Sporting Goods Retailers

 

Here is a comprehensive list of sports equipment retailers and specialty repair centers within the metro Palm Springs area, which includes Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, and La Quinta.

This list is organized by the primary sports they serve for clarity.

General Sporting Goods & Big-Box Retailers

These stores offer a wide variety of equipment for multiple sports.

1. Dick’s Sporting Goods

  • Sports Covered: A full-range retailer for team sports, fitness, golf, outdoor, and athletic apparel.

  • Address: 72-840 Highway 111, Palm Desert, CA 92260

  • Contact: (760) 779-20

  • Notes: The largest dedicated sporting goods store in the area. Includes a limited service shop for bike tune-ups.

2. Big 5 Sporting Goods

  • Sports Covered: A wide selection of affordable equipment for mainstream sports like baseball, basketball, football, soccer, fitness, and outdoor activities.

  • Address:

    • Palm Springs: 333 E Palm Canyon Dr, Palm Springs, CA 92264 – (760) 318-0553

    • Cathedral City: 68-777 Ramon Rd, Cathedral City, CA 92234 – (760) 321-1129

    • Palm Desert: 72-129 Highway 111, Palm Desert, CA 92260 – (760) 568-3303

  • Notes: A reliable chain for basic equipment and apparel.

3. Walmart

  • Sports Covered: General, entry-level equipment for most sports, plus fitness and outdoor gear.

  • Address: (Multiple locations, including)

    • Palm Springs: 777 N Palm Canyon Dr, Palm Springs, CA 92262

    • La Quinta: 79-150 Highway 111, La Quinta, CA 92253

  • Notes: Best for budget-friendly, casual sports equipment.

Golf Equipment & Services

The Coachella Valley is a world-class golf destination, with many pro shops offering custom fitting and repair.

4. PGA TOUR Superstore

  • Specialty: The premier destination for golf equipment, apparel, accessories, and expert club fitting/repair.

  • Address: 72-840 Highway 111, Palm Desert, CA 92260 (Next to Dick’s Sporting Goods)

  • Contact: (760) 779-10

  • Notes: Features indoor hitting bays, a large putting green, and a full-service repair shop.

5. Roger Dunn Golf Shops

  • Specialty: A famous Southern California chain with a huge selection of new and used clubs, expert fitting, and a renowned repair shop.

  • Address: 42-151 Bob Hope Dr, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270

  • Contact: (760) 341-221

  • Notes: Their “90-Day Satisfaction Guarantee” is a major draw for golfers trying new equipment.

6. Golf Smith / Golfsmith (Inside PGA TOUR Superstore)

  • Note: This location has been rebranded and is now part of the PGA TOUR Superstore listed above.

7. Various Resort & Course Pro Shops

  • Notes: Nearly every golf course and resort (e.g., Indian Wells Golf Resort, La Quinta Resort, PGA West) has a pro shop that sells equipment and offers club repair services. Access may be limited to guests or players.

Tennis & Pickleball Equipment & Services

With hundreds of courts, tennis and pickleball are hugely popular.

8. Indian Wells Tennis Garden Pro Shop

  • Specialty: The premier shop for tennis and pickleball in the valley. Offers high-end racquets, apparel, stringing, and custom grip services.

  • Address: 78-200 Miles Ave, Indian Wells, CA 92210

  • Contact: (760) 200-80

  • Notes: The home of the BNP Paribas Open tournament. Their stringing service is top-tier.

9. Racket Doctor

  • Specialty: A mobile restringing and repair service that comes to you. Also sells grips and accessories.

  • Contact: (760) 898-98

  • Notes: A convenient option for getting your racquets restrung without leaving home.

Bicycle Shops (Sales & Repair)

For a detailed list focused solely on bikes, see the previous output. Here are the key players:

10. The Bicycle Shop (Rancho Mirage)

  • Address: 71-800 Hwy 111, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 – (760) 324-7061

11. Tri-A-Bike (Palm Desert)

  • Address: 73-111 El Paseo, Suite #110, Palm Desert, CA 92260 – (760) 340-2840

12. Palm Springs Cyclery (Palm Springs)

  • Address: 611 S Palm Canyon Dr, Palm Springs, CA 92264 – (760) 325-7819

13. REI Co-op (Palm Desert)

  • Address: 73-333 El Paseo, Palm Desert, CA 92260 – (760) 862-8700

  • Notes: A full-service bike shop inside an outdoor store. Repairs all brands.

14. La Quinta Cyclery (La Quinta)

  • Address: 78-365 Hwy 111, La Quinta, CA 92253 – (442) 999-2913

Outdoor & Adventure Sports

15. REI Co-op

  • Specialty: Camping, hiking, climbing, paddling, and adventure travel gear. Staff are very knowledgeable about local trails and conditions.

  • Address: 73-333 El Paseo, Palm Desert, CA 92260

  • Contact: (760) 862-8700

  • Notes: Offers workshops and events. Also has a full-service bike shop.

Specialty & Niche Sports

16. Padel Palm Springs

  • Specialty: The first dedicated padel club in the area. Offers court rentals, lessons, and sells padel-specific racquets and equipment.

  • Address: 1900 S Palm Canyon Dr, Palm Springs, CA 92264 (Inside the Palm Springs Tennis Club)

  • Contact: (760) 406-0049

  • Website: padelpalmsrings.com

Important Notes Before You Go:

  • Call Ahead: Hours, especially seasonal hours for golf and tennis shops, can change. Always call to confirm.

  • Make Appointments for Repair: For bike tune-ups, club fitting, or racquet stringing, appointments are highly recommended and often necessary.

  • Resort Pro Shops: While they have excellent equipment and services, access to resort pro shops may be limited to guests or members. It’s best to call ahead.

Paranormal History?

The Coachella Valley, with its ancient history, stark landscapes, and Hollywood connections, has a rich tapestry of paranormal stories and local lore. From haunted hotels to mysterious desert phenomena, here are some of the most interesting tales.

1. The Ghost of the Desert Princess

One of the most famous hauntings in the valley centers around the Desert Princess Hotel in Cathedral City (now a vacation club, but the stories persist).

  • The Story: The legend tells of a young woman, often called “The Lady in Red” or “The White Lady,” who was a guest at the hotel in the 1940s or 1950s. The most common version says she was jilted at the altar or discovered her fiancé was unfaithful on their wedding night. In her despair, she either jumped or fell from the balcony of her room to her death in the swimming pool below.

  • The Phenomena: Guests and staff have reported numerous sightings of a woman in a white gown or a red dress wandering the hallways, particularly on the 4th floor, and the pool area. Others report feeling a sudden chill, hearing faint crying, or seeing the figure of a woman staring out from the balcony where she allegedly fell. The pool area is said to be a hotspot for eerie feelings and cold spots.

2. The Shadow People of the Salton Sea

The abandoned communities around the Salton Sea, particularly Bombay Beach and Niland, are ripe for paranormal speculation.

  • The Story: The rapid rise and fall of the Salton Sea as a resort destination in the mid-20th century left behind a landscape of decay and lost dreams. This atmosphere fuels stories of “shadow people” or spectral figures seen moving through the ruins of trailers and abandoned buildings, especially at dusk.

  • The Phenomena: Visitors and urban explorers report feelings of being watched, hearing disembodied whispers on the wind, and seeing fleeting dark figures darting between structures. Some attribute this to the area’s tragic history of economic collapse and environmental disaster, believing it left a residual psychic imprint.

3. The Haunted Oasis of La Quinta

The La Quinta Resort & Club, a historic hideaway for Old Hollywood stars, is famously rumored to be haunted.

  • The Story: The most persistent ghost is said to be that of Frank Capra, the legendary director of It’s a Wonderful Life. He reportedly wrote the screenplay for Lost Horizon while staying in a specific casita (#215 is often cited). It’s believed he loved the place so much his spirit never left.

  • The Phenomena: Guests and staff staying in his former casita have reported typewriter keys clicking by themselves in the middle of the night, lights flickering, faucets turning on and off, and the feeling of a benevolent presence. Other ghosts rumored to be on the property include a woman in 1920s flapper attire and a mysterious man in a black suit.

4. The Cursed Bradshaw Ranch (Sedona Adjacent, but Connected in Lore)

While technically just across the border in Arizona near Sedona, the Bradshaw Ranch’s lore is so powerful it echoes into the Coachella Valley.

  • The Story: The ranch is ground zero for some of the most intense paranormal claims in the Southwest. Once a homestead, it’s now on National Forest land but is infamous as a UFO “hotspot” and a vortex of high strangeness.

  • The Phenomena: Reports here go far beyond a simple ghost. They include:

    • UFOs and Orbs: Sightings of structured crafts and balls of light are extremely common.

    • Interdimensional Portals: Believers claim the area contains gateways to other dimensions.

    • Shadow Beings and “Reptilians”: Encounters with aggressive, non-human entities.

    • Government Cover-ups: Stories of men in black and mysterious government vehicles patrolling the area.
      It’s considered by paranormal investigators to be one of the most active and intense sites in the region.

5. The Lost Ship of the Desert

This is one of California’s oldest and most enduring legends, blending history, myth, and paranormal speculation.

  • The Story: Tales have persisted for centuries that a Spanish galleon or a Viking longship lies buried under the sands of the Salton Sea basin or the surrounding deserts. Theories range from it being a ship that sailed up the Gulf of California during a period when the sea was connected, to a ship carried inland by a massive flood, to it being a complete mirage or metaphor.

  • The Phenomena: While no ship has ever been conclusively found, sightings have been reported for over 200 years. Explorers and prospectors have claimed to see the ship’s wreckage peeking out from the dunes after a windstorm, only to have it disappear again. It represents the ultimate desert mirage—a tangible mystery that continues to lure treasure hunters and dreamers.