Too much snow? Grab a snowboard

Northwest Snowboards has the gear to hit the slopes

Susan Schell

of the Gateway

Matt Cummins used to be a professional snowboarder. But what does a snowboarder do when it’s time to retire? Open up a snowboard shop, naturally.

The Cummins family has been in the business since 1988 and owns three snowboard and skateboard shops in the area — one in Tacoma, one in Olympia and another in Gig Harbor.

Northwest Snowboards on Kimball Drive in Gig Harbor has seen plenty of business in the past few weeks with the coat of white stuff that painted the town.

“It’s been going pretty well,” Cummins said. “Around Christmas time, it gets busy. A lot of people buy snowboards for gifts.”

Cummins said snowboarding started in the early 1970s and has since grown into a multi-billion-dollar industry.

He got into snowboarding in the mid-’80s and turned pro shortly thereafter. He was sponsored by Lib-Tech of Seattle and traveled quite a bit doing what he loved.

“There wasn’t any money in it,” he said. “But it was pretty cool. If that’s your job, it’s pretty sweet. I’m still involved in the industry, I’m just not a pro anymore.”

When the pro circuit ended, Cummins and his family jumped in with both feet to launch their own enterprise. The close-by mountains and ski resorts made it an ideal venue for the Gig Harbor family.

The enthusiasm for skateboarding also helps boost business — a skateboard park sits right across the street from the Gig Harbor store.

“We decided it would be cool to open up a shop,” Cummins said. “The first store was in Tacoma and was about 200 square feet. We sold a lot of both skateboards and snowboards right from the beginning. We have something to sell in the summer and in the winter.”

The shop sells snowboards by Gnu, Lib-Tech, Burton and Volcom, plus snowboard- and skateboard-related products like clothing and shoes. It also sells wakeboards and skimboards for recreational enjoyment on the water.

Cummins said his clientele is “all over the road.”

“Skateboarders tend to be a younger crowd — from teenagers to the mid-30s,” he said. “Snowboarders are anywhere from 18 to the 60s. People come in here because it’s hard to find specialty stores that sell the snowboarding and the skateboarding gear. We sell anything to do with skate and snowboarding. We have boots, shoes, hats — all the winter clothes and outerwear.”

The family sponsors the Mt. Baker Bank slalom in the Mt. Baker ski area in February.

“We’ve been going up there since 1986,” Cummins said. “Before we got the stores, we just started sponsoring it. We also sponsor the Northwest series — a local snowboard contest series.”

Cummins recommends local ski resorts Snoqualmie Pass, White Pass and Crystal Mountain.

“Snoqualmie is close and has a pretty good snowboard run,” he said. “White Pass is relatively close and pretty family-oriented. Crystal is just a bigger mountain with a lot more room.”

For more information on Northwest Snowboards and its products, visit nwsnowboards.com.

Northwest Snowboards

Hours: From 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday; from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays, and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sundays.

Address: 6820 Kimball Drive in Gig Harbor

Phone: 253-853-5255

E-mail: info@nwsnowboards.com

Reach Lifestyles Coordinator and reporter Susan Schell at 253-853-9240 or by e-mail at susan.schell@gateline.com.