Bike Shop
“The bicycle is the noblest invention of mankind.”
Mile Hi Cycles is owned and operated by a father who has a passion for cycling and fixing broken things. Chris Fanckboner has worked in the bike industry since 1993. He first worked at a southwest Denver bike shop while in high school. Chris would race downhill mountain bikes and became a professional bike mechanic to stay connected to his love of the cycling culture and industry. Mile Hi Cycles opened in the Washington Virginia Vale neighborhood in 2023. The desire was to open a neighborhood bike shop in close proximity to the Cherry Creek Trail.
Chris shared his conviction about being a bike shop whose primary revenue is from service in a consumer-oriented culture. “We don’t want to fix things anymore. We just want to buy new things and sell new things.” Mile Hi Cycles offers both new and used bicycles for sale, but their business strategy is to keep people riding and enjoying bikes they already own. Chris’ hope is to be a business that helps people keep a bike going for 15-20 years.
He shares this service-first business philosophy while repairing a bike tube for a teenager’s bike that is a well-worn mashup of parts. As the boy wheels his bike out of the shop Chris remarks, “The happiest customers are those who ride away on a bike they love.” Some of Chris’ favorite stories of fixing older bikes are for customers whose bike was passed on from family members who have passed away. Reflecting on one older bike he rebuilt for a customer he shared, “Every time she rides it, she remembers her dad.”
The bicycle industry has changed over the 25+ years Chris has been working on bikes. Bike shops were once far more seasonal, but with more people using bikes to commute to work, business is now year-round. Whether a casual rider or a serious cyclist, this bike shop has the expertise to help every rider enjoy their biking experience. They offer custom bicycle wheel builds, tune-ups, and repairs. Mile Hi Cycles has a trade-in program where families can trade in bicycles they purchased at Mile Hi for kids for credit on a new size bike until they are 16.
Mile Hi Cycles is a small neighborhood business with two values on display in every transaction–transparency and honesty. Those values shape how Chris does both service and sales. The “why” behind the bike shop for Chris is clear, “We’re here to help fix what’s broken for people and their bikes.” The local bike shop is a sacred place.
Thank you to Chris Fanckboner, owner of Mile Hi Cycles, for the conversation and contribution this article.
