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HEALTH & FITNESS Studio saddles up for cycle workouts


London’s cycle-focused health club craze shows no signs of abating, with Richmond’s new pay-as-you-go studio CychoCycle the latest opening. Te indoor cycling studio


follows the footsteps of recent high-profile debutants Psycle and Athlete Lab as evidence that workouts on wheels are in no danger of hitting the skids. Situated on Mortlake High


Street, the studio runs heart rate monitored classes for complete beginners to elite cyclists, using Keiser M3 Bikes. The newly-renovated site


ARK Leisure founders start ‘Dragons’ Den-like’ venture


Andy Kay and Mhairi FitzPatrick, the pair behind ARK Leisure and London’s 37° health clubs, have launched new leisure- focused funding venture Socius Investing. “Bearing a passing resemblance to


Dragon’s Den,” Socius sees Kay and FitzPatrick investing money for an equity stake in a business, working with owners to change strategy and see accelerated growth. “Our focus is on the leisure sector because


that’s where our experience and know-how lies,” said FitzPatrick. “It would be far too grand to liken us to Dragons – we do invest our own cash but most importantly bring expertise backed up by considerable experi- ence.” Details: http://lei.sr?a=y3z4w


Live streamed heart rates appear on large screens during classes


is a five-minute walk from Mortlake station and studio director Sara Spencer sees commuters as being a key market. Pay-as-you-go online booking enable cli-


ents to pick and choose visits, while the classes are broad in scope, ranging from endurance/ fat burning through to strength and power, as well as hill climbing and interval training. All bookings are taken online and classes


become cheaper the more they are purchased to encourage customer loyalty. Riders can obtain their own Polar heart monitor at a reduced price


or if they have no monitor they will be able to borrow a Polar heart rate monitor to wear for each class. Live streamed heart rates will appear on large screens allowing riders to monitor their progress and ensure instructors are teaching to each rider’s individual target zone. Individual workout and performance sum-


maries will be emailed to each rider at the end of every class. Riders who buy the Polar kit can monitor follow their improving fitness on the free App. Details: http://lei.sr?a=S3R4g


Cardiff council mulls leisure operator options


Cardiff Council is exploring new ways to operate its leisure centres and two major cultural venues as it seeks to reduce the £8m paid last year in sub- sidies for the public facilities. The authority announced in


February it could no longer afford to subsidise the New Theatre and St David’s Hall, as well as its leisure facilities, and now wants to explore its options by going out to market. St David’s is the Welsh national


concert hall, while the New Teatre remains a popular venue, with the two sites having a combined economic impact of £38m a year on Cardiff, according to the council. It says the city’s leisure facilities attracted 2.2 million people in 2013/14. A report by sports and leisure consultancy


Max Associates commissioned by the council in January concluded private sector partners or established trusts may be the best option. Te council is currently looking at several


possibilities, including social enterprises, not- for-profit trusts, commercial management contractors or staff mutuals, and has report- edly already had significant interest.


© CYBERTREK 2014 St David’s – Welsh national concert hall – is also being considered If new leisure centre partners are found, the


council wants them in place by next summer. According to local press, at a pre-scrutiny


meeting on the proposals, councillor Peter Bradbury said: “We want to see what level of savings we can get from the market, what degree of control we could have and how our staff would be treated. We’ve seen positive examples of what we’re trying to do in other authorities. Only 28 per cent of leisure facili- ties in the UK are in-house. We are very much not the norm.” Details: http://lei.sr?a=C5g5Q


Twitter: @leisureopps Te Italian equipment provider won out again


Technogym lands Glasgow 2014 supplier contract


Technogym has today been announced as the official fitness equipment supplier for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. Technogym equipment will be on hand


at fitness centres in the Athletes’ Village, which will be home to 6,500 athletes and team officials from the 71 competing nations and territories during the Games. Te Italian equipment provider will work with Glasgow Life to ensure the installations run smoothly, giving athletes access to a vital tool through- out their pre-competition regimen. Tis announcement comes as little sur-


prise, given that Technogym has been favoured as the official equipment supplier to the last five Olympic Games. “It is vital for our competing athletes to


have access to the highest quality training equipment within the multiple Village fitness centres,” commented the chief executive of Glasgow 2014 David Grevemberg. “We are delighted to have the experi-


ence of Technogym as part of the set-up to galvanise and support the participating teams as they aspire to new achievements this year.” Details: http://lei.sr?a=g8c9H


Read Leisure Opportunities online: www.leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital 5


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