Ironworks Gym

Ironworks Gym is the gem of Creswell, Oregon. This is one of my very favorite gyms. Nestled in a rural speck of a town just south of Eugene, in a brilliantly landscaped oasis, this gym houses the old school disciplines - Olympic-style weighlifting, powerlifting - and it has more bodybuilding machines (specific-muscle group training) stuffed into it than a warehouse. They're stuffed into every nook - a Roman chair here, an adductor there. Each space has a distinct character and feel to it, from the slick group exercise fitness room to the chalk-filled, cement-floored weightlifting studio. Expansive windows face an impressive golf course, and that's hugged by miles sand miles of rural Willamette Valley greenery. This gym screams the sucess of an empire built on dreams of dedicated visionaries, and each discipine it houses through meets and classes seems to be staffed by salt-of-the-earth folks, like Tom Hirtz. If you're ever even within a few hours of this gym, don't miss it, anytime of the year.