wo good friends moved to Breckenridge in the fall of 1975. There were no stoplights. There was no Peak 10 or Peak 7 (at least with ski trails on them), no snowmaking and no triple, quad or heaven forbid, double-loading-six-pack chairlifts. Snowboarding was still in the future. Gas was $.57 a gallon. Main Street was the only paved street in town and indeed, most everyone knew everyone else. Life was good.

The friends financed their lifestyle with various construction jobs while assuring friends and family that their college degrees would eventually be put to use. They put up all their savings to open Blue River Sports in the fall of 1982. A third friend joined the operation in 1993 to launch Mountain Wave Snowboards. All three started families in the 1990s.

The two shops were fortunate to ride a tremendous growth of the sport during the 1980s and 90s, but the three friends always felt their success was mostly due to a simple idea: treat customers the same as they liked to be treated on their own vacations. Create a clean, comfortable and efficient shop where the staff actually cares about what they're doing - a place that people would recommend to their friends. After nearly 30 years, it's still easy for them to come to work knowing that they have the best service and equipment in Breckenridge at very fair prices.

In the new century, they've had to contend with the growth of multi location corporate shops, especially those owned by the ski area itself which dominate the base area locations and bundle rental equipment with lessons and lift tickets and even lodging.

While some guests enjoy such convenience (at a price), others who are willing to look past the fancy marketing will find an experience that corporate shops simply cannot match. Walk into Blue River Sports or Mountain Wave Snowboards and you'll usually find at least one of the three friends running the shops. They still enjoy the slopes, though perhaps with a bit more moderation. They still enjoy sharing their enthusiasm for the sport. And as corny as it may sound, they still enjoy contributing to your vacation's success, much as they like to enjoy their own vacations.

The three friends are still partners and will enjoy their 29th season in 2010-11. They will employ over 30 full time people, run over 1800 sets of equipment and help more than 24,000 guests enjoy the slopes this season. As they start to see their own kids off to college, they occasionally muse that they should have really put those college degrees to work. But more important, life is still good.