While we champion old-school indies such as Steichen's in St. Paul, no Twin Cities sporting goods shop—corporate or independent—can go toe-to-toe with the diversity of Dick's. The Richfield locale (one of six metro and seven statewide stores) is especially impressive. The well-staffed, multi-level layout is sharply designed and offers something for every athletic and leisure pursuit, including mainstream (baseball, hoops, hockey, golf), outdoor (fishing, hunting), fringe (racquetball, bowling), and fringe-fringe (squash, paintball, darts). On the main level, the golf section is especially striking, with a club-repair and club-fitting tech onsite. Upstairs, Dick's grows into an outdoorsman's Elysium, with a fishing section in particular that will hook any enthusiast. The store carries apparel to match its range of equipment, making it nearly impossible not to find what you came for. But if for some reason Dick's can't meet your needs, the beauty of the 494 meets 35W hub is that sports shops REI, HockeyGiant, and Sports Authority are all within a mile's drive.