| Editor’s Welcome |


Social networking and virtual reality are phrases of relatively recent coinage, and, today, are asso- ciated primarily with the digital domain. Both, however, are timeless: Every human interaction is a form of social networking, and every story— read, heard, or told—evokes a virtual world.


The problem with the new, increasingly efficient brands of social networking and virtual reality is that they are also increasingly impersonal, limiting one’s experience, confining one’s world, so it accords to the dimensions of a computer screen. They offer what is, if you will, an eye-brain-and-fingertip workout. And although reading CBI is, admittedly, a virtual process, what we preach and promote, and fervently believe in, is a holis- tic total-body approach: for club members, certainly, but for club owners and operators, as well.


In this issue, for instance, you’re going to read a great deal


about IHRSA’s 31st Anniversary International Convention and Trade Show. Our coverage begins, in a sense, on our “Letters to the Editor” page, with a heartfelt message from Patricia Laus, the owner of The Atlantic Club. Laus entreats our readers—that’s you—to take part in Clubs for the Quest, an initiative she launched to complement Augie’s Quest. Both Quests raise money to fund research to find a cure for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, which struck Augie Nieto, the cofounder of Life Fitness, in 2005. For the past six years, Augie’s Bash, an excit- ing, inspiring, and richly rewarding event, has been a highlight of IHRSA’s annual convention, and this year’s version will be especially memo-


rable—in part, because of a breakthrough in ALS research that IHRSA Chairperson Art Curtis describes in his “First Set” column. Our coverage also includes a thought-provoking interview with Simon Sinek, a best-selling author, business consultant, and convention keynoter; a fascinating industry-specific history of Los Angeles, the “Fitness Capital of the World,” by CBI Executive Editor Patricia Amend; and a trade-show entreaty, “The Indus- try’s Unsung Heroes,” by IHRSA President and CEO Joe Moore. We hope that you find all of this interesting, informative, and helpful, but …


Reading about IHRSA’s annual convention and trade show is not like being there. Watching videos or listening to tapes of show presentations is not like being there. Nothing in the world, I can confidently report, is anything at all like being there! The remarkable setting, the throngs of people, the wealth of information, the endless rows of new products, the stratospheric energy level, the nonstop interaction of individuals and ideas— they simply can’t be condensed enough to fit within the borders of a 27" iMac monitor or the 8 1/8" x 10 7/8" pages of CBI. The IHRSA convention and trade show isn’t virtual. It’s visceral! —|


4 Club Business Internat ional | FEBRUARY 2012 | ihrsa.org


The mission of IHRSA is to grow, protect, and promote the industry, and to provide its members with benefits that will help them be more successful.


PUBLISHING Editor-In-Chief: Craig R. Waters Publisher: Jay M. Ablondi Managing Editor: Rebecca K. Maverick Associate Publisher: Kristen A. Walsh Executive Editor: Patricia Amend Editor: Jennifer H. McInerney Associate Editor: Patricia Glynn


Contributing Editors: Liane Cassavoy, Jon Feld, Julie M. King, Lesley Mahoney, Melissa Rodriguez, Jean Suffin, Stephen Wallenfels


ADVERTISING: ihrsa.org/cbi E-mail: advertising@ihrsa.org


Vice President of Advertising & Membership Sales: Michele Eynon


Senior Account Manager: Jessica Gutstein


Senior Account Executive: Donna Garrity


Business Development Publications: Will Finn


Advertising Sales Executive: Mireille Rivara


Associate Service Manager: Meghan Burnham


Art Direction, Design, Production: Holland-Mark, Boston, MA


INTERNATIONAL HEALTH, RACQUET & SPORTSCLUB ASSOCIATION


President & CEO: Joe Moore Chief Operating Officer: Anita Lawlor


Executive Vice President of Public Policy: Helen Durkin


Executive Vice President of Global Products: Jay Ablondi


CLUB BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL EDITORIAL & ADVERTISING OFFICES:


c/o IHRSA Seaport Center 70 Fargo Street, Boston, MA 02210 USA


800-228-4772 USA & Canada 617-951-0055 | 617-951-0056 FAX


E-mail: cbi@ihrsa.org ihrsa.org


To order reprints of articles, call 800-228-4772 ext. 117 or visit ihrsa.org/cbi


®


Club Business International (ISSN 1043-9692, USPS 766-570) is published monthly ©2012 by the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association, Seaport Center 70 Fargo Street, Boston, MA 02210. All rights reserved. Periodicals postage paid at Boston, Massachusetts, and additional mailing offices. Canadian Sales Agreement #40767601.


Subscription rate for members is $48 per year, which is included in the dues. Additional subscrip- tions $24.95 per year (USA) and $75 (International).


POSTMASTER: Please send change of address to Club Business International, c/o IHRSA, Seaport Center 70 Fargo Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02210


VOLUME 32, ISSUE 2


Kerry Brett


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142