Join us for the 26th Annual Spring Swap – used bikes, boats, camping gear, skis, snowboards, apparel… basically anything you need to get outside at fantastic prices!
At 6 pm on Friday, April 26, our 26th Annual Spring Swap kicks off at our Kirkwood location with a tent full of used bikes, boats, skis, snowboards, camping gear, footwear and apparel. (Plus, we have racks and racks of Alpine Shop’s clearance gear in there, too, all at 20% off the already marked-down price.)
There is a $5 entry fee for Friday Night’s First Choice (at the Kirkwood location only) with all proceeds going to Saint Louis BikeWorks, a terrific local organization dedicated to helping kids earn their own bikes by learning how to work on and repair used bikes.
If you’re in the Columbia, Mo., area, our store right in the middle of downtown will also have Swap used goods available for sale starting at 6 pm.
Sales continue during normal store hours on Saturday and Sunday at both locations. Even if only our Kirkwood and Columbia locations have Swap events, all Alpine Shop stores, including The Pathfinder in Manhattan, Kan., have fantastic sales going on now on Featured New Products through Sunday as well.
One of the original signs from Mooers Alpine, Alpine Shop’s predecessor.
In 1973, a local St. Louis climber and Army Map Service employee, Bob Mooers, author of “Finding Your Way in the Outdoors” (still available used at Alibris, 99¢ and up), convinced Chouinard Equipment to open him as a dealer. So Bob started a climbing shop – in a small room upstairs from the home winemaking shop he was moonlighting on the side. It took one month for climbing to outsell winemaking, which was then abandoned in a move to a new, larger space.
Five years later, “Mooers Alpine” was thriving, but Mooers was looking to sell and move to the Northwest.
A 45-year-old customer of his from that exact same area of the country had come to St. Louis to work in the city’s banking and finance industry. A change-in-leadership at the company he worked for had soured Russell “Holly” Hollenbeck on that field though, and he considered himself a “fugitive” from corporate life. While skiing at Snowbird in Utah during the winter of 1977, Hollenbeck broached the subject of purchasing Mooers Alpine with his family. On April 1, 1978, “Mooers Alpine” became “Alpine Shop” with Hollenbeck as the new owner.
The original hand-carved sign from the first “Alpine Shop” after Hollenbeck purchased the store from Bob Mooers still hangs behind the counter at our now 18,000 square foot flagship store in St. Louis.
41 years later, climbing is still at our core, but over the years we have added gear, clothing, events and clinics for almost every type of outdoor enthusiast, from backpackers, hikers, campers, paddlers, and cyclists, to snowboarders and skiers, at four locations in Missouri and Kansas.
Alpine Shop Kirkwood’s collection of historic climbing gear, cleared from big walls in Yosemite National Park by friend-of-the-Shop Rich Copeland. Copeland died in a fall in Yosemite in 2014 and the outpouring of tributes was truly amazing.
Chouinard Equipment morphed into Great Pacific Iron Works which went on to become Black Diamond and Patagonia. Our first supplier remains our largest and one of our most admired.
After 45 years in the business, it is Alpine Shop’s Vision to see Generations Transformed by Discovery Outdoors.
It’s what you’re running for, right? Not for the incredible feeling of running through some gorgeous scenery, or for the exercise, or for the fun of running with friends and enjoying a nice cold beverage afterwards. NOPE! It’s all for the bling!
And this year’s medals for The North Face Shaw Bloom Trail 10k/20k look very, very nice if we don’t say so ourselves. Continuing our tradition of carved wooden medals for this event, the new Shaw Bloom logo has been carved out of the center leaving a dramatic two tone effect. We hope you like them as much as we do!
The 10k and 20k medals for The North Face Shaw Bloom Trail 10k/20k, happening Saturday, March 23, 2019 at Shaw Nature Reserve in Gray Summit, Mo.
Registration for this event ends at midnight on Tuesday, March 19. Find out more about the race here.
Featuring more than 30 hours of FREE classes, demos, presentations and entertainment over three full days of sales, Alpine Shop’s #getOutside EXPO will have you ready to explore the warmer side of the great outdoors!
Get Inspired. Find an Adventure. Learn a New Skill.
All programs are FREE to attend all weekend long at our Kirkwood store. It’s just part of the 2019 #getOutside EXPO!
Saturday and Sunday will start off with Yoga sessions an hour before our normally scheduled open. After that, you’ll find presentations featuring: tips from a nationally-renowned travel expert; information on the world’s longest non-stop river race from the race director, himself; seminars on hiking the Camino de Santiago, a Saturday night movie from Patagonia, and much, much more!
Don’t miss two nights of inspiring Adventure! Tickets are available now!
Alpine Shop’s most popular film festival of the year returns this March as we celebrate 27 years of hosting the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour here in St. Louis in 2019.
This international traveling festival celebrates the most inspiring action, environmental and adventure films from the Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival each year in Banff, Alberta. Each year, we also get a little more inspired to discover something about ourselves through the spirit of adventure.
Join us for two nights of inspiration and adventure on March 27, at the Moolah Theatre and Lounge, and on March 28 at the The Sheldon – in the Grand Center Arts District of St. Louis. Completely different films each night!
Whether you’re going Hidden Valley for the day or a Colorado ski resort for a week, there are a few essential things I like to have access to while I am skiing. At Hidden Valley, I have access to my car since it’s no more than a 5-minute walk away, but on my last ski trip to Utah, we had to take a bus in to the mountain, so I had to think and plan a little more.
SporTube’s The Wanderer Boot Bag has two large boot compartments and one main central compartment to hold all your other gear.
I brought a boot bag with me, so I didn’t have to walk in my ski boots, then I just put it in a locker that was close to the lift for just a few dollars.
Since I had a bag I brought some extra clothes, these items included a vest and a lightweight down jacket. I also had an extra set of lenses for my goggles and I brought some snacks along. Weather on the mountain can sometimes be unpredictable so I like to have my favorite vest at the bottom of the hill instead of 30 minutes away.
Clif Bloks Energy Chews for use during any endurance activity.
Before I go up the lift I put some of my snacks in my pockets. I usually bring granola bars, but one of my favorites is the Cliff Bloks Energy Chews. I don’t always want to eat a big lunch when I’m on the mountain, so I like having some lighter options.
Hydrapak features bottles that collapse down to a 1/4 of its filled size when empty and are 50% lighter than most hard bottles.
One of my secrets to staying out longer is having water on me. When you’re in Colorado its very dry so you get dehydrated faster. I like to do 1 of 2 things, my favorite is using a collapsible water bottle. Make sure you buy a good quality one, you don’t want that thing leaking on you or breaking if you fall on it. The other option I use is a winter specific Camelbak backpack. Then I have nothing in my pockets and everything is in my backpack and the water tube is right by my shoulder.
Extra pro tip for beginners going to Hidden Valley. Bring two pairs of gloves and two pairs of socks. When you’re learning your hands spend a lot of time in the snow, have a second pair waiting in the car just in case your first pair gets wet. Most ski and snowboard boots don’t leak; however, my feet have gotten wet before so only wear one pair of socks, but have an extra set as a backup.
I hope this helps you enjoy your time spent on the snow just a little more, always stop into Alpine Shop to talk to one of our experts if you have any questions.
Elizabeth Dugger, Alpine Shop Snowsports Hardgoods Coordinator
BALLWIN, Mo. – The 2018 Alpine Shop Trail Run Series ended with the traditional running of the Grand Staircase – and a feat never before achieved in the nine-year history of the Off-Road Racing League.
Justin Stewart (Springfield, Ill.) dominated Race 4 with a final pace of 5:45 per mile, breaking the previous record of 5:55 set by George Price in August of 2017.
For the second consecutive week, temperatures dropped in to the 70s for the race, although the humidity from rains earlier in the week didn’t make things exactly comfortable for competitors. This week’s course featured only climb; but what a climb it was – the park’s Grand Staircase. It was no trouble at all for first-place finisher Justin Stewart (Springfield, Ill., 30) who won for the second straight week. Stewart knocked a full 10 seconds off the fastest pace per mile record in the Trail Run Series books, finishing the 3.6 mile course in a time of 20:42.5, a pace of 5:45 per mile. He was followed to the finish line by Benjamin Hudson (St. Louis, 32) with a time of 21:54.3 and Daniel Welch (Clayton, 27), who was 10 seconds behind Hudson (22:05.1)
For the overall series, Hudson took first place with a total of 54 points (two first place finishes: 15 points each, and two second place finishes: 12 points each). Welch and Jon-Paul LaVenture (Ballwin, Mo., 36) tied for second over the four races, both with 40 points each. Stewart, in only two races, was in fourth with 30 points.
Jamie Maher (St. Louis), on her way to her second career victory at the Trail Run Series.
On the women’s side, Jamie Maher (St. Louis, 35) grabbed her second career Trail Run Series win with a time of 27:02.1. (Maher also won race three of the 2017 series.) She beat a woman with two wins herself earlier this month, Hannah Floyd (St. Louis, 32), who finished in 27:42.9. Third place went to another familiar name in the top three from last week, Julia Grunloh (St. Louis, Mo.)
For the series, flip the top two finishers, with Floyd taking home the four-race crown with 52 points (two wins, one second place finish and one third place result). Maher ended up in second place with 35 points and Grunloh took third with 31.
Chris Martel (Webster Groves, Mo.) on the bluffs of the Meramec River pushing towards his eighth straight Masters category win at the Trail Run Series.
For the Masters category, the 2018 Series was thoroughly dominated by two incredible athletes, Chris Martel (Webster Groves, Mo., 52) on the men’s side, and Susan Richmond (pictured below, Eureka, Mo., 57) for the women. Both of these athletes completed 2018 in the same way they went through the 2017 series – with four straight wins. For the last two years, these two runners have won the masters category in every race.
Women’s Masters champion, Susan Richmond (Eureka, Mo.), cruising to her eighth straight category win in the series, going back to 2017.
Martel and Richmond obviously both won their respective categories. The rest of the men’s side has an interesting twist, though. The top three finishers on the men’s Masters side finished in the exact same order in all three races. Eric Buckley (St. Louis, 55) who, incidentally, began competing in the Trail Run Series during the inaugural season in 2010, and Keith Lyston (Chesterfield, Mo., 52) took second and third behind Martel in all four races.
On the women’s side, the results were similar, but not quite as static as the men’s division. Rachel Hartmann (St. Louis, 52) and Sophia Lin (Chesterfield, Mo. 59) took second and third, respectively.
Alpine Shop was also proud to honor 71-year-old Lolle Boettcher (Owensville, Mo.), who finished in the top 10 of the masters women division in all four races while also being tied for the oldest woman in the race; and 74-year-old Randall Hill (Fairview Heights, Ill.), the oldest participant in the series, who has also competed in the Trail Run Series for each of the past seven years. Congratulations to both runners, and to all the participants of the 2018 Trail Run Series.
BALLWIN, MO. – For only the second time in Alpine Shop’s Trail Run Series history, a runner dropped below the six-minute/mile pace mark as Justin Stewart of Springfield, Ill., dominated in his first ever appearance in an Off-Road Racing League event.
Justin Stewart (Springfield, Ill.) becomes just the second runner in Trail Run Series history to break the six-minute/mile pace barrier on his way to a win in race 3.
Featuring a rare night with temperatures in the 70s and a course that featured only one main climb, race directors expected fast times; what they received was the second-fastest recorded pace ever. Stewart (30), with an average mile pace of 5:59 over the 3.9 mile course, just missed the record pace of 5:55 set last year by George Price in August last year. Stewart’s total time was 23:22.0, beating Benjamin Hudson (St. Louis, 32), the winner of the first two races of the 2018 series, by just over 43 seconds to the finish line (24:05.2). Jon-Paul LaVenture (Ballwin, Mo. 36) crossed the line just 16 seconds later (24:21.5) to take third.
Hannah Floyd, on her way to her second win of the 2018 Trail Run Series.
On the women’s side, Hannah Floyd (St. Louis, 32) won her second race of the 2018 series with a time of 30:04.3. Katherine O’Brien (St. Louis, 28), improved on her third place finish in race one to grab a second place finish on this night with a time of 30:54.7, just 50 seconds behind Floyd. Julia Grunloh (St. Louis, 30) rounded out the top three, improving from a fifth place finish in race one, with a time of 31:26.4.
Chris Martel crosses Kiefer Creek on his way to his seventh straight Masters win in the Trail Run Series.
Chris Martel (Webster Groves, Mo., 52) won his seventh straight Masters competition (50+) in the Trail Run Series with a time of 26:14.3. He was trailed by, once again, Eric Buckley (St. Louis, 55) with a time of 28:13.0. And in familiar fashion, rounding out the top three was Keith Lyston (Chesterfield, Mo., 52) just over two minutes behind him (30:06.6).
Susan Richmond hits Kiefer Creek on her way to her seventh straight Masters win during Race 3 of the 2018 Alpine Shop Trail Run Series.
On the women’s Masters side, Susan Richmond (Eureka, Mo., 57) won her seventh straight Masters race with a time of 34:46.7. Rachel Hartmann (St. Louis, 52) moved up a spot from third place last week to second on this course (39:07.1) followed by a new entrant into the top three, Cheryl Laux (Ballwin, 53) who was forty seconds behind Hartmann.
The first 150 series racers to arrive at this third race of the 2018 Trail Race Series all received free pairs of FITS Sock Co. Light Runners Socks. Four lucky participants also received pairs of Hoka One One and Altra Running trail runners.
At next week’s finale for the 2018 series, Alpine Shop is pleased to welcome both Hoka One One and Altra Running to Castlewood State Park where both brands will have demo shoes on hand for all racers to try out.
Note: This post originally appeared on the Off-Road Racing League site, home to Alpine Shop’s competitive but beginner-friendly race series, at www.offroadracingleague.com.
BALLWIN, MO. – Wet weather earlier in the week couldn’t knock Race 2 of the 2018 Alpine Shop Trail Run Series off of Castlewood State Park’s trails. However, a combination of the three “H’s” will make this race one that the record 248 people who finished the course will brag about for years to come – and by the three H’s we mean: hills, heat and humidity.
The course is one of the most difficult you can tackle in at Castlewood, featuring an immediate 15% grade climb out of the valley and to the top of the bluff and the River Scene Trail. Following one of the most exciting descents in the park on the Lone Wolf Trail, runners faced their second climb that grades out at 12% up the Midway/Office Connector Trail. Race officials listed the course as a total of 4 miles. Add in starting time temps still registering near 90 degrees and a valley saturated from two days of rain… yeah, the three H’s.
Benjamin Hudson (St. Louis, 32) runs along the bluffs of the Meramec River in Castlewood State Park on his way to winning Race 2 of the 2018 Alpine Shop Trail Run Series on Thursday, August 16, 2018.
Benjamin Hudson (St. Louis, 32) won his second race in as many weeks, finishing the course in 27:21.6 with Jon-Paul LaVenture (Ballwin, Mo., 37), last week’s third place finisher, moving up to second place this week just 20 seconds behind. Daniel Welch (Clayton, Mo., 27), who took second last week, rounded up the top three just 16 seconds back of LaVenture.
Sunny Gilbert (Ellisville, 39) powers out of Kieffer Creek on her way to her division win in Race 2 of the 2018 Alpine Shop Trail Run Series.
Sunny Gilbert (Ellisville, Mo., 39) made her debut for 2018 in familiar fashion, winning the women’s division in a time of 30:53.7, continuing her domination in the Trail Run Series. Since the Series started in 2010, Gilbert has won every race in which she has competed. Second place went to newcomer Noa Heter (38), just 11 seconds back. Hannah Floyd (St. Louis, 32), last week’s winner, took home third place this week in a time of 34:38.6. In the Overall race standings, Gilbert and Heter finished in seventh and ninth place, respectively.
Chris Martel (at left, St. Louis, 52) makes his way into the creek before winning his sixth straight masters division win in the Alpine Shop Trail Run Series.
The Men’s Masters division standings look like a photo copy of last week’s results. Chris Martel (Webster Groves, Mo., 52) once more one his age group with his sixth straight victory going back to last year’s series with a time of 29:35. Eric Buckley (St. Louis, 55) finished second in the division at 33:11.7, and Keith Lyston (Chesterfield, Mo., 52) crossed the archway in 35:41.1.
Susan Richmond, the masters women’s division champion for the sixth straight race, makes her way through Kieffer Creek on her way to the finish line.
A similar situation played out on the Women’s Masters side, with the same three women grabbing top three finishes, but with positions flipped. Susan Richmond (Eureka, Mo., 57) , like Martel, won her sixth straight race going back to 2017 with a time of 41:18.1. Sophia Lin, (Chesterfield, Mo., 59) moved from third last week to second this time with a time of 47:05.8, and Rachel Hartmann (St. Louis, 52) rounds out the scoring with a time of 47:56.6.
Two lucky racers were treated to pairs of Altra Running Footwear as winners in the prize drawings, while everyone had the chance to grab some Urban Chestnut Brewing Company beers, food and other prizes, including hats from The North Face.
Next week, FITS Socks Co. will be at the races with 150 pairs of their terrific running socks to give away. More details to come on Monday, August 20.
We’re down to the last full week in in O’Fallon, Illinois.
Our store will close for good on Sunday, April 22. But between now and then, you can get some fantastic deals on everything we have left… and there’s plenty left to sell.
And now we’ve dropped the prices even more!
With even deeper discounts on previous year’s products – up to 70% off.
