Sensory overload

In a way, I am glad there is not an REI store nearby. Just cruising their website tempts me to spend money I don't need to spend. Yes, there is one in Brentwood, a suburb of Nashville 130 miles away. They are now in 33 states.

It is bad enough for me to walk into Dick's looking for something. A lot of it is easy to reject offhand because they carry a lot of cheaper brands... stuff you might expect to find at big box discount storres like WalMart or Target. But somehow, I seldom walk out empty handed. Same for the Gander Mountain just down the street from Dick's. Except their selection is a bit more tempting with more top brands and their store branded clothing is usually quite good.

I can just imagine the temptation of a brick and mortar REI. "On sale? Oh yes! Gotta have!" One day I'll break down and walk into REI. I'm not sure what would be better... going there with limited funds expecting to buy one or two specific items or going with a fat wallet and emptying it at the checkout.
 
You must be near Jackson, Codge... That Gander Mountain was bad news for me when I lived in TN :)

Thankfully all they have here in IA is Bass Pro (and not a real great one at that). It makes spending money a little harder :p


I grew up in Western Colorado and there was an REI about 45 minutes away from my house, I was there as much as my minimal budget would allow, so I can appreciate what you're going through.
 
You guessed correctly I am about 55 miles from Jackson and Gander is my source/nemisis. In fact, my daughter gave me a GM gift card for Christmas that I am yet to use. No way I will limit my spending to the amount on the gift card. I'll get around to it though. And as I said, it never fails that I also hit Dick's, Outdoors Inc. and another Jackson shop when I go there. I spend far less in my little podunk town of 1,000 souls with no real outdoor shops. I do have a spring bucket list of gotta-haves though, so it is just a matter of time unless I fing eBay and Campmor deals online first. Almost as bad as a knife habit!
 
I lived in garbagetown (memphis) for 3 years and drove to nashville pretty frequently to see bands and do whatnot, I always made sure to stop in there on my way through :)
 
I did not really 'need' anything from REI. I browsed the aisles, looking at Big Agnes tents, Gregory packs, fancy boots, North Face jackets..................

I wound up with a new DeLorme map book for Florida, a Sea to Peak 1 ltr dry sack, a couple of MSR isopropane canisters, a folding Ti/plastic spoon, and a few other small items.
Bill was hefty. :)

When I got home, I signed up for a membership. They give a yearly cash back benefit. ;)
 
It's a trap! Hehe! Yeah, I can imagine. I found an old wooden trunk in my storage room last night filled with an assortment of old camping cookware. That is was where it was meant that I have used none of it in over six years. I do have an overfull kit on my gear shelf and there are pieces of it that really belong in that storage chest. Which needs to get gone. But that doesn't stop me from looking at more gear. Maybe I should put up a bunch of stuff on the exchange. Or do a give-away. But... there is so much neat stuff out there! Has anyone seen my "Eat-n tool" my daughter gave me last year? I haven't tried it out yet. :o
 
I always walk out of my local EMS feeling like I left blood in there. :-) Im trying to limit my visits to their biannual club days at 20% off, its the only way I wont go broke.
 
Mannlicher said:
When I got home, I signed up for a membership. They give a yearly cash back benefit. ;)
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yup, and a members-only 20% discount (i think twice a year)...icing on the cake on top of a no-questions asked, non-expiring return policy. this is great because with backpacking gear, you really have to try it out in the woods to see if it'll work for you or not...testing it in the living room just won't cut it.
 
I used to work for Cabela's corp. and when I first started I would go to the deli every day for lunch and invariably I would buy something. I don't want to think of how much I spent on unneeded gear over the years.
 
I freakin' love REI, was just there today actually. I like to think of it as a test of willpower to go there and not buy anything. Willpower won today, but it was tough. They had lots of new goodies
 
Been an REI member since 1972. Don't think i've ever walked out of one with my hands empty. Good stuff, Maynard!
 
I tricked my daughter and her new hubby recently. I suggested they stop in at a store on their way across the country, moving from Tennessee to Idaho. It was the old Cabelas store in Sidney Nebraska just off the interstate. They had bison burgers. Not sure what all they bought. My package hasn't arrived yet. But yes, they and the kids were overwhelmed.

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I wish we had an REI near me. We have a Dick's and it pisses me off. Half the store is Golf, the other half is Under Armour. Then what little space they devote to outdoors is like one kind of pot one kind of stove. And the clothing? WTF is Köppen? Some fake German or Scandinavian brand made in SE Asia.
 
Marcelo Cantu said:
I wish we had an REI near me. We have a Dick's and it pisses me off. Half the store is Golf, the other half is Under Armour. Then what little space they devote to outdoors is like one kind of pot one kind of stove. And the clothing? WTF is Köppen? Some fake German or Scandinavian brand made in SE Asia.
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haha! so true. i got lucky though one time i went to dick's to check it out, i saw 4 steripen for $30 each on clearance (they're normally $99). i have no idea if it was mis-priced or what but i grabbed all 4 and sold them on ebay a week later for $60 each :D
 
I'm re-reading my post and due to my inebriation from a St. Patty's day party I didn't articulate my self as clearly as I wanted. I don't have a great issue with the actual quality of something made in SE Asia. Most non-U.S. made outdoor gear is made there and is quality. What gets me is that it is clearly the in-store brand. Why do you have to give some kind of nordic name? It's too clumsy and marketed at folks who just got suckered into wearing it because it has a european name. Even when the name isn't plastered on an item you get the logo which is a freakin Umlaut! Ha! reminds me of a joke I heard last night. What's the difference between St. Patrick's Day and Cinco de Mayo? Nobody pretends to me Mexican. I guess I'm still a little tipsy. Why am I up this early? Anyway, yeah REI is great.
 
Marcelo Cantu said:
I'm re-reading my post and due to my inebriation from a St. Patty's day party I didn't articulate my self as clearly as I wanted. I don't have a great issue with the actual quality of something made in SE Asia. Most non-U.S. made outdoor gear is made there and is quality. What gets me is that it is clearly the in-store brand. Why do you have to give some kind of nordic name? It's too clumsy and marketed at folks who just got suckered into wearing it because it has a european name. Even when the name isn't plastered on an item you get the logo which is a freakin Umlaut! Ha! reminds me of a joke I heard last night. What's the difference between St. Patrick's Day and Cinco de Mayo? Nobody pretends to me Mexican. I guess I'm still a little tipsy. Why am I up this early? Anyway, yeah REI is great.
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Kinda like Häagen-Dazs.
 
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