Pickup Point of the Month: Mountain Shop in Portland, Ore.
Pickup Point of the Month
Mountain Shop
1510 NE 37th Ave.
Portland, Ore.
Photo at right: Mountain Shop general manager Guy Trombley.
Our Pickup Point of the Month is the Mountain Shop, at 1510 NE 37th Ave. in the Hollywood district of Portland, Ore. The shop is a Northwest icon, and opened 75 years ago, when the Timberline Lodge first opened. Since then, it’s been a one-stop destination for high-quality outdoor gear. The Mountain Shop is also the primary sponsor of the Teacup Classic Nordic Race, which will be held Jan. 27, 2013. We stopped by with our latest copy of Northwest SnowSports and chatted with general manager Guy Trombley:
Q: How is your Ski Lab different from most ski shops?
A: I refer to the our service shop as the “Ski Lab” because the level of technical expertise it takes to stone grind and tune skis for race-level performance is more like science labs I have worked in before in graduate school. Our new lab equipment, the Winterstieger RS 350 stone grinder is able to transform old worn skis and snowboard bases into renewed clean bases with specific structures to match the snow conditions anywhere in the world. In addition to tuning and sharpening metal edge skis and snowboards we also finish the job with a polishing, hot box waxing and hand waxing with custom choices of performance waxes to match the structure and conditions.
1510 NE 37th Ave., Portland, Ore.
Q: Why is quality ski tuning so important?
A: Few customers in the Northwest have had the opportunity to enjoy a base structure, edge and wax specific designed to match our low snow conditions, temperature, humidity and snow type. In these conditions skis slow down from the buildup of water and suction under the ski’s running surface. Specific grinds help disperse the water and break up that suction. When combined with a well chosen wax application to improve upon the functioning of the structure the only thing left to improve upon, in terms of the gear, is proper fitting and flexing of skis, which is extremely important for fun, fast and efficient Nordic skiing.
Q: Where’s your favorite place to ski?
A: My favorite places are usually as close to home as possible so I can ski more often. Now that I live here in Portland, Mt. Hood is my destination, but I do love the back country of the Northern Cascades in the Glacier Peak Wilderness, where skiing in to ice climb a picture perfect water fall is absolutely sublime.
Q: Why do you think the Mountain Shop has been around for so long?
A: At the age of 75, the Mountain Shop is among the two oldest outdoor specialty shops anywhere in the country. The secret to the shop’s longevity is the generations of people who share the same passion and expertise for the outdoors who want to shop at a place that stands for what they aspire to be. Our oldest known customer is 88-years-old and still skiing; he was the first person to have his new skis tuned and waxed this season.
Q: What do you like best about Northwest SnowSports?
A: Northwest SnowSports is an up-to-date resource on what is happening in the snow scene in our region. The quality of the photography is wonderful and the publication’s approach to helping people explore the opportunities for recreation in really incredible.
Get your copy of Northwest SnowSports at the store, and click to visit the Mountain Shop online: www.mountainshop.net
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