Business Buzz appears in the Nelson Star once a month. Bob Hall is the communications co-ordinator at Selkirk College and a volunteer director with the Nelson and District Chamber of Commerce.

The SlopeDeck is a creation of Nelsonite Kaj Gyr, a local inventor, designer and outdoor sports-lover who turns awesome ideas into reality out of his Mountain Station workshop on a regular basis. One of his most recent creations, the SlopeDeck takes the concept of snowskating to the next level.

“I wanted something that kids and adults could use on a 30-foot slope in Saskatchewan or wherever and just have fun all afternoon,” Gyr says.

You can pick up a SlopeDeck locally at Tribute and Ripping Giraffe.

Sticking with the winter theme and the impact locals have in shaping the outdoor industry at all levels… Olive Skateboards just released its Spitfire by Mark Fawcett snowboard. Fawcett competed in two Winter Olympics (1998 and 2002) in snowboarding and continues to coach the sport at the highest levels all across the planet. Olive Skateboards make Canadian snowboards and skateboards in Edmonton, and their new Fawcett model is a “directional pow surfer like no other.” The new board is available at Tribute Boardshop (of which Fawcett is also a partner in ownership).