I'm on a mission to find the right zero-drop, low-drop, or no-drop shoe, and I've had my eye on the Vivobarefoot Sensus for quite some time. For me personally, this shoe is fascinating because I deal with nerve damage in my feet, and the sensory feedback matters. I'm not saying this is a medical solution for anyone else, but for me, the ability to feel the ground more clearly has been a big part of why I wanted to try them. The Sensus feels like a cross between a moccasin and a real shoe. The full leather upper molds to the foot, the sole is solid but flexible, and the whole point is to let your feet sense the ground underneath you instead of being completely cut off from it. So far, that "ground feel" is exactly what I was hoping for. On flat surfaces, I feel more connected, more aware, and more in tune with how my feet are moving. I can hardly wait to keep testing them and see if this is the shoe that officially brings me into the true zero-drop club. We will see ... Stand By ,, read more

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Walked in asking to get my bike tuned and told them I needed to get my bike-seat lowered somehow despite it being at the lowest setting. They told me they would be able to do that. $350 later, I still can't ride my bike because the tech told me he isn't able to do it. Don't take your bike here. read more

I needed some hiking gear for my trip to the Smoky mountains upcoming and my sister suggested I go to REI. I ussually shop at other stores to get my outdoor wear but this place is unmatched. There is such a large variety for colors and lots of sizes available. I ended up getting hiking boots and base layers to keep me warm during my trip. This store is definitely on the pricier side but the quality of the items I bought are unmatched. The workers made sure I had everything I needed and were very responsive to me needing changing rooms or different sizes of boots. read more

I love REI stores and have been a co-op member for years. When I saw them building a store in Gainesville, I was excited. I have visited twice so far while charging my Tesla after visiting Shands. I love how conveniently located it is, and I have been happy with my purchases. I respect and appreciate REI Gainesville's attention to safety including requiring people to wear face masks plus enforcing distancing and providing hand sanitizer. I think it's unfair that the negative reviews are people complaining about safety protocols. My experiences have been great. I was a little disappointed in the lack of selection in the cycling gear department, but overall there is excellent merchandise with very helpful sales associates. The quality of REI merchandise is high, and it is priced based on the quality. If you want cheap, I suggest going to a discount store where your gear will not last as long. My last visit I was especially impressed with the sales associate who checked me out. I don't shop much in person these days due to having leukemia, but the protocols were exceptional and I felt safe there. I will definitely return, and I highly recommend shopping at REI Gainesville! read more

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I joined the REI Coop in Denver Colorado 30 years ago. Now I live in Gainesville. I recently took a bicycle wheel in to have it trued by the Gainesville REI bike shop. It took them about 20 minutes to do the deed. The mechanic told me it wasn't perfect but it was "in spec." I was suspicious but hey... I was pleased to get it back so fast. I took the wheel home and put it back on the bike and the wheel was still too crooked to ride. You could see it wobble from 20 foot away. I took the wheel back and was told that I had been given a "Spot True" and not a "Precision True." What?!? So now I had a "Spot Trued" wheel in need of a "Precision True" to be rideable? I let them keep my $30 because the mechanic was emphatic that a "Spot True" existed in his little fee book. It was the first time I saw him smile during the entire ordeal. But, I turned down their offer for a free "Precision Tune". Why? Because I no longer trusted the mechanics. Kudos to the manager for doing her best to make it right. read more

REI Co-Op - Outdoor Gear Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

This store does not have enough inventory and their "bagless" no bags is Bullshit. I will just order online get free shipping and use this store for returns. I buy alot from REI and no bags leaves you walking out with unfolded clothes and tags flying around and a mess in my car. And they get no advertising from the bags whoever came up with this should be fired. read more

Well, first off, it's an REI and we're lucky to finally have one in Gainesville instead of going to the Jacksonville one and what is more, the brand-new store here is as good in terms of inventory it seems (or maybe better) than I recall the Jacksonville one being. The staff are overall very friendly and helpful although the guy at check-out did a very poor job of explaining the benefits of being a co-op member to me, but that said they're all young and all new to the job, too. REI carries a good selection of outdoors equipment and clothing from top brands. Each store logically looks at its geographic region insofar as what it carries, so you can get snowboards from ones in the West but not Florida whereas they have bikes, kayaks, and general camping gear at this one. I was very happy to see however a good selection of climbing gear because I'm into rock climbing and it would be great to buy things here instead of waiting until I'm off to climb in North Carolina or Kentucky-someone has obviously done their research and realized that there are a lot of climbers in town. Bikes I'd not buy from REI, that's just me, for a mountain bike I'd go to a dedicated bike shop, but it's nice they carry them. The North Carolina stores I've been in (Charlotte and Durham) seem to have more local-specific things like T-shirts and stickers than the one in Gainesville but considering the store just opened, that may yet change. The dedication to being careful due to Covid-19 is serious here and that is also refreshing to see. read more

Walked in with a mask, a full face mask, the lady gestapho at front door , as i walk in she stops me and said not good enough i don't like that mask, and demanded that i wear 2 masks. Embarrassing. Had to buy gear for 5 man, 10 day Glacier excursion. There gear is not that good and over priced. Plenty of other spots to get what i need. Just bought an MSR tent for 30% less than what these folks charge. read more

Will was so friendly and helpful. I hadn't been in the store a minute before he reached out to see if I needed help. He found exactly what I needed immediately, encouraged me to check if they had my husband's information (they did) because he asked if I was a co-op member and I knew my husband had been one and Will assured me that membership was lifetime. He carried my cumbersome purchase and put it into my car. Everyone in the store was masked (even though that's something I don't worry about these days) but I saw in a previous post that someone complained about masks not being worn. Well, if that was true, they have obviously read that and outdone themselves to make up for it. I was very impressed. read more

I went in here about 2 months ago and am now just reviewing them. Not one of the staff or other customers wore a mask. I didn't get anything. Wear a mask! read more

I felt very uncomfortable in the store. As we go through covid mask are required however I'm pregnant. 1st, I have a hard time breathing in mask, I'm in the third trimester in my pregnancy. 2nd, & I was holding my 1 year old who likes to play with anything on my face or ears, all the staff was talking to each other on their head sets that I had my mask on bellow my nose & each one continues to harass me on pulling it above my nose, after telling them my situations. You have lost me & my family as a loyal customer. We will not be back. read more

Terrible customer service. Terrible prices. Save yourself the heartache, just shop on Amazon. And I HATE having to shop on Amazon but when you charge me top dollar and provide me awful interactions, you MAKE me give Jeff Bezos my money. read more

Let me just start off by saying that its pretty sweet having an REI in G'ville. They run on the dear side, but the products are high quality so worth it. Their employees are really into it, which is what I appreciates most about this store. Their enthusiasm for the great outdoors is infectious! And speaking of infectious, thank goodness they are keeping a masks-on policy! read more

I've been a faithful, loyal customer for over 15 years. I was there to outfit my fiancée for a ski trip and easily gone drop $300-500. I was sitting in the corner of the store alone while my fiancée was in the fitting room. While I waited, I pulled my mask down so it was easier to breathe. There was no one even 20 feet from me. A couple of employees approached me to tell me to put on my mask or to move it slightly up above my nose. Nope. Not shopping there again. Y'all lost a faithful customer. read more

Great REI location. Second visit over the last several months while visiting from Washington DC area. Have visited a lot of REIs and this one is a well maintained location with a large selection of inventory. Lots of helpful and friendly staff. I cannot believe the negative reviews because a company is doing their part during a pandemic. REI has taken all the steps to ensure their customers are healthy and less at risk during uncertain times when being able to have the equipment to be outdoors is vital. I look forward to many more visits while in town. read more

I love the staff here! Every single person I came into contact with was lovely and helpful. I didn't realize they had a bike repair shop until today. I just happened to have my busted up bike in the back of my car. I went into the store to look at new bikes. I had been jerked around by a local bike repair company and they had given me a two to two and a half week turnaround time frame. They insisted every store around Gainesville would be like that if not worse in terms of wait time. So I waited. And nearly a month later and no contact, they still had not fixed my bike. So, we went and demanded my bike back immediately and decided to start looking at new bikes. We just happened to see a gentleman walk in before us with a messed up bike and saw him head to the repair shop. They got him fixed up in less than five minutes. I asked another employee what their general turnaround time frame for fixes were and she said 3 DAYS. I went and got my back and asked them to look at it. They fixed it on the spot and charged me exactly ZERO DOLLARS! They will have my business forever because of that. Thank you REI!! You guys are the best! read more