July 7, 2010Wednesday 100707
The first-ever CrossFit affiliate -- CrossFit Seattle (Dave Werner and Nancy Meenen) -- steps into the CrossFit Affiliate Snapshot. Affiliate Since: We received an 'official' email from Greg on March 12, 2003 saying we could be an affiliate and agreeing to our name which at that time was CrossFit North. But we started training people in our garage in the Fall of 2002. Location: Seattle, Washington, USA. Square Ft: 1700 sq ft of training space. Number of Members: 384. Is this your original location? We've moved 4 times. We started in our 200 sqf garage, then moved 6 months later to a much bigger space by 50 square feet! -- a Shurgard Storage Unit. We were there for 3 months and then moved to a small room off a hangar at a big park. About 6 months after we moved there, we got lucky and a much bigger room (3000 sqf) with lots of windows became available next door. We were there for 3+ years and then moved to our current space in a much more central location in Seattle. It was tough moving to a smaller space but it had running water and heat so that was a really nice change! Number of trainers: We have 4 full-time trainers, 4 part-time trainers and 1 full-time admin person. Is this your full-time job? Yes, this is Dave and I's full-time job. Why CrossFit? Dave went on a search for effective, result-driven fitness training 9+ years ago when he realized he had to rehabilitate his back to keep himself out of a wheelchair. We feel really fortunate to have found CrossFit so early in the game. Keep reading! There's great advice from CrossFit Seattle on the next page! Using 3 words or less, describe your affiliate culture: Learning, Teaching, Supportive. Programming: Do you do your own or follow somewhere else? The trainers get together each week and do the programming for the following week. Any special focus in clientele? We are passionate about helping anyone at any age and at any skill level. We get a huge kick out of helping someone regain movement they thought they had lost for good. Because of Dave's past, we have become experts at helping people work through injury. We work with a lot of professionals that sit all day. It's easy for the body to become like the tin man when you sit this much. We try to be the grease and get people moving correctly and regularly in a way the will benefit them for the rest of their life. Average hours you work per week on/at your affiliate: Between 40 - 50 hours a week. Have you ever advertised? Not really. We tried the booth-thing at a few fairs. For us, it turned out to be a huge waste of time. That's the only thing I can think of that we did to advertise. Along the way, we've gotten some great breaks and have been on TV twice and had a great spread in the Seattle Times. But we didn't go looking for that. What I tell new affiliates regarding advertising is, if you feel the need to pour some money there, put it into your website. Make your website inviting for new people and explain in detail how to get started with you. It's every new person's first impression of you, so make it good. In running this business, what really took you by surprise? I think what took me by surprise the most is how interesting and cool CrossFit people tend to be. I've been surprised and so pleased with the incredible quality of people that we've met at the gym and in the CrossFit community. Complete the sentence: CrossFitters are . . . intelligent and hardworking. How has CrossFit changed your life? CrossFit has given Dave and I fulfilling careers and has brought a lot of wonderful people into our lives. Any advice for new affiliate owners? It's real exhilarating at first and then the grind sets in. Embrace the grind and find a good zone to get into. Check out Chris Spealler's face when he works out. Try to be like that :-) Someone needs to be passionate about the numbers at your gym -- tracking attendance, payments, client's goals and progress, operations, etc. is really important. Good customer service makes a huge difference. There are 4 things you shouldn't skimp on: Equipment, Website, Tracking and Continuing Education. Hire the best people you can and pay them as well as you can. Try teaching (which means you are continuing to learn) at least one new thing every couple weeks to your clients. It's easy to get into a rut and not even realize it; keep learning and changing. Puke bucket in your gym? Or no puke bucket? Puking is not one of our goals. Posted by Lisbeth at July 7, 2010 12:05 AMComments
I went to Dave in spring '06 fat, weak, and totally unconnected to any valid movement patterns. He was patient as a saint. If I was willing to show up, he would spend time to help me. CF and Dave Werner totally turned my life into something incredibly better than it was and assured I would not grow old shuffling behind a walker & eating oatmeal thru a straw. (prolly die in an avalanche...thanks Dave...I think) Comment #1 - Posted by: Mike N. at July 6, 2010 9:01 PMI ♥ Dave and Nancy! Can't think of two more generous leaders within our community. I'm honored to call you both friends!! ~Laurie Comment #2 - Posted by: Laurie at July 6, 2010 9:18 PMSo great to see Nancy and Dave in the affiliate spotlight. They run a fantastic gym, and are wonderful people. Dave is one of the best coaches I have ever worked with. I was doing CrossFit on my own in a globo gym for a year before I went to their former gym out in the hangar. Dave taught me so much and now even after opening my own gym, (which by the way they were amazing, and answered all questions I had when getting started) I still go back when I can to get some top notch coaching. Sorry to be so long winded but Dave and Nancy are the best and very glad to see the first affiliate featured! Comment #3 - Posted by: nadia shatila at July 6, 2010 9:21 PMThanks for sharing guys Comment #4 - Posted by: Colm at July 7, 2010 12:25 AMI visited CrossFit Seattle last summer while on vacation. The quality of the community Dave and Nancy have cultivated speaks volumes about them as coaches and leaders. The CrossFit Seattle people were welcoming, motivated, hard-working, and just a lot of fun to work out with. And while I didn't get to train with either Dave or Nancy, the other trainers there were fantastic. CrossFit Seattle is clearly a model of what affiliates should strive to be. Thanks for sharing some of what has made you successful! Comment #5 - Posted by: Jeff Rice at July 7, 2010 5:19 AMGreat job you guys building such a great business helping so many people. 384 members is amazing!! Comment #6 - Posted by: Eric/CrossFit North County at July 7, 2010 6:29 AMYou guys are an inspiration to me, thanks! Comment #7 - Posted by: Damon - Wasatch at July 7, 2010 7:18 AMMy goal is for my affiliate, CrossFit Christchurch, to have the same culture and atmosphere as CrossFit Seattle! Great info - thank you for sharing - Can't wait to go there and experience the culture and atmosphere!!!! :-) Comment #8 - Posted by: Peter at July 7, 2010 7:23 AMI was fortunate to run across Dave's gym while I was on the road. In the little time that I've spent there, and in conversations after, I've learned more than I could have ever asked for. Dave, Nancy and CFSeattle are an inspiration, and set the bar very high for what an affiliate can be and do. Comment #9 - Posted by: JB - CrossFit SS at July 7, 2010 11:35 AMI met Dave back in June of 2002 at a Kettlebell Seminar with Pavel, got to know him a bit, visited his garage gym, then the Storage Gym, then we went to the RKC together in June of 2003. He and Nancy (and Nick Nibbler) worked so hard on making CFNorth the best place it could be, working countless hours, taking and giving seminars and always putting their clients progress at the top of their list. They put on the first "CF contests", which were the precursor to the CF Games. I taught KB seminars there over the years and always had a great time. Dave's clients were always hard working, polite, and they all loved to learn new things. Dave surrounds himself with great people and many of his former trainers have gone on to open up their own CF gyms. Dave does an excellent job training and inspiring his clients and trainers alike and I am honored to call him one of my best friends. If you are a crossfitter and are travelling thru Seattle, you owe it to yourself to drop by and see how this excellent gym operates. Tom Comment #10 - Posted by: Tom Corrigan at July 7, 2010 9:39 PMNancy & Coach Dave are like my CrossFit parents! Comment #11 - Posted by: Andrew Bueno at July 8, 2010 2:38 PMDave is an awesome coach. As a 50-something aspiring crossfitter, he gave me invaluable advice on technique and scaling. One of the most important insight he provided was the importance of those intangibles such as the attainment of psychological resilience and perseverance through a committed but safe engagement with the workout; how properly calibrated, the pain of a workout was nothing to fear or shy away from. Comment #12 - Posted by: Mark Brinton at July 9, 2010 12:16 AMThank all of you for the kind words. The most rewarding part of all this is all the great people. That we are able to give something back is icing on the cake. Comment #13 - Posted by: Dave Werner at July 9, 2010 12:35 PMDave and Nancy are pillars of the CrossFit community. You guys are both the best. I've even been fortunate enough to work out at their box and scam a dinner out of Dave at that little place next door. Much love and respect, always. Dale Comment #14 - Posted by: Dale Saran at July 9, 2010 3:53 PMDave and (Nick) are Plankowners. Scholars, Martial Artists, Military men, Crossfitters. I was proud to follow in their steps. Good, True and Humble. Comment #15 - Posted by: tj at July 11, 2010 6:17 PMI'm really interested I really wish we had one where I live. Comment #16 - Posted by: GTrevino at October 4, 2011 8:10 PMHow in the world do you accommodate so many members in that amount of space? Do you have WODs every hour all day? Thanks! Comment #17 - Posted by: Fergs at April 4, 2012 1:19 PMPost a comment |
