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Elite observations: Choosing a running store that's right for you

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Created on Tuesday, 15 February 2011 14:29

Written by Nathan

By TOMMY MANNING

Editor’s note: Manning is a math teacher and cross country coach at Fountain Valley School who finished 18th this month in the World Mountain Running Championships. He will provide periodic tips — all of which can be found here on OutThereColorado.com.

One thing every runner needs is a local running store. We want a running store where we feel comfortable, where we trust the staff with advice and shoes, and where we want to hang out.

In April 2008, I met Greg Tyndall at a race expo. He works for New Balance and Colorado Springs is in his territory. I was moving to the Springs soon and knew there were three running stores in town. I asked him which one I should affiliate with, hang out with and run for. He gave me sound advice as he said, “Why don’t you visit all three and decide for yourself?”

So I did.

I had worked in a running store before and knew what I was looking for. I was looking for a store that was clean and organized. I wanted to see a good selection of shoes, apparel and accessories. And I wanted to meet employees who were friendly, helpful and knowledgeable -- about products in the store, our sport in general and competitive racing.

I went into store No. 1 and noticed a nice selection of shoes, apparel and accessories. I talked to the staff members, and they were great. They were knowledgeable and helpful, and I thought they did a great job as I spied on them helping other customers. I spoke with them about competitive racing and I learned a lot about running in Colorado Springs from them. I walked out of the store thinking this store could be my store.

When I went into store No. 2, I had a very good first impression. The store was clean, organized, had a nice layout and had a professional tone. They had a lot of apparel, shoes and accessories.  In addition, the employees were friendly and knowledgeable and I liked talking to them. I walked out knowing I could hang out in this store and was looking forward to visiting store No. 3.

Store No. 3 looked nice and had a good selection of shoes, apparel and accessories as well. I talked to employees and quickly found this store to have the most knowledgeable staff. They could talk all things running whether it was local trails, small 5k races or competitive races throughout the state.

Find your running store: Boulder Running Company ... Colorado Running Company ... Runners Roost

All three stores had a downside, however. I did not have a good first impression of one store as it did not seem to be organized and there was a lot of clutter. The downside to another store was its shoe prices. This store sold each of its shoes for $5-10 more than the other stores, which really bothered me. At another store, I was amazed to walk around for a few minutes without a greeting and decided to time how long it would take. It took another 3-4 minutes after I started timing before anyone simply said hello.

So which store is best for you? It depends on what you’re looking for. The store that will give you tips and advice on improving your running might not be the one that puts you in the best fitting and most comfortable shoes and might not be the one offering social opportunities to meet other runners. I think I will give you Greg’s advice and tell you to visit each store and decide for yourself.

Personally, I think all three running stores in town are great for our sport. I had to choose one, and if any of you have ever seen me at a local race, you know I run in a Colorado Running Company singlet.

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