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Kit Geary/ Summit Daily News
Jeremy Esch has been working in ski shops since he was 13. Originally from the East Coast, he moved to Breckenridge while taking “a semester off from college” that led to a decades-long stay in Summit County. He has managed Blue Valley Ski & Boards in Silverthorne for the past six years. A couple months ago the owner, Donald Clark, offered him the place.
Faster than he could have imagined, Esch ended up owning his own shop — something he thought was years down the pipeline. As of Sept. 28, Esch owns Blue Valley Ski & Boards shop.
“Yeah it was just a crazy turn of events,” Esch said. “The owner pulled me outside one day and was like ‘Hey, I want to sell the shop, and I want to sell it to you. I’ll give you a better deal on it than I would give anybody else, because I want it in good hands.”
Esch is the shop’s third owner. The Smith family originally opened Blue Valley Ski & Boards in 1981 before selling it to Clark in 2012.
Esch said Clark made an effort to run one of the more affordable ski shops in the area and he plans to carry on that legacy. He confirmed he plans to keep the prices close to the range previously set by Clark.
He also acknowledged he was fortunate to inherit such a smooth-running operation.
“The old owner, he turned it into a really good business, so I’m really grateful for that,” Esch said. “I don’t have to change too much. The only major thing is we are gonna start doing is tunes by hand again.”
Hand-tuning boards and skis was something that the shop had done in previous years but stopped a few years ago. Looking to make Blue Valley Ski & Boards more of a one-stop shop, Esch is bringing it back.
Something else Esch will be bringing back is some old employees. He said the employees were skilled at fostering a healthy work environment as well as a friendly space for customers.
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Esch said he wants everyone from first-time skiers to experts feeling comfortable in his shop.
“Learning to ski and learning to snowboard were some of the most fun times of my life, and I want to be able to facilitate that for other people. I want them to have a great time and kill it,” Esch said.
For him, skiing is something that has deep roots in his family. The family made the news in the 1980s when Esch, his brother and his dad all got jobs as ski instructors at Shawnee Mountain in the Poconos of Pennsylvania.
While Blue Valley Ski & Boards used to focus on just snow sports, a trip to Switzerland taken by Donald Clark a few years back changed that. Clark went on a biking trip to Switzerland and discovered all that electric bikes had to offer.
According to Esch, Clark came back from that trip and immediately got to work on getting e-bikes available to rent in his shop. Esch is currently looking to expand this area by hiring a bike mechanic and is currently accepting applications for the position.
In addition to having front-of-house employees, Blue Valley Ski & Boards also has Russel on staff — a back-of-house dog. Russel works more behind the scenes and leaves greeting customers to the front-facing staff, although a guest may occasionally catch him by the register.
Esch is planning to keep the schedule of the shop similar to what it was before. During ski season, the store will be open 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.
Children’s rentals start at $11 a day, and demo ski packages range from $27 to $42 a day. Renting an e-bike ranges from $40 to $120 depending on how long it’s taken out.
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