Pro Mountain Sports

[David Trippett]

I wish all gear stores were as friendly and well-informed as Jim Nelson's little shop. Its' one of the few stores (of any sort) I've been where I feel like they are looking out for my interests. Thanks Pro Mountain. BIG!!!!!

[artschool]

Seconded

[thelawgoddess]

well, the cool thing about jim is that he's a climber and he really puts a lot of thought into the utility of what he sells. imho (and i think i've hung around him enough to have some semblance of one), he's a pretty great guy.

[TeleRoss]

 

Jim and his shop are great.

[tomtom]

Hmmm. I've had mixed results. I had one of the employees tell me that the spinner knobs on ice screws wasn't useful, so he sold me one without. That screw is long gone.

[selkirk]

Kind of depends on who's working that day. Jim and Collin though, and all the gear kicks ass.

 

Had one guy tell me that hex's have absolutely no place on the rack of someone learning to lead while I was asking about the differences between the types of hexes available. (I was putting my first rack together last spring), and instead of buying a set of hex's I should just buy a cam, all with a very holier than though attitude . Needless to say, I ignored him and went with the Wild Country's which kick butt!

[skykilo]

I don't think I can pass on the opportunity to say Pro Mountain Sports is my favorite place to covet gear and mismanage my money.

 

'Carefully selected': it's amazing how much cool stuff is in such a small place.

[Gary_Yngve]

Yeah, Jim's shop rocks!

[chucK]

Talking with a climber about hexes or tri-cams is similar to talking politics or religion. It's a charged topic that can easily lead to an, shall we say, overenthusiastic exchange of beliefs.

 

It's unfortunate that you came out of there feeling the guy was condescending, but it is a sensitive area you were treading upon .

[lunger]

here, here! in addition to stocking the good stuff, Jim et. al. take good care post-sale as well. on numerous occasions they've quickly made things right when things break. discriminating heads and shoulders above Return Every Item, Inc.

[artschool]

here, here! in addition to stocking the good stuff, Jim et. al. take good care post-sale as well. on numerous occasions they've quickly made things right when things break. discriminating heads and shoulders above Return Every Item, Inc.

 

Agreed. Jim really helped me with a pair of boots that turned out to not fit as great as I thought when I was in the store.

[blue_morph]

I would definitely like to thank PMS for having such restrictive business hours. It has surely saved me thousands!

[Mr._Natural]

It would have been cool if they would have told me "6:55" when I asked when they were closing on Friday, could have saved some time sitting in traffic.

[thelawgoddess]

knowing you were going to be close to closing, you could have called ahead and made sure someone would still be there. i've done that before for other places and they are usually happy to wait if they know you're coming.

[tomtom]

i've done that before and they are usually happy to wait if they know you're coming.

 

But sometimes you just can't stop.

[Mr._Natural]

knowing you were going to be close to closing, you could have called ahead and made sure someone would still be there. i've done that before for other places and they are usually happy to wait if they know you're coming.

 

That is exactly what I did.

[thelawgoddess]

hmm ... oops!

[Gary_Yngve]

Dunno, bad luck? A fluke?

 

I've called ahead, as TLG suggested, and bought stuff at 7:00 without a problem. Yes, they do have fewer hours than REI, but they need to do what they can to keep costs down -- it's much easier for REI to afford the extra hours. And Jim treats his employees way better than REI does.

[thelawgoddess]

And Jim treats his employees way better than REI does.

[klenke]

TLG: "well, the cool thing about jim is that he's a climber and he really puts a lot of thought into the utility of what he sells."

 

Yeah, I'm still trying to find a good time to use that Frog he sold me back in 2001.

That dirty rat bastard!

{Okay, I have used it a few times at the local cragmarkets.}

[thelawgoddess]

[layton]

i don't know what's funnier. the fact that jim wouldn't sell camalots, but would sell KONG Frogs....or the fact you actually bought a Frog!!!!!!

sucker!

[pms]

"i don't know what's funnier. the fact that jim wouldn't sell camalots, but would sell KONG Frogs"

 

Bolts are so much easier to deal with than cracks, and QD's so light. What do you say crackbolter(Tony)?

[Snafflehunter]

Everytime I have been into Jim's store it has been a pleasurable experience (except for once when the guy playing solitaire at the front desk didn't even acknowledge my existence even though I was the only customer in the store). The very first time I went to PMS Jim spent an hour and a half with me going over the pros and cons of the gear I was intending to buy.

 

I'm the type of consumer who does a lot of research ahead of time and I feel I'm pretty hard to please, and very stubborn when it comes to listening to other people's advice on gear. Every time I visit PMS, the folks there go through great lengths to make sure I'm buying what I need. I've even been talked out of a few purchases only to be sold on something entirely different than what I thought I wanted. This advice has always been welcome and I now swear by the gear I've been introduced to at PMS (Jim introduced me to Wild Things Primaloft, the Integral Designs Silshelter and Western Mountaineering VersaLite sleeping bag, Colin introduced me to Dyneema slings). How many times have you had this kind of experience at REI or even Feathered Friends?

 

Of course with the good advice comes advice that doesn't work for everyone. Climbing is a diverse sport with diverse routes and diverse participants. Not everyone is going to agree on the same choices of gear, but the bottom line is Jim carries a wide variety of gear that can suit just about any climber -- no matter what their niche (alpine, sport, hiking).

 

Three out of four in my immediate family climbs and we all shop at PMS. I would recommend Pro Mountain Sports over any other gear retailer. Even with the one negative experience I had.

[layton]

On the flip side, it really sucks to work in a gear shop when someone comes in after having done all the research (to the most minute detail) and then starts asking you questions they already know then answers to. you give your opionion only to have the customer spit back some catalogue bullshit to contradict or challenge you.

i'm sure anyone that's worked outdoor retail knows exactly what i'm talking about. oooohhhhhh that's annoying.