Smash City Badminton, Milpitas, CA
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benharrycoomer
Regular Member
wooden floors are adequate
Unless one is playing in professional sports. (like the NBA).
I have played wood, concrete, dirt, teraflex on concrete, the floors on GG and UBC.
In my less-than-humble opinion
, dirt and concrete are a little tough on the knees. Wood is by and large good enough for all amature sports.
I would love to try out Yonex.
Unless one is playing in professional sports. (like the NBA).
I have played wood, concrete, dirt, teraflex on concrete, the floors on GG and UBC.
In my less-than-humble opinion
, dirt and concrete are a little tough on the knees. Wood is by and large good enough for all amature sports.I would love to try out Yonex
.Ben Lee said:Kwun,
I agree about badminton players starting rumors. Everyone out there, please let's keep the rumors to yourselves unless you have legitimate concerns. GGBC also went through many rumors and speculation in the beginning and it was extremely frustrating. Players should just investigate concerns for themselves and see what the best solutions are.
The other issue I would like to address is the flooring. There are many different types of flooring out on the market and they all claim to be the best. Mike and I researched many different flooring companies before finally deciding on Robbins Flooring. We even researched Taraflex. On our floors at GGBC, we have a 9mm thick runbber underlayment that is manufactured and formed together with small rubber "granules." The granules are put together with an adhesive creating small air pockets throughout the underlayment. That's what is so great about the floor, it's almost like you are playing with Nike air shoes on. Then a sealer is applied on top of the underlayment to cover any seems. THen finally there are two coats of polyurethane and the top playing surface. So basically, players are playing on more than 12mm of surface. We have placed a detailed explanation of our Robbins Flooring at our facility so players can see what they are playing on.
One thing that players have to keep in mind about the Yonex floor mats are that whenever a tournament uses them, they are usually placed on top of an already existing gym floor. They will rarely place the mats directly on concrete. It would be too hard. OCBC for example already has a beautiful gym floor and they place the Yonex mats on top. THat's the best way. The Yonex mats are great but not directly on top of concrete. I have traveled the world playing many international tournaments and have never seen Yonex mats directly on concrete. There are also a few companies out there that are IBF certified. Remember, that does not mean they are a better floor. All that means is that the company paid the IBF a certification fee. Any company can do that. Currently, the IBF does not have any measuring standards for flooring systems that I know of. If they do, then I would like to invite them to GGBC to test our floors. Currently, 19 out of the 30 NBA basketball teams are practicing on Robbins Flooring. Obviously, they would not need IBF certification for that. (Why would they?)
As far as the Taraflex floors, they are a very good company. The basic difference between Taraflex and Robbins Flooring is the underlayment. Taraflex uses foam and Robbins uses rubber. Like I said in the beginning, players just have to try them and see for themselves which flooring they like better.
As far as all the clubs in the Bay Area, I think it is a great and wonderful thing we are all doing to promote our great sport of badminton. We will all work together to market this sport the way it deserves. Badminton really needs to be exposed to the masses out there and once it is, it will finally get the recognition it deserves. We truly are involved in an exciting time and all badminton players in the Bay Area now have several places to enjoy their passion. If anyone has any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at ben@ggbadminton.com. Take care.
Ben Lee
samkool said:
nice chatting with you samkool.
SmashCity held a "sampler" event on Saturday. they asked a few badminton friends to invite their friends to try out the facility. little did they know, one friend invite another, who in turn invite another, in the end, almost the whole badminton community in the bay area showed up.
SmashCity has a spacious facility, they have 12 courts with ample amount of free spaces around the courts. the ceiling is of decent height and lighting is bright. the flooring is professional. good grip and decent shock absorption and rebounce. i didn't play long enough to judge if my knees like it or not.
there are still a little bit of work to be done before they can officially open, but badminton fans should look forward to yet another top quality facility.
i hope i can answer samkool's question as i talked to the owners while i was there. they haven't decided on the queuing system yet. nor have they decided on the membership/drop-in cost.
i took many pics while i was there. i will post them as soon as i have finish sorting them.
Comparison of 4 Bay Area Badminton Gyms
The ceiling height is really quite high - more than adequate for most players. I doubt my birdie will ever hit the ceiling (so now you know I'm not a pro
). The lighting is just right - bright enough yet not blinding.
If there's one bone I can pick it would be the facility's closeness to many big trucks, around which it might be a little dangerous to maneuver.
But then if one goes after hours this would be moot.
All in all, I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the excellence of the gym. Of course, there are still some important unknowns such as the queuing sustem and fees. I hope the owners will choose sensible solutions.
Here's my take on all four gyms. 5 is most favorable and 1 is least favorable:
Bintang UBC GGBC Smash City
Flooring 1 3 4 5
Spacing around courts 3 3 3 5
Ceiling height 2 4 5 4
Lighting 1 3 3 5
Queuing system 2 5 1 ?
Color scheme 1 3 4 5
Coaching quality 2 5 3 1
Fees 5 4 3 ?
Parking 4 4 3 4
How would you rate them?
Great job on the assessment and pics, Kwun! I agree with you that Smash City has excellent flooring - I played for about an hour and didn't feel sore at all afterwards (maybe one hour is not long enough). More important, the flooring's good grip is vital to minimizing injuries. Another HUGE PLUS is the spaciousness between and around courts, which will lend itself to a much more comfortable and safer playing environment. I didn't realize the design's thoughtfulness until I saw your pics, i.e., courts around pillars seem to have even more spacing!kwun said:
The ceiling height is really quite high - more than adequate for most players. I doubt my birdie will ever hit the ceiling (so now you know I'm not a pro
). The lighting is just right - bright enough yet not blinding.If there's one bone I can pick it would be the facility's closeness to many big trucks, around which it might be a little dangerous to maneuver.
But then if one goes after hours this would be moot.All in all, I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the excellence of the gym. Of course, there are still some important unknowns such as the queuing sustem and fees. I hope the owners will choose sensible solutions.
Here's my take on all four gyms. 5 is most favorable and 1 is least favorable:
Bintang UBC GGBC Smash City
Flooring 1 3 4 5
Spacing around courts 3 3 3 5
Ceiling height 2 4 5 4
Lighting 1 3 3 5
Queuing system 2 5 1 ?
Color scheme 1 3 4 5
Coaching quality 2 5 3 1
Fees 5 4 3 ?
Parking 4 4 3 4
How would you rate them?
Last edited:
Comparison is good but......
Like real estate the most three major key factors are
Location Location and Location !!
Like real estate the most three major key factors are
Location Location and Location !!
jdileo said:Great job on the assessment and pics, Kwun! I agree with you that Smash City has excellent flooring - I played for about an hour and didn't feel sore at all afterwards (maybe one hour is not long enough). More important, the flooring's good grip is vital to minimizing injuries. Another HUGE PLUS is the spaciousness between and around courts, which will lend itself to a much more comfortable and safer playing environment. I didn't realize the design's thoughtfulness until I saw your pics, i.e., courts around pillars seem to have even more spacing!
The ceiling height is really quite high - more than adequate for most players. I doubt my birdie will ever hit the ceiling (so now you know I'm not a pro
If there's one bone I can pick it would be the facility's closeness to many big trucks, around which it might be a little dangerous to maneuver.
All in all, I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the excellence of the gym. Of course, there are still some important unknowns such as the queuing sustem and fees. I hope the owners will choose sensible solutions.
Here's my take on all four gyms. 5 is most favorable and 1 is least favorable:
Bintang UBC GGBC Smash City
Flooring 1 2 3 5
Spacing around courts 2 2 2 5
Ceiling height 2 4 5 4
Lighting 1 3 3 5
Queuing system 2 5 1 ?
Color scheme 1 3 4 5
Coaching quality 2 5 3 1
Fees 5 4 3 ?
Parking 3 4 2 4
How would you rate them?
i see me in one of them! wooden_racket
Regular Member
jdileo said:Great job on the assessment and pics, Kwun! I agree with you that Smash City has excellent flooring - I played for about an hour and didn't feel sore at all afterwards (maybe one hour is not long enough). More important, the flooring's good grip is vital to minimizing injuries. Another HUGE PLUS is the spaciousness between and around courts, which will lend itself to a much more comfortable and safer playing environment. I didn't realize the design's thoughtfulness until I saw your pics, i.e., courts around pillars seem to have even more spacing!
The ceiling height is really quite high - more than adequate for most players. I doubt my birdie will ever hit the ceiling (so now you know I'm not a pro
If there's one bone I can pick it would be the facility's closeness to many big trucks, around which it might be a little dangerous to maneuver.
All in all, I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the excellence of the gym. Of course, there are still some important unknowns such as the queuing sustem and fees. I hope the owners will choose sensible solutions.
Here's my take on all four gyms. 5 is most favorable and 1 is least favorable:
Bintang UBC GGBC Smash City
Flooring 1 3 4 5
Spacing around courts 3 3 3 5
Ceiling height 2 4 5 4
Lighting 1 3 3 5
Queuing system 2 5 1 ?
Color scheme 1 3 4 5
Coaching quality 2 5 3 1
Fees 5 4 3 ?
Parking 4 4 3 4
How would you rate them?
I think it is unfair to rate Bintang the way you have. Although I myself am a gym hopper, I still give props to Bintang for being the first dedicated badminton gym. And because they were the first, the pioneer, the prototype, however you want to call it, it was difficult for them to put in tons of money when they didn't know what the turnout would have been. On the other hand, the new clubs face much less uncertainty and so they only have to worry about ways to make their club the best possible. If Bintang had not been the first, then UBC, GGBC, Smash City likely would not have come along (and this goes back to the first Bintang, the one in Mountain View). Besides the flooring at Bintang, I feel that everything else about it is great. Phu makes the atmosphere very friendly for people of all ages and levels. I actually like the lighting better than all the others, because you don't lose the bird like you do with the super bright metal halides. But that's just my opinion. And I agree with all the others that location is one of the biggest factors.
noticed that the lights are not place directly above the court but instead above court boundaries.
the large concrete area in the first pic will be the main sitting area, it will be covered when finished (my guess is carpet). the other fenced area partially shown in the second pic is a workout area with gym equipment. what i didn't show is the office/pro shop area. it occupies the remaining corner.
what is a real pity is that right above the office area is this terrace. it would be PERFECT if they could use it as a dining area/coffee shop. setup some chairs/tables there so patrons can get a bite and relax between games. but unfortunately they are not able to provide disabled access to the area so they could only use it as storage. the top view pics i took was taken from there.
there are also uncovered areas of concrete at the perimeter of the gym. they will probably be covered when the gym is done. apparently they only had the floor laid a week before the event last saturday.
the large concrete area in the first pic will be the main sitting area, it will be covered when finished (my guess is carpet). the other fenced area partially shown in the second pic is a workout area with gym equipment. what i didn't show is the office/pro shop area. it occupies the remaining corner.
what is a real pity is that right above the office area is this terrace. it would be PERFECT if they could use it as a dining area/coffee shop. setup some chairs/tables there so patrons can get a bite and relax between games. but unfortunately they are not able to provide disabled access to the area so they could only use it as storage. the top view pics i took was taken from there.
there are also uncovered areas of concrete at the perimeter of the gym. they will probably be covered when the gym is done. apparently they only had the floor laid a week before the event last saturday.
seihackguei
New Member
Bintang?
GGBC?
Smash City?
can someone give me directions ?
GGBC?
Smash City?
can someone give me directions ?
seihackguei
New Member
Joseph said:
i still didnt find where smash city is... somewhere in milpitas.. but whats the address?
seihackguei
New Member
samkool said:
thank you!
at least some ONE is nice enoughgummiebirdie
Regular Member
Absolutely agree with wooden_racket's point on Bintang! 
Maybe because it is the first gym, I still like it best over there, very homie.
Maybe because it is the first gym, I still like it best over there, very homie. wooden_racket said: