Photo by John Kirkpatrick
With 6 years of endurance training and a desire to make cycling a profession, Larry Myles opened Be Real Sports Cycling & Fitness in 2018. Myles and company provide a wealth of knowledge to anyone who enters the shop, which features the latest in custom cycling and endurance equipment.
The shop also offers service, repairs and bike rentals with the goal of getting riders back on the road efficiently. Skilled technicians are available 24 hours a day, offer delivery and pick-up, and will lend customers a loan in the meantime.
Using his fitness studio, Myles and his team will individually customize each client with a bike that meets their needs and body type. They deal, service and rent a wide range of bikes and provide coaching services with programs designed for each individual.
“We rent and work on all makes and models of road and mountain bikes, servicing everything from vintage Schwinns to modern superbikes,” Myles said. “If drivers are unsure of what they are doing right or wrong with their fitness regimes, they can pop into our fitness studio for professional advice.”
Myles has always been an avid cyclist, racing BMX and eventually endurance tracks. He discovered his passion for providing clothing and servicing bicycles when local and regional colleges and universities started programs and sought out his expertise.
In 2010, his wife, whom he called “business savvy,” suggested he turn his passion into a business. Soon after, Myles left his career in industrial chemistry and mechanical engineering to pursue his dream of opening a bicycle shop.
Myles is joined by his son Mark, and the two place a strong emphasis on community, keeping it at the center of their efforts.
“So here we are, one of the few bike shops in our area, and we’re in a great spot within our community, with the green belt right behind us and on the edge of the belt line,” he said. “We’re community-driven like no tomorrow, and we host events and run weekly group rides for all ability levels.”
In the early years of Be Real, sponsored group rides included just over 10 riders; their newer rides number nearly 40. Both father and son said cycling in the area is growing steadily, but nothing compares to the surge in interest caused by the pandemic.
“Covid has changed the landscape of everything, and it’s no longer a cliché — it’s changed,” Myles said. “We were already in a good place when the pandemic hit because most people in the community who knew me associated me with bikes. We raised the issue, but then the boom happened and everyone who was limited wanted to be out, increasing sales.”
Myles said they haven’t slowed down since, taking that traction and continuing to build on it. He said he still runs into people who didn’t know they were around, but he’s slowly trying to change that.
For more information on Be Real Sports Cycling and Fitness, visit its website here. For the latest information on group rides, visit his Facebook page here.
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