Dean & Patty Hovdey, Founders

Any SSL member will tell you that one of the greatest perks of membership is becoming part of a close-knit nationwide community sharing the same passions, struggles and fun. We’re excited to have so many great members on our European Factory Tour with us, each bringing unique talents and knowledge to the table.

Among these members are Dean and Patty Hovdey of Hometown Sports, located in McCall, Idaho. Founded in 1979, Hometown Sports is known for its enthusiasm and passion for the central Idaho mountains and nostalgic atmosphere. While visiting the shop, patrons enjoy proudly displayed local mementos and equipment of skiing days-gone-by.

Even before the days of Hometown Sports, Dean and Patty have always been active in outdoor sports. Upon completing college at the University of Montana where he shined as a football and basketball athlete, Dean spent time as a certified ski instructor and coach in the ski school at Sun Valley and Brundage Mountain. Dean first moved to McCall in 1970 as a smokejumper after working as Pro Patrolman at Big Mountain in Montana.

Patty is a true local star. A 5th generation Long Valley native, Patty was a member of the U.S.A. Women’s Alpine Ski Team from 1968-1973 where she placed 8th in the Olympic Slalom in Sapporro, Japan in 1972 and was named Senior National Slalom Champion that same year. After retiring, Patty went on to coach ski racing for 7 years.

Together, Dean and Patty have taken their shared love of Idaho’s outdoor sports and lifestyle and turned it into a local sports shop with contagious energy and excitement.

To learn more about Dean and Patty, check out Home-Town-Sports.com

Greetings from SSL members in Europe! We began our 12-day adventure on Tuesday with a tour of our number one ski binding supplier, Marker Bindings, in Kostelec, Czech Republic. Marker has been a strong business partner of ours for over 30 years, so having them as the starting point for our tour was a great kickoff for us!

We’re all having a great time and can’t wait to share what we’re seeing and learning. To see all the pictures from our tour at Marker, check out our Facebook page and become a fan to keep up to date with all of our exciting news. We’ll be updating our blog frequently throughout our European tour so don’t forget to stop back to see what we’re doing next!

On May 17th, nineteen(19) SSL Members will begin a twelve(12) day tour of Ski Supplier Factories in Europe. The factories that will be visited are Marker bindings in the Czech Republic, the Blizzard/ Nordica Ski factory in Mittersill, Austria, the Elan Ski/Snowboard factory in Slovenia and the Tecnica/Nordica Ski Boot factory in Italy. This will be SSL’s third(3rd) tour of this type in the last twelve(12) years. For a complete look at the itinerary, contact Steve Rogers for more information. Follow us on Facebook as we travel through the European countryside. The link is on our website.

Three(3) SSL Retailers were recognized at an awards ceremony during the Snow Show ’11.

New England Region- East Coast Alpine, owners John and Sarah Sullivan.

Mid-Atlantic Region- Buckman’s Ski & Snowboard Shops, owners Jeff and Nancy Buckman.

Mountain Region- Cole Sport, UT, owners Gary and Jana Cole.

Congratulations to all!!!