Hillcrest

This is hands down one of the most helpful and friendly ski & sports shops I have ever been to. I go here for all my winter sports needs. There selection is second to none in the Portland area, & there staff always make me feel welcome and never rushed. Great prices, great deals! This is just a small busines done right!

This shop has most friendly employees. And they have really good selection. And they have really good pricing. But my favorite part is John in the ski/​snow board boot section. He is amazing at picking the right boot, fitting the boot, and even supplying the correct inserts for existing boots. Go to this shop if you want the best ski boots and the best fit in all of the Portland area.

Friendly staff and always helpful, and doesn’t make the novice feel uncomfortable!

Store is ok but rental shop is a mess. Expect to wait a long time (like 30 – 45 minutes) standing around with a dozen or more frustrated people trying to figure out who is next, and straining to catch the eye of clerks who are very determined to pretend you’re not there. The basic ski package was fairly cheap, which was appropriate for the mediocre and aging equipment. My rental helmet adjustment strap/​tightener was broken, and boots would not tighten all the way around the ankles.
It’s a busy time of year. I get it. But my experience was not positive.

Great selection, and excellent customer service. They also happened to have a great sale when I went in to buy snowboarding goggles (30% off — granted, it’s April). Rental prices were also very reasonable.

I can’t speak for the staff in the front, but the ski department is awful. If there is more than two customers be prepared to wait, and wait. I went in for a simple boot adjustment which they failed at twice. After promising me they could do it overnight after the first failed attempt, I said, no I’ll come back in a few days, and they never even touched them. I had to take them to another shop. Good thing I took care of this before the season started or I would have been out for three weeks. Hopefully you will have a better experience if you go. I won’t be back.

Great staff, very friendly and accommodating.
I went in with a friend (I do not know much about winter sports), and the excitable employees were quick to educate me about the industry. They are very knowledgeable, and planted a genuine interest in me to get out and try this stuff!

Fantastic place! Friendly and helpful staff, huge selection, and great location. They made my first snowboard gear purchase experience very easy. Going in, I knew I was going to be spending a bit more than other places but with that, you get trailered service and they really make sure that you are comfortable with your purchases. I will definitely be going back season after season for all my snowboarding needs.

There staff for the most part is rude and indifferent. Everytime I go there, I feel like I am being ripped off. There prices are retail ++. Being the only game in town must give you the right to be surly to the very people your business is built on serving.
I bought a pair of bindings for a second pair of skis several years ago but never used. I took them in to have put on another pair of skis and when I went to pick them up was told that the bindings were bad but I still owed them the $ 50 installation charge. One would think that this sort of thing might be checked before the installation given the high price they charge. I got into it with the surly tech who wanted to do nothing for me but take my money. Dexter (the owner) wanted nothing to do with helping a customer out as well and seemed ill equipped to handle any level of conflict. I spoke with Steve (who is the only one I trust) and he wouldn’t do anything either. Kind of like putting a bad engine in a car and still expecting the customer to fork over the cash for the install.
Hold onto your wallet as they are only interested in getting in it. Dexter sure has changed since he used to tune my skis as a tech when he worked at The Meadowlark in the 70’s.

Great place to stop on the way to the mountain. Staff is awesome, helpful and friendly. I got a a great deal on my board and bindings, they even installed everything for me making sure it was to my liking and spent sometime helping me find the perfect helmet.

Terrible customer relations. Rude staff.
I bought some goggles and some other snowboard accessories and when I asked the guy at the front counter how much it would run me to switch my bindings from goofy to regular real quick he said it would be free because it only takes 15 seconds. After I got my binding fixed the guy said «$ 10» when I told him that the other guy said it was free he said «sorry still gotta charge you» I bickered with him for a minute and ended up having to pay.
If I would have known they were going to charge me I wouldve waited till I got to meadows and got it done for free in a shop there. Terrible customer relations. Rude staff. $ 10 for 15 seconds of work? I will not be returning

I like to walk miles for exercise. and this year I am determined to NOT be a fair weather walker but to get myself some decent rain and cold gear to keep me out there despite it all!
A little info about Hillcrest. It’s been here for some time and it’s local. It’s got itself in a great location as it’s on the way to the mountain basically so you cannot miss it. They seem to have some good and bad gear, or spendy and cheaper. I try and shop in the middle of that to still be able to get some quality and not go broke at same time.
I found myself wandering around aimlessly sorting out the snowboard gear from the lion hunting gear to the whale watching gear. well anyway you get my drift. lost in what apparel goes with what sport.
Finally a young woman that works there asks if I need some help. I had been peering at the caps at this point. I told her I wanted a cap to keep the rain out for one, and then some pants to repel rain and to keep me a little warmer out there. She basically said something like, oh, well, look at how big the holes are in the cap material and you will be able to see if that would keep the rain out. Say what? OY. I knew I was in trouble at that point. I mean it’s logical but you know there are specific materials available for the «repelling» aspect right? I finally found myself a wool cap (wool’s been around for some time and is known for water to not soak in) so I grabbed that. She says, oh that’s a good one. Oh boy.
Next, I just needed her to point me to the pants for running/​walking weather outside. the whole warmth and repel water thing again. She points me to thick snow pants. Um. those are a little bit warmer and not very flexible for what I need don’t you think? I ask. Oh ya. right, she says. She then points me to mens’ pants and says here’s the womens’. yikes! Finally she walks me over to some other pants which did seem to be what I’m looking for — I hope?
I’m back to reading labels with all the technical info about how dry you want to be from inside out or how dry you want to be outside in. sigh.
This store also seems to have a lot of items that have not been put back in their proper places. When you head over to the item that has a sign telling you what it is, it turns out not to be that at all. Maybe this mish mash of stuff with no order is just from the leftover Black Friday time period. They just have not started to get things back to an organized normal, but, if that young woman is any sign of what that would be, I’m thinking it might always look like what I saw today.