In some ways, The Athletic Club is what you would expect. When you walk in, there’s a nice greeting desk and someone friendly is there to greet you. There’s cardio equipment everywhere, lots of weight equipment, tons of amenities, and you’re surprised to find we have a heated indoor pool, sauna, and hot tub all included in every membership. Click here to see our facilities and these unique features of The Athletic Club! It’s clean, well maintained, and spacious.
Yes, in many ways, The Athletic Club appears to be your normal, ordinary high-end facility. But there’s more to our facility than meets the eye, because under the veil of a gym is a spirit of nonsense.
Your first indication that something is unusual is that there’s a plastic skeleton sitting on the couch by the front door, wearing reading glasses and holding a copy of the Farmer’s Almanac. To his left are two members, talking about sports and acting like everything is normal. You pause. Another member comes in and the owner behind the front desk produces a small plastic back scratcher and extends it to him like a fist. The young man, without a thought, gives it a first bump and they talk.
A mailman comes in. A small crowd of people gather around expectantly, and he tells them a bad joke, then departs.
What is this place, this bizarre nexus of nonsense wearing a gym’s clothing? This, my dear reader, is The Athletic Club.
And these are the top 5 unique features of it.
Skelly
Ah, Skelly. Where to start on this one? Skelly is a midrange plastic skeleton that shows up around holidays, dressed in appropriate holiday attire. Sometimes he just shows up when we feel like it. He has gained enough importance that he has an official bio on our website (click here to see it). He is technically posable, but not very well. Where did Skelly start?
Truth be told, I don’t remember. It started years ago, and for some reason we purchased a few of those Halloween plastic skeletons, and one of us put him on a piece of weight equipment. It looked funny, so we left him there like he was using the machine. People thought it was funny, and soon, we noticed members would get in on it. Someone would have moved him and rearranged him onto a different machine, or given him a little accessory, or made jokes about him having done too much cardio. All the while, he stared, blankly with his plastic jaw slightly agape, being funny for no reason whatsoever.
One Christmas we dressed him up with a little Santa hat, and from there, it was off to the races. Graduation? You can expect to find Skelly somewhere dressed in a graduation gown. New Years? He’s got a little festive hat. Fourth of July? You bet Skelly is out there looking snappy.
Sometimes Skelly needs a break and we move him to unpredictable places. Maybe one day he’s in the pool, floating in a tube.
Maybe the next he’s at the front, getting some paperwork done. Maybe the day after, he’s waiting between sets on a bench press. Maybe the next, he’s waiting for his ride.
At some point, I wrote a bio for Skelly and we bought him a name tag. As the years passed, he became more and more important to our members and staff, and now, people wonder where he is if we don’t put him out early enough. We organized and put on a charity run to raise money for the Crisis Network, and we gave out free shirts to anyone who participated and guess who was on it – Skelly. I actually carried Skelly for the mile, too, his bony little plastic skeleton poking me the entire way.
At first, people weren’t entirely sure what to make of him, but now, he’s a welcome sight and always a source of amusement for when he shows up.
Family Owned
The Athletic Club is 100 percent family owned and operated. We aren’t a chain. We aren’t a corporate gym. We live here, work here, and play here. We work out on all the equipment and we personally select and try out whatever we buy because this place isn’t a number for us. It’s a business, sure, but it’s a passion and a love for this industry.
One of us is here 7 days a week. We are committed to our vision, and we have excellent folks who have joined us who help bring about this wonderful, fun, goofy environment where everyone is welcome. My family has been running clubs since the 80s and that’s for a reason: it’s something we truly care about.
Fresh Fuel Nutrition
Fresh Fuel Nutrition is a place where delicious and healthy combine. Jesse Cuplin, a certified nutritionist and personal trainer as well as sporting a kinesiology degree, founded Fresh Fuel Nutrition in August 2023, and it’s been off to the races since then. Growing up playing virtually every sport competitively, Jesse learned young the importance of taking care of your body and uses the analogy that our bodies are like cars– if you give them the wrong fuel, it won’t run right!
Taking her lifelong passion for health and fitness and turning it into a business, Jesse offers high quality health foods, specifically smoothies, protein shakes, and smoothie bowls. After learning how many smoothie places use ingredients that are not actually fruit (such as purees, mixtures, powders, juices, and ice-cream that are filled with added sugars, chemicals, and other chemical ingredients) even while being offered as “healthy” options, Jesse embarked on a quest to use high-quality, nutritious ingredients and make great tasting food with them because let’s be honest– nutritionally packed food that tastes terribly is not overly appetizing. Based on personal experience as well as all her satisfied clientele, she nailed it. Every customer is helped with a smile as their meal is prepared from scratch with whole, all natural ingredients bursting with organic flavor. Don’t forget to ask about her stamp card!
Fresh Fuel is open to everyone, members and non-members alike, and is located inside The Athletic Club at the crossroads of delicious and nutritious.
The Guitar
A couple years ago, we brought a guitar and some members got to asking about it, so we let them play around the front desk. The guitar ended up being quite popular so we brought in one for members to play whenever they wanted. It’s currently located near the front desk by the couch.
It’s been very popular since then, and many of our members are strikingly good musicians! We don’t encourage or allow people to bang away and irritate other members with it, but many a member has come in and blown us away with what they’re capable of. A few weeks ago, a good friend of mine came in and played (and sang) some of Eric Clapton’s soothing, peaceful melodies as a small group gathered around and listened. It was wonderful, like a private little concert. From the Beatles to Clapton to Bob Dylan to original songs, it’s been a wonderful, warm addition.
If you ever feel like it, try it out! New members or longtime members, all are welcome.
Two Story
One of the unusual features of our facility is the fact that we are two story. Our facility is about 20,000 square feet spread out over the two stories, but it’s hard to tell that from the outside of the building. What started as an intentional design blossomed into something really special that none of us anticipated, with members of all ages, walks of life, and experiences mingling and forming friendships all over the place.
The first floor tends to have an upscale feeling. When you first walk in, the greeting desk has marble countertops, high-end appointments, and a high-end flooring. There are plants (yes, they are real) all over the place, and the Cybex circuit downstairs (as well as the 40 plus pieces of cardio equipment) prioritize smoothness, modern functionality, and aesthetics. Along with the heated indoor pool, hot tub, locker rooms, and Fresh Fuel Nutrition, downstairs is a sleek, smooth facility.
Upstairs, we’ve located most of our free weights and plate loaded machines. Since many of our customers prefer the “old school” sort of workout that isn’t quite as fancy, upstairs we’ve opted for offering that. You can expect to get a great workout on high quality equipment that you’ve come to know and love. Expect brands like Hammer Strength, Icarian, Technogym, and more. If you’ve been looking for a place where you can simply put weights on a machine that hit exactly the way that you want, this is it. Upstairs is also located an expansive open space for stretching, abs, boxing, self-guided yoga, and more. Click here for pictures of our facility!
Every member is welcome everywhere. For those members who will be performing exercises that are loud, such as deadlift, they are asked to use the private room that is outfitted with squat racks, dumbbells, and space for deadlifting and other similar movements. I encourage you to try out several different places in the facility!
Conclusion of the Unique Features of The Athletic Club
If I listed everything we have here and all the things and people that make this place unique, I’d be here forever. All are welcome, regardless of fitness and experience level. You don’t need to know anything about fitness to be welcome here. If you already know a lot, awesome! If you aren’t as experienced, we’d be happy to guide you.
The best thing about our facility is the people. I couldn’t be more proud of our members and the great community here. Friendships form and lives change. There’s the equipment that makes up the outer shell of our facility, but what makes up the gooey friendly center is our community, and it really isn’t something I can explain.
It’s just… special.