Start looking in those closets and sorting through storage bins in the garage.
KidSport Tri-Cities is holding its biannual used sports equipment sale on Saturday, Sept. 7. Donations of used gear will be accepted beginning Aug. 24.
The sales — one in the spring and another in the fall — are the major fundraiser for the organization that helps local families in need pay the registration fees for their kids’ sporting activities.
KidSport Tri-Cities’ director Chris Wilson said recycling sports equipment back into the community also helps reduce financial barriers to getting kids involved in sports. For instance, a $600 pair of Bauer hockey skates that their original owner has outgrown might be found at the sale for the bargain basement price of $25.
“We price things at whatever we think it will sell for,” said Wilson, a former wrestler who competed for Canada at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona who also served on Coquitlam city council for several years.
“We want to be able to get rid of the stuff.”
That stuff can range from bicycles and equipment for sports like lacrosse, baseball, tennis, golf, soccer, hockey and football to unexpected finds such as kites, scooters, cricket bats, skis and even hip waders.
Wilson said in years past there’s also been tap dancing shoes and a unicycle on the sales tables.
“Just about anything people might consider sporting goods, we’ve got it,” he said.
The only stipulations are that donated gear be less than six years old, in good condition and wearable for league sports. Donated bikes do get some minor servicing from volunteers prior to the sale.
Donations will be accepted from Aug. 24 to Sept. 6 at three locations:
- the main lobby of the Port Moody Recreation Complex (300 Ioco Rd.)
- the main lobby of the Poirier Sport and Leisure Complex in Coquitlam (633 Poirier St.)
- arena three at the Port Coquitlam Community Centre (2150 Wilson Ave.)
The sale itself will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 7, at the Poirier Forum (618 Poirier St.). Admission is by donation or a non-perishable food item for the SHARE food bank.
