Chicago Tribune from Chicago, Illinois • 39

"JIL" fv 1 IJU" "I (f tticagrj (Tribune Friday. September 10. 1962 Section 3 Fitness A consumers' guide to health clubs i 1111 111 r-- rA By Richard Phillips 1 A i 1 I --v fX 1 i swm-ft ir'' 1 i 1 i 1 la i) II 1 THE SIGN ON CfcarUa Club advertiM lawful thrill of the fWh that Vic Tanny could never have matched. "Fun, fit-neaa, food and drink," II read a curious motto (or a "health club," but one which apparently makea tense to Charlie Club' 2.WJ0 member lit the Ml. Protpect area.

"1 used to think it wu ironichaving a cocktail bar In a fit net center. But people love it," aay Vince Surdo, the club' muscular "(line coniultant." He smile with amusement at the paradox. "They love to get (mashed alter a workout; they don't even have to leave to get hammered." That, In a few words, is exactly where health club seem headed. A visit to SO of the more than too private health and racquet club In Chicagoland revealed a major trend In which weight lifting machines now occupy onetime racquet ball courts; a new generation of supposedly safer ultraviolet tanning lights are installed In locker rooms; padded indoor running tracks circle "fitness aerobics and jazzerclse classes have become a line item; and cocktail bars await near the reception desk, often with a restaurant a few step away. Like full-service banks, these clubs cater to every whim created by five-month winters and insular neighborhoods.

They also threaten the very lifeblood of older ventures built around single sports such as racquetball. "Racquetball is a dying sport. The bloom is off the boom," says Rich Legue, general manager of Indian Head Racquet Club in Countryside. SMALLER CLUBS ARE scrambling madly to diversify with new fads. "In this business and in this climate, you've got have something to get people inside the year-round" says Bob Schiel, a marketing consultant who is trying to guide the 21 Club in Carol Stream out a racquetball era into an age of amenities.

Racquetball, the sports craze of 1980, seems destined to become a mere sideline. "There is a trend now away from recreation and toward fitness," says Wayne Goeldner, manager of the Right Racquet and Nautilus Club in Schaumburg. "It is a good trend, I think. And it will last," But there is another trend at work as well-one that poses a costly dilemma for consumers, especially now, as health clubs unveil hefty membership fees in their traditional autumn push for new members. Call it "wallet whallop," for along with every new Nautilus machine and jogging track comes a price tag.

Generally it takes the form of initiation fees and annual dues. Either can bust the budget of the average family. The clubs we visited are experimenting with distinct types of membership policies. They are: Initiation fee plus annual dues entitles members to unlimited use of all facilities at no extra charge. But the fee is huge.

Initiation fee plus annual dues entitles members to unlimited use of all facilities except tennis and racquetball, where hourly court costs still are assessed. This was the most common approach we found. Initiation fee plus annual dues entitles members to nothing but membership card. Everything else costs extra. Tne "pay-as-you-play" plan, with no initiation fee, annual dues under $100.

All amenities cost extra. Tanning units typically are $6 a visit. One place in Arlington Heights charges members an extra $20 monthly for use of the new running track, and it isn't even a good track. Indoor tracks at other clubs we visited can be used with the purchase of court time. THE MOVEMENT toward initiation fees has a simple purpose: "We want customers to stop jumping from club to club to club," Legue says.

From a consumer's perspective, an initiation fee should be examined closely. Perhaps the best way to calibrate its impact is to figure out how often you'll actually use club facilities. At Chicago's Downtown Court Club, for example, the initiation fee for an individual Is ill imiii In i.H mi rl V'" Vj f. iiiimi 1 in ii. e-iiK.

is bigger than some health clubs we visited. A fellow could get lost inside, it's so huge. There is even a "north" locker room so members won't get confused finding their way back from a golf driving range downstairs. "THE EAST BANK Club Is the premier of everything," Legue concedes. If you can afford to look well-heeled for an afternoon as a potential member, East Bank Club is worth a visit.

It provides a good gauge to compare competitors. Witnessing how the unblemished young rich stalk each other is a side benefit. "Some people call this place 'Harry's Cafe says lawyer Phil Parenti, who joined East Bank Club primarily for its racquetball courts and running tracks, while acknowledging numerous social opportunities in the club's atrium bar. The sum of the parts may make the East Bank Club tops, but other clubs top some of the parts. For example, when it comes to cost of membership, East Bank Club comes in dead last.

And the Wheaton Sports Center has a much bigger pool for lap swimming; so did several YMCAs we visited. The Chalet Sports Corps in Willow Springs has an adequate indoor running track at considerably cheaper price. single most important selling point in a membership is a swimming pool. But it isn't used nearly as much as the running track," observes Chalet owner Jennifer Wayt.l WE FIGURE THAT if you're considering joining a health club, it's worth knowing what the competition has to offer. They all want your dollar, after all.

Quite possibly some won't remain in business after you've paid to join. In the accompanying list of private sports clubs, we've tried to provide meaningful cost information along with observations about Continued on following page jv U. I mj5SSSJiSc' ca tr a I 7 A a a $150; annual dues are another $135; and hourly prime-time court costs are $14. For a new member who plays an hour of racquetball owe a week the cost-per-visit works out to $12.48, assuming a partner shares the hourly court cost. The price per-visit soars for those who come less often.

"Most health clubs couldn't care less if you never show your face in the door," says one club owner. "All they want is your money." What makes private health clubs different from YMCA or park district facilities? Three things: Kids, alcohol and money. YMCAs and parks generally are cheaper, they're inviolably temperate and children are an essential part of the package. Usually they have better swimming pools and better day care for children. BUT FROM THE looks of things, clubs that exclude kids and include booze find an eager audience.

"No kids under 18 are allowed here except on Sunday; otherwise we'd be just like the YMCA," says Paula Ulmer, an aerobics teacher at the Mt. Prospect Charlie Club. Another employee says, "Our members do not want kids here." At the East Bank Club, the poshest of Chicago's super clubs and a dude ranch of downtown fast-trackers, a first-year membership costs $1,200, excluding hourly court costs for racquetball and tennis. But what one gets for $1,200 is enough to make even Victoria Principal quiver with envy. The club has two indoor running tracks, each a quarter mile in length and cushioned with the softest running surface in all of Chicago; two swimming pools; two weight rooms; a basketball gymnasium and 20 indoor courts for tennis, racquetball or squash; and two restaurants.

The men's locker room alone Movies By Gene Movte critic A 1 I) Pi I' 'r I 'Chan' a v. Who's got the best of SOME HEALTH clubs meHt special attention for excellence In one particular feature. Here's our list of "bests," culled from visits to more than 50 Chicagoland clubs: Best exercise room Lakeshore Center. Has complete lines of Nautilus equipment, as well as supervisors to prevent neophytes from injury. The Right Racquet and Nautilus Club in Schaumburg also has a good one with supervisor.

So does East Bank Club. Best swimming pool Wheaton Sports Club. It's splendid. Other health clubs run the gamut from clean to dirty, but all are small, even the two at East Bank Club. A lot of YMCAs can claim the best and biggest in this category.

Best running tracks East Bank Club is in a field all by itself. Tied for second are Combined Center and Multiplex. Chalet Sports Core's track has a cushioned surface, but the corners are sharp and unbanked. Best bar and lounge East Bank Club for the filthy rich. Charlie Club and Lakeshore Club tie for second.

Chalet Sports Core also good. Best towels for patrons East Bank Club, hands down. Gives out the biggest, the fluffiest, and in generous quantity. Most clubs limit members to two towels, and one towel isn't unusual. Best locker rooms East Bank Club for sheer roominess, with 3,500 lockers.

Combined Center in Northbrook has the nicest touch; its locker rooms are carpeted and homey, and locker doors are polished wood. Both are clean. A clean locker room may be hard to find; quite a few we visited including women's lockers toured by a companion) were dank and smelly. Best decor East Bank Club, but running itiMM miJt Uliimni mi i I At one 21 to IHustratian by Mvy Arms ErvNJU what in Chicago close behind are Multiplex and Charlie Clubs. other end of the spectrum we found several health clubs that either are uncomfortably spartan or second-rate motel style.

Best racquetball courts We found racquetball courts everywhere in generally good repair. Only a handful were unsatisfactory, either for expansion joints wider than a half-inch or because walls were chipped. Charlie Club has fanciest exhibition courts. Most hustle Chicago Health Clubs. It seems that nobody moves slowly here, including the sales staff.

Biggest mirrors Chicago Health Clubs. "People like to look at themselves," explained manager. "We give them lots to look at." Best tennis courts McClurg Court. It has only three, but they're splendid. Also good are Lakeshore Center and Deerfield Court Club.

Such things admittedly are pure opinion, and tennis pros might howl at our choices. But we're in a different racket, after all. Best buys East Bank Club comes in dead last here, unless $1,200 the first year doesn't faze you. Single-purpose clubs are cheapest; Club in Carol Stream may be the best buy. Best gyms East Bank Club.

Then Charlie Club, although metal stanchions are too close playing floors. Most nutrition-oriented Multiplex, with a good health food bar. Combined Center has occasional classes in nutrition. Lakeshore Center and Charlie Clubs both have restaurants with emphasis on tasty, nutritious foods. Otherwise nobody seems to be paying much attention to food lifestyle.

Richard Phillips Weekend's best MOVIES: "Chan Is Missing," a groundbreaking film about Chinese-Americans, all weekend at the NOSTALGIA: Rudy Vallee in "Remember Radio," an afternoon of music and reminiscence, Sunday at the Chicago Theater THEATER: "True West," Sam Shepard's story of two battling brothers, in its last weekend at the Apollo Theater Center. CLASSICAL MUSIC: The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, featuring star soloists, all weekend at Ravinia. POP MUSIC: The Lettermen, longtime favorites on the pop scene, Friday at Park West Se Weekend Guide, p. 10 i.

reflects life, not stereotypes Siskel "Chan Is Missing" FILM CRITIC IN another town has suggested that the main Mlni-rvlew: Not Inscrutable i reason the independent Chi- ftwiuo nd dineMd wy wjng; acrMnpiay 1 1 a 11 It elusive Chan, it becomes obvious that the real search in "Chsn Is Missing" is for a composite portrait of Orientals in America. As the film explains, some are "Chinese living in America," others are "Chinese-Americans" and others are simply "Americans." It all depends upon the degree to which each individual is assimilated into American culture. ON THAT three-point scale. Jo Wood Moy, the older of the two taxi drivers, is somewhere between "Chinese living in America" and "Chinese-American." He believes that the Chinatown community should solve its problems by itself. Steve Marc Hayashi, a young buck, is somewhere between a "Chinese-American" and an "American." He acknowledges his root, but he is hip to everything going on in the youth culture.

He talks like any young street kid. And above ail, he wants to make a buck and have some fun. It is Steve who suggest that he and Jo call the San Francisco police in on the search for Chan; Jo resists. It's a Chinese problem to Jo; it's a capitalist business problem to Steve. Jo and Steve are two of the most immediately likeable movie characters of the year.

With sequels all the rage now, I would definitely like to see ontinued mi page 4 nese American film "Chan Is Mis- momi CMn; mim by muMi sing" has earned such exceptional re- rn. views has less to do with the film thc cast quality than with its minuscule bud- uJc'SSl get. Amy Utimri chvw Benefiting from a lot of contribu- Jjjj' tiona of time and money and locations, "Chan Is Missing" was filmed in San frw Francisco's Chinatown for and this is not a misprint 20,000. in an era of megamillion produc- what Chan Is Missing" is about, tions that result in mediocre films Filmmaker Wayne Wang, 33, in telling "Heaven' Gate," "Chan a contemporary mystery with a title Is Missing" is a breath of fresh air, a refers to old "Charlie Chan" testament to the old saw that the best Pictures, wants to offer a view of films are movies that someone had to Chinese-Americans that has nothing to make, not some project ordained by do witn Hollywood standard Images committee in slavish dependence on 01 the inscrutable Oriental villain or moviegoing demographics. Suite Wong tart.

To suggest, however, that the low On the surface, "Chan Is Missing" budget of "Chan Is Missing" is the the story of Jo and Steve, a couple principle reason for its appeal is way of Chinese taxi drivers, looking for off the mark. To begin with, 1 didn't Chan Hung, their Taiwanese ira- know the budget before 1 saw the film migrant business partner who sudden- a couple of months ago. And second, has disappeared with their money, the distinguishing characteristic that And we follow Jo and Steve through came to mind when I taw the film was San Francisco' Chinatown and Ma that "Chan la Missing" ia the first uptown a they interrogate Chan ChineseAmencsn film made in this Hung's family and friends and ac- country about Chinese-American. quaintancea. THAT FACT I Mrt gemaac to However, as they search for the A Ai r- 1 Wood Moy if "Chan is Sfnashng stereotypes A 4.