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Dealernews announced its annual Top 100 dealers of North America and Hamilton Polaris/KTM was named as a winning dealership. We were invited to attend a super exclusive awards banquet in Indianapolis where we were recognized for our accomplishments in all facets of the powersports business. Thank you to all our customers for helping us to be the best of the best!
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Selling Fun:
Snowmobile dealer banks on new store to further promote family-oriented sport
By Rod Daniel, Staff Reporter
Click here for a printable version of this article.
Dave Olson, owner of Hamilton Polaris, stands with his son Jackson Olson in the shop he opened in April 2004. Olson's son has been featured in many of Olson's TV ads for the shop.
Photo by Jeremy Lurgio - Ravalli Republic
Dave Olson's outdoor recreation store is so new he doesn't yet know how to turn on the heat.
But figuring out how to operate the new digital thermostat at Hamilton Polaris/KTM is the least of Olson's worries as he gears up for his first winter season in his new 5,000-square-foot building which sits in full view of Blodgett Canyon. Besides, he's got plenty of warm clothes.
Located southwest of Kmart in a new business complex that abuts Hieronymus Park, his new store represents a childhood dream come true to a guy who's spent a good part of his life riding and tinkering with motorcycles, snowmobiles and ATVs.
A native of Salmon, Idaho, Olson grew up racing and repairing motorcycles all through college and moved to Hamilton 15 years ago to manage Cenex after earning a business degree at Idaho State University. He promptly started a Polaris dealership from the cooperative farm supply store and sold snowmobiles and ATVs there until branching out on his own three years ago. He ran Hamilton Polaris/KTM from a leased building at 2130 North First St. until finally moving into his own store in April.
"It's been a long-time childhood dream to have my own business in my own building and to develop it from the start." Olson said. "I remember one day a few months ago when I came down by myself at 6 a.m. and just sat here and drank a cup of coffee. I kind of had to pinch myself to make sure it was all real."
Almost a year ago, he said, he remembers standing in an empty lot with six orange traffic cones trying to picture his new store.
"I had a good idea what we needed to have to make the products flow," he said, "and I visited shops all over the country and stole ideas from them."
But in addition to setting up his own store, Olson also had to plan for three more yet-to-be-determined offices which would occupy his new business complex. His experience as a volunteer fire fighter, he said, prompted him to hire an architect to make sure the buildings adhered to applicable building codes.
Besides his own store, Olson's as-of-yet unnamed business complex currently houses Figaro's Pizza and Allegra Printing and, if all goes well, will have a fourth business in a matter of weeks. Even though each business draws from a different clientèle, having them together in an attractive new shopping center, he believes, will benefit everybody.
"My thought when we did the complex was to bring other businesses to one area," he said. "It helps with identity. Good retail areas bring more people. Foot traffic is good in retail business."
With his new store finished and a dusting of snow in the surrounding mountains, Olson can't help but be positive about the upcoming season. Such early season optimism, he said, is a big part of the business.
"It's pretty exciting," he said. "My son saw the snow in the mountains this morning and started talking about snowmobiling. The new models are hitting the floor, and people are getting geared up. It's that time of year."
Gracing his spotless showroom is the new Polaris 900 RMK, or Rocky Mountain King, a snowmobile which features a new and bigger chassis and one of the largest two-cycle engines available.
And this season, for the first time, Olson is offering the Snow Hawk line of snowmobiles from Canada, which feature a single ski on the front for greater mobility.
"The Snow Hawk is kind of a hybrid between an off-road motorcycle and a snowmobile," he said. "It's the newest thing to come down the pike and is probably more suitable for someone looking for a more aggressive ride."
Sharing the showroom with this year's newest snowmobiles are the machines and accessories that Olson's customers have become familiar with over the years - Polaris four-wheelers, ATVs and snowmobiles, KTM off-road motorcycles, and numerous helmets, gloves and accessories. Behind the scenes, his staff of five employees offers expert advice, and his two factory-trained technicians can service anything they sell.
And any day now, according to Olson, his showroom will sport a new virtual-reality screen so customers can build, outfit and "test-drive" their own ATV.
"You can put whatever you want on it and ride it without ever leaving the showroom," he said. "We're only one of about 100 dealers in the country to have this."
A family man with a penchant for outdoor fun, Olson tries to get out at least once a week on his machines and prides himself for having test-driven everything he sells. He's taken a dirt bike out 26 times this year already, and with snow in the hills, it won't be long until he hits the groomed trails with the newest snowmobiles.
Part of the appeal for riding the machines, he said, is accessing the incredible forests surrounding the Bitterroot Valley, and the fact that whole families can enjoy their respective sports together makes it all the more fulfilling. Olson speaks about the matter with experience since most of his excursions of late have been with his 8-year-old son Jackson, his 2-year-old daughter Tylin, and his fiancée, Angela.
"The family part of the business is what makes it fun," he said. "It's great to be able to outfit a whole family with machines they'll be enjoying together for years."
Often, he said, fathers who maybe raced motorcycles or snowmobiles as kids will go out with their kids to get them interested in the sport, only to decide to get back into the sport themselves.
"A lot of people who fell out of it for 10 or 15 years are cycling back into it," he said. "Once they're back at it, they're reminded of the competition, camaraderie and friendship that goes with racing, only now their focus has changed to racing smart and enjoying the day."
Snowmobiling and trail riding are both experiencing steady growth, he said, especially in western Montana, and projections for growth in the valley bode well for the future of his business.
Since moving into his new building in April, Olsen said he's been well-received by the community as well as by his fellow business owners. Earlier this year, the Bitterroot Chamber of Commerce named Hamilton Polaris/KTM "new business of the year."
"It's nice for a business like this to be recognized by the Chamber," he said. "And it's fun to be able to sell fun."
Reporter Rod Daniel can be reached at 363-3300 or rdaniel@ravallirepublic.com.