Please No More!

PLEASE NO MORE!

When a lady brought in a roof mount ski rack and two pairs of cross country skis last week, we did the paperwork on them, she walked out the door and I thought "What am I doing?"

It's mid-April and effective as of now, OAR will no longer be accepting any more winter sports equipment (including skis, boots, helmets, boards, poles etc.).

It's time to move on.

We took the old downhill skis off the floor this week (and they'll make an AWESOME bench when we cut 'em down this summer), but still have some gear left out, for those folks looking forward to the 2013/2014 season (which is only six or seven months away).

People are totally beginning to look for warm weather gear - camping, hiking, biking, boating, hunting, and (especially) fishing stuff.

Aside from the obvious gear, people have asked for things I would never have thought of (and it continues to be a learning experience owning an outdoor store in a place like Cody Wyoming).

People are looking for good, technical, name brand day and multi-day packs, but there is also a market for old-school beater packs (so guys can haul meat out of the mountains and not worry about messing up a good pack).

They're looking for lightweight and tiny back-country stoves, but they're also looking for cast iron cookware so that they can car camp.

They're looking for good, high quality fishing rods for themselves, but they're also looking for lightweight and cheap rods for their kids.

And soccer cleats!!!!!

TWO THINGS:

1.  If you have a good, high quality, name brand road or mountain bike, or a boat (canoe or kayak), we'll find room for it at our little store. 

At OAR we still have high hopes to be able to expand back, take up the entire garage bay we are currently renting and effectively double our space by the end of the summer.

We need your help to be able to do that.  The more great stuff we have at OAR, the more people will come by to see what we have.

The more great stuff we have at OAR, the more fun it is to dig through and check out what's new!

2.  If you're not sure we can use it, just give us a call.  You'd be surprised what people are looking for and what they'll buy.

We've been surprised many times over the past few months!

We have the awesome-est pair of boots in the store right now! They are a pair of vintage GALIBIER RICHARD PONTVERT hiking mountaineer boots. They were made in France, likely from the 1970's, in great shape for their age, weigh a ton and are virtually indestructible.

The sole looks brand new and is screwed to the upper (not glued like the newer, lighter, high tec boots). I LOVE these things! They're small - we couldn't find a size on them but I tried them on and would guess they're a ladies Size 10 (maybe a man's 8 1/2?). Totally old school and totally bomb proof.

Looked them up and found reviews on these boots: http://www.trailspace.com/gear/galibier/super-guide/

The boots came in with a pair of vintage Carman Super Gator lined gaitors. VERY COOL!

Area Public School And College Students Receive 10% Off All Their Purchases Everyday

We have a group of Outdoor Recreation students from Northwest College who drop by here regularly, and we say THANK YOU for your support of OAR!

YOU GUYS ROCK!!

Don't forget to follow us on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Outdoor-Adventures-Revived-OAR/295312997264285?fref=ts

Thanks To Polestar

While we were at the Beast Feast last month, my husband bought two tickets to the upcoming Polestar dinner and auction.

It is an annual fundraising event held in Powell.

The event helps to raise money needed for Polestar to be able to continue to provide opportunities for disadvantaged youth in the community.  

It is a mentor driven and volunteer dependent organization that provides quality outdoor experiences for young people.

Without Polestar many of these young people would never know what it is to hunt, fish, camp, and enjoy other outdoor activities that many of us take so much for granted.

More information about Polestar:

http://www.polestar-outdoors.org/

OAR was invited to set up a table at the event and when we first walked in I was amazed at how beautiful they had decorated the hall.  This was going to be fun!

We didn't have a whole lot of time to take pictures but I snapped these in between telling folks about the store, talking about the outdoors, and eating a HUGE meal.

We met so many awesome people the other night, had a great time watching the auction, and are glad that we played a small part in this great event.

A Coleman Powerhouse Dual Fuel lantern for sale at OAR (used only once)  Info on specs for this great piece of gear:

http://www.coleman.com/product/premium-powerhousereg-dual-fueltrade-lantern/3000000946

Dumb And Dumber

I picked up this pair of Bauer Vapor IX youth hockey skates a few days ago.

They are Size 7, in excellent shape, and a really great pair of skates.

A young man came into the store yesterday carrying a bow and soft shell bow case.

The bow is your basic issue Bear Magnum Hunter right handed compound bow.  It is in great condition and looks barely used.

He also brought in a really nice Cabela's bow case.

Both are on consignment and available for sale at OAR.

In our last blog entry I mentioned that a local professional photographer brought in two of her pictures this past week.

Nena Trapp has taken many wonderful pictures of areas throughout the western United States.

She displays her work at a photography studio here in town (and also maintains a website that displays and sells her work), so we are very lucky to have some of her pieces at OAR!

Thank you Nena for supporting our new business!

The link to Nena's website:

http://www.nenatrappphotography.com/

Examples of some of the really nice decorative items we have in one dedicated space at the store.

We have nature and wild life photography (including Nena's Yellowstone picture and a beautiful still life), metal and wood decorative items, and other interesting stuff you won't find just anywhere else in Cody.

OK.........my husband and I played "Dumb and Dumber" the other day.

I bought this clock (that says No Hunting - No Firearms, and has three "bullet holes" in it) at a yard sale while still living in Tennessee, and didn't realize until I got it home that it didn't work.

It was stored in a box for a couple of years, and when we opened the store here in Cody I hung it on the wall with full intentions of getting it working and then selling it.

Me and my bright ideas. 

I bought a cheap clock at a yard sale a couple of days ago, pulled the hunting clock off the wall at the store and asked my husband to take the working mechanism from one clock and put it on the deer clock.

Uhhhh.......no.

He's a pretty handy guy, but within five minutes of pulling clocks apart (and scattering parts and pieces all across the counter) it became obvious that parts are not necessarily interchangeable and that my bright idea wasn't such a bright idea after all.

I'll just have to go buy new clock workings, and that's what I get for being so cheap.

Tacticals Vests and Beautiful Pictures

A great size L tactical vest for sale.

Yesterday a local professional photographer called us and asked if we would be interested in having a couple of her photographs placed for sale in the store.

YES!  Absolutely!!

We have one room dedicated to an ever increasing amount of beautiful photographs and other nature-related wood and metal crafts.

Nena sells her beautiful work both online and through other stores here in Cody, but is giving OAR (and OAR customers) a GREAT deal!

I snapped some pictures to post on this blog but the lights in the room reflected back at me, and the pictures I took all......well......suck.

I'll try again tomorrow to do justice to both Nena's pictures and some of the other great art work we are lucky enough to have for sale.

And we hope to have additional "Nena Photos" available soon.

In the meantime please check out Nena's website:

http://www.nenatrappphotography.com/

Spring Hours

A link to a great camp table that can be rolled up similar in size and shape to a fold out camp chair.  It came into the store a little over a week ago and is for sale at OAR.

The link includes pictures of this great item, as well as table specs and reviews:

http://www.rei.com/product/378009/camp-time-roll-a-table?preferredSku=3780090001&cm_mmc=cse_froogle-_-pla-_-product-_-3780090001&mr%3AreferralID=c99e60c8-9262-11e2-9dea-001b2166becc

OAR moves to its Spring schedule beginning next week.

Effective April 2 we will be open

9am-5pn Tuesday through Saturday.

A picture of the Grand Tetons we took on a quick road trip a few weeks ago.

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

Live And Learn

Late last week three high school boys walked in the front door of the store and excitedly began rummaging through the shelves and racks of gear and clothing, eager to see what we had in stock.

One boy immediately zeroed in on the helmet above.

I was only half paying attention to the boy as he walked around the store with the helmet, and as he showed it off to his friends and then tried in on.

Eventually he walked over to me and asked me if he could bring the helmet back for a refund if he bought it and it didn't fit.

Shaking my head I pointed at the sign on the wall that told him to be really sure about what he bought, because OAR did not provide refunds.

The boy walked over to a mirror to look at himself wearing the helmet.  He walked over to his friends.  He walked back over to the mirror.

Still only half paying attention to him, I smiled at his excitement about the helmet.

By the third time he had done the "look in the mirror - go show his friends" routine, I looked up to see the boy pulling on the chin guard.  The helmet moved up and down freely on his head.  

Too freely.

OK.  He had my attention.  

I watched him closely, as I realized that this kid really REALLY wanted this helmet to fit him.  

I shook my head at the boys.  

"Uhhh.......no.  That's not gonna work.  That helmet is too big for you".

The boy walked over to a basket filled with wool hats, grabbed one out of the basket and asked me how much it cost.   

I watched him as he put the wool hat on his head and then put the helmet back on.  Grabbing at the chin guard again, he moved the helmet up and down.  It didn't move quite as freely.

He looked at me and said "That feels better".

I looked at him and said "Yeah that might work........until August when it'll be REALLY hot.  That helmet is too big for you."

He took off the helmet, reached for his wallet and headed towards the counter.

I looked at him and said "It's too big.  SHOW YOUR PARENTS THIS HELMET TONIGHT.  If they're OK with it, I'm OK with it.  If they're not OK with it, bring it back and I'll give you your money back, OK?"

He smiled at me and said OK.  

I reiterated "Show it to your parents tonight OK?"

"OK"

The next day his mother walked into the store to get a refund for the helmet.

I thought about that incident a good deal for a couple of days.

It raised issues that I hadn't considered when I first opened an outdoor gear consignment shop here in Cody.

About minors.  About minors purchasing safety-related gear.

I sold the bike helmet to a minor and told him to show it to his parents.  I told him that if the helmet was a no-go, I'd refund his money.

What I SHOULD have just said was "No, I'm not going to sell this helmet to you.  If you want it, bring your parents into the store.  They can decide."

And that is exactly what I will be doing from this point forward.

At OAR we want our youngest local adventurers to be safe when they head outdoors, and OAR's policy moving forward will be to insist on adult decision making when it comes to all outdoor safety gear.

We have a lot of hunting gear at OAR, and the selection is increasing every day. Camo pants, long and short sleeve t's, jackets, vests, neck warmers, fleece hats and baseball caps. Orange jackets and orange vests. A great tree stand and climbing straps. A compound bow and bow case. Boots. A variety of camping gear. Cabellas packs. A couple of old external frame packs suitable for carrying game out of the mountains. If you have hunting gear that you no longer use and want to consign it, consider bringing it into OAR. We get a LOT of guys looking to pick up hunting gear!

Facebook Hates Me

Facebook hates me.

I've been trying to post pictures and text on the OAR Facebook page for a couple of days now and it won't let me.

Maybe this tech-nerd changed a setting on the site without meaning to.

Or maybe Facebook really DOES hate me.

Either way, we'll get it figured out and post again as soon as we can.

At the store we have some great gear that needs to find a new home.

A lady brought this beautiful little Rossignol youth snowboard/ski helmet in a while back.

It's in brand new condition, has ample padding to protect a little athlete's head, and is filled with all the hearts and flowers and pinkness that a little girl would love.

Oxygen Element 580 snowboard (size 152) - without bindings, has a few scratches but no major dings, and the graphics on both sides are still in great shape. 

This little MSR Pocket Rocket (yes, that's the actual name of this baby) is a tiny camping stove.

It comes complete with plastic carrying case, and is sturdy but lightweight enough to throw down in the bottom of your pack when you head out to camp or go into the back country.

Quite a few people have looked at this thing, then looked at me bemused and said "What IS that?"

It's a wind resistance bike trainer.  Designed for those who want to ride their bike indoors when the weather outside is too nasty for outdoor riding.

It's in excellent condition, simple to install and use, and breaks down easily when you want to store it away.

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

This is a Graber trunk mount bike rack, designed to hold 3-4 bicycles.

If you need to transport bikes and don't have the room to haul them in your vehicle, this tight little bike rack will do the trick.

If you have any of the following and want to consign them, we would LOVE to have them to sell at OAR, because folks are beginning to head back outside again:

packs - headlamps - trekking poles - camp stoves - hiking boots - trail shoes - paddles and life jackets - wet suits - wind and rain proof jackets - gaitors - tents - camp chairs - anything to do with hunting