BARTLETT -- Spin Doctor Cyclewerks was inducted last month into an elite group of Illinois businesses.
The store, at 140 S. Hickory Ave., earned a bronze Bicycle Friendly Business award from The League of American Bicyclists, making it one of only four Bicycle Friendly Business-certified stores in the state.
(Andrew A. Nelles/For The Courier-News)
While a bike shop earning an award for being "bicycle friendly" may not sound unique, Spin Doctor owner Greg Anderson had to go beyond selling equipment to earn the honor.
From the rainbow of gleaming bike frames hanging in the windows to the maps and post cards displayed on the front wall depicting all of the beautiful trails just waiting to be cycled, everything about Spin Doctor Cyclewerks makes one want to ride a bike.
Spin Doctor offers a youth bike trade-in program and personal bike-fitting service, and leads a number of cycling clubs, including one for senior citizens.
The store's Web site has links to many forums and a page devoted to debunking bicycling myths. For avid riders, there's even a link to check the weather.
Then there is its owner, Anderson, who is fit and happy-looking, ready to mentor anyone interested in learning more about the sport he loves.
"It's a part of who I am," Anderson said of cycling. "How could I not do it? It'd be like cutting out a part of myself."
Spin Doctor Cyclewerks won the Bicycle Friendly designation because Anderson does more than sell bikes. He actively works to make cycling a lifestyle for his customers, employees and community.
This summer alone, Anderson's efforts include sponsoring a Bicycle Bartlett family riding program, organizing a bike rodeo during Bartlett's National Night Out and working to create a map that will highlight all of the bike-safe streets in Bartlett that lead to the Metra train station downtown.
The passion Anderson puts into his work pays off financially, he admits, but how it fulfills him personally is worth 10-fold. He lights up when he talks about his customers.
One of his favorite stories involves a man who was told to exercise for health reasons, but at 300 pounds had trouble working out. Anderson sold the man a bike and "now he's down in the 200s -- enjoying life and living better," Anderson said.
David McFadden is another happy victim of Anderson's Cyclewerks magic.
A clinical director at Village Counseling Centre, McFadden has been biking to work every day for more than two years.
McFadden says he was always a cyclist, but after shopping at the Bartlett shop and meeting Anderson, he made cycling a "lifestyle."
Anderson has McFadden equipped and committed to 6 to 8 miles of riding to work every day, even in subzero temperatures, McFadden said.
Anderson opened Spin Doctor in 1996 with friend Ted Kahn and became the sole owner of the shop in 2003.
When he left his comfortable job with a brokerage firm working on the floor at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange for a quieter life in Geneva, he didn't know how things would turn out.
"God wanted me in a different place and he has me where he wants me now," Anderson said.
Some 13 years later, it appears Anderson's leap of faith has paid off.
For more information, visit www.spindoctorcyclewerks.com.