![]() The battery- and gas-powered sport has experienced a spike in popularity in recent years, according to Dworshak, especially now that cheaper crafts and ready-to-race models, which are ready right out of the box, have hit the market.īut the hobby shop isn’t the only place feeling that effect. We’ve been treated so well while we’ve been here by the city of Post Falls and the people.” With a new high-traffic location and other offerings including plastic model kits and other piece-together items, he added “We’ve picked up so much business over here it’s just amazing. “The biggest reason for the move was over 60 percent of my customers in Coeur d’Alene were from Post Falls,” Dworshak said, while standing behind the part-laden counter, while several RC aficionados wearing In Control Hobbies T-shirts milled around the two-room store. However, after three years in the Lake City, most of their customers were coming from out of town. This is actually the first business we’ve ever owned.” It’s just something I’ve always enjoyed and it was an opportunity we decided to take,” he said. “I’ve been in the RC industry racing cars for about 20 years now. That’s when the former owners of the TNT Hobbies store in Hayden put the business up for sale, prompting the Southern California native, a frequent customer at the time, and his wife to buy the business, move it a few blocks south and rename it In Control Hobbies. While the business only recently opened in Post Falls, it isn’t new to North Idaho.Ī fan of the miniaturized motor vehicles for more than 20 years, Dworshak decided three years ago to turn a childhood hobby into his full-time vocation. We offer free labor to customers who purchased from us.” “They can break, but the good thing is that replacement parts are inexpensive … We do all repairs and stuff here. “They can take a lot of beatings,” he explained, holding up as proof a picture of a replica monster truck soaring 20 feet above the ground at a recent exhibition. It’s not uncommon to hear of after-market upgrades capable of boosting cars up to almost 100 miles per hour. ![]() They are more expensive than most store-bought crafts, going for anywhere from about $100 to more than $500, and can take years of wear and tear through vehicle modifications, alterations and tune-ups. Dworshak added that these aren’t the ditch-them-when-they-die type of toys – also known as hobby-grade machines. The hobby shop has a fleet of radio-controlled off-road and on-road cars and trucks, airplanes, helicopters and boats, ranging in size from 1/8 scale models, which are mostly gas-powered machines as big as an average household pet, to 1/18 scale, battery powered cars that can fit in the palm of a hand. Ever wanted to launch a scaled-down monster truck through the air or careen a miniature race car around an asphalt track? How about take to the sky without taking your feet off the ground? Or maybe just take a leisurely Sunday drive in the backyard? “There is something for every ability and every interest,” the owner said. The closest offerings are in Covington and Olympia.POST FALLS – If you’ve ever had the urge to defy gravity or test the physical limits of kinetic energy, only from the safety of spectator seating, then Paul Dworshak has something to show you.Īt the In Control Hobbies shop off Seltice Way in Post Falls, Dworshak, who co-owns the business along with wife Brindy and a brother-in-law, offers radio-controlled thrills for folks of any age and interest level. Remote Control Hobbies Sequim is an independently owned part of the Remote Control Hobbies franchise with stores across the country. Over 10 years, Remote Control Hobbies has offered a full range of goods for hobbyists, but the slowdown in business has been across every line and not just one particular interest, Verdick said. “We’re not even given the chance to compete.” “In general, people just assume it’s cheaper to buy online,” he said. Verdick said hobby manufacturers require online and brick and mortar retailers not to advertise for less than their suggested price. “More and more people are buying online even though our prices are the same as online,” he said. The major factor for the closure, he said, has been the general slowdown in business particularly in the last year. He’s selling his inventory for up to 35 percent off, which includes vehicle parts, tools, trains, cars, drones, rockets, batteries, chargers and more. There’s no set time the store will close this month but Verdick said he’ll be done before Feb.
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