Their court availability is disappointing. They constantly close up to 4-5 courts for training thus leaving a few courts open for public and it is very frustating. I usually went there on tuesday/wednesday/thursday nights and saturday/sunday late afternoon. I were asked multiple times in the middle of a game to leave the court because of training sessions. One time I explained to the staff I took that particular court because the time table for training session is 6pm-7pm on the notice and it was already 9pm!! Then guess what, the staff came back with another notice which read "training session at 9pm" :crying:
Then i look around the gym and most courts were full with multiple groups already waiting. Some of my friends paid $7 admission and played less than 30 mins, they all decide to never come back to smashcity again.

If the managment team of smashcity is reading this forum, I wholeheartly suggest you to not close that many courts of training, 4 to 5 courts are really too much. Yes, i understanding training classes can bring you more revenue and reputation but smashcity has recently developed into a private badminton school. I also decide to say goodbye to smashcity and won't mind to drive from cupertino to milbrae, fremont, campbell and union city to play this frantistic sport, or rather spend my $7 on a movie than wasting my time with smashcity in frustration.:(

trying going to Apac then. You won't need to spend your whole trip waiting. I recommend it to you cause the gym is fairly empty almost everyday. Their 10 time passes are only 56 which is around 5.6bucks each time.. save you some gas money there. Usually. Me and my friends played the whole 3-5 hours while we're there.

tobler -- quite a first post :) It is great that badminton is really taking off! I'm glad Smash City continues to be successful with both open gym and training with so many clubs in Northern California. However, I would like to correct a few statements made in your message. Since I'm in charge of the training program and am a 50% owner of the club, I can let you know that our training program uses 1 court for training on Tuesday, 0 Courts for Wednesday (all coaches have that day off), and up to 3 courts on Thursday -- not the 4-5 courts you mentioned.

On Saturdays and Sundays, we can use up to 5 courts for maybe 2 to 3 hours at most. BTW, we are open for 14 hours on Saturday and 12 hours on Sunday, so you must have been "lucky" during your visit. In addition, given that Smash City has 12 courts -- even at worst case, we still have 7-8 courts for open gym -- just as many open courts as other gyms.

Their court availability is disappointing. They constantly close up to 4-5 courts for training thus leaving a few courts open for public and it is very frustating. I usually went there on tuesday/wednesday/thursday nights and saturday/sunday late afternoon. I were asked multiple times in the middle of a game to leave the court because of training sessions. One time I explained to the staff I took that particular court because the time table for training session is 6pm-7pm on the notice and it was already 9pm!! Then guess what, the staff came back with another notice which read "training session at 9pm" :crying:

I certainly hope ALL your friends paid $7 admission :)

Then i look around the gym and most courts were full with multiple groups already waiting. Some of my friends paid $7 admission and played less than 30 mins, they all decide to never come back to smashcity again.

I frequent Kwun's forum frequently. Reserving courts is just as important for training as it is for open gym. I certainly hate to lose a five day a week customer -- but at least you will continue the sport at other clubs.

If the managment team of smashcity is reading this forum, I wholeheartly suggest you to not close that many courts of training, 4 to 5 courts are really too much. Yes, i understanding training classes can bring you more revenue and reputation but smashcity has recently developed into a private badminton school. I also decide to say goodbye to smashcity and won't mind to drive from cupertino to milbrae, fremont, campbell and union city to play this frantistic sport, or rather spend my $7 on a movie than wasting my time with smashcity in frustration.:(

I won't be responding to any more messages here. You can send me your telephone number in a private message here or email me at wlum@smashcity.net. I would like to find out more information re: your visit!

Thanks,

Wayne

Thanks SuperKaren for the suggestion, i will definitely give that place a try!

Wlum. Thanks for pointing out my post count, I believe that make my opinion less valuable and also thanks for making the assumption that my friends didn't pay admissions, i meant some of them only got to play 30 mins if that statement is not very obvious to you.

Moreover, you are representing Smash City but decide to quote my post statement by statement and joke about them, this is a very unprofessional public relationship gesture on a public forum :)

Uhmm... indirectly insulting him doesn't help either sir. I go to smash quite often myself and I also understand you frustration, but they roughly have their schedule posted up. You can also challenge the other courts and meet now people also.

But if you decide that the gym isn't for you, i agree with Karen and say you should go to APAC if you only play with your friends. That place seems to be very off and on with people. UBC is very trainning oriented also. I have yet ot go to the new bintang, but i'd think that would be a good place to go to. I'd like to also suggest Bay badminton if oyu haven't been there. The place is huge and really nice. If you are just a recreational player, going to any of these gyms would be a good idea, but once you go up in level the number of gyms you can go to really goes down the hole.

Thanks SuperKaren for the suggestion, i will definitely give that place a try!

Wlum. Thanks for pointing out my post count, I believe that make my opinion less valuable and also thanks for making the assumption that my friends didn't pay admissions, i meant some of them only got to play 30 mins if that statement is not very obvious to you.

Moreover, you are representing Smash City but decide to quote my post statement by statement and joke about them, this is a very unprofessional public relationship gesture on a public forum :)
Hey tobler. Don't get too frustrated. It's happened to many of us at some time or another. What I say is this -

Not everybody has the same best place to play badminton. You have to try out a few locations and find which one is the best for yourself.

It's worthwhile giving the feedback to Smashcity. Wether they take on that feedback and act on it is their problem. If they lose business from that, don't let it worry you - it's their problem. You do have other options for badminton.

If their facility is so busy and expensive, then market forces should apply - people like yourself will seek alternative venues.

Take Care

Calm down...

Without knowing too much detail, I think this case is more due to mis-communication between both sides. It's the customer's responsibility to double verify the schedule before coming, but it's also the management team's responsibility to try to honor the already-published schedule, and try not to change it from time to time based on the last minute demand/order.

Personal attacks can't solve the issue, and surely not a good thing to the community.

I do agree with tobler, and I felt the frustration also. I never been to Smash City. But I went to another club during summer, and they were using 3 courts for training during lunch hour. However, all the kids who were waiting took up the other courts to practice and play matches. That left only 3 or 4 courts left to the rest of us. That shows us they don't care about us paying only a few bucks to play. First of all, I don't have any relation with Bintang, but I really like the way they handle training classes. All their training class after after 2pm when most players left. And if there are kids coming early and start playing and there are not enough courts, Phuu and his mom will ask the kids to stop and leave the court. That's how the managment should treat us (customers).

I do agree with tobler, and I felt the frustration also. I never been to Smash City. But I went to another club during summer, and they were using 3 courts for training during lunch hour. However, all the kids who were waiting took up the other courts to practice and play matches. That left only 3 or 4 courts left to the rest of us. That shows us they don't care about us paying only a few bucks to play. First of all, I don't have any relation with Bintang, but I really like the way they handle training classes. All their training class after after 2pm when most players left. And if there are kids coming early and start playing and there are not enough courts, Phuu and his mom will ask the kids to stop and leave the court. That's how the managment should treat us (customers).
well... if uve never been to smash city then dont talk. also all trainging classes at smash city are after 2pm considering most of the students are STUDENTS, who are at that time in school. and if after 2pm is when there ISNT many ppl i dont think it is very busy. which in turn is due to ppl NOT going there. der derderrr

Well. If we want to get "technical" about this. When the website of smash city, ubc, or any other clubs posted. If the website states that there are 9 courts or 12 courts available, then of course we should recieved the full benefits of the 9-12 courts on the website right? For an example, Smash city website state that there are 12 well spaced courts. If that is the case, the customers come and expect to have 12 courts available to play not 9. My first experience was with UBC ( the first management, not sure about now). It was when they used 3 courts to train and one court was broken down at the far end. That left us with only about 5 courts to play. So technically, it's consider a fraud, if the gym doesn't not meet up with its stated features. Also, I agreed Mr. Lum made a mistake by posting "I certainly hope ALL your friends paid $7 admission" on the site. This is an insult and indirect mocking. I think as a customer, we have the right to critic gyms, that just happen in the business world. Tobler might be overexaggerated but that just show how frustrated it is with the gym. Add oil obviously does not help. As for my experience with the club, I think the same as Tobler. I drove from South City all the way to Smash city, hoping to have a decent game. Apparently, there were not waiting system. Basically, people just camp at the court and conquer it. I spend the whole time, waiting and because nobody wanted to play with me, i spend the whole time scratching my knees. It's frustrated because people comes in groups and they only want to play with their friends. It's really hard to play if you come alone and doesn't have friends. Most "great" players there only want to play with other "great" players, so there's not chance of me getting on the court. But, I dunno, this is not what I want in a gym. GGBC was a better experience for me. I only waited for 1.5 hours as most on challenging courts. Bintang sometimes gets really crowded. I waited for almost 3 hours last time, playing on challenging court. Apac was always dead, the last few times i went with my friends.

Well I think this is turning into a gripes thread. Since there are issues that I cannot answer and are best directed towards the management, I propose people should advise how best to solve issues without going into names and accusations.

I must say, if a facility has twelve courts, and only 6 are open to rent/dropin because the other six are being used for coaching, then the twelve courts are being utilised as claimed for badminton. I'd have more of a gripe if they were being used for basketball.

I am not even live in the region, so, I can't speak with any in person experience.

However, I wonder if that's possible to give the front desk a call to double verify today's schedule / court availability before heading out. Worst, ask the front desk when you enter the gym, before give the $$$. This way, if you think the current situation does not fit for your need, you can leave or go to another gym. If you decide to take a chance, then wish for the best.

Your guys in Bay area have like tons of badminton dedicated facilities, and the entry fee is like $7. Our poor folks in NY, need to pay as much as $25 for a session in HS gyms, and still need to wait for games during peak time. :o

Well. If we want to get "technical" about this. When the website of smash city, ubc, or any other clubs posted. If the website states that there are 9 courts or 12 courts available, then of course we should recieved the full benefits of the 9-12 courts on the website right? For an example, Smash city website state that there are 12 well spaced courts. If that is the case, the customers come and expect to have 12 courts available to play not 9. My first experience was with UBC ( the first management, not sure about now). It was when they used 3 courts to train and one court was broken down at the far end. That left us with only about 5 courts to play. So technically, it's consider a fraud, if the gym doesn't not meet up with its stated features.

I am not on either side, but I don't agree on the above statement.

The number of courts only states the features of the facility, but no meaning of all these will be available for you or a particular group on a 24/7 basis.

Let's put this way. Say a shopping mall says "free parking available". Then, you come on Black Friday at a rather late time. Sure, you can't find a parking spot easily. Do you consider it's a fraud? I hope no...

well... if uve never been to smash city then dont talk...

Watch your language. :mad:

I agree with Cheung - if one doesn't work out, then go to another one. Luckily we have 7 to choose.

My daughter train at gym. I pay money for owner get rich. Why give up train court for Toble open play? What make yu soo special to kick out my daughter?

I want eat at restarant but have to wait. I tell owner to many people eat beef. owner shud kick them out so more table for me eat chiken.

All gym have train class and open play. some gym have more court like new bay place. some gym have less court like goldingate. All gym hav train. All gym cheat?

Dont be cheap. Reserve court if yu no like wait. take train class.

it ok to say owner fraud when not. it ok to lie when frustrated. why this good for badminton :crying:

So technically, it's consider a fraud, if the gym doesn't not meet up with its stated features.

I think as a customer, we have the right to critic gyms, that just happen in the business world. Tobler might be overexaggerated but that just show how frustrated it is with the gym.

tell truth when feedback is very importent:eek:

It's worthwhile giving the feedback to Smashcity. Wether they take on that feedback and act on it is their problem. If they lose business from that, don't let it worry you - it's their problem. You do have other options for badminton.

i do think that badminton players as paying customers have the right to express their opinion as feedback to the badminton establishments, given that their feedback and opinions are based on facts and not overly generalized nor based purely on emotion.

whether the establishments decides to take the feedback and act on it is also their right and their way of doing business. it is not possible for a business to make everyone happy and it is their own choice to make business decision that makes most sense to them.

the good part now is that we have many gyms available and if any customers are not happy, they are of course free to visit another one instead.

i do think that badminton players are much more spoiled these days. in the old days just a few years back, we were always cramped inside a little tiny gym, often having to wait 45mins to an hour just to get our turn, and these places only open once a week. imagine *that*.

I highly recommend Bintang also. Ill say the gym appearance doesnt get an A but the stuff there does. Talk to Phu, He's the owner, operator, and also the head coach and is a great guy. He's even willing to play a round with
noobies like me :) and when he cant fit in a match he'll match you up with some one else. Like i said tho gym isnt top notch but ive always had great times there.

I totally agree what Kwun said. Back in 2002, I need to wait for at least 45 min in Pleasanton to play a game. However, at least there is a "clipping" queueing system to wait in the line for a court. I know how long I need to wait. I think Smash City also needs such a system to be fair for everybody. All the other gyms have that already (except APAC, because I haven't been there).

I myself have been in Tobler's situation. It happened to me twice that the staff at Smashcity simply post the reservation notice 5 mins before the reservation time and kicked us out of the court while we are still playing a game. Another time, the reservation notice was not even on the net and was on the floor, the people who trained at the court even left the court to rest, we didn't know if the court was reserved or not (since the notice was on the floor covered up by racket covers and the court was empty) so we went to the court and play a game. 10 min later, coach Holvy rudely kicked us out of the court saying it was reserved. We told him we didn't see the reservation notice, then he somehow digged out the reservation notice under the pile of racket covers and told us the court was reserved and we were forced to get out.

Bottom line is, Smash City's court reservation system virtually does not exist and they have this bully attitude of "this is the way it is, either you conform to our rule or get out".

Wayne, if you see this post, I am suggesting Smash City should have a better queueing system. Not by people calling out "I am next" to all other courts if they are waiting. I think Golden Gate has a great queueing system, people are given clips to put on the court if they are waiting for the next game. Smash City don't need timers like GGBC because Smash City has more courts. People who play the game on the court should play two games of 21 point system, challenge court should also play 21 game system. This will reduce the wait time considerably. Also, even if we have the simple clip system, we will know exactly how many courts are reserved for training, so if we think too many courts are taken for training, we will come back some other time.

Tobler, if you are going to Smash City again, I would avoid Thursday night at all cost. In Smash City, Thursday night is the worst weeknight to go to. Wednesday night is a lot better.

Baddymom, we are not trying to kick your doughter out, we are simple giving Smash City suggestions to improve on their court queueing system to reduce confusion and frustration.

Mazinkaiser's post is exactly how i feel about smashcity, their staff can ask you to leave the court anytime without a clear time table and there is no queue system for open courts customers.

Baddymom, this is not an open court customers VS training customers debate and no one is going to kick your precious daughter out of the gym. Imagine you and your daughter go into a packed restaurant, you waited for a table and finally it is your turn to sit. Just when you are about to finish your appetizer, the waiter ask you to wait again for another open table because the customer who just walks in get priority to sit first since he is going to order a $200 Kobe steak and there is no warning for you before hand. Whose fault do you think this is? The manager of this restaurant or the customer who like a $200 Kobe steak? Are you frustrated or blame yourself for not ordering a steak?

I have been to Bintang on a packed weekdays night even though is it packed, their queue system let me know how many people are in front of me and how long I have to wait. Even though I may have a long wait before my turn but I know everyone else is in the same bloat, their management has put their best effort to solve this. This is fair and this is how smashcity should be. Next time you go to smashcity check out how many courts hang a "reserved for training" notice, these courts can be taken anytime they like without a time table.

Plez tell truth tobler. You say yu like bintang system, but go to smashcity usually tue, wed, thu, sat, sun. why go so many time to smashcity if like bintang and no like smashcity? just to complaint on open forum? did u complaint bintang when u left? owner let peple know u lie. Tell agin how many court use training those day? hahaha Tell truth. you like troll and cause truble. how owner lissen when u not tell truth?

you say not train court VS open court issue but u ask me to count train notice next time. Why count if not issue. I confuse what yu say.

court notice tell time when train happen. sometime no train between class. Peple that play during break must leave becuz class start agin. dont make smashcity ask multiple time like u did. one time enuf. no wonder why peple rude to u.

smashcity have simple queue system. wait at court till u turn. nobody cut since you wait at court. peple playing see that u next. Tell staff if peple playing wont leave on time. usually less than 30 min befor play. reserve court if you no like wait.

dont pay when arrive if to meny peple waiting for court. go back bintang or apac. use brain to think first so no frustrate anymor. eazy to see all smashcity court from pay point.

plez dont sit at my table and eat my food at packed resturant becuz i go to bathroom. don't make me tell u leave table multiple time.

owner tell u to contac him instead of post. just call, tell truth, and maybe owner lissen.

...
However, I wonder if that's possible to give the front desk a call to double verify today's schedule / court availability before heading out. Worst, ask the front desk when you enter the gym, before give the $$$. This way, if you think the current situation does not fit for your need, you can leave or go to another gym. If you decide to take a chance, then wish for the best.
...
..ahem, actually i went up there this past weekend and played some baddy with "the boss" (we arrived and played between 4:30 pm-6 pm);)..First time playing there and actually i did the opposite; went in there, paid first and then looked for any courts, without even asking the front desk about the schedule/any court availability..Add to that, all the courts were full & we were playing on a very short time schedule; who knows what would happen if we only played 1 match...Anyway, we were lucky to have gotten a few games, after a few minutes of waiting; and the folks we played & encountered with were friendly and courteous..:cool:

complaints, concerns and defenses has been made (but probably not done in the most eloquent, polite nor diplomatic way ;)) and i see that the feedback has reached the proper authority. i think this thread can be closed.

just a few points i want to make:

1. gyms do have training and open courts. that's how a badminton gym operate.
2. courts are a shared resource, if you think you are not getting the proper share, make sure you maximize your share by:
- learn the court schedule which are posted
- visit at a less busy time
3. if you do think your share is not fair, most effective is to direct the complaint to the management. the contact emails are always in their website, or you can try to look for the management in the facility and talk to them directly.
4. when you make a complaint, make sure the facts are accurate and truthful. make complaints politely and constructively.

if you have done your side properly and professional, and the management chooses not to respond appropriate, then it is their problem. ;)