Nov 12, 2007

Business still brisk for handful still open on Wildwoods B’walkBy Trudi GilfillianPressofAtlanticCity.com

North Wildwood – Two visitors ask a passerby to take their picture on the Boardwalk, with the beach and crashing surf in the background.

Nothing remarkable, except in this snapshot of a day at the shore the visitors are wearing sweatpants instead of swimsuits.

This is fall on the Wildwoods Boardwalk, when temperatures run in the 50s instead of the 90s.

There are no beach balls in play or sand castles under construction, but there are dedicated joggers in shorts, bicyclists, dog walkers and other Boardwalk fans, bundled in winter coats, out for a stroll.

“It’s nice to walk out there as long as the sun’s out,” said Cathie Behneman from behind her counter at Rapunzel’s, a gift shop at 2020 Boardwalk.

Hers is one of about a half-dozen Boardwalk storefronts that still operate after summer’s end.

“I stay open weekends year-round if it’s above 40 degrees,” Behneman said after soaking up some of the warmth from the morning sun just outside her shop. “Forty degrees is my cut off.”

Behneman has spent 14 years on the Boardwalk, 11 at the now-defunct Seaport Pier and three in her current location.

Business is good, she said, thanks to steady Web site traffic and sunny days like this one.

The online business includes specialty orders for her personalized wreaths and other gifts, which Behneman makes in her shop.

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