About the Shop

Austin is a thru-hiker turned business owner who logged thousands of miles on trails like the PCT, AZT, and Te Araroa. Now rooted in Salida with his wife Keely and their dog Murphy, he splits his time between trail running, biking, and splitboarding while running Salida Mountain Sports.

Keely grew up playing volleyball in Southern California, where adventures in Yosemite sparked her love for the outdoors. After discovering splitboarding and mountain biking in the Rockies, she and her husband Austin put down roots in Salida as the new owners of Salida Mountain Sports.

Oscar grew up in Florida and discovered the outdoors through rock climbing in 2018. After summers roadtripping and climbing in the Southwest, he headed west in his Transit Connect and landed guiding at the Royal Gorge. Skiing in 2022 changed everything and brought him to Salida, where he now chases balance on snow, water, and rock.

Born during a thunderstorm and raised on adventure, Keagen grew up full-send. Salida has been home since childhood, and today a dream day means sunrise backcountry laps, afternoon floats, golden-hour rides, and hammock nights. At SMS, Keagen thrives on community and shared stoke for the wild. Motto: no half sends.

Suzi’s outdoor journey started with a high school rafting trip and grew through guiding on the Animas and Arkansas Rivers. Drawn to water and teaching, she made her way to Salida, where both passions collide. She loves fall floats with friends, camping under cottonwoods, and helping SMS customers gear up prepared.

Molly has been outside since before she could walk. Raised in Salida from age six, she now raises her kids in the same valley. Her perfect days range from mellow river floats to deep powder and Class V rapids. At every stage, she embraces the seasons with gratitude and joy.

Kramer is from Kansas City but now calls the mountains of Winter Park, CO home. Fueled by her love for people and all things outdoors, she made the leap to Colorado in 2017 to become a ski instructor with the National Sports Center for the Disabled. When she’s not skiing, she’s still chasing fun—playing hockey, XC skiing, flyfishing or riding mountain bike trails all summer long.

Michael grew up on the East Coast, DC and NYC suburbs and lived in the big apple for 10 years. While living in NYC, he took a trip north and discovered how much he loved skiing. A few years later, he decided to move to Colorado to experience time in the mountains more. He then spent a season traveling across North America skiing multiple places all the way to AK, then returned and moved to the mountains before settling in Salida 3 years ago. He truly loves to ski, mountain bike, and spend time on the river fishing and paddleboarding in the summer.

Mahting Putelis is a Latvian-named, commercial photographer whose origin story begins with a neon pink Fuji camera won at a Boy Scout camp — which is, genuinely, a perfect beginning. A former expedition guide, clothing brand CEO, and pro-am road cyclist, he eventually did what any overachiever would: move to a mountain town to relax. 

In his free time, he runs 100-mile ultramarathons through the Colorado mountains, teaches beginners to ski at Monarch Mountain, or gets gloriously lost in a foreign city in running shoes with his wife. He has a degree in Adventure Education, a deep reverence for champagne powder snow, and an inexplicable fondness for ancient Latvian harmonies sung by women.

His name is pronounced MAH-TING. Equal emphasis. He's done the work so you don't have to guess.