Fitness center expand hours, keep patrons in mind

Photo By Damany Coleman | Lance Cpl. Mark Gassaway, (left), and Lance Cpl. Tyler Lyons (right), both with 5th Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, make use of exercise equipment at the Area 2 gymnasium, recently. Gassaway and Lyons, normally patrons of the French Creek Fitness Center, are using the gym’s equipment for the time being, but plan to make a return to French Creek upon completion of the heating, air conditioning and ventilation system in April this year.  

CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, UNITED STATES

01.25.2011

Story by Lance Cpl. Damany Coleman 

Marine Corps Installations East       

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- For avid athletes, routine visitors or base personnel who just want to hit the treadmill or pump some iron the old-fashioned way, the French Creek Fitness Center is open while work continues on the heating, air conditioning and ventilation systems.

The main floor will not be available, but a limited amount of equipment is accessible in the gym and exercise room. Half of the gym will still be open for basketball as well.

Jolyne Agramonte, fitness facilities manager with Marine Corps Community Services, said that one of the main reasons for the renovation is that the building used to be a bowling alley so there was never any air conditioning ducts out on the floor where the lanes were.

“With the overall experience that people will have with the improvements that are being made, they will appreciate it during the summer,” said Agramonte. “The gyms are also inundated with people lately because of New Year’s resolutions as well and it’s also been so cold that people who normally train outside are going inside. There are other options available for people with the extended hours to help them curtail where they’re going.”

As of Jan. 24, the following fitness centers will be temporarily expanding their hours of operation:

Area 2
Mon – Thu from 4 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Fri- from 4 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Sat-Sun from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Morgan Bay
Mon-Fri from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Sat-Sun from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Area 4
Mon-Fri from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Sat-Sun from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

French Creek
Mon-Fri from 4 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Sat from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sun from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

“The area 4 gymnasium has been turned into the High Intensity Tactical Training center,” said Agramonte. “So that’s an additional asset in the area. We also have the Stone Bay fitness facility, and even though it’s not on mainside, people who live out in the Sneads Ferry area may choose to head that way. There are a lot of untapped resources; we also have the Morgan Bay center, which isn’t very busy in the evening. Exploring different options while we improve the French Creek facility, although it may not be their general choice, can reveal the benefits of other facilities.”

The Wallace Creek Fitness Center is scheduled to open in the spring of 2012. The 100,000 plus square foot state-of-the-art fitness center will feature six multipurpose rooms, indoor pool, climbing wall, outdoor functional training area and more.

For more information on the base’s fitness centers, visit mccslejeune.com.

• Date Taken: 01.25.2011
• Date Posted: 01.25.2011 13:09
• Story ID: 64181
• Location: CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, US