
Heather of New York, NY on Sept. 3, 2011
Satisfaction Rating: 1/5
Yesterday, at approximately 4:30 p.m., I went to the Bally's at Worldwide Plaza in midtown Manhattan to find out about membership.
I spoke with a not-so helpful salesperson (didn't get his name) in one of the offices. He took my information from my expired driver's and told me "everything is pretty much self-explanatory" when I asked for a tour and could not give me prices about locker rentals. I asked if I could look around and he said yes. When I asked about the pool, he said I had to go through the women's locker room to get there.
When I entered the locker-room, I was struck by how large it was. It was like a labyrinth with many nooks and a crannies. I wandered around for a few minutes looking for a sign or some indication as how to get to the pool. I saw nothing. I then managed to find my way back to the front desk.
Jimmy ** (who was super helpful) and another staff member (also helpful, but didn't get her name) were at the desk and told me to go through the showers to get to the pool. I did this and finally found the pool, and the sauna, the steam room and the whirlpool. I checked them out returned to the front desk and asked Jimmy ** a bunch of questions about locker rental, classes, etc. He wrote out different prices and different options for membership. I told him I would start my trial membership the following day.
Today I went in at approximately 4:15 eager to work out. Jimmy ** was at the desk. I gave him my expired driver's license and he officially started my one-week trial membership. We chatted a bit and I asked if he worked commission. When he said yes, I told him I'd ask for him when I actually became a member.
I then went into the locker room. There was a staff member there (didn't get her name) who was picking up paper towels from the floor and complaining about the mess. I asked her about the lockers that were available to rent and how large they were. She showed me the rental lockers.
I started putting my things into a locker, changed into my workout gear, fiddled with my new lock to make sure it would open, locked the locker, went to the bathroom and then washed my hands.
I worked out on the second floor. I did weights on the machines (legs, abs) until about 5:30 (all the clocks in the gym seem to have different times). I then went into the locker room and changed into my bathing suit, showered (required by the rules posted) and made way to the pool. I sat in the whirlpool for a few minutes, showered with shower by the pool, went into the sauna, showered again, went into the steam room, showered again, went back to the whirlpool, another shower and then I spent about 15 minutes in the "loafer's lane" of the pool thinking how much I'll get out of this gym and about getting the tour guides I work with at Grayline to join.
I then spoke to Gilbert the lifeguard on duty about the resistance weights. He was very nice and helpful. After that, I went into the locker room, took a long shower, washed my hair, rinsed out my bathing suit and got dressed.
I then went to the front desk and asked the woman on duty if she had a couple of rubber bands to bind my rolled-up wet towel. She didn't, I said thank you, then headed to the elevator.
At this point, somebody grabbed my elbow and led me to a corner near the emergency staircase. When I turned around, there were two undercover cops flashing their badges and asking for my ID. I gave them my expired driver's license and my current ID for the Westside YMCA and New York City Tour Guide License.
"Do you know what this is about? " one of them asked. I said, "No, I don't."
"There's been some things missing from the lockers in the locker rooms. Nobody wants to press charges, they just want their things back."
"I'm not even a member here yet," I said, my voice cracking. I was on the verge of tears. People waiting at for the elevator were staring at what was going on. "I worked out here for the very first time just now. "
"The staff says you were here yesterday."
"To ask about membership," I said, now crying full-on, "and to look at the facilities. I just started my trial membership today. "
"Well, stuff went missing from the locker room yesterday while you were here and the staff said you were in the locker room a long time. And more stuff went missing today. "
"I was in there for about three minutes yesterday trying to find the pool! Today I used the pool and was there for a while. "
It's too late to make a long and painful story short, but I voluntarily emptied my bags with sweaty gym clothes, smelly sneakers, etc. in front of the officers showing them I hadn't taken anything from anyone's locker.
After about 20 minutes, I was allowed to "go free". I then went to the front desk and asked to speak to a manager. I was told there wasn't one on duty and there wouldn't be one there until Monday. One of the police officers said, "Get outta here while you can. "
I am absolutely horrified that Bally's would treat a potential member this way. It was humiliating. Needless to say, I won't be joining.