Outdoors Weekly News Archive

January 4, 2008

Warner's Dock: A Family In The Marine Business

MILWAUKEE (AP) – A storm that dumped almost 2 feet of snow across the Midwest last week may have left commuters grumbling, but to the outdoor recreation industry the falling snowflakes look a lot like dollar signs.
The snow has had a huge impact on sales of snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles in southeastern Wisconsin, saleswoman Nikki Roth of A+ Power Sports in Elkhorn, in southeastern Wisconsin. “Last weekend, we sold out of pretty much all our used machines, and the new machines are going out the door at a rapid pace.”
Milwaukee has had 23 inches of snow since Dec. 1, more than double the amount in the same period last year, according to the National Weather Service. That amount is also nearly four times the 30-year average calculated from 1971 to 2000.
Other states reported similar snow-ins. This month, Norfolk, Neb., received almost a foot of snow, compared to a 30-year average of 3.4 inches. Farther north in Minnesota, Duluth got 17 inches, twice its 30-year average.
While most outdoor-recreation businesses are seeing green, many say it’s too early to estimate the economic benefit of the early snow. They’re relying on anecdotal evidence – packed ski slopes, well-traveled snowmobile trails, improved cross-country ski sales – to predict, with cautious optimism, booming business this winter.
Snow shovel sales generally are a good barometer of winter snow accumulations, said Chad Balkowitsch, general manager of a Bismarck, N.D., company that sells a wheeled shovel called the Dakota Snoblade.
Balkowitsch said U.S. sales of the $80 dozer-like implement are flat compared to last year.
“The snow just hasn’t been there, at least in North Dakota,” he said.
Tourism officials in a number of states say they won’t have economic figures for winter tourism until the spring or later. But they, too, say the early signs are encouraging.
“Clearly, the sense we’re getting is this will be a winter of great promise,” said Kelli A. Trimble, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Tourism. “With the way it’s started this year, we anticipate great growth (in spending) depending on how the rest of the season goes.”