Equipment waits to be sold at a past Ski Swap.
Photo/submitted
By Dakota Antelman, Contributing Writer
Westborough – Organizers of the Explorer Post 85 are now in the final days of planning the latest running of the Westborough Ski Swap event which now dates back a half a century.
The event, held at the Elsie A. Hastings Elementary School, features hundreds of skis, boots, snowboards, helmets, goggles and more. This year’s event is the 50th anniversary – local parents formed the first Ski Swap in 1967.
“I like to think that there are kids each year getting great exercise and enjoying the outdoors because they were able to afford equipment from our swap,” said Explorer Post 85 advisor Rob Lane. “It gets them outside, away from their screens and enjoying an activity they can do for the rest of their lives.”
The event draws equipment from Rogers Ski Shop in Lincoln NH, Whites Ski & Sport in Princeton, and from individuals who drop off their own ski equipment. Those who sell equipment through the ski swap receive 85 percent of the proceeds from those sales. The remaining 15 percent goes to the Explorer Post, which serves as a youth support system to the Westborough Fire Department.
The Explorer Post has run the Ski Swap since 2006. Long before that, however, Westborough residents started the program to support a now-closed ski tow behind Westborough High School.
This year’s sale will take place Saturday, Dec. 9 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event will also be open on Friday, Dec. 8 from 7 -9 p.m. for equipment drop off.
For more information on the Explorer Post and the Ski Swap, visit www.explorerpost85.com.