Sport Chek Dartmouth Crossing

It feels a little weird to write a review for a place that for the longest time both intimidated me and didn’t have an item that would either a) fit me or b) be something I would know what to do with it.
But times have changed. I’m not longer a wall flower non-​athlete and now that I’m 100lbs down and I know more about how to move my body and the value of a good workout I need to find the gear to keep me in action.
Sport Chek has a lot to offer. Over the last year I’ve had the opportunity to shop at the Dartmouth Crossing location a few times. Including on the intimidating hunt for a more athletic swim suit and a sports bra (GASP!) and you know what? They didn’t let me down. The service was outstanding, I got help the minute I walked in the door to point me in the right direction for the swimming gear, someone was available to let me into the dressing room without hovering too much and I found what I needed and got checked out with a smile.
The Dartmouth Crossing location isn’t as large as the Halifax Shopping Centre, but they do have what you need and lots to explore. I even got a 20lb kettlebell here last fall to add to our at home gym goodness.
If you need new workout gear, equipment, running shoes, something to keep you moving, chances are SportChek has it and you go home happy.

Before I start this review let me make one thing clear: I love SportChek. The company as a whole has done a lot in reaching out to Canadian Fitness Bloggers in changing their image from a «Hockey Supply» Store to a «Get Up, Get Moving and Do Epic Sh*t» store.
That being said, I have my location preferences. I usually go to the larger store at the Halifax Shopping Center but this one is pretty good on a much smaller scale. It’s easier to find something in particular but the selection being offered might be less than at the bigger store.
Every time I’ve gone in there, I left with a purchase. That’s saying something people. Everything from swim goggles to kettlebells to running gels…
Customer service has always been really good. Never felt like I’m putting someone out when I ask for help.
Some days I don’t want to feel like I’m swimming in a sea of fitness equipment and wandering the larger store in Halifax. Some days I just want to get in and get out so I can get moving and the smaller location has always come through for me.

I popped into this Sport Chek on an ill-​fated hunt for ping pong balls and was disappointed to find that it was just about the only sport not represented among the many shelves and racks in this big box shop. On the plus side, now you know that unless it’s ping pong balls that you’re looking for, this place will be able to hook you up.
It’s a lot nicer inside than most sport stores I’ve been in but unfortunately the staff was completely lacking. During a quiet week day with less than six customers in the store, staff were deliberately sparse — hiding in corners to have personal conversations and actually chuckling when caught by a customer annoyed that he couldn’t find someone to grab him a shoe size.
Not awesome.

This Sport Chek location at Dartmouth Crossing does not have as large a ski/​snowboard selection as the Halifax Shopping Centre location, but it does have a larger ski/​snowboard selection than the Bayers Lake location. They do, for instance, have skis from Head, Rossignol, Salomon, and Völkl in stock, they have ski boots from Nordica, Salomon, etc. in stock, and they also have a decent selection of ski/​snowboard accessories.