Eastside Sports started in 1977 as a mountain footwear shoe repair shop named Wheeler Boot. Shortly after James Wilson came on board and the name was changed to Wheeler and Wilson. In the mid 1980’s James took on full ownership of the store and evolved it into a full service mountain store, with a boot repair business in the back.
Chris Iversen joined the staff in 1988 and quickly became a store manager and product buyer.
In 1999 the shoe repair business was purchased by cobblers Tony and Nan Puppo and became The Rubber Room, now located across the street. In 2012 Chris and her husband Todd Vogel purchased the store from the Wilsons. They are slowing dropping the use of “Wilson’s” and continuing to use the “Eastside Sports”. Some will always know the store as “Wilson’s”, and that’s ok with us.
We stock equipment for backpacking, climbing, mountaineering, trail running, travel and other outdoor sports, and rent backpacks, bouldering pads, sleeping bags, tents and pads, and a few other items. Plus we have a huge selection of casual clothing and gifts – something for everyone.
We are especially proud of our footwear department, with large selections of climbing, approach, hiking, trail running, and mountaineering shoes and boots. Visiting sales reps tell us we have the larges selection of climbing shoes in the West. We have a complete selection of local USGS and specialty maps, and regional books. We also stock a wide selection of buckles, webbing, camping stove parts and other repair materials.
Our staff has varied experience from local bouldering to big wall epics and international mountaineering; local area day hikes to multiple week backpacking in our area, and would be happy to help you plan your experience. We all share a love of the mountains, deserts, and all of our wild places, and look forward to helping you make sure your next trip to our area is a success.
Mission and Goals of Eastside Sports
Our mission is to curate a selection of high quality tools, accessories, and toys that aid in experiencing life in more meaningful ways, tools that we as staff use and know well, and which represent the best in value, quality, and functionality. It is our goal to provide our customers with the friendly, enthusiastic, and educated customer service needed to help them make great choices. It is also a goal to provide a healthy and happy work environment that allows our staff to wake up excited to come to work.
It is a further goal to support and enhance our community by giving back in a variety of ways. We are especially proud of having created the Eastern Sierra Youth Outdoor program, a week long climbing and camping trip that is free to youth of the area, and which is led by trained outdoor professionals.