Not all Steamboat Springs businesses had a busier weekend as a result of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge, but many cited positives from the professional bicycle race that spent parts of Friday and Saturday here.
Mainstreet Steamboat Springs Manager Tracy Barnett said most retailers reported no impact from having an estimated 10,000 tourists visiting to see nearly 130 riders pedal into downtown Friday afternoon.
She said most restaurants reported being busy in the afternoon but not having full tables Friday night or Saturday when the riders left town for Breckenridge.
“Everybody agreed that it was an awesome event, it just wasn’t a great retail event,” said Barnett, who leads the group that promotes the downtown Steamboat shopping district. “We have this discussion at Mainstreet all the time whether an event was a retail event or a marketing event, and this was definitely a marketing event.”
Cantina Mexican Restaurant owner Jeff LaRoche said sales were up 25 to 30 percent Friday and Saturday, but not many others reported a similar bump in sales.
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