Oregon Dunes - ATV rentals see booming business over holiday weekend

by Kristina Nelson, KCBY News
Originally printed at http://www.kcby.com/news/local/46132312.html

HAUSER, Ore. - Warm weather over the weekend meant tons of people out on the dunes and it also meant some great business for local ATV rental shops.
And they're hoping that the busy weekend is a good indication of how the summer will be.
Rich Burkholder, owner of Spinreel Dune Buggy and ATV Rental said business was much better than expected.
"Just on rentals alone we had well over 100 groups in here over one day," he said. "As far as tours, we ran at least six truckloads, which keeps us pretty busy for a daytime run. As far as retail, we stayed steady all day."
Burkholder said they saw a good mix of out of state visitors and locals throughout the weekend. And he said he's not worried about the economy slowing his business.
"The economy is more based on the fear factor than anything and I think they're starting to see we can get out and do things," he said. "Folks are doing it with more intelligence this year. You can see they're not spending as much money but they're doing a lot more for their dollar. We've been seeing a lot more local people coming in too."
We also spoke with Todd Ellis at Steve's ATV, who said his business was also booming during the holiday.
Most of their machines were rented throughout the three-day weekend and retail sales were better than expected.

www.DuneGuide.com