``Outdoor Industry Sales Up,'' Says ORCA State of the Industry Report; Future Depends On Luring Youth Into the Outdoors.

Business Editors & Health/Fitness and Sports Writers 

BOULDER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 18, 2000

Human-powered recreation generated more than $17.8 billion in retail sales in 1999, according to the just-released 2000 State of the Industry Report by ORCA, the trade association of the outdoor industry.

Fifty-three percent of Americans 16 and older participated in one of the 14 human-powered activities tracked by ORCA at least once in 1999 (see list below).

The median age in ORCA-tracked activities is 36, with only rock climbing showing an under-30 average participant age, at 26. Snowshoeing, kayaking, cross-country skiing, cycling and hiking all have an average participant age of 36 or older.

"Clearly, in order to increase participation in human-powered outdoor recreation, we need to find ways to get young people out into the fresh air," said Frank Hugelmeyer, president of ORCA. "Young people score high on surveys about caring about the environment. Now we need to get them out of the house and make them active lovers of the outdoors. About two-thirds of those who recreate outdoors were introduced to their favorite outdoor activity before they were 17 years old. Our mission is clear."

Recent studies showing that the health of American youth is at risk due to being overweight is just another reason to get young people into the great outdoors.

"Hiking, biking, paddling, and snowsports are all great ways to have fun and get some exercise at the same time. We in the outdoor industry need to find ways to get parents and kids outside and active," added Hugelmeyer. "This will also help create advocates for our open spaces for the future."

ORCA board member Steve Barker, president of Eagle Creek, a leader in adventure travel gear, said: "We all tend to focus our efforts on current enthusiasts who participate more often and spend more on gear and apparel. We need a simultaneous effort to attract those who might not start off as gung-ho rock climbers or kayakers, but who might take a hike or camp or try snowshoeing. It's up to us to help get people off their computers, away from their TVs and into nature."

ORCA tracks the following human-powered activities: backpacking, canoeing, car camping, cross-country skiing, hiking, kayaking, paved-road bicycling, rafting, rock climbing, single-track bicycling, snowshoeing, telemark skiing, trail running, wide dirt bicycling.

ORCA was founded in 1989 and today has over 1,100 members representing manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, retailers, sales representatives, and climbing gyms. ORCA's projects support the day-to-day business of the outdoor industry and include: the bimonthly Top-line Retail Sales Report, presenting retail sales by product category; the State of the Industry Report, summarizing outdoor participation and trend data; representation in Washington on key outdoor issues; the annual ORCA Outdoor Industry Rendezvous; and cost-saving member benefits. ORCA is headquartered in Boulder, Colorado. See ORCA 2000 State of the Industry report, http://www.orca.org/research/soi2000.pdf.