They say if you do something you love, it will never feel like a job.

For Jill and Jason Auld, they are some of the lucky ones who managed to turn their passion into a successful business. As owners of Mountain Recreation in Grass Valley, the couple are able to draw off their lifelong passions of skiing, backpacking, hiking, and generally enjoying the outdoors.

“We were living in Tahoe and Jill was a teacher and we decided we wanted to move back to Grass Valley,” said Jason. “I was working in a construction job and Jill landed this hard-to-get teaching job in Grass Valley and it was just totally random; it popped up in the newspaper: ‘Sporting goods store for sale’

“So we looked into it and never looked back. Next thing you know, we’re buying this store.”

The Aulds admittedly had no retail experience when they first opened, but with time came knowledge.

“Neither one of us had done retail, per se, or knew what we were getting into, to be honest,” said Jill. “But we grew up in this community, we enjoy doing all the things that we’re promoting and putting out there.”

“I think the outdoor stuff that we are into, that was the eye candy, or the attraction to the business,” Jason explained. “We came off of being ski bums in Tahoe for five or seven years. I think that was the draw, those outdoor activities. It was totally diving in head first.”

Though the ownership of the store takes up most of their time, the Aulds still make an effort to continue doing the things they love that inspired them in the first place.

“We have three kids and we’ve raised our kids being able to enjoy doing all these things like backpacking, skiing, and all that,” Jill said. “But we definitely have less time. When you own your own business, you’re here a lot.”

“We’re still in that environment where you’re always thinking about backpacking or skiing, so we have still done that. Early on we were so focused. We didn’t know what we were doing, just focused on keeping the business going was consuming us.”

Mountain Recreation has been in business now for 22 years, and offers an array of products for the outdoor enthusiast. However they are quick to point out that their line of merchandise isn’t strictly for the outdoorsy type.

“I do all the soft goods,” Jill said, “so the apparel and accessories. I love that part; going to the shows, and bringing lots of cool things to town and letting people find them. That, to me, is my favorite part.”

Ladies clothing takes up a sizable piece of the store, carrying brands like Roxy and O’Neil, among others.

The couple is also proud of their rental services. They offer downhill skis, cross-country skis, snowboards and snowshoes. In the summer, stand-up paddleboards and kayaks. They maintain a kiosk during the summer at Scotts Flat Lake, where one can try out boards and kayaks straight from the store’s fleet.

Jill said: “In the winter we offer a youth season rental ski package for kids so they can come in and for $129 rent the gear for the whole season. And it’s for the local families. They can come back and swap it out if something doesn’t work or their feet grew. It’s such a great program for parents because it’s not an inexpensive sport to get into but it helps a lot.”

They also offer full service ski and snowboard tuning and repair.

“We do get compared to REI a lot, but we’re not trying to be an REI,” said Jason.

“We’re unique in that the stuff that we offer is pretty unique to this area,” Jill added. “People find stuff here that they don’t find a lot of places in town.

“We feel pressure to make everybody happy. We’re not an REI; we’re smaller, but we are doing our best to bring what people need to the community. “

Mountain Recreation is at 491 E. Main St. in Grass Valley. For more information, visit http://www.mtnrec.com or call 530-477-8006.

Jennifer Nobles is a staff writer with The Union. She can be reached at jnobles@theunion.com

They say if you do something you love, it will never feel like a job.

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