Hot spots in California for Badminton...

[Kelvin]

Hi folks...
Just a question... what are the hot spots in California for badminton???
Any specific club, or gymnasium you guys know of at all???
If so please do post, and let me know.
Thanks
-Kelvin

Depending on where you live. the one I go to is San gabriel valley badminton club in rosemead california. They have 9 courts and open 24hours aday and 365 days a week.
They also have players of all levels.

[cooler]

now that's is my kind of badminton club. Do they have a cafeteria so that one could play from morning to night?

well, they don't actually have cafe in there but you can still buy cold drinks and snack in there. They do have a nice shower places, ping pong tables as well as proshop.

where do you play usually?

[smashguru]

You wanna go to the best place. Try OCBC badminton club in Orange County. There are players of all levels and the US National team trains there everyday 6 days a week.

smashguru

for northern california, Pleasonton is the best place to smash as far as i know. this gym has 9 courts. very high ceiling. goood lighting, courteous players. you just have to bring your own water and drinks. no vending machines. water fountains are nasty! want to know more, ask!

[SystemicAnomaly]

wish there was more & better places to play in the bay area.

i've heard good things about OCBC and Manhattan Beach around the LA area as well as the gym at Balboa Park in San Diego.

[kwun]

someone posted good things about pleasanton a whlie ago. i have been wanting to go, but never managed to find time and people willing to trek all the way there.

[Quantum]

Ahh...I used to live in Pleasanton and I didn't know...

[kwun]

gregr, where do you normally play?

[raymond]

OK, I couldn't resist. I'm now in the South Bay.
Moved here a few years ago from Ottawa, Canada.
There they've a badminton club, with international
standard courts (6 of them) with air-conditioned waiting
room, a rotation system, with 3-times national champ
there in charge and offer private/group lessons.

And they've a cafeteria there. They open, well, from
7 in the morning to 12 at midnight. They also have
weight room with sauna and shower.

You want to enjoy this? Consider moving to Ottawa.

Now you know what I've missed!

[raymond]

Yeap, I second your comment. OCBC maybe nice,
but it's far from South Bay. I can't be there (at least
not every week). Pleasanton is also too far.

Seems like there's a demand here. Why's it that
no one open a higher standard badminton gymn/training
school here as a business? Is it the real-estate cost?

[cooler]

raymond, is that ottawa badminton club private or public? ie, do they allow drop in or is that club is part of a larger sport facility? Damn, we dont have facilities this nice even in calgary, the national training center for canada.

Cooler,

So you're from Calgery, hey? Is that why your name called coller?

The club I mentioned is a public
club. 6-7 years ago, it charges about $300 to $400 (Canadian)
for a year of membership. I heard that Ottawa being a Government
town, the membership is heavily subsidied.

The club is part of a bigger Gymn. They've other things going
for them, like baseball (I think), Tennis, and other Health Club
like activies as well as martial arts...

You can drop in, but whether you'd be allowed to play depends
on your luck. Too many people there already, and you're not
allow to play. Plus you need to be brought in by a member.
And they track (with computer) how many times you dropped in.

Raymond

you are right raymond. the real estate cost is the biggest concern for all business here in the bay area. but if I had enough funds to start, i would.

[kwun]

it is not only the real estate cost, it also has to do with the lack of good coaches in the area.

while there are a handful of excellent ones, many of the "coaches" i have seen don't even have the basics themselves, and they go off and teach others how to play.

[raymond]

Lack of good coaches shouldn't be an issue. Assuming real-estate
is not an issue, and building this said gymn can satisfy someone's
ROI, (i.e. someone that has the capital) it may well be a good idea.

Consider the following usage:
- Badminton tournament; much better place for bigger tournaments (
e.g. the one in Gunn H.S. annually, and the up coming up in Cupertino H.S.,
perhaps national, international tournaments) - hey, these type of tournaments
could be commercially sponsored (=> $$)
- Training place for Juniors
- Place for drop-in (consider the jam-pack conditions whereever you go, and
the fact that Sunnyvale Recreation center actually makes badminton a daily
event, 7 days a week, and people actually take 2 hours off lunch time to go
to play).
- Training place for others (adult players)
- Double up as health club with space and equipment for weights and circuit
training.
- Rental for other purposes (that would not damages the floor, or have street
shoes on the floor).

Basically, the gymn is like any other gymns you can find, but have better
nets, no basketball/tennis/volleyball lines on the floor, soft white lights on the side
instead of on top of the courts, more courts, good dark background color,
no basketball racks on top, clean floor (you don't need a wet towel to clean
your shoes), wait-room with air-conditioning and TV. Think of it as a Health
club but instead of racket ball or squash, you've badminton.

Does anyone think, given Bayarea situation, that we can keep the Gymn
fully occupied? How much premium people would be willing to pay for
memberships with such place/facilities?