Outdoor Reads: What happens when a real dog meets a fake dog? Ultrarunning granny?

What did the SNEWS team read this week that other industry insiders might find interesting? Read on to find out!

• The other night over dinner our partner said: “I’m really disappointed I didn’t get to use some of my camping gear this summer.” We responded: “There is no reason not to go camping in the winter.” So we went on a quest to find the best winter camping tips and came across this Discovery post with some expert advice on the topic.

• We all love our furry friends. We love them even more when they’re hilarious like the boxer in this video who comes across a boxer dog statue and doesn’t know exactly what to do with it. It isn’t an informative read, but it’s the day after Thanksgiving, and we always give thanks for laughs and smiles.

• We’re all about educating and informing folks on the issues that surround diversity and this industry, but now the topic is being brought to the forefront for students at Indiana University. This story outlines a talk given by former National Park Service Deputy Director for Communications and Community Mickey Fearn, who discussed the issue of the lack of black youngsters involved in outdoor recreation.

• With news every day of resorts opening for business, one of the bigger stories out there is the opening of Canyons Resort as Vail Resorts newest acquisition. This Salt Lake City Tribune story highlights the issues some might take with that move, and how it might change the dynamic of the Utah ski scene.

• Speaking of winter sports, some customers might want to get into activities like snowboarding for the first time. Since SNEWS has not written one of our signature how-to-sell Retail Colleges on snowboard boots, this story on how to pick the right snowboard boots might come in handy until we do.

• Seniors aren’t just hitting the slopes as we read last week, they’re hitting the trails, too. They’ve been hitting the trails consistently for the past 50 years. According to this Akron Beacon Journal story, the 12 folks featured celebrated the completion of the Fall Hiking Spree for 50 years. The group has logged thousands of miles since 1964, the story said.

• If you’re a relatively young person having trouble motivating yourself to run, then prepare to be motivated. This Daily Mail story features a 77-year-old granny who took up running when she was 55 for health reasons and now runs endurance races. Her next race is the 250K Desert Ultra Marathon. We are officially impressed.

• Speaking of ultra marathons, we’re pretty sure we just found out why footwear sales are down. It’s because of the guy featured in this Competitor story who recently ran a 160K Round-the-Mountain Relay event in $2 sandals. Yes, we wrote that right: $2 sandals. He said he did it to inspire people and because running shoes made his knees sore.

• We still think avalanche airbags are a fantastic piece of equipment to help save lives, but the ice climbers featured in this story weren’t wearing them when they recently survived a size 2 avalanche in the Ranger Creek area of Canmore, Canada.

• As we launch into one of the biggest spending seasons out there consumers want products that last long and do many things, so naturally outdoor retailers are where they can find that stuff. Check out this Guardian story on some of the things that have lasted the longest, in the author’s opinion. Turns out a Columbia fleece is among them.

Did you read anything awesome this week? Email us because we want to read it too!