Years ago I was a big REI customer; still pick up a few things here and there, but those days are ending.

REI announced they are not going to buy anything from Vista Outdoors, just because they sell firearms. (Note: Vista announced they will be selling Savage Arms.)

I think REI has underestimated how many hunters have bought their goods over the years.

I dropped into REI a couple years ago to look at packs.

As the store employee was fitting me she asked why I was buying a pack?

I responded "Hunting"

She imediatly walked away and moments later another employee asked if I needed any help?

I replied that a young lady was fitting me.....the second employee told me that she would not be assisting me any longer and he was at my disposal.

I allowed him to fit me but did not and will not spend any money there.

Anyone care to clue the clueless in on who or what REI is?????????

I have never heard of them.

Outdoor store. Hiking, camping and such. Made news by not opening day after thanksgiving. Too much like tree huggers for me. Went in the one in Austin once, never again! I ain't climbing a mountain unless its after elk!

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:
Anyone care to clue the clueless in on who or what REI is?????????

I have never heard of them.

Same here Randall!

quote:

I ain't climbing a mountain unless its after elk!

I got broke of that habit after about a dozen trips, because I do not EVER remember being in on dragging a bull down hill!

That is why after I killed my little 5x5 bull, I went to putting in for late season cow tags.

Dead elk in a hay meadow you can drive up to and load is a HELL of a lot easier on the back and them antlers don't even make decent gravy!

Hey, I did ONCE!
Shot a cow up a steep hillside. Went up and barely tugged on an ear and down she went in 20" of snow nearly halfway down the 200yards. I'd left my truck running and ran up on the bank to get a rest. Other guys came along and told me to come move the truck. I hollered back: "it's running, drive it up just under me". One did.

Second tug she slid down the hill and hit the back tire. 5 or 6 guys were there by then. I asked 'em: "you guys give me a hand to load her up, no place here to dress her out". SLICK as could be, more hands than I ever saw tossed her in.

I drove around the mountain where a bunch of others ambushed the big herd. Dead elk all over the place. I told some guys: "you help me and I'll help you". We dressed out 5 all within 75 feet or so.

There was so many elk killed I was feeling sorry for them. 13 in all, including mine and a truck with 3 bulls that drove from the other side of the hill/timber where they'd come out right on top of those guys.

When I first saw them, about 200 head were up on the steep hillside. I was just driving back to camp and happened to look up. "damn, look at that bunch of elk!!" In over 45 years hunting them I'd never seen over a dozen head at once.

Most times they end up on the far side of the steepest hill from the truck and no way to drive there.

George

I have beedn in three or four situations with more than a dozen elk in the group, but since it was late cow season I just picked oput the biggest one and went to trying to hit her.

I think out of the 10 or maybe less head of elk I have killed, I can only remember one, the last one I killed in 2013 and probably the last I will ever kill, that went down to stay with the first shot. 190+ or - yards and I spined her with a 168 grain Barnes TSX out of my .300 Weatherby.

The ironic thing about REI is that, for many years, their Chairman was Casey Schwabland. Her husband, Jack, owned a large lumber company and hunted all over the world a lot. She traveled with him on many safaris.

I bet that sales gal believes in tolerance.....of everything except what she doesn't agree with. The left is a silly gift that just keeps on giving.....and needs to be kept in check by us good folks that see the world as it is.

I've never purchased anything from REI and won't in the future.

I live one block from an REI store in Chicago. They’re set up as a Co-op and you get a % of your purchases back each year as a dividend credit. I use my credit to purchase their Merino Wool Socks, which are the best quality I’ve found. The socks are usually priced about $18.00 a pair, but go on sale about 2X a year for half price. With my $30.00 dividend credit, I get 3 pairs of great socks a year for free. Their typical customer at my local REI store is a bearded hipster or a yoga pants soccer mom. I’m the only 70+ year old African hunter that shops there I’m sure.

Stopped shopping there long ago....total anti hunters starting with the former CEO.

Yah, it was a little to "hippie" for me as well.

The same thing applies to Target. Unknowingly, I went to the sporting goods section one day and was looking for some fishing stuff. I found none. When I asked the sales person, I was informed that Target did not sell anything involved in the killing or torture of innocent animals. I reminded her that the baseballs and gloves were made of innocent cow hide as well as the leather belts they were selling and she was either stupid or more naïve than was possible. I left.

They made #1 on this list...

http://oregonoutdoorcouncil.or...mpanies-hurting-you/

quote:

Originally posted by ted thorn:
I dropped into REI a couple years ago to look at packs.

As the store employee was fitting me she asked why I was buying a pack?

I responded "Hunting"

She imediatly walked away and moments later another employee asked if I needed any help?

I replied that a young lady was fitting me.....the second employee told me that she would not be assisting me any longer and he was at my disposal.

I allowed him to fit me but did not and will not spend any money there.

Ted,

I would have gotten her name, asked for the store manager on duty and asked if it was company policy to discriminate against customers pursuing a legal activity. If the answer was anything other than no, she will be disciplined I would then offer that they had lost a customer and that I would make it my retired part-time job to explain this interaction to as many hunters as possible. Have a nice day.

Cheers
Jim

They have mountain gear you can actually try on and very good displays.

The one in Anchorage had a fine staff, that maybe wasn't pro hunting but didn't shit where they eat.

Sometimes when you are looking for specific gear for a western hunt they have things no one else does.

If nothing else go in there and try it on, and buy it from someone else.

I still use REI here in Texas. Haven't found any tree huggers at the ones I got to and they like to talk about hunting.

Great source for packs. If you can forgo a camo pack, you a can get much better packs from less $$$ from European manufacturers like Deuter Packs. I got two nice REI branded travel back packs for my daughter and I this summer for Namibia. Also a good place to load up on refills for first aid and survival kits. Also ran across Prana brand pants here. I order them online now for convenience, but again technical mountain climbing pants that beat all of the hunting stuff out there.

We may not want to admit, but the traditional hiking and climbing crowd have access to better and less $$$ equipment that than all of the "hunting brands".

quote:

Originally posted by Austin Hunter:

We may not want to admit, but the traditional hiking and climbing crowd have access to better and less $$$ equipment that than all of the "hunting brands".

A perfect example of this Sitka's top of the line hunting jacket. It costs about $700 and has all kinds of great selling points(3 layers of Goretex, etc.) but the insulation is mid grade goose down(650). You would think they would use the top of the line down in a $700 jacket.

If you look at the hiking/mountaineering brands you will only find 650 fill in their lower priced jackets. They have to use the high grade down in their top of the line products because their clientele is better informed and tend to purchase based on materials/features as opposed to camo pattern.

quote:

Originally posted by JBrown:

quote:

Originally posted by Austin Hunter:

We may not want to admit, but the traditional hiking and climbing crowd have access to better and less $$$ equipment that than all of the "hunting brands".

A perfect example of this Sitka's top of the line hunting jacket. It costs about $700 and has all kinds of great selling points(3 layers of Goretex, etc.) but the insulation is mid grade goose down(650). You would think they would use the top of the line down in a $700 jacket.

If you look at the hiking/mountaineering brands you will only find 650 fill in their lower priced jackets. They have to use the high grade down in their top of the line products because their clientele is better informed and tend to purchase based on materials/features as opposed to camo pattern.

+1

I have always found the real outdoor stores have much betTer equipment for much lower prices.

Tents and Trail in TriBeCa in NYC is great.

The hunting stuff is largely second tier with first tier prices and in cameo for selling to hunters. Add designed by navy seal for another 20 percent price hike.

I like rei. I don’t shop there as much as I normally buy lower quality cheaper stuff at academy.

Rei store brands are really good.

Mike

I use to shop at the one in Raleigh. It is a Co-OP and you need a membership for the best prices. They are focused on adventure travel and offer tours all over the world. Seventy percent of their profits are donated to various outdoor philanthropies. Thousands of members of the cop-op wrote letters demanding them to stop purchasing from any organization with ties to the NRA. If you are looking for a pack Kuiu has a good selection.

And we can add Yeti to the ban list. They have cancelled orders for the NRA banquets that were put in Last Year. I sent them an email protesting their dis-entanglement with the NRA and got a very mild reply but also got an email from Marrion Hammer with the NRA saying that they were lying and that they were just distancing themselves from the NRA

I Boycotted REI a couple years ago!!! They Donate money to HSUS!!!