"Gym? What's a gym? Oh! A gym!"
I guess this was a weekend for my online accounts to upgrade their websites. Both Grooveshark and Chase have dramatically changed their layouts (and it was only last week that Gmail updated as well). I am annoyed with Chase's changes, I can't get to a detail listing of my recent purchases. The other sites are meh.
On to the subject of gyms. Two weeks ago Cardinal closed its doors in Indianapolis and sold all its memberships to L.A. Fitness. No announcements, no warnings. People simply showed up to work out that day and found the doors locked and a piece of paper on the glass telling them they now belonged to L.A. Fitness.
I had worked out at L.A. before, briefly and did not enjoy it. But I moved my routine over there for a week while I considered alternate options. It was not a good week for workouts. To add insult to injury L.A. Fitness does not wait for confirmation from you that you'll start working out at the new location before billing you, they just automatically bill the same account Cardinal had on record unless you specifically tell them you want to drop your membership.
What compounds this issue is that I can't seem to close my account with them. I've tried on three separate occasions now. The first time they could not find me in the system, second time they said I had to call cardinal corporate and cancel with them (except LA cut up my cardinal ID and gave me an LA ID to replace it so I had no way to identify myself to Cardinal) and third time they told me I had to come into the LA Fitness location during normal business hours between 9 and 5 (even though they're open until 11:00) to talk to a manager about closing the account. Those are hours in which I am at work myself.
I had thoroughly enjoyed Cardinal Fitness up until this point and had no complaints with them. LA Fitness has been a poor experience through and through. They can perform some uncouth acts with uncouth objects.
On to the new!
I think I have now found a place at Lifestyle Fitness this weekend. The sign up process was a little weak. I was supposed to get seven days of free workouts before making a decision. I went in on Friday for free just fine. On Sunday they asked me to sign up, saying they would wave the enrollment fee if I did so that day. A good deal as that enrollment fee is usually two or three times more expensive that the monthly rate. They had four options. The first three were valued at $55/mo $45/mo and $35/mo with a $79 for each fee, which could be waved. After being presented with these and asked which I liked, I told them I needed something even more basic. Enter option 4: the basic option, at $20/mo with a $20 enrollment fee, which could not be waved. I said it would be fine.
If I had been thinking more clearly I would have told them I'd like to spend the rest of the week working out there before making my decision, since I still had my seven day pass, but that thought did not occur to me until after I had signed on with them and was getting changed in the locker room.
Oh well, the equipment seems to be good enough (better than LA's) and it wasn't crowded on Friday or Sunday. So far the only drawback is the long drive from home (but it's very close to work).
As for Cardinal, I'm not sure what thought processes a business goes through that leads to the decision of closing branches without any warning to their customers. We end up blogging about it online and that reflects negatively on the corporation which still exists, with other branches still in operation. Branches where maybe the customers would rather like to get out before they're forced out. It's always a race to be the dumpee and not the dumped.
On to the subject of gyms. Two weeks ago Cardinal closed its doors in Indianapolis and sold all its memberships to L.A. Fitness. No announcements, no warnings. People simply showed up to work out that day and found the doors locked and a piece of paper on the glass telling them they now belonged to L.A. Fitness.
I had worked out at L.A. before, briefly and did not enjoy it. But I moved my routine over there for a week while I considered alternate options. It was not a good week for workouts. To add insult to injury L.A. Fitness does not wait for confirmation from you that you'll start working out at the new location before billing you, they just automatically bill the same account Cardinal had on record unless you specifically tell them you want to drop your membership.
What compounds this issue is that I can't seem to close my account with them. I've tried on three separate occasions now. The first time they could not find me in the system, second time they said I had to call cardinal corporate and cancel with them (except LA cut up my cardinal ID and gave me an LA ID to replace it so I had no way to identify myself to Cardinal) and third time they told me I had to come into the LA Fitness location during normal business hours between 9 and 5 (even though they're open until 11:00) to talk to a manager about closing the account. Those are hours in which I am at work myself.
I had thoroughly enjoyed Cardinal Fitness up until this point and had no complaints with them. LA Fitness has been a poor experience through and through. They can perform some uncouth acts with uncouth objects.
On to the new!
I think I have now found a place at Lifestyle Fitness this weekend. The sign up process was a little weak. I was supposed to get seven days of free workouts before making a decision. I went in on Friday for free just fine. On Sunday they asked me to sign up, saying they would wave the enrollment fee if I did so that day. A good deal as that enrollment fee is usually two or three times more expensive that the monthly rate. They had four options. The first three were valued at $55/mo $45/mo and $35/mo with a $79 for each fee, which could be waved. After being presented with these and asked which I liked, I told them I needed something even more basic. Enter option 4: the basic option, at $20/mo with a $20 enrollment fee, which could not be waved. I said it would be fine.
If I had been thinking more clearly I would have told them I'd like to spend the rest of the week working out there before making my decision, since I still had my seven day pass, but that thought did not occur to me until after I had signed on with them and was getting changed in the locker room.
Oh well, the equipment seems to be good enough (better than LA's) and it wasn't crowded on Friday or Sunday. So far the only drawback is the long drive from home (but it's very close to work).
As for Cardinal, I'm not sure what thought processes a business goes through that leads to the decision of closing branches without any warning to their customers. We end up blogging about it online and that reflects negatively on the corporation which still exists, with other branches still in operation. Branches where maybe the customers would rather like to get out before they're forced out. It's always a race to be the dumpee and not the dumped.