Closing the doors of Revelstoke's Free Spirit Sports & Leisure (FSS) this April isn't a choice 73-year-old Elmer Rorstad is making lightly.
"I consider it a privilege to be here to support the community," he told Black Press Media in his shop Wednesday, March 26.
But having made a name for his brand over the course of 32 years, while even helping put Revelstoke on the world map, Rorstad feels ready to step back after decades of equipping athletes and backcountry goers of every sort, and to focus on the final part of FSS's business: "leisure."
Born in Vancouver, Rorstad headed for the Interior in his youth to spend 20 years teaching business at Revelstoke Secondary School. He'd go on to leave education, but the entrepreneurship part remained relevant for the rest of his life.
"I had a good time being a teacher, and then decided I'd have a great time running a business," he said.
Rorstad bought Revelstoke's former Canyon Sports in 1992 with friend Terry Beitel, gradually overhauling the store's supply and esthetic to match his market. Initially, the place ran more along the lines of a hunting business.
"Basically, we started with rifles and fishing gear," Rorstad recalled. "Being from Vancouver, I wasn't really interested in that stuff."
FSS pivoted to appeal largely to backcountry recreationists, filling a major hole in Revelstoke's sporting goods supply before Revelstoke Mountain Resort mania.
"We were a snowboarder shop right up until the ski hill opened (in 2007)," he said. "Finally, the ski hill started getting developed, and that really helped my winters."
Though similar businesses have hung around in town for as long as FSS, such as Style Trend Clothiers (1976), Universal Footwear (1976) and Rough Country Marine (1982), Rorstad maintains that his business remains the outlier continuing to operate under the original ownership.
Through the turn of the 20th century, FSS navigated various ups and downs for the wider community. The completion of the Revelstoke Dam back in 1984, when Rorstad was still teaching, sent many of his long-time friends away to other places in search of jobs, while the Canadian Pacific Railway's enlarging of the Connaught Tunnel later brought new workers into town, and an influx of customers to Rorstad's shop. The 2008 global financial crisis was another story for Revelstoke businesses, he said.
Of course, there were also the generational throwbacks working in retail.
"It was a different ball game accepting credit cards," Rorstad recounted. "We had to use the old imprint system."
After he bought out Beitel's share in the business so his friend could pursue other undertakings, Rorstad became the early bird on a new trend 12 years ago as the first Revelstoke shop to market splitboarding gear. He also gave up FSS's status as a hockey goods store, amid hefty costs and lower demand compared with backcountry gear.
"I basically dropped the hockey and went into sporting goods and what people wanted," he said, adding this even included selling rollerblading gear.
Above all, Rorstad is proud to have helped make a wider name for Revelstoke, across Canada and beyond. Back in his early days running FSS, he remembers Revelstoke merely being "some place on the map between Vancouver and Calgary."
"There's definitely need for a good sporting store in this town," he affirmed. "People come from Golden, because they don't have a (versatile enough) sporting goods store over there."
Outside his thousands of days at the shop, Rorstad continued to coach high school soccer and volleyball for Revelstoke's teens, and served until three years ago as a School District 19 trustee. He also worked with former economic development director Alan Mason and local freestyle athletes to run rail jams in town.
Today, customers can still find most of the big outdoor-goods brands on FSS's shelves, which Rorstad kept working tirelessly to supply during the pandemic as people scrapped social plans and took to the backcountry.
"Especially after COVID, it became more obvious it was time to close up," Rorstad reasoned. "I've had a good time, and it's time for me to pursue other activities."
Moreover, he that he planned to run FSS for 10 more years. It's already been 13 years since.
Rorstad's already looking forward to many more days of the year spent on skis with his sons, Sam and Jamie, who've grown passionate about racing and freeriding. Starting as a snowboarder himself but now transitioning to skiing, their father will certainly have no shortage of time to ride the powder with family, including on holidays.
"To tell you the truth, in 32 years I've only had two Christmases off," Rorstad said, noting the time has come at last to reap the rewards of his hard work. "It's going to be a total change for myself."
However, he couldn't finish talking about FSS' legacy without mentioning his wife Elizabeth. Arriving to Canada from England in 2002, "Liz" worked in forestry management before jumping careers to the resort under the tutelage of its former president, Paul Skelton. She's put her time and heart into Rorstad's business all the same since 2007, and helped it cater to visitors and locals by championing outreach and refurbishment.
Free Spirit Sports & Leisure plans to reduce days and hours of operation for its final month, and remains open until the end of Monday, April 21, with storewide sales of 30 to 60 per cent off.
"I really encourage anyone to drop in in April," Rorstad invited, "and if they want to talk or commiserate anything, they're welcome."