Rentals, Skiing & Snowboarding, Winter

Guide to Renting Ski, Snowboard, Nordic and Snowshoe Equipment in Sun Valley

Whether you’re new to town and didn’t bring your own gear or a local just looking to try a new sport, there exist a myriad of rental options in the Wood River Valley for skis, snowboards, Nordic, and snowshoes as well as a host of shops waiting to tune, deliver, and help you learn more about all your gear! Check out our guide below for all your winter rental needs.

Ski Rental Gear

Sturtevant’s

With locations in Ketchum, Hailey, Sun Valley and at the base of Warm Springs, Sturtevant’s is perhaps the easiest venue to find for ski gear rental. They offer rentals and demos and event season leases on their skis and snowboards. Ski rental options include their Adult Sport package for beginner to intermediate skiers, Adult Performance Demo package, a line-up of best-selling, all-mountain retail models, Adult Premium Demo for testing Sturtevant’s entire selection of skis, Junior Sport package for first-time skiers up to advanced junior skiers, and Junior Race and Twin Tip package for advanced and expert juniors. All types of rental reservations are available online through their online rental program.

PK’s

PK’s Ski and Sports offers ski rental packages for kids, adult sport (for softer, recreational skiers), adult performance (for higher performance), adult demo (the best/highest end skis), and demo (higher performance GS/Slalom/powder skis) ski. Rentals are available online or in store.

Pete Lane’s

Pete Lane’s has locations in both the Sun Valley Mall as well as the base of River Run. In addition to in-store rentals, Pete Lane’s offers online booking of equipment. Ski packages are available for novice skiers (new to skiing), kids, sport skiers (for riding groomers), performance skiers (for skiing all-mountain), and demo ski packages (best model for current conditions).

Black Tie Ski Rentals

While Black Tie Ski Rentals has long specialized in delivery services, they know offer walk-in rentals at their Hotel Ketchum location. Order-in or see it at the source.

Ski Butlers Ski Rentals

Ski Butlers offers rentals and service delivered to you. Carrying a full line-up of ski options from Rossignol along with boots, poles, helmets, and goggles.

Reserve the equipment you want online or by calling. Relax, you’re on vacation. They’ll fit you in your accommodations. Don’t miss a turn. Enjoy full support while you ski. You pack your suitcases. They’ll pick up your equipment.

Snowboard Rental Gear

The Board Bin

Synonymous with all things snowboarding is The Board Bin, a skate and snowboard mainstay in Ketchum for decades. Whether you’re renting or demoing, one of their knowledgeable staff can direct you to a powder board, groomer board, or all-mountain.

Sturtevant’s

Also offering snowboard gear rental in town is Sturtevant’s which includes the Adult Sport Snowboard package for beginners and intermediates, Adult Performance Snowboard package for intermediate to expert riders, and a Junior Snowboard package for junior snowboarders. All packages are available in boots and board prices or board only prices. Helmets are an additional $7 per day.

PK’s

PK’s Ski and Sports offers a rental snowboard package at a daily rate, 5+ days rate, and a cheaper rate if booked online.

Pete Lane’s

Pete Lane’s at River Run and in Sun Valley offers snowboard rental packages for beginner snowboarders (novices), kids, and sport snowboarders.

Black Tie Ski Rentals

Yep, they do snowboard rentals too! Get at Black Tie here.

Backcountry Rental Gear

Backwoods

Located at the fork in the road of north Ketchum, Backwoods Mountain Sports, call themselves “Idaho Backcountry Equipment Specialists” and can provide you with any and all equipment rental needs you may have for your backcountry adventure. Alpine touring setups including skis, boots, and poles are available at half-day, full-day, and multi-day prices. Reservations may be made for equipment that you plan to use for 2 days or more. A la carte options are also available at half-day and full-day prices and include alpine touring skis, alpine touring boots, probes, packs, adjustable poles, avalanche beacons, shovels, and sleds (kids or cargo). Sleeping bags and backpacks are also available for those multi-day adventures.

The Elephant’s Perch

Check out The Elephant’s Perch on the corner of Sun Valley Road and East Avenue for both individual rentals and rental packages for backcountry gear. Individual rentals are for touring skis, alpine touring skis, premium alpine touring skis, kids skis, touring boots, alpine touring boots, and kid’s boots, all available half-day, one-day, and week-long prices. Packages are for touring, alpine touring, premium alpine touring, and backcountry essentials (shovel/probe/beacon) and kids, all for half-day, one-day, and week-long prices. The Perch also offers classic pole and backcountry pole rental as well as rental of backpacks and ski crampons.

Sturtevant’s

Sturtevant’s offers an Adult Backcountry Demo package which includes ski, boots, and skins. A backcountry accessory kit (pack, probe, shovel, beacon) is available for users who know how to properly use these.

Nordic Gear Rental

Backwoods

Backwoods is also a go-to shop for Nordic gear rental. Cross country packages include no-wax touring, kids (12 and under), and skating, all for half-day, full-day, or weekly prices. A la carte options include touring skis, touring boots, touring poles, skate skis, skate boots, skate poles, sled (kids or cargo), gaiters, and NEOS overboots all at half-day, full-day, or weekly prices.

The Elephant’s Perch

At The Elephant’s Perch, individual rental is available for skate/classic skis, skate/classic boots, and packages are available for all the essentials for skate/classic skiing.

Sturtevant’s

Sturtevant’s offers adult Nordic skate ski equipment rentals and adult and junior Nordic touring rentals. In the future, these will be added to their online reservation program.

Galena Lodge

Galena Lodge, located 23 miles north of Ketchum offers classic and skate ski rentals for adults and children (3-12) at full-day and half-day rates. Gear is available in package form or individual rentals are available for skis, boots, poles, chariots, yurt sleds, and sleeping bags.

Sun Valley Nordic Center

Sun Valley Nordic Center offers cross country setups at half-day, 1-day, 2-day, and 3-day rental prices for adults, seniors, youth 12+ and children.

Snowshoe Rental

Backwoods

Snowshoe rentals are available at Backwoods in half-day, full-day, and weekly prices including snowshoe poles for $3 per day.

Elephant’s Perch

Check out The Elephant’s Perch for half-day, full-day, and weekly prices for snowshoes, snowshoe boots, and kid’s snowshoes.

Galena Lodge

Galena Lodge offers snowshoe rentals for adults and children (3-12) at half-day and full-day prices.

Sun Valley Nordic Center

Sun Valley Nordic Center offers half and full-day rentals for adults, seniors, children, and youth 12+.

Delivery Services

Black Tie

For those looking for more convenience, get equipment rentals delivered right to your door and enjoy the luxury of having personal one-on-one service in the comfort of your own home. Black Tie offers free delivery, in-room fitting, and slope-side service of both ski and snowboard equipment for adults and children alike. Make a reservation online, call, or email.

Ski Butlers

Ski Butlers provides rental delivery in 19 locations at 47 ski resorts, and most recently added Sun Valley to that list. Easily reserve ski and snowboard rental packages online whether you’re a first-timer or a performance athlete.

  

Boot Fitting

Ski Tek

Ski Tek is an America’s Best Boot Fitters certified shop with three Board-Certified Pedorthists on staff to help build custom orthotics to a mold of your foot, correcting any problems you may have. They do boot fitting year-round.

Surefoot

Surefoot has developed a ski boot fitting system that guarantees not only the best fitting ski boots but the best performing ski boots. They offer custom ski boots, custom liners and custom insoles from Surefoot or standard pre-fit ski boots from Nordica, Lange, Tecnica, Full Tilt, Salomon and Dalbello.

PK’s

PK’s Ski and Sports offers boot fitting and ski sizing at their shop on Leadville and Sun Valley Road.

Sturtevant’s

Sturtevant’s offers boot fitting with prices based on per punch; per hot spot grind; for canting and/or balancing assessment; for alignment, planning, or lifter installation; and lifter installation. They offer hillside boot-fitting at their Warm Springs location or regular fitting services at their Main Street location.

 

Tuning Shops

Ketchum is certainly not lacking in tuning shops: there are both shops dedicated to the art and many of the other spots renting gear in town are happy to help with a tune.

The Waxroom

Internationally renown The Waxroom offers Sun Valley’s only world class ski & snowboard tunes to the beginner as well as expert. Located across from the Magic Lantern movie theater, The Waxroom is owned by Olympic wax technician Curtis Bacca.

Ski Tek

Ski Tek is a full-service ski shop with their tuning shop overseen by a former World Cup technician. State-of-the-art tuning equipment and the combined knowledge of their tuning staff allows them to produce World Cup-quality tunes for their customers.

Backwoods

Backwoods prides their tuners on their 40+ years experience to make sure your skis are mounted correctly and waxed to go fast.

Elephant’s Perch

At The Elephant’s Perch, they will mount and prep skate or classic, telemark or randonee and give you a wax as well. PK’sis a full-service ski shop sure to help you with all your tuning needs.

Sturtevant’s

At both Sturtevant’s locations, race tunes, major tunes, and minor tunes are all offered.

Now that you’re dialed in with all the gear you need, it’s time to get out and put it to good use. See you out there!

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