(Pictured: Colorado Running Company staff members Alex Nichols, Maddy Schmid, store co-ownerJohn O'Neill and assistant manager Jillian Keaveny)

John O’Neill and Jeff Tarbert met when their chiropractor Lori Cohen realized they shared a similar dream – a running store that would provide quality customer service and create a running community in Colorado Springs.
With only one other running store in the area, they sensed potential.
Colorado Springs was home to famous runs in the Garden of the Gods 10-miler and the Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon. There was a loose collection of elite runners and old-timers who had plodded the asphalt and trails for years. But there was no core, no heartbeat.
O’Neill and Tarbert began asking questions. What did Colorado Springs runners want?
They formed a focus group of runners, coaches and others to discuss the feasibility of opening a second running store downtown. The group included Roger Allison, a wild man who announced many local races in the area; Bob McAndrews, a national-class masters runner; longtime runners Eck and Bev Zimmerman; George Dallum, an exercise physiologist and triathlete; Gram Badger, cross country and track coach at the University of Colorado/Colorado Springs; and Nancy Hobbs, longtime runner and race organizer.
“We learned some things,” O’Neill said. “We learned that the group was thinking what we were thinking: that there was no sense of community at the time. The mountain guys didn’t get along with the road guys. There were a lot of good runners, but nobody running together. I didn’t even know that UCCS had a track and cross country team.”
The time was right for Tarbert, who was an ultra runner before ultra running was cool, and O’Neill, who has a sub-2:30 marathon on his resume, to run with their instincts.
They opened the Colorado Running Company at 833 N. Tejon in June of 2000. On Friday and Saturday, the store will celebrate its 10th Anniversary with plenty of good food and drink, vendor clinics, and the music of Gravity Tattoo, with John Gardner, president of the Pikes Peak Road Runners playing and singing. Everyone is invited to attend.
Assistant store manager Jillian Keaveny said the store runs on Tarbert’s and O’Neill’s energy. But, she says, O’Neill is the face of the Colorado Running Company, spending most of his days at the store, or in the community. He serves as timer for many local races. He promotes and talks about the benefits of running to anyone who will listen. He organizes and conducts weekly social runs from the store. A seven-day work week is the norm.
“I keep wanting to cut back, but I can’t,” he said. “The more we can do to get people involved, the better it is.”
Keaveny said it took her some time to understand O’Neill, who she described as quirky and compassionate with a dry sense of humor. But now she is a big fan.
“The things he does for people, just randomly, it’s great to see. One time they were all on a long run and one of the women forgot her water bottle. John jumped back in the car and drove to get the bottle. He cares a lot about the community.”
Every business strives to have great customer service, but the Colorado Running Company managers can’t stop talking about it.
“Our goal is to have the best customer service anywhere, of any business,” O’Neill said.
It can be intimidating to walk into a running store, especially for beginners. Keaveny said everyone who visits the Colorado Running Company is treated the same, regardless of their running ability. “We’ve all been at that first stage,” she said.
O’Neill realizes the benefits of running. Health is an issue for him, and for good reason. His parents were smokers and inactive. He said they died young because of their lifestyle choices. Now, one of his goals is to create more runners and help people live healthfully.
“I want to get moms and dads with bad habits, who are eating bad food, and get them on their feet,” he said. “People tell me that running hurts. I tell them that dying young hurts a lot more.”
The Colorado Running Company is a sponsor of the Colorado Springs Triple Crown of Running. The store also organizes and hosts several social runs each week, including:
Monday night Trinity Runs: 6 pm from Trinity (Soul Runners) (4-mile,
8-mile runs, varying paces)
Wednesday social runs: 6 p.m. from the store (various groups of speed, distances and time)
Friday morning runs: 7 a.m. from the store (various groups of speed, distances & time)
Saturday morning runs: 7:30 a.m. from the store. Plus, the first Saturday of every month includes food and drink and store sales.
O’Neill is married to Cindy O’Neill, a three-time winner of the Pikes Peak Ascent. They met at a race
in Texas.
“I’d finished and I had many beers in me,” John O’Neill
said. “It’s not that she was that much slower, I just drink fast.”
As the story goes, Cindy wanted some fruit, John made a comment about a banana and his pants, and … well … stop by the store this weekend and ask him to tell the story.
“She said she new right there that I was the one for her,” O’Neill said with a wry smile