Announcing BIG changes in our tune shop!

The tuning shop at Shep’s has always delivered outstanding quality and service when it comes to prepping your gear for the best possible performance on the hill. This year, we’re making it even better. LOADS better!

Every winter, we strive to bring you the best performing, hottest new skis, boards, and gear on the planet, and people are hitting the slopes now more than ever. Our tuning wizard, Pete Kohlmoos, works his magic tuning, waxing, edging and repairing. To meet our own increasing demands while staying true to our promise of providing our customers with the best possible service and quality, we’ve purchased four new pieces of tuning equipment from Wintersteiger.

Known for their legendary quality and results, Wintersteiger produces industry leading tuning equipment that can be found worldwide tuning skis for the highest caliber of skiers. Shep’s expects nothing less for our customers. We want our racers on the best gear available, tuned to the highest standards. We want the fastest possible turnaround time to get skiers of all levels back on the slopes, and we strive to deliver cutting edge services that simply can’t be found anywhere else in our area. To do this, here’s what we updated:

Micro 71 Stone Grinder: An update to our existing machine, the Micro 71 is capable of tuning skis and snowboards of all widths with exceptional results. Need the bases on those powder skis fixed up? No problem! Board a bit rough after hours in the park? We’ll get it looking great!

Trim 71 Ceramic Disc Edger: With a specific machine for sharpening base and side edges of skis and boards, Shep’s is now able to bring you laser accurate performance.

Waxjet 93: Designed to deliver hot wax to skis and snowboards in a faster and more efficient manner, the Waxjet 93 provides a deeper penetrating wax to your equipment while using less materials. This translates to a better performing product while leaving a smaller footprint on the environment. It will also significantly speed up our tuning time, getting your equipment done and back to you in record time!

Drivetronic: By far, this is the machine we are the most thrilled to introduce to our customers! The Drivetronic is an alpine ski binding tester designed to do one thing: ensure each and every binding that leaves our shop is performing properly and in the safest manner possible. We want you to be safe and have equipment that is performing at its best. The Drivetronic, combined with our highly-trained ski technician, will allow us to do just that.

Sidewalk Sale 2014

The weekend is almost upon us: when tents cover the parking lots, when racks line the sidewalks, and deals are all around. We’ve been doing sidewalk sales for nearly 65 years & we hope you’ll join us again this year to score some of the biggest deals of the year. Prices are never lower!

We’ll have a tent, a sidewalk, and a store FULL of deals. We’re talking up to 90% off summer & winter apparel, (absolute minimum of 50% off ski & snowboard outerwear!), 30-50% off new summer clothing & footwear, 40% off snowboard equipment and 50% off alpine ski equipment, killer deals on bikes, tubes, waterskis & wakeboards, camp supplies & accessories, and more.

Join us for Wausau’s Big Weekend! Just a couple of days away!

While You Wait for Snow…. Bike!

Skiers, don’t be sad!

Sure, winter is over, but bike season has begun and it’s an awesome way to take your mind off the snow. If you’re a skier, it’s likely that your second biggest sport or interest is biking. (It’s all about the leg work outs!) There are many forms of biking, so the options or almost endless.

When the snow melts and the warmer weather starts to creep up, I start to commute to work by bike. Once the local trails are dry and opened, it’s time to hit the single track. Nine MIle Recreation Area, located just outside Wausau (at 24 Red Bud Road), is a well-known cross country ski destination in the winter, but by summer it’s a single track heaven.

New to the term “single track”? Single track is defined as a narrow bike track about as wide as the bike itself. The track is sometimes smooth and flowing, but you may encounter rocks, stumps, and double crosses around trees and other obstacles, too, making it fun as well as challenging. At Nine Mile, there are ratings on the tracks, similar to the ratings on ski runs. Green circle indicates easy, Blue square indicates intermediate, and of course, the black diamond is for experts. An awesome web site and phone app you can use to find local single tracks is simply called Single Tracks, online at Singletracks.com.

If you already mountain bike in the summer and love single track, why not give racing a try? During the summer, there are many single track races that are part of the WORS series. This “Wisconsin Off Road Series” is an awesome way to compete, have some fun, and meet new bikers and friends to ride with.

If you’re not interested in the rough terrain of mountain biking, you have another option! Summer road biking is awesome too. It’s a great way to travel a distance in one day and see some scenery. You can make road biking whatever you choose, whether you’re up for a cardio busting speed drill or a casual family stroll on a weekend afternoon, you can tailor your ride to your desire. Getting out and pedaling the back roads will give you a sunnier disposition, a workout, and some fresh air.

Whether you’re going to bike the trails or the roads, it’s crucial to get into the shop and be sure your bike is a good size for you & is tuned and passes all the safety checks. If you end up with a problem mid-ride, it will take away from your fun. And after all, “fun” is what it should be about… just like in skiing!

If you’re a hardcore skier, I would highly suggest you pick yourself up a road bike or a mountain bike! Make the most out of summer and take your mind off the snow at the same time! Don’t walk, just roll!!!

Post written by our ski & bike loving Brian Trybula. Come chat with him about anything “outdoor”!

Bicycle Commuting 101 – Bike Maintenance

This week, we’ve shared a little about what you’ll need to commute on your bike as well as how to do safely while obeying the rules of the road. Today, we’re going to take a closer look at bike maintenance, covering everything you need to know to keep your ride in tip top shape! Just follow the steps below, and you’ll enjoy miles and miles of hassle-free commuting.

Step 1: Safety Inspection

Visually inspecting your bike should be done before every ride and if time allows, upon your return home at the end of the day. Look for any damage such as cracks, abnormal wear, or unwanted debris. Spin the wheels – do they turn freely? Are they true with no wobbles? Next, check the tire pressure; even a loss of 5 psi results in decreased travel times and increased chances of flats! Now, check your brakes. Are they stopping your bike properly? How do your brake pads look? If they are getting thin, their stopping efficiency may be decreased. Lastly, make sure all bolts and components are secure with no loose play. While this may all sound like a lot, you’ll soon establish a routine and it only takes a minute or two to complete.

Step 2: Home Routine Maintenance

While it’s important to get regular shop tunes up on your bike, there are a few things that you should be doing at home to keep your bike running smoothly. The two most important things you should be doing are inflating your tires to the proper pressure and cleaning & lubing your chain. Investing in a floor pump is a great way to go for keeping your tires at their recommended psi rating, and will save you time and effort in the long run. For most bikes, checking your tire pressure weekly will do the trick.

Done less frequently but equally important, lubing your bike chain should be done every 200 miles or after the chain is exposed to rain. Cleaning of your chain should be done every 1,000 miles. How does one lube a chain you ask? Easy:

Pedal backwards and clean off the dirty lube and gunk with a rag.
Pedal backwards and spray or drip lube on each link.
Depending on the lube, wait a few minutes and with a clean rag wipe off the excess. Just make sure you check the directions on your lube bottle, and you can’t go wrong. We swear by T-9 Boeshield as a chain lube and use it exclusively on all our bikes here at the shop.

Lastly, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to give your bike a bath every now and then. Commuter bikes take a lot of abuse day in and day out, so cleaning it every now and then is wise. Plus, washing your bike takes all of ten minutes, so there’s really no excuse to not do it. Grab yourself a bucket of hot, soapy water, a hose, a soft bristled brush, and a towel and you’re all set. Wet the bike down first, scrub from top to bottom leaving the greasy parts until last, then rinse. Be sure to use low pressure when spraying down the bike as high pressure hoses and sprayers can damage or remove grease in critical areas around the bike. Finally, when you’ve rinsed and dried your bike, lube your chain and voila!

Step 3 – Shop Maintenance

While some bike maintenance can be easily done at home, sometimes it’s best to leave the more technical stuff to a highly experienced bike mechanic. Just like cars, bikes need regular tunes and adjustments to keep them running day in and day out. At a minimum, bikes should receive a yearly full tune which includes a full safety inspection, cleaning & greasing of all moving parts, inspection of all cables and shifting components, and adjustments as needed. It’s a $45 service offered by our shop that really keeps your bike running at its best.

Have questions? Post them below and we’ll gladly get you an answer from Pete, our resident bike mechanic, who has been working on bikes for longer than a lot of our customers have been alive! He’s also a pro at bike commuting – he rides in to work year round regardless of the weather conditions – so ask away!

Wausau’s Ski Shop

A trip to the mountains is every skiers dream. Snow, Terrain, Dining, Nightlife, Shopping… Of course that includes snowboarders, ski racers, cross country ski lovers, freestylers and carvers of all kinds. Sadly, for some of us the mountains are too far. The good news is, if you live in the midwest and are planning a trip to the region’s #1 ski area, Granite Peak Ski Area in Wisconsin, you can enjoy the full mountain-town experience with a trip to downtown Wausau and Shepherd & Schaller.

images — Granite Peak Ski Area, Rib Mountain State Park, Wausau, Wisconsin

Wausau’s Ski Shop since 1949, Shep’s is known and respected by snow sports enthusiasts from throughout the midwest. A product selection that rivals resort shops in Colorado, Utah and Vermont, a Rental shop that features new gear every season, and a back-room maintenance shop that is staffed by full-time, year-round professionals who are respected by both customers and ski gear manufacturers make Shepherd & Schaller a destination for elite athletes and newbies alike. It’s 15,000 sq. ft. of ski lover’s shopping heaven. It’s the place where locals find unique gifts and surprises, love to hang out, share stories, meet ski friends. You’ll feel welcome and at home, even more than you might at elite mountain shops at much higher altitudes.

Screen Shot 2014-05-01 at 12.18.55 PM — www.shepssports.com Shop live inventory, make Rental Reservations, check Repair prices.

Can’t get to town? Shepherd & Schaller launched it’s web store in 2011, with live inventory that allows you to see the exact same product that is on the sales floor. Obviously a great way to shop from home, many use the site to revisit items seen in the store, while making gift wish lists for birthdays or Santa.

Done skiing and shopping? Walk a few feet and visit Malarky’s Pub for food, refreshment and live music most nights. You’ll also like City Grill, Red Eye Brewing Company, Jalapeno’s Mexican Restaurant & Bar and Back When Cafe, as well as organic groceries, cozy coffee shops along with more great specialty shopping including our favorite, Evolutions in Design, just steps from the store.