Van Der Luit and his wife Robin bought the store on June 16.

Since then, Van Der Luit has been making changes at the store, adding sheet rock around the door and the walls inside to upgrade the shop. He is also planning to remove the carpet and install wooden floors to brighten up the store.

Van Der Luit plans to focus on selling mid- to high-end bikes in the $600 to $800 price range. He will feature road and mountain bikes. The bikes will include brands such as Giant and Orbea, a Spanish brand.

Though bicycle sales were on the decline for a while, Van Der Luit says cycling is gaining popularity again. He speculates that rising gas prices and the star-status of American cyclist Lance Armstrong are two reasons for the boost. It also doesn't hurt that Armstrong is attempting his seventh Tour De France win, which generates publicity for the sport.

Although Van Der Luit has not raced at the Tour de France level, he has ridden competitively for the last 20 years. He raced semi-professionally in the Netherlands before he relocated to the United States 17 years ago.

He was then 23 and had just graduated from college. He found himself faced with a dead-end bureaucratic job in the town of Hague in the Netherlands so he bought a one-way ticket to San Francisco. For a month, he stayed with a soccer coach he had met during a soccer tournament in Holland. He became a nanny for 10 months for a Saratoga family and during that time he met his wife. Enchanted by the United States he went back home, obtained a student visa and returned to America to get a degree in exercise physiology at San José State University. After he graduated, Van Der Luit and Robin were married.

Although the 40-year-old father of two still rides competitively, he knows there are plenty of customers who just want a road bicycle or have children eager for their first two-wheeler.

It is hard to compete with stores like Wal-Mart and Toys 'R' Us, he says, but he still carries bicycles for all riding levels.

Van Der Luit says he is also fortunate that the shop's former owner left a rich tradition of "excellent" customer service, which he plans to continue. And he is counting on the local community to support his business.

But he's not taking any chances. Van Der Luit plans to court customers who need their bicycles tuned up with a kick-off summer special. For $69, the shop will check the whole bicycle to make sure it is in good running condition. Van Der Luit says many people have been taking advantage of the offer.

The summer special was Robin's idea. Robin is also a fellow cycling enthusiast and a director of corporate communications at Club One. She calls her role at the store, "a behind-the-scenes one."

For more information about the Willow Glen Bike Shop, 1110 Willow St., call 408.293.2606.