Runners Roost Central Park — Local services in Denver

I had a very unpleasant (likely racist) experience relating to the service from the 40-50 year old white male staff at this location. My Mexican mother won a 30dlls gift card for Runners Roost after placing third overall at a race event sponsored by Runners Roost. The next day, I took her to this store location to redeem her prize. My mom doesn't speak English and the staff male guy treated her very disrespectfully. When my mom tried to ask the older male staff in broken English what articles were available to use with the gift card, he told her that he didn't understand her in a very demeaning manner. I had to intervene and translate. The male staff didn't answer my question and said that we could take their socks that were on sale. My mom didn't want socks and proceeded to try on several running shorts. Finally she decided on one short she liked which was 50 dlls. I was planning to pay the difference of the 30 dlls gift card. When we were checking out the 50 year male staff said that she could not use her prize gift card on any of the running shorts because they were all on sale. That in fact, she could not redeem the prize gift card on any article that was on sale because those were the conditions on the gift card. He proceeded to point to the prize gift card and said that the "card stated the conditions very clearly in English." I offered to pay the full price (not sale price) for the shorts while using the 30 dlls prize gift card since we had already spent about 30 minutes trying running shorts. The male staff did not accept the offer but he said we could use the prize gift card on socks that were on sale. I questioned him about why socks on sale were ok but shorts on sale were not. He did not have a response.

My wife loves Runners Roost and I have always had a good experience going to the store in other locations. We are life-long serious runners and we have always had a good experience with their service. At the same time my wife is a white American and I am a white looking English speaking Mexican. I just wonder why suddenly when my Mexican looking mother who doesn't speak very good English goes to the store the service is terrible. Needles to say, I won't be taking my business...

Awesome experience getting fitted for a new pair of trail shoes. I've been experiencing calf issues with my current shoes and was sick of being in pain after my runs. I knew going in that I would be paying a bit more for my shoes than if I bought them online, but knowing that I was going to get the right shoes, I was willing to pay extra. I am not disappointed in my decision at all. From the moment I walked in I was greeted warmly and as I told her of the issues I was having, she knew exactly what the problem was. Turns out running in a zero drop shoe does not work for me. She measured my foot, brought out 4 different shoe styles and had me run in them to see how they felt. After checking fit and changing sizes I ended up with a pair of Brooks. She also took the time to talk to me about what I was training for, and what types of socks I use. I ended up getting a pair of smart wool socks to go along with my shoes. While the Brooks are definitely a bit more than I was looking to spend, and I'm sure I could find them cheaper online, the comfort level and the recommendations I received far outweigh the cost. There is a cost/benefit analysis to be done every time you make a purchase. Having a local, professional company who is able to figure out your problem quickly and provide the perfect solution is worth the extra cost. I will be doing ALL my running shoe purchases from this...

I walked into this store for the first time today because they are one of the places supplying race tees for the Denver Colfax marathon. I walked in, the person at the register who was helping someone else stepped away, and I asked for an associate and was pointed in the direction of a woman in the back. What happened next left me flabbergasted…

I approached her with my phone in hand, and said, “I am registered for the Denver Colf—“ the associate then cut me off and said “Yeah what size??”

I asked her if she was impatient, and she said no. Then I said, “But you didn’t even let me finish speaking,” and she got quiet. I asked for a size Medium, she went and got my shirt, I said thank you and walked out.

I don’t know if customer service isn’t valued at Runners Roost because they expect people walking in to know everything and not waste their time, but this exchange solidified that I won’t be back, even if I do another race. Not sure what made this associate decide she could choose rudeness - maybe she’s having a bad day, maybe the race folks didn’t tell Runners Roost about the t-shirt promo, maybe they had just been robbed an hour before I walked in. I don’t know. But I do know what it means to be kind and polite, and I didn’t...