Chris & Jill Haunold

Idaho Mountain Touring Owners

Idaho Mountain Touring is owned and operated by Chris and Jill Haunold who have worked together building the business since 1988. Chris started out working at a backpack and climbing store when he was 16 and continued working in ski and bike shops while going to college and between traveling all over the country climbing then later racing bicycles. In 1984 his good friend John Platt who grew up in Boise asked if he would be interested in opening a store in Boise. After spending a week living in Boise, hiking, riding bikes and skiing Chris packed up and moved he’s been here ever since. John left IMT in 1988 but they are still friends. Chris still rides bikes and skis as much as possible and even does a little climbing occasionally.

Jill was a Math and Science teacher at Meridian Middle School finishing up her Master’s degree at BSU when she and Chris met, riding bikes up Bogus Basin. They were married in August of 1988 and quickly realized that teaching  school, raising children and running a retail store were about as opposite as possible from a scheduling stand point, so she left teaching to help Chris run the store. Jill did everything at the store that Chris was bad at like bookkeeping, computers, paying bills as well as helping customers. She also bailed out and rescued stranded employees on occasion. Jill had worked in clothing stores growing up and had her mother’s eye for fashion and color, so she took over buying, merchandising and expanding IMTs clothing selection building it into an important part of the business today.  Jill went back to school and got her Doctorate from BSU and started teaching at the College of Idaho part time while continuing to help run the store.  She taught full time in the Psychology department at C of I until just recently. Jill is now the full time buyer for all the amazing clothing at Idaho Mountain Touring.