 |
|
|
|
 |
 |
For any question or inquiry, please contact our General
Manager at JF@Gords.com |
|
|
|
 |
Gord's Ski & Bike
2 Locations to serve you better!
[L1]
2 Donald St
Winnipeg, Manitoba
CANADA | 204.284.2952
[L2]
1765 Kenaston Blvd
Winnipeg, Manitoba
CANADA | 204.269.2952
info@Gords.com
1.877.GORDS.61 |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
| JERRY TODD |
| Photography by David Lewis |
Todd Rempel
Technician, Bootfitter, Ski Tester.
At Gord’s since Sept. 2006
Funny, loyal, passionate and driven to do the right thing, Todd is another of our seasonal employees that goes away for the summer to work construction. We like to call him Jerry Todd because of Michael Best. Jerry Todd's claim to fame involves the ability to ski fully seated on the rear of his skis and his obsession with "mooning" folks (we'll spare you the disturbing imagery). Todd has been on two ski tests for us and while he likes to stick to the tech shop he knows more about
skis and bootfitting than he lets on.
Here are Jerry Todd's interview answers:
Favorite 3 tunes to ski/board/bike/workout to: Underoath - to bright to see, to loud to hear, Flyleaf - I'm so sick, Underoath - Writing on the walls.
When I grow up I want to own my own business
How would I rate myself skill wise, on a scale of 1 to 10 as a skier? 8
How would I rate myself skill wise, on a scale of 1 to 10 as a bike rider: 7
Best skier I've ever ripped it up with: Marc!!
Best boarder I've ever ripped it up with: Vandusen
Best bike rider I've ever ridden it up with: My Grandpa
Favorite movie: The Fox and The Hound
Favorite beverage: Jones Soda
Lunch at the resort cafeteria: Nachos
I would consider myself first and foremost a Skier
The other sports I am passionate about include motorcycling
My greatest sporting achievement is back yard rail jams
My favorite season is winter
What I like best about working at Gord’s are the people you meet and testing new ski's before the public.
Most knowledgeable co-worker ski > Adam
Most Knowledgeable co-worker bike > Coppens
Most Knowledgeable co-worker snowboard > RT
What would you call your “home” ski hill > Spring Ditch
My 5 favorite places to ride in the summer are The forks, Whittier Park, Panorama, Assiniboine Park and Rt's Backyard
My 5 favorite places to rip in the winter are Big White, Revelstoke, Silverstar, Lake Louise and Castle Mountain
In the summer I ride a Scott Voltage YZ0
In the winter I rip on Nordica Double sixes and Scott Punisher's
What I do outside of skiing/snowboarding/biking? I Ride Motorcycle, take pictures, hang out with friends
My favorite 3 winter products here at Gord’s are Dakine Backpacks, Scott ski's and icebreaker long underwear
My 6 day dream trip would consist of a bunch of my buddies going Heli Skiing/Boarding, eating steak every night and partying!!!
I dream of one day owning A private ski hill
My favorite bindings are Look
My next jacket will be a one piece snowsuit!!!
Favorite month for a ski/snowboard trip is January
Not that we have any favorites but…
Sram or Shimano components > Sram
Burton or Nitro snowboards > Nitro
The North Face or Mountain Hardwear outerwear > The North Face
Smith or Giro helmets > Giro
Scott or Nordica skis > Scott
Dakine or Camelback hydration packs > Dakine
Vitamin Water or RedBull > Vitamin Water
Peak Performance or Karbon wintersport jackets > Peak Performance
Fischer or Alpina XC gear > Fischer
Patagonia or Icebreaker underwear > Icebreaker
Swany or Dakine gloves > Swany
Smith or Oakley goggles > Neither. Scott!!!
Lange or Nordica ski boots > Nordica
Thin or thick ski/board socks > Thin
Scott or Rocky Mountain bikes > Scott
Ski or Snowboard > SKI
Interbike or Ski/Snowboard Show > Ski/Snowboard show
Road or Mountain > Mountain
Full suspension or hardtail mountain bikes > Full
Hot yoga or hot tub > Hot Tub
Helmet or toque > Depends what I'm doing!!
Carbon or alu poles > Carbon
Rocker or non rocker > Rocker
Down or Primaloft > Primaloft
Mitts or Gloves > Mitts
Wax or Zardoz > Wax
Shell + Redpoint or insulated jacket > Shell + Redpoint!!
Lifter or flat > Flat
Muffins or donuts > Marc's Moms Muffins!! Delicious!!
Beach or Mountain > Mountain
Thanks Jerry Todd!
|
| |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
Lifelong customer Pat being bootfit by Paula
Photo: JF Ravenelle |
|
| |
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO
LAND A JOB AT GORD'S?
The list of luminaries who make up Gord's Alumni is a long one, but that's mostly due to the fact that we've been around since 1961. We do have a tendency to keep our staff for a longer than your average shop and we're very proud of that fact. We like to think that it comes down to hiring the right people, providing them with an enjoyable work environment and a very large hot tub on the roof (we wish).
 When we hire staff there are a few strict guidelines that we follow... Little things like ethics, respect and walking the walk. We only hire folks who share our passion for the sports and activities we represent ... While we don't insist that our staff be experts skiers, snow boarders or bikers, we do insist that they posses a passion for those sports, that they get out and play and that they pursue a working
knowledge of the gear and clothing we offer ... and last but not least every Gord's employee must posses a desire to share their passion with our customers.
It comes down to CARING and we care. Sometimes too much perhaps but one can never go wrong with hiring dudes and dudettes who care.
Our belief is that if our staff cares, they will do what it takes to ensure your experience is a good one.
 The product knowledge part of the equation is something we take very seriously at Gord's and we spend LOTS of time money training our staff. From taking key employees to ski and snowboard tests to taking our staff to trade shows and paying for hundreds of hours of product knowledge meetings and seminars, we seriously believe in the old adage that states that knowledge is power... And we do everything
to make sure there is SOMEONE in the building that has an answer to your question, a solution to your problem or a suggestion for your next adventure.
 The last part of the puzzle is that we all genuinely care for each other and treat each other as if we were family (complete with sibling rivalry). Working at Gord's entails buying into our core values, values that come straight from Gord Reid himself: Do it right, don't sell crap, listen to the customer and get out there and do it so you can relate and educate.
The quality of the people who work for us is our greatest combined asset. Without them we'd be just another shop selling stuff but with them we're so much more than a retailer, we're Gord's Ski and Bike.
GOT SKI EXPERIENCE?
 Are you looking to buy your ski gear from someone who knows what their talking about? Looking to get some ski advice from someone who has, at the very least, skied before? How does 6 alpine ski coaches, 2 freestyle coaches, 3 ski instructors, 6 ex-racers and a combined ski experience of well over 120 years sound? Fact is that no retailer in central Canada has more ski-knowledgeable staff
than your friendly neighborhood Gord's Ski and Bike. Just take JF for example (pictured here skiing at Alyeska in Alaska), not many people anywhere have more ski experience than our President. No kidding, the guy has pretty much done it all including ski testing, racing, coaching, ski patrolling, ski repping and over 20 years as a full-time ski instructor in Quebec and Vermont. You want ski experience? Drop by our Donald store and let's talk white stuff.
RIDE MUCH?
 As matter of fact we do! Did you know that absolutely every staff member at Gord's Ski and Bike belongs to Gord's Bike Club? It's mandatory to ride! If you're an employee you ride. It's as simple as that. The sum collection of staff bikes is mind boggling. Believe it or not, we're not kidding when we say that collectively the staff own well over $90,000 worth of bikes (we don't ride crap).
From JF's Commençal Supreme Mini DH and Darci's Rocky Mountain Slayer SXC to Coppens' and RT's unicycles and DH bikes, we have our priorities straight: RRSP's are for other people.
WALK IT LIKE YOU TALK IT
I remember when I was a 12 year-old kid in Montreal, Driving up to our chalet in the Laurentians every weekend, driving past GM's St-Therese assembly plant and seeing hundreds and hundreds of Hondas, Toyotas and Fords in the staff parking lot, thinking how wrong that was. Why would you not drive a chevy if you were building Camaros?
 It's a matter of pride to us (and a pet peeve of mine) that we all ride and ski on stuff we sell. It's now an indelible part of Gord's culture. Except for the newbies who are given a year to flip their existing gear, we strongly recommend (and in some cases subsidize)
that our staff ride the brands and products that we sell.
It's simple: How else can we honestly tell you how a Scott Genius rides unless we've ridden one ourselves? Of course we do the ski and bike and snowboard tests. Yes, we borrow each-other's rides regularly... but nothing beats real-world ownership experience in order to relate to you what living with this product is going to be like... And that's why we insist that staff trash their Elans and hop on a pair of Dynastar's, It's called walking it like you're talking it. It's called integrity.
It's the way Gord would have it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
