which was to ditch our bikes, ditch our packs, move away from each other and make ourselves the smallest targets we could possibly make ourselves.

Squatting in a field with violent thunder and lightning all around us, was the scariest race experience I had had to that point.

As we were in the middle of it I looked across the small open field in one direction and then in another direction and saw the faces of my team-mates and knew that they were also feeling the same dread that I was feeling.

Thankfully the violent storm was short lived and thankfully we came through it none the worse for wear.

Once it had passed we retrieved all of our gear, nervously laughed off the experience, and continued on with our race................

Great pieces of gear that we have had in the store for a while, and stuff that we would LOVE to find a new home for!

Oxygen Element 580 snowboard (size 152) - without bindings, has a few scratches but no major dings, and graphics on both sides are still in great shape.  There's still a ton more snowboarding left to do before the end of the season!

This super cute girls Rossignol snowboard/ski helmet is filled with all kinds of flowers, hearts and serious pinkness.  It is in brand new condition.

Burton Ranger snowboard boots that are in very good shape and a pair of Vision youth snowboard boots that are in excellent (barely used) shape.

Sleeping bags in brand new (never used) condition, tent and camp chair both in great condition.  We've also got a couple of camp stoves.

We've got winter hats, gloves, ear warmers, neck warmers and scarves - fleece sweaters - winter jackets with labels that include Columbia, Mountain Hard Ware, LL Bean, Cabelas, Winchester, Patagonia and more - climbing gear including shoes, harnesses, gloves.

To name only a few items in the increasing stock of used outdoor gear and clothing that OAR is happily beginning to accumulate.

What would we LOVE to see more of at this time of year?

Day packs (we sold a Salomon pack and a Go-lite pack within days of putting them out on the floor) and they can be used for just about EVERY outdoor activity.

Hiking boots.  Trekking poles.  Local topo maps.  Gaiters.  Wind resistant jackets.  Wool and Smart Wool socks.  Compasses.  Head lamps.  Fishing rods and reels.

Soon we would love to see mountain bikes and road bikes (please no BSO's - bicycle shaped objects!). 

Attachments To Gear

We put this awesome picture up on the wall behind the counter at the store a couple of days ago.

I bought it (frame, mat and picture) for 50 cents at a yard sale in Tennessee at least 10 years ago and at the time thought that it was a print (maybe even an over sized photo copy).

I worked for a Parks and Recreation Department at that time and was supervising a community center one day when an artist came into the building.

The guy was working on a mural and while we were talking he commented on my picture.

I told him what I knew about it (which wasn't much), he walked over to it, looked at it closely and told me that it was an original pencil drawing.

It's huge and awesome and slightly anatomically incorrect.  I love it.

We've had a lot of really great consignment gear come into the store over the past week, including a set 
of Red Ball waders and three sets of Hodgman chest waders (including one neoprene set).  It doesn't feel like it right now but fishing season is just around the corner!

We have a very large size pair of desert combat boots for sale.

This MSR back country stove is an AWESOME piece of gear that was brought in by a Northwest College student.  A link to more info on this thing:  http://cascadedesigns.com/msr/stoves/rapid-cooking/pocketrocket/product

We've had these camo insulated bib overalls for a long time and finally got around to getting the broken buckles replaced on them.  They're good-to-go now, in great shape and out on the floor waiting for a new owner.

I snapped this picture about a year ago while mountain biking on a combination of gravel roads and technical single track in middle Tennessee.  Gary Fisher bike, Shimano spd's and VERY worn out Cannondale mtn bike shoes.  Did I ever tell you that I get very attached to my gear and hate to part with anything.  I had two other pairs of Cannondales at the house - one girly blue pair (that I never wore because they were girly blue) and another brand new black pair exactly like these (only they were totally black, and had no holes in them, and had no broken laces tied in knots).  When these shoes were finally more hole than shoe I had to toss 'em.  But I loved those shoes.

Stop by OAR soon and check out the great gear that we have.  The "Island of Misfit Gear" is increasing every day!

A Storm Blowing Through The Store

I picked up this picture the other day, stuck a price tag on it, banged a nail into the wall, and hung it up and over the front door.

Most people won't notice it when they first walk into the store, but they will definitely notice it on the way out. 

A colorful, awesome picture.

 I went to a really nice ladys' home yesterday to pick up some gear she wanted to consign.

Her gear included an eclectic bunch of stuff (a skateboard, some fold-out camping or fishing stools, an electric dog water bowl, a youth street hockey stick, a pair of awesome fishing waders and this bike trailer).

The colors on the trailer are faded and the front plastic storm flap has a couple of small holes, but otherwise it is in great shape.  Tires are good, the frame and plastic side windows are in great shape, and so is the seat and safety straps.

If you have little ones and want to take them with you when you ride, check out this trailer.

People are finding us which is great (yeah.....the bigger signs are helping!) and consignments are rolling in, which is even greater!

A storm blew through our store late this afternoon.

At about 4pm on what had been a quiet Saturday, the front door of the store suddenly burst open and a rowdy bunch of young people noisily wandered in.

They had to be...........yeah..............Northwest College Outdoor Rec students.

After spending the day rappelling out the Southfork, the kids stopped at OAR on the way back to Powell.

This smiling, laughing, friendly, energetic group of young people spent the next 45 minutes checking out every single item of gear currently in the store.

I knew what they were doing.

'Cause I've spent years doing exactly the same thing.

It's called "gear fondling".

By the time the storm noisily wandered out the front door again they had bought pants and fleeces and gaiters and water bottles and ski goggles and ski poles and climbing webbing and greeting cards.

What a way-fun group!  Awesome kids.

They had a great time wandering around our quirky little store.

And I had a great time watching them and talking gear with them.

A different generation, but gear heads all talk the same language.

Thanks for dropping in guys!!

A kite.

A big ol' kite.

A big ol' kite hanging from the ceiling.

I'm liking this consignment-store-thing.  You NEVER know what people are going to bring through the door.

EDITED TO ADD:

For those who are interested, you can sign up to receive the OAR blog when posts are added (look to the right side of the page to sign up).

We've signed up to our own email list just to make certain that email updates go through on schedule, but:

1.  The formatting of the emails looks kinda funky so please accept our apologies for that.

2.  Not all of the text from this particular blog post went through in the email yesterday.   This is the first time that has happend and we hope that it is a temporary issue.

Working Hard

When we opened OAR in mid-November we knew that very likely foot traffic at the store would be light for a while.  Our focus during these past couple of months has been to get to know people, give folks a chance to find us (because we're a little off the beaten path), and to begin developing a good inventory of outdoor gear and clothing that people will want to buy and use in their outdoor recreation.

Happily we are succeeding in those goals.  In just a short period of time we have pulled together an entire room full of rustic and outdoorsy decorative items that include plaques, statues, pottery, iron ware, wood ware, pictures and so much more.

In our main room we've got gear and clothing related to a wide variety of activities that people love to do when they head outside (including hiking, camping, skiing, road and mountain biking, hunting, photography).  Tomorrow we're heading to someones' home to pick up more gear.  Can't wait to see what she has! 

Outdoor Adventures Revived is working hard to become THE destination for your outdoor gear needs.  Let your next adventure begin at OAR!

You Want Gear? I Got Gear!

I was talking to a lady at the store a couple of days ago.  We were discussing how the store was doing and I told her that we had a lot of outdoor clothing, but I wished that we had more gear in the store - actual "stuff".

Immediately her eyes brightened, she smiled at me and said "You want gear?  I got gear!"

She dragged me outside to her SUV, opened up the back hatch and "stuff" started falling out of the back. 

Yeah............she had gear!

I spent a couple of hours the next morning cleaning, itemizing and researching before she came back to the store to finalize all the paperwork.

By the time it was all said and done we had:

1. Burton Ranger snowboard boots

2. Vision youth snowboard boots

3. Scott ski/snowboard goggles

4. Grabar vehicle bike rack (holds 3-4 bikes)

5. Novara wind bike trainer

6. Nordica ski boots

7.  Techno youth ski poles

All of this lady's gear is in good to excellent shape and we're pleased to have it at OAR. 

These pieces all make a great addition to our current inventory, and we're excited to be able to offer this outdoor gear to the community at prices that are much lower than retail!

Come check it all out!

I drive by these guys every evening on the way home from the store.

Usually they are spread out in the pasture, but the other night I was surprised to see them all congregated together, close to the fence.

Pulling my truck over to the side of the road I grabbed my camera, set my four way flashers, and then quickly walked back to take a picture of them.

Over the past few months we have seen these guys so often, and they're so goofy looking, that my husband and I have actually named them.

The white one sitting in front is Dolly Lama.

The two standing are Lenny and Squiggy.