GREEN BAY, Wis. — Tom Baeten spends most of his workday waxing and servicing skis at Zeller’s Ski & Sports in Green Bay.
A ski tech, he’s spent more than 40 years working at the family-owned business. A recent Friday wasn’t much different from many other days.
“I sharpened a ski, put a one-degree bevel on the base and on the edge and then clean it all off, got the grease and everything off the ski and then waxed it,” Baeten said.
His routine hasn’t changed much this winter, despite months of a mild winter weather over the upper Midwest.
“It’s pretty steady work. We’ve got a lot of customers who go out west and there’s still a lot of snow up north at some of the hills in Michigan and especially over at Wausau,” he said.
Co-owner Chris Zeller said man-made snow at resorts and ski hills has kept customers on the slopes and trails.
“It was just a smooth and steady year. Nothing spectacular, nothing detrimental,” he said. “We’re still here. We’ve been here for 75 years for a reason and we’re going to continue to be here.”
Zeller said they’ve already placed their order for next season’s ski equipment.
“We’re hoping that we’ll have a good season next year to build on,” he said.
Then, there’s golf in February and early March. Golf course manager Andy Larsen said this is the earliest Mid Vallee Golf Course near De Pere has ever opened.
“We opened February 27th. The previous record was March 2nd sometime in the back in the 90s. It hasn’t just been a slow opening either,” he said. “It’s been incredibly, incredibly busy with this weather. It’s been up, it’s been down, but it’s great for the golf business.”
Baeten said many of Zeller’s customers are still finding a way to ski this winter. That’s kept his work steady.
“I think we have a few more people this year who actually said, ‘Well, we couldn’t ski around here so let’s head out west,’” he said. “A lot of first-timers going out west.”