The Trail Starts Here!

Meet our Staff!

Joel Buth – the Head Coach
(Store Owner
)

Joel Buth is the owner and lead operator of Goldstream Sports. He is originally from Waukesha, Wisconsin where he met his wife. She had ties to Fairbanks and in 1999 they decided to make the move to Alaska.

Joel has worked in cycling/ski shops since he was 14 years old and his first job when he moved to Fairbanks was working at Beaver Sports. He also was a HS Cross Country Ski Coach in Fairbanks from 1999-2004. He coached in WI prior to that.

In the midst of coaching and working at Beaver Sports, Joel and his wife started a family and they made the decision that she would work and he would stay at home with the kids. It drove him stir crazy so he did something he said he would never do – open a ski and cycling shop. He felt there was an opportunity in Fairbanks to open a shop that could excel in customer service and loyalty in an underserviced area in the hills of Fairbanks. So in October of 2004, Goldstream Sports opened it’s doors.

Joel continued to coach HS Ski through that winter but then was forced to give that up with his responsibilities in the shop.

Athletically, Joel was a skier first. He grew up loving bikes but developed moreso racewise in cross country skiing – and he got pretty good! Wisconsin hosts the largest cross country ski race in North America – the American Birkebeiner – and Joels best finish was 21st overall in the race 6 minutes behind the winners and out of a field of around 8,000 participants.

He became nationally ranked and flirted with the idea of the Olympic Ski Team. But coaching athletes ended up becoming his passion and is still something he does in his free time today working with his two teenage boys and other athletes who work in the shop.

Joel has completed three Ironman Races as well. This was Tysons grand idea. Tyson wanted to do it and Joel one day said, I’m going to join you. Five years later Joel had completed Ironman Cozumel, Ironman Cabo San Lucas, and Ironman Wisconsin.

Tyson Flaherty – the Fat Bike Champion.
(Store Manager)

Standing 6 feet 1 inches, Tyson likes to ride his bike a lot.  

Tyson has been an accomplished skier and runner for West Valley High.  He then went on to ski for the UAF ski team for 3 years.  After UAF, Tyson moved up to competing for the Alaska Pacific University skiing competitively around the United States and Europe.  Tyson traveled 7 years in a row to Scandinavia and Central Europe to race in FIS World Junior Ski Championships and the Under 23 World Championships.  

While he was slowing down his ski racing career he began working for Joel here at Goldstream Sports in the summer of 2005.   Now 15 years later Tyson has 2 children and has gotten really into long endurance fat bike racing.  He has now won the White Mountains 100 on bike 2 times and the Iditarod Trail Invitational 350 to McGrath one time. 

Luke – the next generation
(Sales & Repairs)

Luke is the oldest son of shop owner, Joel Buth. He is a rising senior at West Valley High School and represents the school on the cross country ski team. Luke has qualified for the state cross country ski meet and qualified for Junior Nationals this past year.

Cycling wise, Luke is the youngest participant to complete the White Mountain 100. Last year he placed 14th overall in his finish. His favorite type of cycling is Mountain Biking and he is the 3- time defending champ of the Goldstream Sports Hoo Doo Cup. He races BMX in Fairbanks every summer, has traveled to race in the lower 48 and competed in the Canadian National Championships.

Aaron – the world traveler
(Marketing Manager)

Aaron is an Alaska transplant, relocating to Fairbanks in October of 2018 from Raleigh, NC (why? Let’s just say another very handsome man was involved and he thought Alaska sounded fun). After spending a few years with the Carlson Center, Aaron relocated to Salt Lake City to work as a Digital Marketing Strategist for Avalaunch Media. He continues to assist Goldstream with our marketing efforts. He came on board part time as the Marketing Manager for Goldstream in February of 2019.

Aaron started competing in triathlons in 2016. To date he he has completed five 70.3 distance events, one full distance Ironman (Maryland, 2018), and numerous Olympic and Sprint distance races. In 2019 he was the first place overall male at the Fairbanks Sourdough 70.3 race. He has qualified for the USAT Age Group National Championship in August and has a goal of qualifying for the 70.3 IRONMAN World Championship next year. Aaron has participated in endurance events across the United States as well as Chile and Costa Rica.

Eric – the Outdoorsman
(Repairs)

Eric is a rising senior at West Valley HS. He started working at Goldstream Sports last March and recently celebrated his one year anniversary working on bike repairs in the shop.

He is on the cross country running and ski teams at West Valley HS. He qualified for the state championships for running and cross country ski the last two years. He also represents Team Alaska as a competitive skier.

His favorite type of cycling is mountain biking. He competes in the Hoo Doo Cup and Chena Hot Springs 60 mile ride. After High School he’s not completely sure of his future plans but he’d like to go to the lower 48 to go on a road trip and cycle across the states.

Jordan – the future lawyer
(Sales & Repairs)

Jordan is a new graduate of West Valley High School and is enrolled at UAF this fall with a major in Political Science and a Minor in Photographic Journalism. Many of the photos on our website were taken by him!

He would like to become an Environmental Lawyer. He has worked for Goldstream Sports for 3 years and competes on the West Valley Cross Country Ski Team. He has qualified for the state championship twice, and has qualified for the junior national team twice. Additionally , he competed at senior nationals with the Fairbanks Cross Country Ski Club.

Jordan does some sales and some bike repair work in the shop. When asked what his job title was he said, whatever Joel needs. Joel liked that answer.

Simon – the mechanic (Lead Mechanic)