SkiBig3 Adventure Hub — Local services in Banff

Got very poor equipment and customer service here. We rented 2 inflatable SUPs, and initially had a good experience working with the girls we did in getting the equipment. However, while out paddling on 2 Jack Lake, in the middle of it, the end of my paddle literally just fell off. I hadn’t been rough on it and was barely paddling, it just fell right off. It looks like there was a small crack where it’s attached to the handle.

I was able to paddle myself back down current with just the stick, albeit very slowly. I assumed they’d apologize profusely and maybe refund my rental. I was therefore quite surprised when the guy there told me he’d let me know how much I owe!

He asserted that I’d signed the liability waiver and would therefore be responsible for the equipment no matter what. He also said I should have thoroughly checked the equipment before I left. Let’s just think this through for a minute. The implication here is that I should have stood there in their store and taken out every piece of equipment before heading out. Presumably this includes inflating the SUP there in the store and giving it some time to ensure it doesn’t have a slow leak. This obviously makes no sense.

They gave me a paddle with a tiny crack. It’s not a huge deal and I wasn’t expecting them to do anything grand to make it right. But they at least should be willing to stand behind their equipment that they send folks out with.

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Scrolling through some of their reviews, it’s clear that this is a pattern (please take a look for yourself). The business model is simple. They continue to rent out their beat-up, unsafe equipment until it eventually breaks on someone. If you’re the unlucky person it breaks on, they then charge you for the full replacement cost of the junked gear as if it was brand new. This is criminal behavior ha.

I’m so fortunate that I’m able bodied and an experienced paddler, and that we had great weather that day. I can imagine an inexperienced paddler, or perhaps a parent with a small child, getting stuck in the middle of the lake with no paddle, perhaps with a bad storm rolling in. Things could get bad really quickly.

Just take a look at some of the reviews about the dangerous ski equipment they’ve sent people out on. This is not a safe place with which to do business. You might get lucky and have a fine experience, or you may get very unlucky dealing with this place. If you can find any alternative to them at all, I would do it (if for nothing else, to stand against this kind of behavior).

I’m really shocked that local authorities aren’t looking into this place, and are letting them take advantage of people there in Banff and put lives in danger on a consistent basis. Hopefully some sort of public authority with some decency will step in and make this place operate like an honest, respectable business. It’s a shame that they don’t have the decency to do that...

Rented a paddle board and kayak for 24 hours. Headed to Two Jack Lake for a day of fun with our family and friends. After arriving at the lake, we realized that they had not provided the paddle for the standup paddle board. We called them immediately and spoke to a very helpful person named Evan. He apologized and said they would try to get their delivery driver to bring us a paddle since it was their mistake. We were thankful and Evan said they they could give us a partial refund when we returned the equipment which we thought was fair. We returned the equipment at about 17:15 and were surprised when the manager Kevin said he could not give us money back, but could give us more time. We told him that wasn't helpful since we were leaving town the next day. We had just spent the last hour packing everything up and dragging it back to the store to return it. Kevin was adamant that he would not give us any money back and actually undermined (opposite of empowered) his employee Evan and said that Evan doesn't have that authority. Instead of honoring what his employee had rightfully told us, he backtracked and argued with us. If you do want to rent, go somewhere else where they will make it right if they make a mistake. Again, I'm ok that we had a problem. The issue is that Kevin blatantly refused to...

Do not rent here unless you are a beginner and don’t care about being treated with respect. Not only do the other rental shops have less worn in boots and skis, but the highest flex they offer for women is 70. Most rental shops have 85/90 flex options bc 70 is beginner level. When I told them I needed more control they offered me a 120 flex boot without telling me it was a men’s boot. Not only was the flex too high but the extra length on a man’s boot totally wrecked my calves and caused me pain for the rest of my trip. I asked if I can cancel my last 2 days of rentals as they did not have any variety of options and they refused and told me that they “offer a broad range of equipment to suit a variety of needs” and that I “had several requirements for a satisfactory fit”. I simply asked for a boot higher than a 70 flex. The customer service is horrible and the staff clearly don’t have much knowledge on ski equipment. I’ve rented at several mountains and never had such a...