Yesterday, I drove from my home in St. Paul to 50th and Bryant in Minneapolis. It was a quick 12 minute drive. I met Todd Olson at the home of "Urban Tri," the Metro area's newest tri store.
Todd gave me a tour of the shop. Click on the slideshow to the left to see the photos that I took. There's a big, open retail space on the main level, and the bike shop along with a lot of storage space is in the basement. In the back of the first floor is a feature that I'm the most excited about: there's a big bathroom that includes a full shower so that anyone can stop by the store and go for a bike or run (or both). And there will be lockers just outside of the bathroom for you to throw your gear into if you're doing a quick bike-to-run transition.
Olson first got serious about opening a tri store in the Cities shortly after finishing Ironman WI last year (in a respectable 10:55, I might add!). He told me that most of the deals for the space were drawn up and signed in about a month, and he quickly went from just-another-triathlete to business owner.
Urban Tri is set to open in a few weeks (mid-March), with a Grand Opening celebration probably taking place a few weeks after that (sometime in April). Olson wants to be working with athletes as they're getting ready to ramp up their training for the 2011 season, so he's not wasting any time!
Check out the slideshow of images to the left of the store in-progess, and become a fan of Urban Tri on Facebook to stay up-to-date on their opening date.
Follow Steve on twitter (http://twitter.com/SteveinaSpeedo), on his blog, or become a "fan" on Facebook to get local tri-related updates in your FB feed.
Comments