Many outdoor brands have their origins in the Wood River Valley; the easy access to the outdoors in so many ways (biking, hiking, skiing) gets the creative juices flowing in terms of how to improve on those sports—and then gives you a big playground to test out those improvements. Outdoor apparel companies Wild Rye and Club Ride are no different, with both company’s founders being outdoor aficionados in the Wood River Valley who found themselves staring down a gap in their respective markets; for Wild Rye, that gap was an outdoor brand exclusively for women. For Club Ride, that gap was casual bike clothes that could be worn from the bike to the bar. Read on to learn the origin stories of these two local companies, who are helping maintain Ketchum’s status quo as an incubator for innovation. Wild Rye Wild Rye’s founder, Cassie Abel, has lived in and out of Ketchum since she was eight years old, but coming back full-time in 2012. Prior to launching her women-focused outdoor brand, Cassie worked in-house at Smith, learning all about the outdoor industry, its marketing—and its distinct lack of focus on women. “We were starting to see all these cool brands …
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24 Hours with a Local: Sawtooth Mountain Guides’ Lindsay Mann Davis
Backcountry ski guide Lindsay Mann Davis didn’t move to the area until 2018, but skiing has always been in her life. Growing up on the east coast, she spent most of her youth exploring the White Mountains of New Hampshire and competitive ski racing, which took her to mountains around the world. Her passion for skiing took her to Dartmouth, where she helped her team win an NCAA title in 2007. After college, she spent time working as an alpine ski racing coach, mountain guide, and avalanche instructor. Before making the move to Idaho, Lindsay and her now-husband Leon were living in Jackson Hole. After he accepted a pilot job in the state, she got a job offer with the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation (SVSEF) to coach alpine and do avalanche education. She’s now a guide for Sawtooth Mountain Guides and also works at Andy Gilbert’s Press Print House and Keely’s Camp for Girls as operations manager. The flexibility of Lindsay’s employers has been instrumental in being able to spend time with her 1-year-old daughter, Matilda. Lindsay and her family live in a house in Hailey, and in her free time she loves to mountain bike, climb, backcountry ski, …
What We’re Made Of: Chums
Referring to your eyewear retainer simply as “Chums,” like you might call tissue “Kleenex”shows just how much this global brand dominates its market. With humble origins that can betraced back to a guide on the Colorado River in southern Utah, Chums is celebrating its 40thanniversary this year. Chums came to Ketchum in 2002 after local Chuck Ferries purchased thecompany along with his son, Tom, and son-in-law, Mike Neary. Many of the company’sproducts are still made in the original Hurricane, Utah, facility and five employees hold downsales and marketing in Ketchum. How it Started In 1983 Mike Taggett was a dory boat guide on the Colorado River. Tired of seeing his clientslose their sunglasses to the water, he came up with the idea for what is now the Original Chumseyewear retainer, producing the first batch on a $60 sewing machine out of the back of his VWvan. Named for Mike’s yellow lab, Chumley, Chums has always been about those who feelcalled to the water: guides, river rats, dirtbags, anglers. As demand grew, Chums began mass-producing its retainers and selling to retailers nationwide, though the Original cotton eyewearretainer is still the company’s best-selling product (and is still made in the original facility …
24 hours with a Local: TNT Taproom’s Max Lemman
Though he didn’t move here until 2018, TNT Taproom owner Max Lemman grew up coming to Sun Valley, learning to ski and then snowboard on Baldy. Both of his parents are avid skiers and Max spent his winters and summers visiting the area from Seattle. In the winter of 2018, he invited his now-wife Ashley to come to Sun Valley for the holidays. While participating in the local nightlife—or lack thereof, in Ashley and Max’s opinion—they started hatching an idea for opening a new kind of brewery and bar. Back in Seattle Max had been trying to open a bar but found the city to be too busy, both for his business or for him to want to stay. The couple moved to Ketchum and, after looking at several spaces, opened TNT Taproom in “the Dynamite Shed,” which used to house the town’s railroad and mining dynamite and has affectionately been referred to by locals as “the Boom Shack” or the “Boom Room.” Max got his dream of opening a simple taproom, one that serves only beers on draft and delicious wine. While you can often find Max behind the bar, Ashley is behind the scenes building the menu, ordering …
5 of the Best Fall Hikes in Sun Valley
Fall has officially arrived. The sun soaked aspen and cottonwood leaves have slowly begun to make their way from branch ends to trail floors leaving behind nature’s very own yellow brick road. This vibrantly radiating carpet and canopy delivers a truly enchanting hiking experience. We’ve compiled a list of our top-five best fall hikes in Sun Valley to help you maximize your dose of vitamin yellow. Proctor Mountain (5 miles – moderate) Serving up some the earliest pops of color in the Valley, the Proctor Mountain area tops our list of early fall hikes. This zone starts by venturing through thick swaths of aspen groves before climbing to higher elevations. Thoughts of burning thighs quickly vanish as expansive perspectives of the colorful valley below take hold. The reward makes the trek well worth the effort. Tip: the leaves will be changing early up here so get after it as soon as you see the first leaves starting to change, usually the middle of September. Directions: From Ketchum, head northeast on Sun Valley Rd towards Trail Creek. In roughly 2.6 miles look for the “Hemingway Memorial” sign and use the parking lots on your right or left. Park here and follow the trail …
Sun Valley: Endless Options for Every Idaho Road Trip
After spending the last three summers backpacking in the Sawtooth Range, I was keen to explore the trails and dispersed camping in Sun Valley, which tend to fly under the radar. While I usually set my schedule in stone, this year I’ve been modifying it weekly as I adjust to the new normal with road tripping. With a wealth of options (plus a commitment to the safety of tourists and locals alike), Sun Valley has something for every traveler, budget and schedule — even those subject to change. Without further ado, here are some ideas and suggestions for an amazing Idaho fall road trip to Sun Valley. Where to Hike From the jagged peaks in the background to the catchy phrase painted on the roof, it’s easy to see why Pioneer Cabin is one of the more popular hikes in Sun Valley. With four different routes to the cabin, overcrowding on the trail is not an issue, thus making it a very appealing day hike. Hikers can access the cabin via the Pioneer Cabin Trail (8 miles roundtrip, 2,570 feet of gain), Long Gulch (9 miles roundtrip, 3,000 feet of gain), Johnstone Creek (12 miles roundtrip, 3,000 feet of gain) and …
24 hours with a Local: Hemingway Steam School Teacher Ross Parsons
Life has come full circle for Ross Parsons, a teacher at Hemingway Steam School, where he himself went to elementary school. The school expanded to pre-k through 8th grade in 2017, which was Ross’s first year teaching back at his alma mater. Before returning to the Valley and becoming a teacher, Ross worked as a field instructor at the McCall Outdoor Science School, ski patrolled at Snowbasin in Utah, and was a U.S. Forest Service/BLM River Ranger on the Salmon, Rogue, Owyhee, and Bruneau Rivers. He now teaches 6th grade science, 7th grade math, and 8th grade advisory, and works a second job as a ski patroller in the winters (taking after his father, Ron Parsons, a ski patroller since 1979). Ross’s wife, Mya, is a fellow teacher at Hemingway (5th grade). The two met through Mya’s brother, Ross’s best friend in college, and after dating long-distance between Ketchum and Breckenridge, Ross convinced her to move here. “You gotta import the good ones,” he says of his wife, describing her as his “best friend on the planet.” The two live on Warm Springs out Board Ranch, just past Penny Lake, with their eight-month-olds twins, Redd and Maeve (the birth of …
How to Fall in Love with Fall in Sun Valley: A Bucket List
This is your guide for how to Fall in Love with Fall in Sun Valley, Idaho. From hiking to leaf peeping see why this is the best kept secret season.
24hrs with a Local: Miles to Go Fitness’ Miles Fink-Debray, November
Ski season is almost upon us which means it’s the perfect time to start leveling up your training! And when it comes to training for ski season, Miles Fink-Debray is your man. The elite athlete has worked with high-level trainers and athletes in multiple sports for his whole life. He has taken that experience and directed it into his own training gym, Miles to Go. When he’s not training clients at the gym of the portable van gym that makes house calls, he’s practicing what he preaches by participating (and often winning) local events like the Baldy Hill Climb or Suffer Fest, the “World’s Toughest 10K” which he created. He’s also in the top 75 world rank in skiing, an amateur national mountain bike champ, and 2012 Sun Valley Athlete of the Year. Before the intensity of the ski season begins, Miles walks us through an ideal 24hrs in Sun Valley fall day. How does your perfect fall day start? Miles: I work and workout all week, so Saturdays are designated for me. I love having the access to the outdoor right out my doorstep in Warm Springs to mountain bike, hike, run, and skate ski. I start by making …
What We’re Made Of: Sun Valley Bronze
When it comes to locally made hardware in the Wood River Valley, Sun Valley Bronze has you covered. This long-standing institution in the valley is an inspiration. Get to know them in this edition of, “What We’re Made Of.” Sun Valley Bronze What has now become a 30-plus-year institution in the Wood River Valley once had very humble beginnings, with founder Bob Commons starting Sun Valley Bronze (SVB) in his garage. Back in 1992, Bob was working in construction, building the high-end homes so ubiquitous in the area, while his wife, Debbie, drafted architectural plans. Frustrated by the lack of luxury hardware available for the jobs he was working on, and with 15 years of thoughts of starting his own business, Bob began experimenting with the casting process using old foundry equipment he purchased from the local high school shop department. Since then, the company has evolved into an internationally sold brand used by some of the top architects and designers in the world. What was once created in a garage is now operated out of a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility that utilizes robotics, CNC machines for patterning and machining, and 3D printing for prototyping. The luxury architectural hardware created by …