Black Friday is finally over and the holiday shopping season is on. If the day after Thanksgiving was any indication, happy retailers may be smiling for a long time.

Fingerlakes Mall Manager Diane Jurczak-Prue was impressed with the size and longevity of the Black Friday crowd that entered the shopping center as early as 2:45 a.m. to get in line for opening specials.

“I think it was great,” she said. “I think the crowds were stronger this year. The crowds have lasted longer throughout the day and are visiting our other tenants that aren't anchor stores.”

As for the whiff of winter that blanketed the area with snow, the timing couldn't be better.

“I think the weather actually helped,” she said. “The snow helps put people in the holiday mood.”

Hundreds of shoppers from across the region crowded stores at the Fingerlakes Mall and Fingerlakes Crossing on the opposite side of Routes 5 and 20.

“I'm trying to catch a good value, get some good buys,” said Joe Drop, of Camillus, struggling with two armfuls of merchandise as he walked out of Bass Pro Shops at Fingerlakes Mall Friday morning. “You feel pretty good even though 'The Man' is still winning.”

The outdoor store offered tents for people to stay in overnight for prime positioning at its 6 a.m. opening. Mall anchor J.C. Penney and the newly built Kohls in Fingerlakes Crossing across bumped their start times up to 4 a.m.

The early hour didn't seem to deter long lines of vehicles who packed the parking lots and intersections in the commercial corridor. Things were much the same on the east side of Auburn, where plaza and big box parking lots had good volumes of vehicles a few hours after many opened their doors.

“I think we're going to go shopping later too, but not sale hunting or anything like that,” Becky Delbel, of Auburn, said while loading her sport utility vehicle outside of Bed Bath & Beyond.

She was wrapping up her first - and likely last - Black Friday shopping run at the Auburn Plaza with some family visiting from Ohio. By 8:30 a.m., Delbel was ready to get some breakfast and catch some sleep at home.

Lynn Renshaw, of Elbridge, was taking a more relaxed approach to the holiday shopping season's traditional kickoff. She and her daughter got started at Wal-Mart on Grant Avenue at about 7 a.m.

“It was great,” Renshaw said while soaking in warm air from the car heater outside of arts and crafts vendor A.C. Moore at Auburn Plaza. “I got in and in 20 minutes got everything I needed at Wal-Mart.”

Early bird shoppers employed various strategies for their big day. In a statewide survey, a majority of retailers anticipated sales at or above last year's totals despite high energy prices and a slumping economy.

Staff writer Shane Liebler can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or shane.liebler@lee.net