Court's got the keys to the kingdom (a.k.a. the keys and lease to Black Box 2.0).
T Minus 19 Days by Hari Singh
We are going to manage and maintain the new Black Box at 25 W. 26th St. much more actively than our current or previous locations. We will build out, equip, and run Black Box 2.0 with an emphasis on (1) keeping the place clean; (2) minimizing the time spent moving and waiting for equipment; and (3) avoiding getting kicked out for bothering the neighbors.
In order to keep the Box clean, we will need to avoid messes in the first place. There will be several large garbage cans spaced strategically around the gym. Use them! Each instructor will be responsible for immediately removing any personal belongings left behind at the end of his or her class and placing them in a "lost and found." Don't leave behind your lifting shoes or anything else.
Members will be expected to put their initials on their water bottles each and every time. The notion that you can keep track of your personal Poland Spring bottle is absurd. Unmarked bottles are likely to be tossed. We will have an area to store your gym bags for the duration of class. We will have clean areas to change. The showers and the bathrooms will be kept clean. Members will be expected to do their part.
From an efficiency perspective, we are likely to eliminate random equipment that is rarely used. We will begin standardizing equipment. (Is there anything more annoying than sorting through those 15-lb and 35-lb bumper plates and/or deciding where to stack them?) The Black Box will no longer be a home for randomly donated equipment. (Not that we are not grateful for that equipment during our start. It's just that now, its too difficult for the cleaning staff to move the stuff.) We intend to have a place for everything and everything in its place.
Bar dropping for the sake of safety will be fine; other than that, it will probably be frowned on. The reality is that we are in commercial office space. As you may have noticed, in Manhattan, there are no industrial spaces conveniently located next to multiple subway lines. Everything is a trade-off, and after more than a year of looking, we think we have found the best trade-off possible.
The building is extremely solid. On the fifth floor, there is a boxing gym, so it's not like all our neighbors are going to look askance at us. At the present time, there is no tenant on the floor below us, so we have the advantage that whoever eventually moves in on the second floor will do so knowing we're above directly above, on the third.
We tried jumping up and down on the floor above us, and we couldn't hear anything, so in that sense, we're much better off than we were in the previous location. But we are not on a first floor, and we are not in a garage.
We will build lifting platforms and we will do the Olympic lifts, but we will not be doing "Grace" with 30 drops from overhead. If you're interested in setting a PR on "Grace," you may want to head out that day to Black Box Brooklyn. We do not want to get an immediate reputation as a problem tenant. We are signing a five-year lease. We want things to work out, and we want to have the option to renew. We are not going to be in fear of jumping or an occasional drop, but neither are we are not going to be indifferent to our neighbors.
Thank you to those who have committed to Black Box 2.0 memberships thus far:
Arthur B. (12 months)
Michelle (12 months)
Anthony H. (6 months)
Ari (6 months)
Brian G. (6 months)
Kenny Li (6 months)
Scott N. (6 months)
Wednesday 081112
Strength:
Overhead Squat 3, 3, 3, 3, 3
MetCon:
2 rounds for time:
10 Burpees
10 Kettlebell Front Squat Rt arm
10 Presses Rt
10 Rt Overhead Lunges alternating legs
10 Swings Rt
10 Burpees
10 Kettlebell Fr. Sq Lt
10 Presses Lt
10 OH Lunges Lt
10 Swings Lt
Post weight(s) and time to comments.
Compare to 080403.
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