Deb Porter previews what Christy Sports has for this weekend’s sale.

Deb Porter previews what Christy Sports has for this weekend’s sale.

The average date for the first snowfall in Denver is still weeks away (Oct. 18), but this weekend is the moment skiers begin imagining themselves sailing through the white stuff, as stores mark the anniversary of Sniagrab, Denver’s famous Labor Day weekend ski sale.

Twenty years ago, Deb Porter of Lone Tree was one of those lining up outside Gart Brothers’ gothic-styled Sports Castle at 10th and Broadway for the moment doors would open (Sniagrab was bargains spelled backward).

After turning 70 this year, Porter was back scanning the racks at Christy Sports near Southwest Plaza for an early look at selections that go on sale Friday for the store’s Powder Daze — one of a number of sales this weekend.

“I figure this will be my last pair,” Porter said. She made a false start by stopping by Christy’s Park Meadows store close to her house, then found the sale is only at the Southwest store and in Dillon and Vail.

Searching for Rossingols and Dalbello boots similar to what she has now, Porter will find lots of places to search this weekend, in a market that’s been transformed by the internet, but where actual customer service is very important.

“I looked online and found a clearance pair, but you can’t talk to people online,” says Porter, who with her husband has a condo in Breckenridge.

Hoping to see her Saturday is Marie Kelso, owner of Outabounds Ski and Board, off Jordan Road at Dawson Circle in Centennial, who started the business out of her garage a dozen years ago. When Sports Authority, the corporation that took over Gart Brothers and its Sniagrab brand, went bankrupt in 2016, Kelso bought a stock of unsold gear and moved into new quarters.

In addition to that pair of Rossies that Porter wants, Outabounds’ Grab-a-Ski Sale has gear from Salomon, Head, Scot and Never Summer, plus Smith and Pret helmets and Obermeyer outerwear.

Kelso says she is also the area’s biggest supplier of used gear. “It makes the sport more affordable to get on the mountain,” she noted, adding that there will be a pair of Blizzard Black Pearls for $350, normally closer to $850, a thousand dollars with bindings. “Just the bindings are worth that much,” she said.

Philip Cantrick at Evo in downtown’s Golden Triangle area says he totally gets the need to talk with a real human being when shopping for gear. “We have that younger, boutique feel, but we get a wide range of customers that still appreciate the way we take time with people,” he said.

Cantrick notes that Evo's Denver flagship at 860 Broadway is just a block from Gart’s historic castle built in 1926.

“The market’s changed as people have gone away from the best deals to finding the best products and services,” Cantrick said. Black Friday has also become a big ski sale, but Cantrick says Evo will see a line out front on Saturday morning when they’ll find discounts not just on inventory, but also this year’s new models.

In addition to gear, this weekend's sales are a place to shop for passes, notes Kristin Rust, vice president with Alterra Mountain Company and its Ikon Pass accessing Aspen, Snowmass, Steamboat, Winter Park, Copper Mountain, A-Basin and a host of destination resorts.

The Ikon pass will be available at Christy’s and at Burton’s Flagship Denver store and will absolutely be priced up later this fall, Rust says.

You can also find Sniagrab-type deals at seven locations of Epic Mountain Gear, through Sept. 11, including on the Epic Pass, good for Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Keystone, Crested Butte and other resorts.