Shockspital's new digs/New rental shop/Rental road bikes!

No, no, we (Shockspital) haven't moved again. We're just revamping our space in the Freewheel Midtown Bike Center. Until now we were tucked back in a corner with no great way to talk with our local customers when they stopped in. But now we have a counter! And retail parts displays! Check it out:

Super-pro suspension shop setup

It's hard to see in the photo, but we also reconfigured our benches to better harness the chi in the room. Next time you stop by, be sure to refer to our workspace as The Lab. It makes us feel smart(er).

In addition, Freewheel Midtown now has a New Bike Showroom, which is behind the camera in the above photo, where the public rental shop used to be. We actually have bikes for sale! We don't have as large a selection as West Bank and Eden Prairie (not enough room), but we have a dozen or so hand-picked steeds for your perusal.

But don't worry, the public shop is still here. We moved it into the big back room, which has been used for many things (Nice Ride service department, Free Bikes for Kids service department, Freewheel Winter Bike Expo), but is now lookin' sharp as the new home of the rental shop.

And, as a bonus side-note, Freewheel Midtown now has a fleet of rental Cannondale CAAD10 road bikes. These babies are hot!

...and they've been popular. Next time you want to rent a fast bike to take out on the Midtown Greenway Drag Strip, this is your rocket ship. Just make sure you slow down in front of our door--there's a lot of folks coming in and out of there who don't want to get run over.

The adventure begins. Hayley Olson, Freewheel mechanic and

University of Minnesota racer, and her teammate Andy Sullivan

set out July 2, 2012 for their 1,331 mile drive to Sun valley

Idaho to compete in 2012 USA Cycling Cross Country Mountain

Bike National Championships at Sun Valley Ski Resort.

After a grueling overnight drive they finally reached

Yellowstone National Park at around 5:00 a.m. mountain

daylight time.

Being a head of their schedule they took some time to explore

Yellowstone, catching the sunrise as it slowly glazed the

mountain peaks.

Not too long after their adventure at Yellowstone they reached

Sun Valley Ski Resort where they stood in ah gazing at the

mountain standing 9,150 feet from sea level. They could not

believe this vainglorious hill would be their racecourse.

Here Hayley shows off the Freewheel colors under the official

start/finish line of the racecourse.

On their first official day in the mountains they made sure to

pre-ride the course. By this point they have been scaling the

side of the mountain for at least seven miles, elevation change

over 1,000 feet.

The terrain was not always the smoothest. Here they slide

across loose shale trying to hold traction so they don’t go

rolling down the side of the mountain.

Here they are looking out at a section of the mountain that was

destroyed by a wildfire. One blessing of the wildfire was that

a ten-minute downhill run was put in weaving through the

rebirthing forest. It was their first real taste of mountain riding.

The third downhill section was filled with these tight

switchbacks where even the best of riders had to throw down a

foot.

It is now race day July 5, 2012. After surviving the pre-ride,

race day wasn’t so lucky. Here Hayley shows off her swollen

knee that smashed into a sharp chunk of shale halfway through

the race.

 A smashed knee wasn’t the only injury to go home with. Hayley

also ended up finishing the last five miles of the race with a

sprained hand from a second crash that took place in the third downhill. But once all patched up they headed back to the bulletin board to see the results. To their astonishment…

…Even with two crashes, Hayley ended up on the podium with

fifth place in her first ever Nationals event. Her teammate Andy

Sullivan ended with some glory as well, having the fastest

overall downhill time.

Supporting their school colors and brand new bling they get

ready to start their 22-hour journey back to Minnesota. Both

racers are forever grateful for having the opportunity to attend

the 2012 USA Cycling Cross Country Mountain Bike National

Championship. They would like to throw out a special thanks

to Freewheel Bike and their sponsors for all of their support.

Finally their journey ends July 6, 2012 at 11:00 p.m. central

daylight time back in Minnesota. Minnesota never fails to have

a grand welcoming.