Running Away Multisport

Unfortunately I cannot remember the name of my sales associate but I do remember he was awesome. I recently began a running program and had to stop due to knee problems. My physical therapist recommended RAM and said they offer the best bang for your bucks. I went with my friend tried on a few pairs of shoes. I left the store delighted with my new shoes and can’t wait to use them in my first 5K.

Shortly after my last review, I was contacted by RAM’s owner, Steve, to rectify my negative customer service experience. He apologized and listened as I explained exactly what had transpired. Consequently, he offered to send the XS sweatpants if in stock, which is great news!
Coming from a business background, I truly do appreciate Steve tracking down my information, reaching out personally via phone, REALLY listening to my experience, then presenting a solution. He went above and beyond to make me a happy customer again, thank you for your professionalism and understanding.

I was admittedly nervous about going to RAM just because all signs point to them being more runner-​focused and I’m a neophyte cyclist that is still learning. But then I met Anne. She’s the bike fitter at the store on Clybourn. I was immediately at ease with her quick wit and obvious knowledge about bikes and proper fit. As a new cyclist I had a lot of questions and Anne answered them all patiently and confidently. The machine you ride during the fit process is super cool; allowing adjustments to position as you ride to see what works best. We even swapped saddles multiple times to see what was most comfortable. The entire fit process takes about 2 hours and Anne literally looks at everything from head to toe both on and off the bike to help find the best fit. It was really interesting what you can find out about your body and ability.
Also I want to mention that while I was waiting for my appointment I met Lisa. She chatted with me about my interests and how I started getting into cycling. She was so nice and friendly which really helps because often people that are new to any sport can be intimidated by going to shops where folks more experienced have a tendency to look down upon new people that don’t know anything. That wasn’t the case here at all. Lisa helped make me feel welcomed and relaxed. Overall a really great experience.

This kind of applies to both the Deerfield store and the Chicago store — albeit more of my experience has been with the Chicago store, the bike fit was done with Brian from the Deerfield store.
So, I’ve been training for my first triathlon. Just so happens to also be a half iron distance. Having never done ANY triathlons, let alone any significant amount of swimming or cycling, I figured I needed some help. I had actually begun my search for help at another multi sport store in the city, who shall not be named. Suffice it to say, I was met with a lot of blank stares and judge eyes with all of my newbie questions. At Running Away, those questions were answered with nothing but helpful suggestions and tips! I’ve gotten most of my tri gear from here and have even purchased a new bike from them! Now, yes, the prices are a bit much — but that’s kind of par for the course. I’m opting not to go on Amazon or another online retailer — mostly because I don’t feel comfortable enough yet getting what I need online without the help of someone in store. Which you probably wouldn’t get at the first store I went to. Jerks. :)

Service is so friendly, which was especially notable since I was a little wary to go in as a non-​runner, non-​triathalon-​er. I needed goggles, because I wanted to start swimming at my gym, and I realized that this place might have them.
The lady who helped me was very nice, and when one pair of goggles broke about a month later, she looked up my customer information in their database and I was able to exchange the broken ones for a new pair easily.
My boyfriend also got his bike tuned up here recently, and his experience was pleasant as well.

This place saved my hands on a particularly polar vortex-​y day a couple weeks ago. I had been trying numerous different combinations of my existing glove arsenal, but eventually the wind just cut right through them all. This is when the associate introduced me to the Sugoi Lobster glove. Since then, me and the lobster gloves have been like peas and carrots. Occasionally, it’s too cold even for them, and I’ll supplement them with a liner, but they’ve been worth every penny. I also ripped out the care instructions on the gloves (right before laundry day – smart), called the store, and someone on the phone explained they were hand wash only (why this information wasn’t available on Sugoi’s website – I checked – I have no idea). I kind of figured I would be playing with fire to toss a pair of $ 75 gloves in the washing machine, but it was nice to know for sure.
The only thing keeping it from being 5 stars is that the $ 75 gloves were actually about $ 61 on Amazon. I’m happy to support local businesses, but c’mon now.

Great staff what a great experience the minute I walked in the door I knew I had come to the right place. I am a overweight middle aged woman and I was told buy a friend the first thing I needed was a great pair of exercise shoes after reading the reviews on Unilocal I decided to try this place. I don’t think I will ever go anywhere else now. they had me stand on this machine that lasered the bottom of my feet, to see where the pressure point on the bottom of my feet were. Then they had me walk up and down the aisle while they watched me walk to see how my stride was. I then tried on 3 different brands of shoes and picked the 1 that felt the best for me. I am now happy to say I have joined a gym in the shoes are wonderful on my feet. O and they even offer me coffee or tea why I was try the shoes on. And the prices were great.

This review is based on my experience purchasing a bike.
After spending the better part of 2013 dealing with various running injuries, I had finally had it. I needed a sport that wouldn’t be so hard on my body, and my doctor and some friends recommended triathlons. I already ran, and I swam OK so all I needed was the bike. My existing bike is nearly as old as I am (+30), and being the competitive type I knew that my clunker would leave me eating dust in a race. I needed to hold my nose, grip my credit card and get a new bike.
I was initially planning on waiting a few months to get a bike but a friend of mine alerted me to a sale RAM was having (35% off all bikes) and she said that we need to get there STAT to see if there was anything that would work. My friend and I trekked down to East Bumblef*** Clybourne (seriously, it’s feels a zillion miles from public transit) and were helped by a young man and Anne, who is the bike tech person. After discussing what I was looking for (and them helping me determine what my needs were) we found a Felt Woman’s road bike that fit my needs and was awesomely priced.
After purchasing the bicycle we scheduled a bike fitting, which came as part of the package. So I returned the following Saturday and spent 2 hours with Anne on a computerized mock bike. With the touch of a button she could make adjustments to the centimeter to find the most comfortable and ergonomic fit. There aren’t enough superlatives to describe how worth it the fitting was… we made discoveries such as the handlebars on my purchased bike being too narrow, and the saddle not working too well with my bio-​mechanics. We were able to switch those out and it made a dramatic difference with my cadence and how comfortable I felt in the saddle. Cycling went from being «this is hard work yo’ «to «OMG this is amazing.»
I also felt that Anne worked hard to find the best bike/​accessories for the best price… if we could save a few bucks we would, and if spending a few extra meant a huge difference in comfort she would look for the most affordable option. She also gave some form tips and discussed classes RAM had for cyclists that would teach me how to do things such as change a flat or perform basic maintenance.
As an FYI, with a new bike purchase a saddle bag is included which is stocked with a flat repair kit, tube and mini-​pump. Also included is 1 year of service for the bike. I’m not sure if this is standard across the board with bike shops or not but I thought those were nice extras.
Overall, I was extremely happy with my purchase and the service and if I could give 6 stars I would. As an almost total n00B to cycling, I found bike shopping intimidating but I was put at ease by Anne and the experience was extremely fun (well, the cash dropping wasn’t but you kind of have to expect the initial start up costs enough to make you and Baby Jesus cry). I left feeling that cycling is something I was starting to fall in love with, and that RAM gave me a great start for my triathlon/​cycling hobby.

This is my favorite place to get running shoes. I strongly prefer it over Fleet Feet. I go in once a year usually to get new shoes for the marathon. Staff has always been helpful, polite, and not pushy. I went in yesterday to get a new pair of Nikes, and a staffer (Katie, I believe) couldnt have been more helpful. She wasn’t trying to rush me, knew every detail about the shoes, and brought me shoes on clearance as well. I just find this place to be much more laid back (without compromising knowledge or helpful assistance) than some of its competitors and I will always come here for running shoes.

I accompanied my wife while she looked for her bike. We went to RAM and we were immediately assisted by a friendly lady. She knew her stuff but did not let us test ride any bikes. She rather set up an appointment for a «fitting.» I asked her if the fitting cost anything and she said yes, $ 300 (approximate).
I know these fittings are for people who want custom fit bikes. We did not want that. She should have told us the cost. besides, Every bike shop will give you a FREE fitting when you buy your bike. We told her we both have been riding long enough to know our size and exactly what we want but she insisted we get the fitting.
My wife bought her cervelo elsewhere, got a free fitting and has free tune ups for life.

Quite a few selection of running shoes. Also have small sales on older selection of awesome shoes. Good price.

Hello,
My friend was running a fundraiser for World Bicycle Relief at Running Away Multisport in Deerfield. Plus #1. They allowed her to use their store for her passion.
While she was running her table, I came to visit her. I decided to take a look at some shoes and was guided by my friend to the owner’s daughter? She was very knowledgeable and gave me a full consultation for the right shoe for me. She listened to me explain my problem points, including shooting pain in my foot, plantar fasciitis, and knee pain. (The knee pain is not anything dangerous per a highly regarded sports Orthopedic Surgeon who specializes in knees).
The employee took her time with me, answered all my questions, and had me try on many different shoes. She evaluated the type of foot shape I had just by taking a glance, picking out the shoes that suited my foot.
As I embarrassed myself by running back and forth in the store, (per the employee’s request,) she pointed out problems I had with each brand — just by watching me run! «My arch hurts when I run.» «I saw you running this way in that shoe.» or «I can feel shooting pain in the top of my foot» «Let me take a look and see if you really are a size 8.» Turns out I’m a 9!
We finally found a shoe that fit me amazingly well, was extremely comfortable, and I felt very minimal pain.
The employee even suggested a specific type of yoga that has helped her and her friends gain the proper strength and flexibility for running.
We then gabbed about our interests and similarities and had some girl time… which I do not get often. (That was a little off the subject, but it shoes (shows, haha) the interest the employees take in the lives of their clients.)
«I find it so amazing the things I learn about the people who walk in here. You would never know until you ask! I guess anybody can run!» ~ The words of my ‘shoe therapist’.
Thanks y’all. I would highly recommend the Deerfield Running Away Multisport store. Just know which questions to ask, don’t be ashamed to ask too many questions. You’re spending the money on the shoes. It’s only right to get the kind you need.

Great service, very knowledgable on biking and components, easy to do business with. Helpful in educating bike tire changing, etc

Updating my review after a great experience servicing my bike there. I knew that the store had good running gear and weekly fun runs, but I recently worked with both Anne and the bike mechanics to tweak my road bike setup and replace a few parts. Anne took a lot of time to analyze what could be improved on my bike and my riding geometry. Ultimately, she made a small change to my cycling shoes, and ordered parts to upgrade my handlebar grips and shifters. The mechanics did a great job of putting it together.
I used to go to GetaGrip cycles for my road bike, but the combination of the convenience of RAM and their friendly staff has me considering them as my go-​to bike shop.
As I wrote before, they cater to serious athletes and have the expensive stuff to back it up. I’d love to outfit all of my gear there, but I can’t.
One note — RAM has a loyalty program where every $ 250 you spend nets you some $ 25 in store credit. However, what I didn’t know is that any bike stuff you buy does not count toward your rewards. I spent close to $ 200 on a helmet there but was a bit miffed that it doesn’t count. I understand that maybe a $ 4000 bike shouldn’t count, but why exclude something like a helmet when it’s similar to their high-​end wetsuits in price?

Like Erin P., I’m also disappointed to see poor reviews for this location! I was absolutely thrilled with the service and selection at this store!
So, I want to be a runner. So, I hired a running coach and the first thing she told me was «Get new shoes!» Clearly, I wasn’t rocking the newest or best shoes for beginning my new training regimen. I had been to Fleet Feet once before and was happy with the service, but not so happy with the crowds, so I decided to try RAM as an alternative.
I was blown away! I am much, much happier with the shoe fitting that they did than I got at Fleet Feet. I was helped right away when I walked in and told them what I needed. I explained that my last pair of shoes was giving me a lot of cramps in the bottom of my foot because I thought I had flat feet (according to my last fitting), so I didn’t know if I needed a shoe with a ton of support or what.
The guy I was working with took the time to explain the difference between types of running shoes (minimalist, neutral, etc.) and then asked me to step on this fancy machine that took prints of my feet to see where my pressure points are to fit me with the best shoe. Turns out I don’t have flat feet and I needed more of a neutral/​minimal shoe than I was wearing, hence the weird cramping in the bottom of my feet when I ran.
I tried on a bunch of pairs and even got to try them out on a treadmill instead of trying to run around the store or outside on the sidewalk. I really enjoyed this option for convenience and for not feeling like a total bother to the sales staff when I wanted to try running, walking, etc. with a bunch of pairs of shoes.
All in all, fantastic experience. I’ll be purchasing my next pair of running shoes here and I can’t wait to go back to get some more advice and some rockin kicks!

This has the potential for so much more, but alas it falls short. The merchandise is way overpriced and half the time the staff doesn’t acknowledge you. Some of the staff on the other hand is fantastic. Although the new location is better, I would say it is only a marginal improvement. There are sadly better online options than this store. But they do sometimes have good sales.
I did one of their tris last year, but I thought the race was poorly organized so that’s off my list forever. I heard their running races aren’t the best either.

Prior to my review of Running Away Multisport, I think it’s important to explain that I am not into sports. I don’t like running and I don’t know anything about competitive biking or swimming. With that disclaimer at the forefront, I think that this is the store I would visit if I ever wanted to get into those things. This is a store with friendly, informative, experts. I’m sure that anyone who works there would point me in the right direction of appropriate products. I went there with someone who is into triathlons and she was happy with their selection and prices. I loved the layout of the new store — it’s spacious with a special section for bicyclists. There are no isles to roam, but sections of shelves. It is no overwhelming Sports Authority with high school student employees — just friendly Running Away Multisport. I wrote about my entire experience on my blog.

Running Away treated me very well today. It was the first time I had set foot in their store. I initially headed to their address on North Ave., but when I arrived there, I found that they moved to a new address: 2219 N. Clybourn. I was fitted for shoes a couple of years ago, but needed an update. The associate that helped me fitted my boyfriend and me for shoes at the same time. She did a great job with giving us both the individual attention that we needed. She answered all of the various questions I had in regards to the fit of my shoes. She also explained what the machines were telling her in regards to the initial analysis of my
feet. The shoes she recommended also jived well with my long-​term fitness goals.
I walked out of Running Away more knowledgable about my feet and happy with a new pair of running shoes. I know there are other running stores out there that offer similar services, but I just wanted to credit Running Away with how well they treated me today. Thanks for the service and help.

I am mentally ill, or dumb, or possibly a badass. Maybe a tasty little psychic cocktail of the three. I’ve decided to do a triathlon. I know!
I have the swim and the bike pretty much down pat. This brings me to the run. I am not a runner. I think i’ve run only a handful of times since 7^th grade. 4 miles is going to be interesting, and by interesting I mean hellish.
I needed new shoes real bad. When I came in, someone (whose name I forgot, which totally sucks!) came up to me right away and was super friendly. She asked me what I was looking for, and measured my foot, watched me walk, and I told her a little bit about my feet and my old shoes, and what I’m looking for. She picked out 5 shoes which matched what I wanted, and I found some Mizunos which I am very excited about.
Most importantly, the shoes went home with me in a cool reusable bag. Obviously that’s the most important part. Duh. I also got a catalog thing with some other Running Away races in it in case I get the racing bug or something.
There were a bunch of cute things around the store, but I didn’t want to spend too much so I put my blinders on so I wouldn’t buy $ 500 worth of sports bras or something. I will be back if I ever find $ 500.

It’s never a good sign when it feels like you’re running barefoot, but you’re actually in your running shoes. Ding ding ding… it is time for new running shoes! I’ve been a fan of the mizuno waverunner shoes for awhile now so I was just going to reorder them online, but then I thought I“d make sure these were actually the right shoes for me. You see… I’ve become a runner lately… and by runner I mean slloowwwly jog up to 5 miles. No marathons in my future.
In the past I’ve visited Fleet Feet, but my trainer suggested I check out Running Away instead. And so I made a stop there the other day– in the car since it’s more than a 5 mile run from my apartment.
I arrived around 10:30am on a Tuesday and they were completely empty I had the undivided attention of 2 sales associates… gotta love that! Minutes later they had me fitted in mizunos again (apparently they are good for running!) and on the treadmill. I ended up buying pretty much the same pair of shoes I had before, but not worn out and the colors on this pair are prettier. And they are feeling pretty good on the feet. Who knows… maybe I’ll make it to 6 miles with these on my feet!