Ira Riklis Blog

The elderly poor make up a rapidly growing percentage of New York City’s population.  Often frail, alone and with limited mobility, they’re largely invisible to others. But in 1981, food critic Gael Greene, chef James Beard and cookbook author Barbara Kafka read an article about them and were moved to action. After learning that many of these people had nothing to eat on weekends and holidays, they founded a nonprofit called Citymeals-on-Wheels to address the issue. And they put out the call to friends like Ira Riklis to lend their support.

After joining into a unique partnership with the New York City Department for the Aging, they quickly raised $35,000 and provided a Christmas dinner for 6,000 elderly poor. They hoped that the need might ease over time, but instead it has grown year by year as the city’s population has grown older. In a recent year, the group raised nearly $17.5 million. And thanks to the continuing support of people like Ira Riklis, every penny of that money went to providing meals—some 2.5 million—and human contact for this underserved group of elders.

Mike Bartasuis, Ira Riklis’ friend and former ski instructor, weren’t business partners when Mike bought his first ski shop in Vail. While that shop was a successful first effort, Mike wanted something more. And the group who invested in that shop with Mike couldn’t really support his ambitions for growth.

So when an opportunity came to purchase another shop, Mike and Ira Riklis formed a partnership. The new shop was located in Beaver Creek, about twenty minutes from Lionshead. Since the shop was in the Charter Hotel and Resort, they named it Charter Sports. Slowly but surely, the shop became a great success and they expanded their enterprise to include eleven locations in Vail, Beaver Creek, Avon and Breckenridge. They also now operate a premium ski delivery service they call Premier which caters to celebrities and others who don’t want to come into a ski shop to get fitted for equipment.

By its very nature, the act of giving of yourself to help others often involves sacrifice and, occasionally, a bit of frustration. Through experience, Ira Riklis has learned that the best way to make it through those moments is to have a good sense of humor about them. When giving blood, for example, he finds it silly that technicians take your blood pressure after they’ve stuck your finger to draw blood for testing. Why not do that while you’re still relaxed—and your blood pressure lower—before they stick you?

Once when he went to donate blood, Ira Riklis found that the medical center had changed their donation forms to include legal jargon he felt was inappropriate. It turns out that the center specialized in “Directed Donations” where people give blood meant specifically for friends or relatives who needed it. In their view, they had the right to ask more personal questions since they had something of a “captive” clientele. When he objected to the new paperwork, the receptionist told him that if he didn’t sign the forms, they wouldn’t take his blood. Realizing that pointing out the errors in their “logic” would be a waste of time, he laughed to himself. “That will teach me a lesson, won’t it,” he thought as he completed the forms.

Ira Riklis credits ski instructor Mike Bartasuis with helping him achieve his goal of becoming an expert skier. And over time, their relationship changed from one of teacher to student into a deep friendship and business partnership. When they first met, Mike was an instructor working for the Lionshead Ski School at Vail. But such jobs really only work for young enthusiasts willing to work for low pay while they pursue their passions. Mike eventually left that job and took other positions in Vail before deciding that he wanted to operate a ski shop.

Unaware that Ira Riklis had sent money to purchase a shop that’s now part of the Charter Sports chain, Mike went into partnership with another group of people. It was a confused situation, but since Ira wasn’t interested in getting into the ski business without Mike’s involvement, he eventually got his money back. And Mike had his first shop, which he called Tech Sports, in the Lion Square Lodge in Lionshead.