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HOUGHTON - Passion for the sport is what drives them, and years of experience is what has earned them a great reputation.

The Bike Shop in Houghton has been a hot spot since opening its doors in early 2008, and, according to co-owner Steve Vizanko, it's because they love what they're doing.

"As a bike shop, if we're not out riding, we're not having fun," Vizanko said. "People like that we're doing this because we like this."

They like it so much that they closed down for the entire month of February and took advantage of their time off by going on vacation to go out and ride.

"It was a nice break," Vizanko said. "I was just as fired up to come back as I was to go."

The Bike Shop is a full service store, with road, mountain, hybrid and kids' bikes in stock. There are typically 100-125 bikes on the floor.

The Bike Shop also performs all levels of maintenance, from changing a tire to a complete overhaul.

"All of our staff has at least five years of experience working on bikes," Vizanko said.

They can do work on any type or brand of bike, and will usually get work done quickly. Many of their customers will drop a bike off in the morning or at lunch and pick it up that night.

"Our location is convenient," Vizanko said. "Which is nice for our customers."

Besides the advantages of being downtown, The Bike Shop also benefits from literally being attached to Rhythm Skateshop.

"We gain a lot of cross-traffic with Rhythm," Vizanko said. "It's real good to have complementary businesses."

Vizanko said they get a great mix of customers, ranging from local residents to Michigan Technological University students, and from experienced bikers to those who ride once a summer.

"We definitely cater to the hardcore bikers, but we get a pretty even mix," Vizanko said.

This summer, they plan to get more involved with the community by holding demonstrations and clinics, as well as continuing to support Red Jacket Cycling - a group of local riders that The Bike Shop sponsors.

Besides biking equipment and expertise, The Bike Shop also has a high quality supply of disc golf supplies.

"We picked it up because we're into it," Vizanko said. "We've been selling quite a bit of it."

The Bike Shop celebrated one year of business on April 15, and so far, business is good.

"We're really happy with how the store turned out," Vizanko said.

Michael H. Babcock can be reached at mbabcock@mininggazette.com.