No business like snow business

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This article was published 01/02/2021 (1865 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

COVID-19 may have closed gymnasiums and stopped snowbirds from driving across the border to warmer climes, but there is one sector booming during this pandemic: sales in winter sports and recreation equipment.

While Winnipeggers can’t get their exercise by running on a treadmill in a gym or walking on a southern beach, it hasn’t stopped us from wanting to get outside to play in the snow and ice.

That need has led to exploding sales of cross-country skis, snowshoes, snowmobiles and ice-fishing equipment. It has also resulted in many more people out on ski and snowmobile trails than have been there in years.

Brian Burke, owner of Olympia Cycle and Ski on St. Mary’s Road, said while many stores have shortages of cross-country skis and equipment, he has plenty.

“I was lucky,” Burke said.

“I can’t believe how many people are buying skis and snowshoes this year. The problem is getting inventory. I wasn’t sure what this year would be like, but I put in a large order, and I got a large amount of equipment just last week.

“You had to think ahead.”

Burke believes the sales are being sparked by people’s need to get outdoors and exercise.

“You have thousands of people out walking who never would have been out before. Now people are saying, ‘do you really need a gym when you can exercise this way?’ ”

Burke said even during the weeks of code-red restrictions, when the only customers who could come inside his store were ones who wanted to buy essential items, they were selling plenty of skis and equipment through online sales and curbside pickup.

“We were allowed to sell winter clothing, but we had to block the skis and bikes,” he said. “We had enforcement officers coming in every few days making sure.

“But now people can come in again, and we can have up to six people in the store at a time.”

Karin McSherry, executive director of the Cross Country Ski Association of Manitoba, said while the Nordic Centre at the Windsor Park Golf Course is closed — along with the cross-country ski rentals inside — trail use there and elsewhere is booming this season.

“The trails are busier than normal winters, and it’s most likely due to COVID,” McSherry said.

“It’s just like it was during the summer, with more people riding bikes. People are getting out there. And the winter, up until the last few days, has had great temperatures for getting out.

“It’s just hard to find equipment now — it is all sold out.”

McSherry said while the number of skiers is up, the association’s normal programs are down.

“Normally we would have club programs, lessons and camaraderie, but now it is all online. The only thing left is for people to support a club which is maintaining the trails.”

Dave Domke, the city’s manager of parks and open space, said they don’t keep track of the number of cross-country skiers on trails in the six civic parks that have them, but they know the number of people accessing the parks is way up.

“The use from summer to fall was up 20 to 25 per cent,” Domke said.

“It’s really good news people are out there using our rinks and cross-country ski trails. There are so many out there we’ve had to create walking paths beside the cross-country ski trails at Harbourview and Crescent Drive Park.”

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If you’re in the market for a snowmobile and you see one, you better grab it before it speeds away from you.

Tyler Bromley, sales manager at Rond’s Marine — which sells snowmobiles, boats, ATVs and dirt bikes — said they’ve never seen sales like they’ve had in recent months.

“Snowmobiling, and overall the recreational industry, has been pretty amazing since last March,” he said.

“With people unable to travel, we’ve seen a spike in sales.”

So much so that Bromley said last week they were sold out of snowmobiles. He said they were able to get six more, but as of Friday, half of those were gone.

“Usually we might have 12 left over in March, but it doesn’t appear we will have anything left over for fall sales this year.”

Bromley said pre-order sales for next year begin in March, and he expects several more people will be putting down their names for them.

“I think those sales will be significantly stronger this year than even last year.”

Bromley said it’s not just snowmobiles for winter use flying out the doors, but also boats, ATVs and other equipment.

“I’ve only got one ATV in stock, and normally we’d have 15 or 20,” he said.

“We’re a recreational toy industry, and usually those are the ones that are not at the top of people’s need when the economy is hit, but the last 12 months have been different. People want to do something, so we’ve been fortunate.”

Snoman (Snowmobilers of Manitoba) maintains the more than 12,000 kilometres of dedicated trails across the province through its member clubs. Executive director Yvonne Rideout said there are a couple of things lacking for snowmobilers this year.

“We need more snow,” she said.

Rideout said about 200 warm-up shelters on snowmobile trails were ordered closed and locked by public health orders on Nov. 12. They will remain closed until at least Feb. 12, when the current orders are set to expire.

“It’s unfortunate, but we understand the public health orders,” Rideout said. “We’ve also told clubs don’t organize any derbies or group rides.

“But we’re lucky we can still use our trails. That’s why we are asking everyone not to risk them closing the trails.”

Rideout said it’s easy to physically distance from others while riding a snowmobile, but not if warm-up shelters were open.

“In order to keep our trail network open, we are asking for everyone’s co-operation in abiding by the public health orders,” she said. “We want to ensure that our trail system doesn’t fall prey to COVID-19 and have a dire effect on our snowmobile season.

Rideout said they have seen a lot of new riders this year — and some others.

“Nobody can go south, so we are seeing riders who haven’t used them in years,” she said.

Rideout said there were 19,385 Snopasses sold last year and 35,000 registered sleds. It is illegal to use a Snoman trail without a Snopass.

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Whether it is on the Red River just north of the locks in Lockport, or a short drive out on Lake Winnipeg, there’s a population explosion in the number of ice-fishing huts, with people inside trying to catch a big one.

Kevin Wood, manager at The Fishin’ Hole, said there’s only one problem for people who want to get a new shelter: getting the size you want.

“I still have some shelters, but I might not have the one you want,” he said.

“People want shelters that are big enough for families — four or five people — and I have a long waiting list for them.”

Wood said it’s also hard to find a propane heater for a shelter these days. Meanwhile, sales of other ice-fishing equipment, including augers, are up.

“There’s a lot of new people out there and a lot of people who haven’t done it in years. I’ve heard from a lot of people who say they would normally have gone to Mexico for a couple of weeks, while others have decided to upgrade.

“It is tremendously busier than most times.”

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For all those people lamenting what they see as the low levels of snow for winter activities, David Phillips, a senior climatologist for Environment Canada, said there’s been more white stuff falling than people might think.

Phillips said the total snowfall so far this winter, as of Jan. 21, is 56.2 cm, while the normal amount is 64 cm.

“Last year, by this time, you had 102.8 cm. This winter, there was a good dump in October and it was cold, scaring Winnipeggers into thinking La Nina had begun to bite deep and hard (and) winter was going to last from Thanksgiving to Easter. Not to be — November, December and January have all been warmer, with less snow.”

Phillips said the snow that fell in October and November has melted, meaning Winnipeg didn’t get permanent snow on the ground until about Dec. 21, when 16 cm was left sitting on the ground after a major dump.

Phillips said there have been 26 days with snow as of Jan. 21, only a few days fewer than the average of 32 days.

“It’s probably not as ‘droughty’ as you first thought.”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca