Spirit Fitness Equipment

The leaves have changed colors and a few mornings have been downright cold. Old man winter is coming and that means it’s time to plan for indoor workouts. We just started carrying Spirit Fitness equipment to help you meet your fitness goals. They’re a 30 year old company dedicated to providing quality residential and commercial fitness equipment.

Spirit makes a variety of treadmills, ellipticals, and fitness bikes to suit many different needs. Everything from the dedicated triathlete to the person just wanting to keep their legs moving in the Winter months.

Spirit's recumbent stationary bikes focus on comfort and solid quality. The recumbent bikes have mesh seat-backs for comfort and you can adjust the angle of the backs on the top two models.

Spirit's elliptical trainers are designed to fit a wider variety of people. The ellipticals come in three distinct models each offering more than the last. The foot pads on the elliptical trainers are angled inward 2 degrees to better align your legs and also feature a narrower Q factor which contributes to a wider range of fit.

Spirit offers five different treadmills. Most of the treadmills fold to save some space and all are great for a variety of workouts. There are entry level models that are perfect for walking or hiking and more fully featured units perfect for the lifetime runner.

The consoles all have manual operation and basic programs to help you change up your workouts and move past those fitness plateaus and feature an easy to read LCD screen. Each model  features different options for programs and many work with wireless heart rate monitors.

There are resistance/speed and incline controls in many of the handlebars on all the different types of equipment so you don’t have to reach over to the console mid-workout to make adjustments.

Of course we still have Landice treadmills and ellipticals, WaterRower rowing simulators and Body Solid strength equipment. So come on over and give them a try!

Take A Kid Mountain Biking Day

Do you remember when you first got into cycling? Like many of us, I'm sure it was when you were young and if it wasn't I bet you wish it had been. The Columbia Parks and Recreation Department in partnership with GetAbout Columbia are hosting the first Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day this Saturday Oct. 5th at Capen Park. Kids will be instructed and supervised as they navigate some of the beautiful trails running through Capen to hopefully encourage a new love for cycling as a sport. We can't think of a better way to grow the sport that we love and introduce kids to a healthier lifestyle! We'll see you out there!

Walt's Loves Cyclocross

If you haven't already figured it out, we love cyclocross. With cross season in full swing, Dogfish Hermann Cross this weekend and CoMO Cyclocross Cup next Saturday we can hardly contain ourselves. Expect to see a strong showing from Walt's Tallgrass members at both events.

The CoMO Cyclocross Cup is Columbia, MO's premier cyclocross race. This year, CCXC13 will be held under the lights at Cosmopolitan Park. Sponsorships from Focus on Health, The Eye Gallery, Tallgrass Brewing, Off Track Events, Trek,  Bontrager, and of course Walt's Bike Shop are going to help put this event on the map this year. We can't wait to throw down with some of the best competitors from St. Louis, Kansas City, and the rest of Missouri's finest!

We want you to fall in love with cyclocross too! That's why for the next week select "cross specific" items will be marked down in the store. Get everything you need to truly fall in love with the sport. Wheels, tires, pedals, clothing, helmets, shoes, sunglasses, embrocation, gloves and more will be discounted through Sunday the 22nd. We even have a few select cyclocross bikes on deep discount. Mention CoMO Cyclocross Cup to get the deal. Hurry and stop by the shop to stock up for a full season!

CoMO Cyclocross Training Series

Can you feel it? Cyclocross is in the air and though it may still be sweltering outside we here at Walt's are all hoping for a cold and nasty season. Tonight begins the CoMO Cyclocross Training Series out at Socket Internet's headquarters. The series meets every Tuesday night from now until November 19th at 6pm. Two 20 minute races (one at 6pm and another at 6:40) help locals hone their skills on the course and enjoy the thrills of one of our favorite disciplines of cycling.

CoMo Cyclocross from Benjamin Zack on Vimeo.

The series is perfect for everyone from the beginner to the seasoned cyclist. If you're interested in the sport come out and saddle up or feel free to spectate! Each night only costs $5 and no USA Cycling license is required.

CoMO Cyclocross has quickly become a staple of our cycling community and we're really looking forward to its continued growth in 2013. Check out their website and be sure to follow the series on facebook and twitter to stay up to date!

Walt’s Bike Shop Back To School Sale and Swap Meet!

Don't miss the savings Thursday through Sunday during our Back to School Sale.  You'll find everything in the store at great prices. Swing by and check out our Swap Meet on Saturday!

2014 Salsa Spearfish

Andy spent a few days out West at QBP's Ogden, UT headquarters to take a look at the latest from Salsa Cycles. Along with the rest of the line, he spent some time on the newly re-designed full suspension mountain bike, the Salsa Spearfish. Here's what he had to say:

For 2014 Salsa has upped their game to compete with the big boys in the mountain bike market. Gone are the outdated single pivot designs of the past and in comes a split pivot design by one of the sports true gurus, Dave Weigle. The split pivot makes for a much more active and supple ride than that of the previous generation models from Salsa. With the split pivot separating brake forces from the suspension movement the suspension can move freely through its travel without hindrance, allowing the rider to keep the tires on the ground and maintaining traction even when the going gets rough.

Salsa has also made the bikes look wholly different from previous versions by hiring new graphic designers to make the bikes really stand out from the other manufacturers. Salsa has 100% succeeded on that front. The paint this year is unreal and everyone will be blown away by how different they look.

After having the chance to get out on a long ride on the new Spearfish that included 2000 feet of elevation gain, I can definitely recommend the bike to the Columbia crowd.  There isn’t too much travel to make the bike a burden uphill, but there is just enough to keep the bike fun and add comfort to all day rides. The bike makes short work of rough descents but allows for an agile ride when the climbs get steep.  Salsa has wisely included Fox Racing Shox’s new CTD suspension that really lets you dial in what you need the bike to do in a given terrain.

All in all I for one can’t wait for the bikes to get into the store so everyone can see the big gains Salsa has made for 2014.

Winter Project: Women's Section!

Every Winter we try to find a big project for the store. Last year, we redid the floors in the service department and put in some really nice cabinet doors. This year, we've remodeled part of the store to make room for a women's specific section! Stop by the shop and check it out!

Spring Sale Sweepstakes: Enter To Win a $400 Gift Card!

Leading up to our Spring Sale on April 11-14th we will be having a Facebook sweepstakes. Click here to enter to win a $400 gift card to the shop!

Walt's Tallgrass Ambassador Team

This past year we launched our Walt's Bike Shop/Tallgrass Brewing ambassador team. The goal of the team was to bring promotion of cycling through involvement in events around Missouri. This included group rides, awareness and charity rides, races and even "party rides" such as the Pedaler's Jamboree. We believe that the team has succeeded in growing the sport over the past year and are looking forward to continuing in 2013.

Ambassadors accumulated over 200 hours of service at events such as The Pedaler's Jamboree, Bike MS, Froze Toes, the Monster Bike Bash, Rhett's Run MTB Race, the Walt's Breast Cancer Awareness Ride and many more.

In racing, Walt's Tallgrass ambassadors have seen plenty of time spent on podiums around Missouri and in surrounding states. We were even able to take home three state champion cyclocross jerseys!

In 2013, the we will continue to support local cycling through a variety of events. The team will again promote the CoMo Awesomo Cyclocross Race here in Columbia and will co-promote the Hairy Hundred Gravel Race and the CoMo Cyclocross Training Series.

Also in 2013, the team will continue to grow. We're proud to announce that this year there will be two tiers of membership including the Club Ambassador and Elite Ambassador levels. Feel free to stop by the shop for more information about joining the Ambassador Team!

Thank You to our Customers!

Walt's would like to send out a special thanks to all of our great customers this holiday season. We had an awesome turnout at our customer appreciation night and hope that everyone had a good time! We'd also like to thank Trek, Salsa, Camelbak and Shimano for donating all the great prizes for our raffle. Be sure to check out some photos taken by Walt's Ambassador, Derek Fox here.