02-05-2016, 01:54 PM
(02-05-2016, 12:46 PM)Viewfromthe42 Wrote:(02-05-2016, 11:56 AM)jamincan Wrote: And then they could boot out the Crossfit place and expand even further!
I kind of like the active annex that's going on there. Climbing, crossfit, multiple martial arts; seems like a good spot to go for fitness, and I'm curious what could develop if we stimulate that, rather than stifle it.
Certainly when you go during peak hours, GRR is plenty packed. Were they to expand into the full building, I can't imagine how busy the peaks would have to be to fund even more square footage during the lulls.
I'm also curious just where our gym rates in size when compared to other Canadian gyms. I've been to ones in Hull, Ottawa, Buffalo, Burlington, and Toronto, and I'm not sure that any are head and shoulders above GRR; it seems right around the max size for any of these.
The climbing gym business model is a bit strange in that a lot of year-round revenue comes from birthday parties. Many members pay once a year, which is good when they pay, but then you can have more members and not that much more revenue. So building more space is nice for members but may not help the gym's bottom line, unless it gets too crowded that people get turned off.
I was surprised by how non-packed GRR was last Monday evening. Usually I go on Tuesdays and Thursdays (when not in Switzerland) and it is packed on those nights. Less on Mondays.
My impression is that GRR is about mid-sized in terms of gym size. There are certainly much bigger gyms out there, even in Canada. Horizon Roc and Allez Up in Montreal are larger, I think. The smallest gym I've been to is the one on campus at UBC. You can get about 12 climbers in there. Past that you have to wait outside for someone to leave.