Steamboat Strength and Conditioning, home of CrossFit Steamboat, has found a new home at 1327 Indian Trail, providing a place for members to pursue their goals in the gym, and allowing the business to contribute to the community.

“In my opinion we’re not taking from the community, we’re giving back,” said Ronni Waneka who owns the gym with partner, Dana Forbes. “There’s people that have mental health issues, we run the Phoenix program, which is for people in recovery, and we know health and wellness is so important.”

Waneka said CrossFit Steamboat was unable to stay in its old location after the landlord increased the rent last year, causing her to think for a moment about closing before realizing that she couldn’t let that happen.

---

---

“We can’t close. There wasn’t an option for us to not be open anymore, even if that is just to serve our members,” she said. “We wouldn’t have done that, so we just dug in and figured it out and made it happen.”

She said it wasn’t easy moving from 2645 Jacob Circle to the new location, which has been a mechanics shop for many years.

---

---

“We had to completely gut the space,” Waneka said. “We did tons of work to make it usable for us, and we worked on it all summer.”

She said the new location is about half as big as the old one, but she is thrilled the three large garage doors open up to a large parking lot, offering a view of the slopes of the Steamboat Ski Area. Waneka is also excited by the fact that it is a stand-alone building, and while the space is a bit smaller than the old location, she likes to think of it as being more intimate.

“You know we have a stronger, better community and I do like that aspect of it,” Waneka said. “We’ve had to cap class sizes, but honestly that isn’t that bad. We have smaller class sizes which is better for coaching.”

Waneka said her classes still have some room to grow, but at some point the membership may also have to be capped.

“Moving a gym is really hard,” Waneka said. “It’s been really challenging at times, but our members are happy and that’s all that really counts.”

Since opening in 2009, CrossFit Steamboat has been located in several locations, including the Mid Valley Business Center, and Riverside before arriving at the Jacobs Circle location several years ago. CrossFit Steamboat offers 28 classes each week, including the Phoenix program for those in recovery as well as teen programs. CrossFit Steamboat also shares the space with Werner Athletics a sports performance therapy center owned and operated by Dr. James Werner.

Waneka said the gym has made a few adjustments in the months since opening. Waneka and Forbes knocked on a few doors and worked with neighbors after noise complaints with hopes of reducing the impact the gym had on the neighborhood. She is hoping the new space will become a long-term home for the facility and that it will become a part of the local community.

“I think on the front-end, and from the members perspective, I think that everyone really likes the space,” Waneka said. “It’s intimate, the view is amazing and honestly it’s just a great space.”