Justin Yoder, co-owner of Indie Bike, decided that he did not want to wait to put his post-retirement dreams of opening a store that sells outdoor apparel on hold.

"I went to college and got a degree in education that I am obviously not using. . . Toward the end of college, I realized I could not see myself teaching long-term," Yoder said. "Education seems to be becoming about standards, testing and red tape-not about the kids at all. It's pretty frustrating.

"Basically, I had always wanted to run an outdoors shop of some sort, and I thought it would be my after retirement pet. But when I got into cycling, it seemed like such a natural thing, and I thought, why wait?"

So Yoder, along with his second cousin Tom Stahly, opened Indie Bike on 52nd at College (right behind Luna Music) in early November of 2006.

Stahly, who graduated with a degree in business, shares a similar philosophy on the opening of the store as Yoder.

"I initially started a web-marketing company right out of college," he said. "But I wanted to give this a shot, and since cycling is something I really enjoy doing, it just seemed to make sense."

The owners said the main focus of the shop is to provide a larger variety of biking apparel for men and women beyond actual bikes.

"The selection here is better than what you find at many other stores," Yoder said. "This is mainly because a lot of shops don't put money into their clothing inventory, just because bikes are so expensive."

The store is unique in the fact that the owners do not sell or repair bikes. As Stahly put it, "We try to be the opposite of your normal bike shop, and instead, carry many of the popular bicycling apparel brands." Castelli, Girodana, Hincampie, Assos, Louie Garneau, Vermarc, Pearl Isumi and Verge are just of some of the brands they carry. Customers are able to try on the jerseys and lycra shorts right in the store as well.

Bicycling is not just a business to the owners; it is a major part of their life and something they enjoy. Both owners ride daily and this summer they put together a Summer Tour, which started with the Rain Ride and continues every weekend until the Hilly Hundred.

Indie Bike will have a vender tent set up at the Hilly for all hill riders to fulfill their need for fashionable new colorful gear.

Cycling business enthusiasts can go to their website and read the blogs to check out the weekly progress, as well as buy gear (www.indiebike.com). Spectators and cyclists alike should also look for the owners' ultra-cool retro Indie Bike VW Camper, straight out of the 70s.

"More than anything (with the tour), we are trying to get our name out and get people to know who Indie Bike is," Stahly said. "Our main focus on these rides is to push our name and push our website. If we happen to sell stuff along the way, that's great too."