Gyms Dandy High-Flying Gymnastics Interest Keeps Three Valley Clubs Jumping

Northwest Gymnastics Academy and Spokane Elite Gymnastics have for more than a decade made the Valley the dominant training ground for the area’s competitive gymnasts.

With the recent arrival of Lilac City Gymnastics, the neighborhood might seem a bit crowded.

But actually, the three club owners say, there’s room for all.

“The youth population in the Valley is enough to support all three of us,” said Fred Smith, who has opened a second Lilac City club at 1103 N. Park, just a mile from SEG.

Added NWGA owner Mike Armstrong, whose club is at 11712 E. Montgomery, “I think all of them will probably be OK.”

There’s been substantial growth in the numbers of participants among all three clubs. More than 1,200 gymnasts of all ages, an increase of 50 percent over the past two years, are currently being taught by the trio.

That doesn’t include those participating at dance studios, introductory academies and the YMCA in Spokane, some of whom will eventually feed into the three local clubs.

Armstrong has seniority when it comes to local club gymnastics.

He and former partner Nick Van bought out Tom Bleker, one of the first local gymnastics coaches, in 1984 and named their enterprise Northwest Gymnastics Academy.

The Eastern Washington University graduates had worked for the Hansens at SEG and with Bleker.

Bleker is a former professional entertainer and acrobat who began his gymnastics program in the 1960s in conjunction with his late wife’s dance studio.

“I had a chance to work with clubs in the summer and it slowly evolved from there,” Armstrong said.

Over the past dozen years he and his wife, Nancy, NWGA’s sole owners since 1991, have seen their program grow into the area’s largest.

Bob Ito, a former University of Washington coach, and his partners became the fifth set of owners at SEG since Neil and Karen Hansen opened in April, 1979.

“When we had it, it was a very going business,” said Karen Hansen. “Within two years it was one of the two largest clubs in the state.”

NWGA and SEG, situated 1-1/2 miles apart on Montgomery, switched locations a few years before an April 1994 arson fire burned out Spokane Elite, sending it through a wave of two owners and three locations in the last two years.

SEG’s most recent move was to a new facility at 1030 N. Lake, just east of Fancher.

“It (the move) was due to explosive growth,” said Ito. “We got really crowded really fast. We doubled in size because of the success we had.”

Ito, his wife Nancy and their partners are hoping to restore the club to its former glory years. This spring their competitive team won the State Level 9 championships. The club is up to 230 participants.

Valley resident Smith had sought out a gymnastics program that fit the needs of his daughter and family and found it in the YMCA program run by Colleen VanZee.

VanZee wanted to start her own club. Smith and his wife, Linda, joint ventured as a business investment with VanZee and her husband Eric.

They opened the first Lilac City club on 219 E. Augusta in 1992. It grew from 90 to 400 participants last year. Last spring, Lilac City won the Level 5 state championships.

Now the six-year resident from Houston and former sales manager at Columbia Lighting, who said he was a victim of corporate downsizing and didn’t want to leave the area, has expanded into the Valley.

“It occurred to us we must be doing something right,” he said. “As business owners we needed to grow.” Although the competitive gymnasts are the ones you read about, they are the tip of the iceberg in order for a club to succeed.

The majority of gymnasts, 90 percent for both NWGA and Lilac City, are in the recreational category.

“We’ve had good fortune in the competitive end,” said Armstrong, “but we’ve always emphasized recreation over the competitive. People are there looking for physical activity, a little discipline and to have fun.”

Explained Smith, “ours is not just gymnastics, we’re more or less in the fitness business.”

Ito explained that gymnastics is rooted in European physical education programs. It begins for pre-schoolers learning about flexibility, strength and body awareness.

“Kids all want to hang from things, tumble and swing on bars,” said Ito. “We give them form, structure and safety to go with it.”

From the various recreational levels, those who so desire go on to advanced training and competition.

Northwest Gymnastics has had state and regional placers and national qualifiers for the past decade. There are 40 girls and 17 boys in the competitive program. Lilac City’s club is about the same size.

With his extensive college and club coaching background, Ito has the largest competitive team, upwards of 80 athletes, and is beginning a boys program.

“We want to take the kids as far as we can,” he said.

But this isn’t just about succeeding on gymnastics apparatus. It’s also about succeeding as businesses.

“There is a critical mass beyond which you cannibalize each other,” admitted Ito. “I don’t know if we’re there yet. There are enough people in this town to support several good clubs.”

And said Smith, the current atmosphere is best for all concerned.

“It’s a tight-knit community. We’re not interested in putting anyone out of business,” he said. “Competition is good for a number of reasons. It forces you to maintain a quality program and a healthy environment.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 3 photos (1 color)