Fall is here. ?
Fall is officially upon us, and as we move into October, we want to let you know what’s happening at Speed Mechanics. We have had some friendly faces return, news about an exciting new event, selected our Athlete of the Month, and celebrated great successes from some of our athletes.
Finally, we want to keep you up to date on our exciting expansion, currently underway. So, buckle up, and I will try to remain brief.
Welcome back, Eric!
After the summer away, Eric Hegadoren has returned to Speed Mechanics. Before Eric left, he was an integral component within the Speed family, working as an intern, assisting with baseball, and training for a shot at pro ball in the independent leagues.
Eric played for the Quebec Capitales in the Frontier League and then went to Ontario to play with the Welland Jackfish. After a long season in independent ball, Eric has returned to work with our baseball players, specifically focusing on pitchers and throwing.
Eric will be leading some of the pitching sessions as an extension of Anthony Pluta, who has coached Eric since he was in high school. Eric’s knowledge and understanding of biomechanics and his ability to dissect throwers’ mechanics have grown immensely. Eric and Pluta are also working on throwing-specific programs for arm strength and increasing velocity for baseball and softball players!
Look for these to be available for purchase on the website by the end of October. Signing up for these programs will be a great way to prepare your arm for the stress of next season and reduce your risk of injury.
Costume Contest & Open House
Since it’s now October, Halloween will soon be upon us! This year we are hosting Halloween Lift & Tour events on October 28th and 30th.
For our current members, we will host an in-house event on October 28th.
Athletes are encouraged to wear costumes for the lift. We will have two grand prizes for the best costumes. These grand prizes are still being put together but will include supplements, swag, and at least 1x one-on-one coached session.
We will also have a few draw prizes available that anyone can enter to win. Before or after your session, one of our coaches will be available to take you upstairs for a tour of our new space.
On October 30th, we will be hosting an open house for new or prospective members and coaches.
They will have the ability to come in for a complimentary coached training session, enter to win some great prizes, and then we will be doing tours of our current and new spaces.
So, if you know of anyone interested in taking advantage of this opportunity and checking out all the exciting things to come, please bring them in.
As a great reminder of our referral program, don’t forget, you receive $25 off your next month’s payment for any referral, up to a maximum of $50 off per month. Any extra referrals will roll over to subsequent months.
Athlete of the Month – Saige Parfitt
Our new Athlete of the Month for October is Saige Parfitt! Saige has been with us for a year now and has seen significant improvements during her time with Speed Mechanics.
Saige is primarily a soccer player, playing for the Reynolds Centre for Soccer Excellence program and the Vancouver Island Wave U15 team.
She is a quiet leader within the facility and leads by example, improving through a strong, consistent work ethic. Saige has demonstrated outstanding leadership skills by helping new and younger athletes with their programs when she can.
We are excited to see her in action this year as the Wave finally have a regular season.
Other Highlights
We want to take this time to shout out some of our athletes’ recent successes.
Many of the Victoria Bantam Eagles have moved up to Junior Premier for the fall baseball season. They are led by Coach Jason Leslie, who has been a major supporter of ours since the beginning.
His team has been in our facility, training with us weekly through the off-season and in-season. The team also regularly attends scheduled sessions at Speed Mechanics at least one other time per week.
The JP Eagles have won their last two tournaments, including the Zach Downey and White Rock Fall Classic. The Eagles Bantam and Premier teams also won their divisions at the Zach Downey Tournament.
We would also like to give individual shoutouts to:
- Tess Sawkins for her play at the Women’s National Team Camp (Baseball) in mid-August;
- Oliver Mabee and Tyrus Hall for invitations to the Canadian Junior National Team Top 40 Camp (Baseball) and Tyrus for making the competition roster;
- Sammy Shaw for getting the invite to the latest Junior National Team Camp (Baseball) in Phoenix.
Speed Mechanics Expansion Update
Demolition is complete and construction has begun!
First and foremost, we are working away on Continuum – our new performance & rehabilitation clinic. Unfortunately, we have had to delay opening operations one month due to permits, but we are on track to be operational for December 1st.
Throughout October, we will be building five treatment rooms, a bathroom, a staff kitchen, and an open movement space for rehab within Continuum. We will also be renovating our new classroom for APEX with new furniture and a digital whiteboard for interactive learning arriving in early to mid-November.
These are all things you will be able to see at our Halloween Open House on Oct 28th and 30th. We hope to see you then! In the meantime, we will see you in the facility!
Thanks for Reading!
We are looking forward to a great fall training season as we continue to grow and expand our offering. Stay tuned for more exciting progressions, additions, and program offerings.
All the best from the Team at Speed Mechanics!