Club Insider

Norm's Notes for January 2025

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Norm CatesNorm Cates

Hello Everybody! This is your Club Insider Founder and Tribal Leader Since 1993 checking in with our 373rd monthly edition of this 32+ year running club business publication I refer to as: A Labor of Love! I'm very thankful that you've tuned in again for this iteration of Norm's Notes, as I proceed on my keyboard with my longtime habit of "Telling-It-Like-It-Is!" I'm really happy that you're reading this edition, and I want to THANK YOU ALL for sticking with us every month! As usual, we have a bunch of health and fitness club business news, so please read on!

Is AMERICA a GREAT COUNTRY, or WHAT!? Hmm... hmm... hmm! And, as usual, let me start these Norm's Notes with my normal monthly salutation to you all: GOD BLESS AMERICA and GOD BLESS YOU, YOUR FAMILY and YOUR BUSINESS!!!

■Folks, this month, we are introducing our Cover Story Classics series, and we are starting it off with how Club Insider began, the truly incredible case study cover story featuring the one-and-only Red Lerille. Now, 89 years old and having run his facility simply known as Red's for 62 years this month (Happy Anniversary Red!), there is almost nothing Red has not seen or experienced running his club. Within this classic cover story, he shares much of that, but be warned, it is a long story (and we are only re-publishing half of it)! Make sure you have a comfortable spot to read as well as a cold beverage to sip on. But, you will not be disappointed with how you spent that time! Check it out on Page #3.

■We are excited to Welcome Back previous Club Insider Advertisers, FlexIt and Step Fitness and Recreation! As they enter our Directory Tier of Advertising, you will see their logos on our website and in all weekly and monthly eblasts. Be sure to click on those logos to learn more about how these great companies can help you!

■I'm writing this Norm's Note on Friday, January 10th. I inserted this Note near the top of my January writing because the disaster I am about to write about started happening yesterday, January 9, 2025. Please consider the following and DO ANYTHING YOU POSSIBLY CAN TO HELP our fellow Americans who live in Southern California and have been hit by these wildfires. It's VERY SAD... at last count I have heard 10+ people have been killed and thousands of people are now completely homeless in Los Angeles, Palisades, Malibu, Eaton and other areas of Southern California.

I am proud to write that our industry is stepping up. To date, some big club companies have volunteered facilities and amenities to those who have lost everything to the wildfires and to those who are helping fight the fires, preventing others from experiencing such loss. Our good friends at Crunch, long-time C.I. Advertisers, as well as 24 Hour Fitness and UFC Gym are doing so. I am sure there are many others, and we would love to hear about that if you are in California.

ADAM SEDLACK, CEO of UFC GYM, commented: "We want to provide a safe, welcoming space for those in need during this difficult time. Whether it's a place to recharge, take a shower or simply find a moment of respite, we're here to help our community members who are facing these challenging circumstances."

Folks, to close this Note, please pass this on to others you know in our industry who might be able to help the impacted club folks in SoCal. I also welcome other stories of industry folks helping this cause. Please report on it by calling me at (770) 635 - 7578. I am here most of the time, so you can call 24/7. If I don't answer, please leave a message.

■Before I move on to my other monthly Norm's Notes, let me mention something I've not brought up to y'all lately, but I should have. IF you are in the health and fitness club business (or anything that is close to it), and you have news happening in your business, or if you know of news happening in other club businesses that you think our industry will benefit from learning what YOU know, then please let me know so I can help let the world know what's going on. My plan is as simple as that. IF YOU KNOW IT... and IF what you KNOW is something you want to see published here in these Norm's Notes, then fire away, Folks! Send me an email (norm@clubinsideronline.com) with your news! Or, alternatively, call me at (770) 635 - 7578.

REMEMBER... ANYTIME and EVERY TIME you send me a scoop, be sure you also send me your contact info so I can contact you for details of your breaking news item(s). I repeat, in your contact to me, please don't forget to send me your name, your phone numbers and your email address. Then, AFTER WE COMMUNICATE, HOLD ONTO YOUR HAT FOR YOUR SCOOP BE APPEARING HEREIN! And, of course, folks, if you wish for your name to remain confidential, that is no problem at all.

■ROLLING ALONG... So, here I sit at my desk on Thursday, January 9, 2025, just eight days away from further increasing my hold on the world of AGING! haha Y'all, IF the Good LORD's willin' and the creek don't rise, I'll be 79 years old on January 17th! Let me add, if that's not clear proof there IS a GOD, then I don't know what is! More clear proof is that JUSTIN, my fine Son, and highly esteemed Club Insider Partner and Publisher, will turn 40 years old on January 18th! HAPPY BIRTHDAY JUSTIN CATES!

■Folks, I know full well that what I'm fixin' to write here to y'all does NOT have a Dadgum thing to do with the health and fitness club industry! BUT... IT DOES HAVE A LOT TO DO WITH AMERICA! So... there ain't a snowball's chance in hell that I'm going to fail to make this special news report in this Norm's Note for ALL OF YOU! As I sit here on the very cold morning of January 9th, writing these Norm's Notes for y'all, I'm also keeping an eye on my big screen TV showing the funeral services for Georgia's own JIMMY CARTER... the late former PRESIDENT of these United States. And, I'm writing this report for you because, to me, as an American, this event was something very special to witness. In case you missed seeing this funeral service, which by the way, was broadcast live nationwide on TV, let me describe for you the scene at this special funeral service. And no, I'm not inclined to write about Jimmy Carter's funeral because of politics. I'm writing about it because I'm an American!

All of the five living past Presidents of these United States were there with some of their wives, including: BILL CLINTON, GEORGE W. BUSH, BARACK OBAMA, DONALD TRUMP and JOE BIDEN. And, as I tap on this keyboard in my office, former Atlanta Mayor, U.S. Congressman and U.N. Ambassador during the Carter administration, ANDREW YOUNG, my good friend of many years who used to be a regular exercising member of my 46,000 square-foot Downtown Athletic Club in the Omni in Atlanta, and a very special man indeed, said some obviously studied words about President Carter.

Ambassador Young began: "The Apostle Paul in writing to the Ephesians, wrote: 'Be kind and compassionate to one another. Forgiving each other just as in Christ, GOD forgave you.'

Ambassador Young continued: "Jimmy Carter, for me, was something of a miracle. I was born in the deep South a few years after him. It was always a place of miracles. I couldn't see how we could have had the differences in background... coming from different places on the Planet... the experiences of slaves and slave owners... the diversity of color and creed and national origin and still become the great nation that we are in the United States of America. It was something of a miracle. And, I don't mean my following comment with any disrespect. BUT, it is still hard for me to understand how you could get to be President from Plains, Georgia!" (Folks, Mayor Andy, which is what I used to call him when he was a member of my Downtown Athletic Club many years ago, got a really good laugh from the funeral audience when he said that!)

You may view Ambassador Young's comments on video by going to YouTube and searching: The Rev. Andrew Young Remembers Jimmy Carter. There is no charge to view it. Folks, Ambassador/Mayor Andrew Young's comments were remarkable for a 92-year-old man! Heck, they were remarkable for anyone of any age! Way to go Mayor Young!

The funeral coverage ended with: "Everybody is now saying our LORD'S PRAYER. Now, a group of six officials have surrounded Jimmy Carter's coffin, which is covered by an American flag. The funeral service ended with these words: 'Let us go forward in the name of Christ.'

The huge Cathedral was slammed full of people (Google says: "the Washington National Cathedral can seat 4,000 people"). After the funeral at the Cathedral, President's Carter's body was flown back to Georgia, where a century ago, JAMES EARL CARTER, JR was born on October 1, 1924, in Plains, Georgia, at the Wise Sanitarium, where his mother worked as a registered nurse. Thus, Jimmy Carter became the first American President born in a hospital! The country's 39th President was buried in his beloved hometown of Plains, next to ROSALYNN CARTER, his wife of 77 years. MAY PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER REST IN ETERNAL PEACE!

■Alrighty, folks, back to industry news! We are happy to report that our friends at Crunch, long-time C.I. Advertiser, have announced they have reached the three-million-member mark! Think about this folks, it took Crunch 28.5 years to reach one million members. Then, the company hit two million members less than five years later. Now, just over two years after that, they are celebrating the three-million-member milestone! Celebrating this occasion, Crunch has also announced the launch of Crunch 3.0, bringing many new changes and innovations to their model. Check out the Press Release on Page #3, and be sure to check out the Crunch Ad on Page #2. Congrats!

HFA 2025 is on the near horizon, taking place in Las Vegas, March 12 - 14. This show is shaping up to be a great one! If you haven't registered yet, be sure to do so by going to healthandfitness.org/show. And, be sure to visit us at Booth #975. Check out the HFA Show Ad on Page #11.

■The 2nd Annual SportsArt Campus Challenge is live and is running from January 1 until March 15, 2025. SportsArt, a leader in sustainable fitness equipment for nearly 50 years, is once again inspiring the next generation of eco-leaders on college campuses, as this sweepstakes encourages students across the United States and most of Canada to live more sustainable lives. The sweepstakes awards three winning college campus recreation centers with SportsArt ECO-POWR energy-generating cardio equipment. Winners of last year's inaugural Campus Challenge Sweepstakes were Cleveland State University, the University of Michigan and Indiana University. The next three winning college campuses will be announced at the 2025 National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) Conference in Orlando, Florida, April 23 - 26.

"This year marks NIRSA's 75th anniversary. So, in a nod to this venerable organization, we've raised the Campus Challenge grand prize equipment package to $75,000," said Ruben Mejia, Executive Vice President of SportsArt. In addition to the equipment packages, each of the three winners will be awarded cash for themselves and for their chosen on-campus sustainability organizations. The Grand Prize winner will receive $3,000 for themselves and another $3,000 for their chosen student organization. Second place will be awarded $2,000 each and third place will receive $1,000 each. For more information on the Campus Challenge Sweepstakes, please visit gosportsart.com/campuschallenge.

■Here's an interesting item I want to share with y'all. But, before I do, I want to give credit where credit's due. The credit goes to two sources: The first credit goes to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC), which is truly a world class newspaper. And, beyond that, credit is due to the actual original sources of the article, The New York Times, and their author, SARAH WOOD-GONZALES. This was a very well-done article. If you want to read it, just Google: "New-old-way to work out: Join a Sporting Club," and it should pop up.

■As I sit here on Sunday, January 12th, a Special TV Report about and showing a match at The ZIMMER BIOMET Masters Men's Doubles Pickleball Match came on the ESPN-HD TV Network. That brings to mind my previous occasional coverage of Pickleball, and now, I want to reach out to all of you who are Pickleball players OR Pickleball facility providers. Where ever you might be, I want to hear from you Folks. Simply send me an email at norm@clubinsideronline.com with the Headline: Pickleball Update, along with your name and phone number. I will take it from there. By the way, the WINNERS of The ZIMMER BIOMET MASTERS GOLD MEDALISTS in Men's Doubles were: BEN and COLLIN JOHNS. Congratulations Gentlemen! Folks, be sure to check out: www.pickleballcentral.com.

■This from DIANA POLK, who wrote: Given that "exercising more" and "losing weight" are among the top New Year's Resolutions for 2025, the personal-finance website WalletHub released its report on the Best & Worst Cities for an Active Lifestyle in 2025, along with expert commentary, to identify where Americans stand the best chance of staying fit in the New Year. WalletHub compared the 100 biggest U.S. cities across 35 key metrics. The data set ranges from the average monthly fitness-club fee to the city's bike score to the share of physically inactive adults.

BEST vs. WORST... Below are samples of some findings from Diana's report:

  • Orlando, Florida has the most sporting goods stores per capita, 10.5 times more than in North Las Vegas, Nevada, which has the fewest.
  • Scottsdale, Arizona has the most public golf courses per capita, 49.3 times more than in Bakersfield, California, which has the fewest.
  • Denver, Colorado has the most fitness trainers and aerobics instructors per capita, 5.8 times more than in Corpus Christi, Texas, which has the fewest.
  • Las Vegas has the most playgrounds per capita, 22.2 times more than in Hialeah, Florida, which has the fewest.
  • The three Best Cities for an Active Lifestyle in America are: Honolulu, Hawaii; New York, New York and San Francisco, California.
  • The three Worst Cities for an Active Lifestyle in America are: Fort Wayne, Indiana; Irving, Texas and North Las Vegas, Nevada.

JUSTIN and I want to THANK YOU for reading Club Insider! We appreciate you being with us. And, in particular, WE VERY SINCERELY APPRECIATE ANY and ALL SUPPORT OF OUR ESTEEMED Club Insider ADVERTISERS! PLEASE DO BUSINESS WITH THEM and WHEN YOU DO, PLEASE TELL 'EM Club Insider SENT YOU! THANK YOU ALL!

God bless our troops, airmen and sailors worldwide and keep them safe. Thank you, Congratulations and Welcome Home to all of our troops who have served around the world. God bless America's Policemen and women and Firemen and women; keep them safe. Finally, God bless you, your family, your club(s) and your members. God Bless America! Laus Deo!

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