- ONLINE RETAILERS who service the tri-specfic community.
- F.I.S.T.-CERTIFIED tri bike fitters.
- CONTACT INFORMATION for the dealers below.
- GUIDELINES for these pages.
- INDEX of all retailer profiles.

....:::: SHOPS ON THIS PAGE ::::....

Dragon Sports is a 2-shop chain in and around the Pensacola area—one of which is in Pensacola, the other on the coast as you go east toward Panama City. Although the Reback family lives in Palm Beach, Dragon Sports is Laura Reback's store. They have an impressive collection of tri bike brands, and carry the other sort of stuff triathletes would want. (Contact information for the above dealer).

Pros: Bike lines include Cannondale, QR, Litespeed, Softride, Kestrel and Giant. They carry QR wetsuits, and Speedo and TYR apparel. They go to expos and have their own tri team — Dragonsport.net — which includes abouit 40 on the roster.

Cons: No Trek or Cervelo, not the sort of long-time, second or third generation family store that you find so much throughout Florida.

Great Bicycle Shop," is in Tallahassee, and along with Tec's is more or less a good place for triathletes to consider doing bike business in that town.(Contact information for the above dealer).

Pros: These people have a great attitude, and with women on the staff they might be a bit more conscious of that demographic than your average shop. They carry Giant, LeMond and Litespeed bikes.

Cons: Not as tri-specific as Tec's, the don't have the big tri bike lines, they are thin in apparel and wetsuits for triathletes.

Tec's Bicycle Sport is one of two shops to consider in Tallahassee. . (Contact information for the above dealer).

Pros: Co-owner Ed Holt is a triathlete himself. His store carries QR bikes, as well as Serotta, Trek and Cervelo. It sponsors a local team, triathletes who are part of the Gulf Winds Track Club.

Cons: It's probably the best tri-specific bike shop in the area, yet it's a bit thin when it comes to soft goods. No wetsuits and little tri apparel.

Truly Spokin' is in Milton, Florida, which is just east of Pensacola. It's going to compete with Dragon Sports' two shops (it's in between them) as well as Tri-it Bicycle Shop in metro Mobile, Alabama. (Contact information for the above dealer).

Pros: They carry Giant and Felt, and the new tri line of apparel from Hincapie. They als sponsor the Santa Rosa Triathlon.

Cons: Weak in tri bike lines. Yes, they have a strong one in Felt, but no QR, Litespeed, Cervelo, Kestrel, Softride and so on. No wetsuits, and an unproven apparel line.

BACK TO SHOP LIST

Tri 3 Racing (Apr, 05) opened its doors in 2005, and as such is one of a new breed of tri specific shops that can earn a living from this sport, now that triathlon has grown to a critical mass needed to feed a support infrastructure. This store sells Kuota and Cervelo bikes, Orca and Ironman wetsuits, and apparel from Speedo, TYR, Nike, Descente Tri, Cervelo and Pearl Izumi. (Contact information for the above dealer).

Pros: The shop offers both coaching and equipment. Jerome and Cindy are ex-ITU racers and, as such, bring a sophistication and approach to the process of getting better and faster. Time will tell whether shops like this, which offer an organic approach to service—offering both hard goods and training expertise—will outperform the traditional retail model. Don't think that Jerome Isakov and Cindy Horrocks, two of the shops three owners, are simply ITU-specific. They're both F.I.S.T. certified, and they understand and appreciate the difference between timed and mass start racing.

Cons: Tri 3 Racing is not yet the sort of full service bike shop that can support all your bike-related needs. It'll take awhile before the bike parts, accessory and service elements to this store rise to make it a one-stop destination.