Galyans --> Dick's Sporting Goods - yuck
Phil Schuman
http://www.galyans.com/
which has now been acquired by Dick's Sporting Goods.
Well, unfortunately, at least in our store,
all of the great isles of camping, hiking, and cooking gear
has now been replaced with isles of golf & treadmills.
It's too bad - as Galyans isles & shelves had lots of gear,
so you could see what it looked like, and how it worked.
And a really good camping staff to answer questions...
Now - almost nothing - bummer -
The Ancient One
"Phil Schuman" <pschuman_...@interserv.com> wrote in message
news:KJ5Sd.2069$DW....@newssvr17.news.prodigy.com...
Same thing here, Galyans carried a wide variety of items for every sport
imaginable, Dicks only carries a few of the best selling items. Dicks is a
poor substitute for Galyans.
Gary S.
<onlyt...@thetopknows.com> wrote:
>"Phil Schuman" <pschuman_...@interserv.com> wrote in message
>news:KJ5Sd.2069$DW....@newssvr17.news.prodigy.com...
>> We used to go to a local store called Galyans -
>> http://www.galyans.com/
>> which has now been acquired by Dick's Sporting Goods.
>>
>> It's too bad - as Galyans isles & shelves had lots of gear,
>> so you could see what it looked like, and how it worked.
>> And a really good camping staff to answer questions...
>>
>> Now - almost nothing - bummer -
>>
>Same thing here, Galyans carried a wide variety of items for every sport
>imaginable, Dicks only carries a few of the best selling items. Dicks is a
>poor substitute for Galyans.
>
One opened up in the Boston area about a year ago, but for the more
serious gear, Galyans was a poor substitute for the many outdoors
shops, local and chain, which we already have.
I think they tried to compete in too many areas, outdoors/camping,
skis, hunting/fishing, team sports, home exercise gear, golf,
bicycles, with a focus on the top selling portions of each of those
areas rather than a complete selection.
For example, no XC skis, no road bikes.
The amount of knowledge of their salespeople ranges quite a bit as
well.
Happy trails,
Gary (net.yogi.bear)
------------------------------------------------
at the 51st percentile of ursine intelligence
Gary D. Schwartz, Needham, MA, USA
Please reply to: garyDOTschwartzATpoboxDOTcom
The Penguin
Gaylans. We live in Terre Haute, Indiana which is about 75 miles
from Indianapolis. Whenever in Indy, we made it a point to stop
at Galyan's but apparently, Galyans was purchased by Dick's. Our
experience is like that already posted... Dick's has much less
camping equipment and especially backpacking items like lightweight
tents, cooking stoves, etc.
They are in the process of building a Gander Mountain here in
Terre Haute so I am anxious to know what to expect.
"Phil Schuman" <pschuman_...@interserv.com> wrote in news:KJ5Sd.2069
$DW....@newssvr17.news.prodigy.com:
Daniel-San
"The Penguin" <scot-le...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:KU8Sd.250893$w62....@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
> How are the GANDER MOUNTAIN stores compared to either Dick's or
> Gaylans. We live in Terre Haute, Indiana which is about 75 miles
> from Indianapolis. Whenever in Indy, we made it a point to stop
> at Galyan's but apparently, Galyans was purchased by Dick's. Our
> experience is like that already posted... Dick's has much less
> camping equipment and especially backpacking items like lightweight
> tents, cooking stoves, etc.
>
> They are in the process of building a Gander Mountain here in
> Terre Haute so I am anxious to know what to expect.
>
>
>
Depends on what you're into. If you like fishing, hunting, or what I refer
to as "car-camping", then you'll be in hog heaven when GM opens. They have
tons of fishing stuff (every kind imaginable), more firearms than I've ever
seen in one spot, and a reasonable selection of camping stuff. I'm more of a
backpacker than a "car-camper", so most (certainly not all) of their camping
stuff is not what I'm looking for. I go there often for fly-tying supplies.
They are similar (better, IMHO) to the old Galyan's, a million times better
than Dick's.
Dan
bg4a
we also have a gander mt. coming in. up in wisconson, they seem to fancy
hunting . . .
"The Penguin" <scot-le...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:KU8Sd.250893$w62....@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
K M
local gear shops near popular hiking spots. We always stop by the Happy
Hiker when we are in Gatlinburg. We see more great gear in the first 10
feet...vs. the entire GM or Dick's stores combined. I am an hour 1/2 away
from the Cabela's in Dundee MI...even this monster location offers hardly
anything for the backpacker.
I guess you get what you can when you can. Always support the little local
shops in my motto.
The Ohio Hiker
"The Penguin" <scot-le...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:KU8Sd.250893$w62....@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
Phil Schuman
"The Penguin" <scot-le...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:KU8Sd.250893$w62....@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
> Gaylans. We live in Terre Haute, Indiana which is about 75 miles
> from Indianapolis. Whenever in Indy, we made it a point to stop
> at Galyan's but apparently, Galyans was purchased by Dick's. Our
> experience is like that already posted... Dick's has much less
> camping equipment and especially backpacking items like lightweight
> tents, cooking stoves, etc.
>
> They are in the process of building a Gander Mountain here in
> Terre Haute so I am anxious to know what to expect.
>
reading down...
We walked thru a local Gander Mountain, and it seemed hard core fishing
& hunting.
In fact, ours had a gunsmith area and an indoor archery range.
Now that Galyans is gone, I'll have to take a more serious look at local
REI
and also the Gander Mountain -
We have also used Campmor.com for a lot of stuff not in the stores...
BUT - I miss being able to look and compare items -
Prior to getting a Whisperlite, we looked at the other variations of
it -
Also picked up a lightweight LaFuma sleeping bag for a summer trip...
all from Galyans - and because we could actually look and try it out.
Good luck - Phil -
ai8o
"K M" <ohio...@woh.rr.com> wrote in message
news:DC9Sd.6888$kI....@fe2.columbus.rr.com...
We always stop by the Happy Hiker when we are in Gatlinburg. We see more
great gear in the first 10
> feet..
Where is this shop in Gatlinburg?
Is it in the actual town of Gatlinburg,TN. or is it in the nearby "MALLS"
of Sevierville, or Pigeon
Forge?
Dan Yemiola
superf...@sbcglobal.net
Mart!.
Slightly OT but a few years ago I used to lift weights at a local world gym.
It was owned by a very friendly owner who worked out therer every day.
Great staff, tanning, juice bar, nice equipment, nice pro shop, all kinds of
celebrity athletes would come in. 24 Hour fitness came in and took a dump
on all the Gyms in Houston. No more juice bar, pro shop, ect. And the
attitude of the company was blatently transparent "if it does not make us a
quick buck, then we dont give a damn"
The bigger stores offer lower prices and longer hours, but you lose so much
in service and quality. For the past 4 years I have not shoped at Wal Mart
or Best Buy, I get all my CDs at an independant store.
I may spend 10% more but the engaging conversation and the old school
service I get from the employees is MORE than worth it.
I wish some how people could get the hint and stop patronizing the big
generic corporate stores. But lets face it, people in this country are too
lazy to push their shopping cart back up to the grocery store or walk on an
escalator. I feel like the athletic and the strong willed are a dying
breed.
Instead everybody wants to be bombarded by advertising for some crap made in
China to fill their houses with and stuff their mouths full of poison from
the local corporate drive thru burger place.
Thats about $4 of my 2 cents
Mister Fixit
<scot-le...@worldnet.att.net> wrote:
>How are the GANDER MOUNTAIN stores compared to either Dick's or
>Gaylans. We live in Terre Haute, Indiana which is about 75 miles
>from Indianapolis. Whenever in Indy, we made it a point to stop
>at Galyan's but apparently, Galyans was purchased by Dick's. Our
>experience is like that already posted... Dick's has much less
>camping equipment and especially backpacking items like lightweight
>tents, cooking stoves, etc.
>
>They are in the process of building a Gander Mountain here in
>Terre Haute so I am anxious to know what to expect.
>
>
Gander Mountain caters mostly to hunting and fishing gear. Good
outdoor clothing if you like camo patterns. More guns than I have ever
seen in one store before. There is a camping and hiking section, but
fairly small compared to the rest of the store. Brand name stuff
though. I like it.
Glenn S.
(Hagerstown, MD) so it's been pretty good for us. It'll be a shame if
Galyans veers away from its wider selection of goods.
--
G.D.Smith
Harpers Ferry, WV
FOR SALE: 2003 Sweetwater 22' Pontoon Boat
http://icanhelp56.homestead.com/gs_pontoon01.html
FOR SALE: 1999 Fleetwood Mallard 37' Travel Trailer
http://icanhelp56.homestead.com/Mallard001.html
Chick Tower
> How are the GANDER MOUNTAIN stores compared to either Dick's or Gaylans.
> We live in Terre Haute, Indiana which is about 75 miles from
> Indianapolis. Whenever in Indy, we made it a point to stop at Galyan's
> but apparently, Galyans was purchased by Dick's. Our experience is like
> that already posted... Dick's has much less camping equipment and
> especially backpacking items like lightweight tents, cooking stoves,
> etc.
>
> They are in the process of building a Gander Mountain here in Terre
> Haute so I am anxious to know what to expect.
>
The Gander Mountain by me, in Lansing, Michigan, seems to be oriented
towards hunters and fishermen. It has a few packs and hiking boots, lots
of clothing (mostly Columbia and the house brand), a few canoes and
kayaks, and lots of hunting and fishing supplies. It's not a horrible
place for backpackers, but they had better not be shopping for major
pieces of equipment like boots, packs, tents, and sleeping bags. They
have limited selections of stuff like stoves, water filters, and
freeze-dried food.
--
Chick Tower
For e-mail: arh . sent . towerboy AT xoxy . net
M.H.
I always preferred Galyans over dicks. haven't been there in a while
although the last time I was there most of their camping section was
unchanged from the pre buy out days but that was a couple months ago
--
___________________________________________________________________
mkt
> One opened up in the Boston area about a year ago, but for the more
> serious gear, Galyans was a poor substitute for the many outdoors
> shops, local and chain, which we already have.
>
> I think they tried to compete in too many areas, outdoors/camping,
> skis, hunting/fishing, team sports, home exercise gear, golf,
> bicycles, with a focus on the top selling portions of each of those
> areas rather than a complete selection.
>
> For example, no XC skis, no road bikes.
>
> The amount of knowledge of their salespeople ranges quite a bit as
> well.
I don't think there are any Galyan's in Southern California, but they
sound similar to the Big 5 and Oshman's sporting goods stores that we
have here. Outdoor and sporting goods stuff, but weak on backpacking
stuff.
Then there's Sports Chalet, which actually does manage to do all that
team sports stuff and fishing stuff and skiing stuff, and have a pretty
decent backpacking selection too. I go to the nearby REI as my first
choice, but Sports Chalet is usually my second choice.
A discount outdoor gear place, Outland, opened up practically next door
to Caltech several years ago, but they closed a month or two ago. Not
sure if it was due to poor revenue per se, or it may've been rising
rents, as they're less than a block from slightly trendy, slightly chic
Lake Ave.
The LA Times had an interesting article about an annual outdoor
equipment show that retail buyers attend, to decide what they want to
put into their stores' inventories; with the small operations there's
not less leeway for guessing wrong about what consumers want. Even
less leeway for the discount/remainder stores such as Outland, who need
to find stuff which is available for a discount price yet which will
still sell.
--MKT
JimG
<http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com> built nearby and it's everything
you could ever want in a camping, hunting, fishing and outdoor cooking
store. Huge selection. My wife doesn't let me go in there with my
wallet anymore <g>
JimG
Margaret Lillard
Augh. I was at the local Dick's the other day, picking up sweats on
sale. A young saleswoman approached the equally young cashier as I was
buying, asking, "What would you buy for hiking? That lady over there
wants to know."
Cashier: "I don't know. Jeans? I wear jeans for everything."
Me: "Um, jeans are not good ..."
Saleswoman (ignoring me): "I figure anything will do. T-shirts, shorts,
whatever."
Me: "Not cotton ..."
Cashier (ignoring me): "Yeah, it doesn't really matter." (Bear in mind,
it's February here in NC, too).
Me: "COTTON KILLS. They should wear nylon or other breathable-quick dry
fabrics, and bring rain gear and other appropriate outer wear for the
weather. Not cotton. Not jeans."
Cashier and saleswoman look at me like I have three heads.
Saleswoman: "I guess T-shirts would do."
Sigh.
MAL
Ken Bosch
>I don't think there are any Galyan's in Southern California, but they
>sound similar to the Big 5 and Oshman's sporting goods stores that we
>have here. Outdoor and sporting goods stuff, but weak on backpacking
>stuff.
>
>Then there's Sports Chalet, which actually does manage to do all that
>team sports stuff and fishing stuff and skiing stuff, and have a pretty
>decent backpacking selection too. I go to the nearby REI as my first
>choice, but Sports Chalet is usually my second choice.
>
>A discount outdoor gear place, Outland, opened up practically next door
>to Caltech several years ago, but they closed a month or two ago. Not
>sure if it was due to poor revenue per se, or it may've been rising
>rents, as they're less than a block from slightly trendy, slightly chic
>Lake Ave.
>
>The LA Times had an interesting article about an annual outdoor
>equipment show that retail buyers attend, to decide what they want to
>put into their stores' inventories; with the small operations there's
>not less leeway for guessing wrong about what consumers want. Even
>less leeway for the discount/remainder stores such as Outland, who need
>to find stuff which is available for a discount price yet which will
>still sell.
>
>--MKT
MKT,
I don't know where you are in SoCal, but have you been to Adventure
16? That would be my first choice for knowledgeable backpacking gear
specialists.
http://www.adventure16.com/discover/locations.html
Second would be REI and third is Sport Chalet.
I'm out in Riverside FWIW.
Ken B.
mkt
Yes, and I agree about Adventure 16 having advantages in terms of being
both more specialized toward backpacking (plus some other outdoor
activities) and more knowledgeable.
Their two disadvantages for me: the closest ones to me are a good 45
minutes away if traffic's good (west LA or SF Valley, Tarzana I think).
And the specialization and knowledgeability were of no avail in two
recent largely fruitless shopping trips that I made (long story
follows, skip if you don't want the gory details):
1. The more important one was new hiking boots. If there's ever a
time when you want a knowledgeable saleperson, this is it. And
everything seemed fine, with the Brannock device (those metal
sandal-shaped things that you step on and they measure the length and
width of your feet) and lots of fancy talk and store documentation
about "high volume" and "low volume" feet and getting boots to fit
those volumes.
What they never mentioned: that talk about volume is empty hot air,
because Adventure 16 does nothing to deal with feet which are wide or
narrow. They only sell boots in "standard" width. I only discovered
this after several days of going to outdoor stores all over LA, and
discovering that my feet are very wide. I promptly returned to A16 and
asked about wide boots and they told me they don't sell them, only
standard width.
Now, it was less surprising that REI and Sports Chalet have the same
inventory policy, given their more mass-market strategies, but I was
quite disappointed that a specialized, knowledgeable outdoor gear store
such as A16 follows such a customer-unfriendly policy. I'm sure it
reduces their inventory costs -- but it sure as heck doesn't serve the
customer (except for the ones with standard width feet).
I never did find a store in LA which sold hiking boots in wide widths
(there's a boot store that sells workmen's boots and some outdoor boots
in varying widths, but their selection of hiking boots is limited). I
finally had to order some Vasques (one of the few manufacturers along
with Danner which still makes booths in varying widths) over the
Internet; hiking boots are about the last thing that I'd want to buy,
unseen and untried-on, over the Web but I had no choice (I also ordered
a pair of boots from LL Bean over the Web, which bless their souls also
sells boots in varying widths, but they didn't fit right so I had to
ship them back.)
2. A few months ago I was trying to find Aqua Mira; it's easy to find
on the Internet but since I'd never used it before I wanted to at least
look at the package (to see what the instructions were like, shelf
life, size of bottle, etc. etc.). A16 didn't sell it (neither did REI
or Sports Chalet), indeed the people that I asked those stores had not
even heard of it.
Again, after some more footwork (virtual in this case, on the Web), I
discovered the reason: Aqua Mira hasn't been approved for sale in
California. So the stores aren't permitted to sell it.
So ... I agree with the statement that A16 is more knowledgeable and
specialized towards backpacking (and related activities) than REI or
Sports Chalet. And in those stories above, A16 performed no worse than
REI or Sports Chalet.
But they didn't perform any better; given the distance and higher
prices, A16 has to be better for me than REI or Sports Chalet, and it
isn't. The salespeople at A16 know all kinds of stuff, but they don't
have the answers or products that I need. So I might as well save gas,
time, and retail price dollars and go to the nearby REI and Sports
Chalet.
(I had yet another similar experience when I was looking for a
relatively lightweight backpack; thanks to the Internet (and Backpacker
magazine's annual gear guide) I found out about ULA, GoLite, etc.,
although I eventually ended up going with a Mountain Hardware pack.
A16 failed to give me a good selection or set of knowledge about the
choices available out there, although by then I wasn't trying very
hard, I wasn't expecting to get useful information from the salesman
beyond whatever packs they happened to stock.)
--MKT
gps_dr
Bass Pro Shops as well as competitive with Cabelas.
Our Galyans in Broomfield Colorado is being converted to Dicks.
They now have only a few low - end mountain bikes, a few PSE bows,
a small fraction of what Galyans had, which was less than Sportsmans
in the lines that they carried.
Big 5 is a hole in the wall store with cramped isles, and a selection
of low - end goods.
Lots of ads quoting big savings off highly inflated "regular prices
that may or may not have resulted in sales".
Brian Elfert
>How are the GANDER MOUNTAIN stores compared to either Dick's or
>Gaylans. We live in Terre Haute, Indiana which is about 75 miles
Gander Mountain is mostly a hunting/fishing/clothikng store. The camping
selection is pretty limited most of the time.
Brian Elfert
Brian Elfert
>Well, unfortunately, at least in our store,
>all of the great isles of camping, hiking, and cooking gear
>has now been replaced with isles of golf & treadmills.
I was afraid this would happen when they announced Galyan's was being
replaced by Dick's Sporting goods.
REI is about the only halfway decent place to get camping gear now, but
they tend to cater to the person who wants lightweight gear for
backpacking, not the type of stuff Scout troops need. REI is also a bit
expensive.
Brian Elfert
Jon Meinecke
>
> I was afraid this would happen when they announced
> Galyan's was being replaced by Dick's Sporting goods.
Sports Authority also bought Oshmans, or vice versa,
and is combining lines and marketing... Similar product
lines, no large-scale changes in local Oshmans other
than the signs on the building.
> REI is about the only halfway decent place to get camping
> gear now, but they tend to cater to the person who wants
> lightweight gear for backpacking, not the type of stuff Scout
> troops need. REI is also a bit expensive.
There's always Wal-Mart.... %^P
Obvious alternatives: Campmor, Sierra Trading Post, etc...
(Campmor gives Scout troops a discount if you setup an
account.)
But as to REI, who says Scouts don't want lightweight gear
for backpacking or otherwise? And I thought the knock
against REI was they had lost their coop gear ethic and
become a mainly a yuppie clothing store! %^)
Forget smallest REI member number bragging rights,--
what's the oldest piece of REI-branded gear you
own and still use?
I have an REI handlebar bag that is more than 25 years
old and REI down sleeping bags that are close to that...
The sleeping bags are in better shape than the bike bag.
I wish I'd snapped up the replacement body and fly
they closed out a few years ago for my four-pole, four
season REI dome tent. Anyone else remember the
wind testing rig REI mounted on a pick-up truck?
Someplace I think I have a catalog with a picture...
Jon Meinecke
net.subtle-apteryx asm
Stephen Henning
> Forget smallest REI member number bragging rights,--
> what's the oldest piece of REI-branded gear you
> own and still use?
I have REI candle-lanterns that are 35 years old and still have some REI
candles for them.
--
Pardon my spam deterrent; send email to rhod...@earthlink.net
Cheers, Steve Henning in Reading, PA USA
http://home.earthlink.net/~rhodyman
Pat O'Connell
> "Brian Elfert" <bel...@visi.com> wrote
>>
>> I was afraid this would happen when they announced
>> Galyan's was being replaced by Dick's Sporting goods.
Sad...Galyan's was the largest "good" outdoors store in las Vegas, until
REI came along. There's a local rock climbing shop that carries some
hiking gear, but they're small. Sport Chalet isn't so hot.
>> REI is about the only halfway decent place to get camping
>> gear now, but they tend to cater to the person who wants
>> lightweight gear for backpacking, not the type of stuff Scout
>> troops need. REI is also a bit expensive.
>
> There's always Wal-Mart.... %^P
Strangely enough, good car camping gear there, as well as Target and
KMart, if you buy carefully.
> Obvious alternatives: Campmor, Sierra Trading Post, etc...
STP can be very good, though they've gone yuppie on a lot of their
offerings.
...
> Forget smallest REI member number bragging rights,--
> what's the oldest piece of REI-branded gear you
> own and still use?
REI Icelandic Special sleeping bag, purchased around 1975. Very Good
bag, but no mummy-style hood, so best for warmer weather.
> I have an REI handlebar bag that is more than 25 years
> old and REI down sleeping bags that are close to that...
> The sleeping bags are in better shape than the bike bag.
Yup--my wife prefers the Icelandic Special when camping.
--
Pat O'Connell
[note munged EMail address]
Take nothing but pictures, Leave nothing but footprints,
Kill nothing but vandals...
Captain Dondo
> Lots of ads quoting big savings off highly inflated "regular prices that
> may or may not have resulted in sales".
Do they actually put that in their ads? That would be "truth in
advertising"!
Gary S.
That would be called mandatory wording from the state or Federal trade
agencies.
Happy trails,
Gary (net.yogi.bear)
--
At the 51st percentile of ursine intelligence
Lump
before entering the park. they even have a box of freebies for AT thru
hikers.
"ai8o" <ai...@LexComInc.net> wrote in message
news:cvba2a$6p2k$1...@news3.infoave.net...
Phil Schuman
"Phil Schuman" <pschuman_...@interserv.com> wrote in message
news:KJ5Sd.2069$DW....@newssvr17.news.prodigy.com...
> We used to go to a local store called Galyans -
> http://www.galyans.com/
> which has now been acquired by Dick's Sporting Goods.
>
> all of the great isles of camping, hiking, and cooking gear
> has now been replaced with isles of golf & treadmills.
>
> so you could see what it looked like, and how it worked.
> And a really good camping staff to answer questions...
>
> Now - almost nothing - bummer -
>
>
with various folks saying.... "they want xyz, but can wait" -
and now the ads have chainged to "the waiting is over"
and it's for Dick's Sporting Goods Grand Opening !
and what are they waiting for.....
bikes, nike, & underarmor wear
>
dw...@yahoo.com
subsitute for Galyans. Dick's focuses on high profit items items that
appeal to the masses, while Galyans tried to also appeal to customers
who wanted a greater variety of higher quality merchanise. It's
unfortunate that the final Galyans management team never quite found
the right formula to balance growth vs. profit.
I grew up in the 60's and 70's a few miles from the original Galyans
store in Plainfield, Indiana, and have fond memories of shopping there
for some of my first outdoor gear. So for me it's especially
disappointing to see Galyans get swallowed up by Dick's.
/Don
Brian Elfert
>Sports Authority also bought Oshmans, or vice versa,
>and is combining lines and marketing... Similar product
>lines, no large-scale changes in local Oshmans other
>than the signs on the building.
The only Oshman's store locally changed to a Sportmart quite a while back.
I don't recall Oshman's having any camping equipment worth buying but I
last visited about 8 years ago.
>> REI is about the only halfway decent place to get camping
>> gear now, but they tend to cater to the person who wants
>> lightweight gear for backpacking, not the type of stuff Scout
>> troops need. REI is also a bit expensive.
>There's always Wal-Mart.... %^P
>Obvious alternatives: Campmor, Sierra Trading Post, etc...
>(Campmor gives Scout troops a discount if you setup an
>account.)
Our troop has bought stuff from Campmor in the past, but we often want to
see and touch an item before buying. Galyan's had display models of most
stuff sitting right on the shelves to see and touch.
On our last tent buy, we got one tent from a small local shop to test out.
The local shop would have needed 4 weeks to get us 15 more tents so we
went with Campmor for the rest.
>But as to REI, who says Scouts don't want lightweight gear
>for backpacking or otherwise? And I thought the knock
>against REI was they had lost their coop gear ethic and
>become a mainly a yuppie clothing store! %^)
Lightweight stuff is fine. I just wish they also carried stuff for car
campers.
When going to a camporee, I would just as well the scouts use a sturdy
Coleman stove instead of a single burner designed with weight in mind.
Young boys are hard on stuff.
>Forget smallest REI member number bragging rights,--
>what's the oldest piece of REI-branded gear you
>own and still use?
REI hasn't been big here until the last few years. My oldest REI branded
item is only a few years old.
My only knock against REI branded items is things like tents change
designs pretty much annually. Eureka has a few tents like the Timberlise
and the Sunrise that rarely. Consistency is good for a scout troop so
everyone knows how to set up a tent.
Brian Elfert
The Ancient One
<dw...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1109783834....@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
Same here, the Plainfield Galyans was where I always went for gear, or even
just to browse when I was in the area. There just isn't any good replacement
for Galyans around here, sad as that is to say.
Pat O'Connell
Yet another ex-Hoosier checks in. When travelling to Indiana and
planning to camp, I used to visit a Galyan's on the Southside of Indy
not far from my mom's house. Unfortunately that's the Galyan's that got
hit by a tornado a couple of years ago (there was report by one of the
help of seeing a canoe spinning in midair in the store). I still have a
RidgeRest pad purchased at that store...
Jon Meinecke
>
> Our troop has bought stuff from Campmor in the past, but we often want to
> see and touch an item before buying. Galyan's had display models of most
> stuff sitting right on the shelves to see and touch.
>
> On our last tent buy, we got one tent from a small local shop to test out.
> The local shop would have needed 4 weeks to get us 15 more tents so we
> went with Campmor for the rest.
The "small local shop" is going the way of the LBS. With big
box retailers, chain sporting goods, and large outdoors, hunting,
and fishing chains, its tough to compete. Troops are usually
quite price sensitive and larger margins needed by small retailers
may take them out of contention. %^(
> Lightweight stuff is fine. I just wish [REI] also carried stuff for car
> campers.
They do have a fair selection of car-camping targeted gear, here, and
in their catalog. Dutch ovens, 2" thermarests, Coleman stoves,
cots, etc... What do you think they're missing? I suspect they've
chosen to not try to compete with *Mart in low to middle-end
product lines...
> Young boys are hard on stuff.
Indeed. [1]
> My only knock against REI branded items is things like tents change
> designs pretty much annually.
Marketing.
> Eureka has a few tents like the Timberlise
> and the Sunrise that rarely. Consistency is good for a scout troop so
> everyone knows how to set up a tent.
I suspect that scout troops may be the main reason that the Timberline
line of tents survives. [2] Our troop recently retired our Timberlines in
favor of close-out Eureka Mountain Pass rectangular dome tents. That
we wouldn't be able to add or replace tents in the future, even near
future, was a concern. But the price was too good to pass up, and
the quality and design of the tents, likewise.
[1] see [2]
[2] tradition, but see also [1]
Jon Meinecke
Lost One
Scheels
http://www.scheelssports.com/
Canfield's (1 location - Omaha)
http://www.canfields.com/
Cabela's
http://www.cabelas.com/
Since Canfields doesn't do golf / weights / ball sports, they are more of an outdoor/adventure sporting goods store, more like the big chain store Cabela's but with an independent mom/pop flavor. They also have an entire section devoted to scouting.
They're all useful for getting ideas and information but none of three have an all-encompassing selection for outdoors hiking and camping.
For that you still may end up shopping online. I also liked Galyan's the best for hiking / camping before Dicks took over.
Online, campmor does a pretty good job but there's quite a few good little websites that cut decent deals too if you look hard enough for them.
bg4a
of spin on all of these comments?
"Pat O'Connell" <nvcaver.F...@cox.net> wrote in message
news:tQxVd.148148$0u.103268@fed1read04...
Lost One
Because there aren't any? They're not "with" backcountry. Thus no proper
representation of those products in their stores.
They're more likely only urban sports nuts, not campers and outdoors people.
Brian
to The Limited, and even sadder when they sold out to Dick's.
Dick's can't hold a candle to the variety of the products at Galyans, and
the knowledge base of the very well trained Galyan's employee will be
difficult to match, let alone beat. Galyan's also gave us a 10% discount on
any non-Coleman gear for camping, this was a discount they extended to all
scouts.
With that said, Gander Mountain has moved to town but I haven't been there
yet. The feedback on the new stores has been very positive though. Does
Gander Mountain offer a scout discount?
These days I tend to buy my pelf from Campmor and REI online.
Drew Cutter
Galyans was no longer in Columbus. I can't seem to find a outdoor store
for the serious outdoor person , other that rei in Detroit. Just my 2
cents. Dicks sporting goods is a joke.
dwe...@gmail.com
> With that said, Gander Mountain has moved to town but I haven't been
there
> yet. The feedback on the new stores has been very positive though.
Does
> Gander Mountain offer a scout discount?
Gander Mountain is more of a hunting/fishing equipment store than a
backpacking equipment store, but you might still find some useful stuff
there. It's a much better outdoors store than Dick's. And they do
give scouts a discount.
/Don
Drew Cutter
http://www.greatlakesoutfitter.com/ : i believe you want to talk to kip
for boyscout discounts.