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 I’ve visited Nassau, Bahamas several times. Each time, it’s been a one-day visit off a cruise ship. After a few visits, I really wasn’t interested in any excursions. Sometimes I wouldn’t even get even off the ship. But wait a minute. Could Nassau have a CrossFit? Why, yes. Yes they do. And it’s close to the cruise port. Happy Hour CrossFit is less than a 15-minute walk from the cruise port and it’s definitely worth getting off the ship for. If you come in via a ship, you can grab a cab (and there will be plenty waiting for you) or you can take a walk. I decided to walk. I turned left out of the port and that curved around to Bay Street, where you turn left and it’s about a half mile from there. You will notice two things if you walk: 1. there’s no numbers on any of the storefronts at all and 2. Some of the closed down storefronts look pretty rough. It’s not a bad neighborhood. It’s just in bad shape on and off until you get about 2 blocks out from Happy Hour. Happy Hour CrossFit is in a building adjacent to a Rubis gas station on the left side (headed away from the port). If you have concerns about the walk, the cab ride will be short and should be cheap. I arrived in port with just enough time for me to make the 9:00 class. I was the first person off the ship. It was raining but me and my crappy umbrella took on the wind and the rain so we could make class in time. With the lack of street numbers and the condition of the storefronts, I was not sure how far down I had to go. I stopped in an open business and they helped to point me in the right direction. Finally! I made it, just a couple minutes late from my stop for directions. Class had just started. Coach Jamie turned to me as I opened the door - “Matt?” I said “Jamie?” and he welcomed me into class. How did it go? You know the scale – 1-5 barbells. Let’s see how many Happy Hour CrossFit racked up.
 Information Availability/Communication I sent a message a couple of weeks in advance to let them know I’d like to drop in on their Contact Us page. It took a few days to get a response but the response was very enthusiastic. “So awesome to hear you will be visiting us!” I love that kind of welcome. After that, the information flowed easily. He gave me the cost to drop in and for t-shirts (more on that later). Jamie also shared their safety policies like having a picture of my vaccination card and wearing a mask until I got to my workout area. As we got closer, I asked for the workout and Jamie sent it over. Knowing what to bring reduces overpacking. The website covers all the basics. You have to click around a little bit to find things. It has a Drop-In selection in the header. However, there’s no way that I can see to set up your drop-in online. Jamie reserved my spot in the class and I paid in cash when I got there. They have several programs there in addition to CrossFit and they’re illustrated on the site. An important note, particularly with COVID is class sizes here are very limited. Given the size of the facility, which you’ll read more about below, and the rules in the Bahamas it’s a good thing. But you’ll definitely want to be sure you communicate when you want to take class so you can get a spot reserved for you.  Cleanliness Nassau is an island, of course. So, there’s lots of sand, and not just on the beach. When you first walk into Happy Hour CrossFit, there’s a shallow tray with water in it for you to step in to get the sand off your shoes. The floor looked clean. There was a little bit of chalk visible on the rig but I didn’t see any on bars. Everyone in class wiped their equipment down after class was over. I did not have the opportunity to inspect the restroom.  Facility This is a small facility. It may be the smallest CrossFit I’ve ever been to. You walk directly in on the main workout floor. There’s a small rig on the left that’s about 4 positions wide. There’s a few pull up racks on the wall on the right. It’s pretty open along the length of the floor. Opposite the front door, there’s a short, wide hallway with some bikes and ski ergs. It leads to a room in the back with several rowers for their Rowfit program. As a small facility, they use their space well. There’s a rack for everything. Barbells are racked on the walls. There’s stands for their plates, a rack for wall balls and benches are mounted on the walls as well. Most of the equipment is in good condition. Some of the plates look like they have gone through their paces but nothing terrible. There was plenty of equipment for everyone so no worries there.
 Workout/Programming We started with an AMRAP warmup, followed by a strength metcon on a 15-minute clock to build to a heavy set of 2 power cleans and 1 hang clean. We had the option to squat clean, which I elected to do (I know, crazy). The remaining workout was a partner WOD. There was an odd number of people so I was on a team of three where they went/I went. It was 5 x 3-minute rounds of 3 power cleans, 6 push-ups and 9 air squats. There was a 1-minute rest between each round and you picked up where you left off after the rest. I like this kind of workout. It’s varied. It has strength and sprint movement and the warmup really warmed us up. It may not have been overly complex, but it kept us moving and it worked out multiple muscle groups. Sounds like CrossFit to me.  Coaching Jamie is the owner and head coach. He’s CrossFit Level 1 certified. However, from my travels and experiences, he presents himself beyond that level. He’s quite attentive. There’s athletes of all skill levels in his class and he worked with all of them based on their needs. I saw him offering feedback to the beginner-level athletes and the more experienced ones. He shared a tip with me for an adjustment as well. Jamie has a lot of enthusiasm. You can see his passion for what he does. He’s encouraging. During the workout he made the rounds and checked with everyone. He took advantage of the rest periods to communicate and keep us motivated.  Culture As I mentioned above, there was a big mix of skill sets. There’s lots of different backgrounds here as well. It’s a nice blend and a good dynamic. People weren’t overly social, but I wasn’t there before the workout started and that can make a difference. There was plenty of congrats after the workout and I got to chat with a couple of people. All quite nice. There was no negative vibe at all.  Drop-In Cost and SWAG This is an interesting one because this is a different country and costs are different. Everything costs more on an island, whether it’s in the US or abroad. The drop-in cost was $25. Relatively speaking, not terrible. The shirts are $35, which is more than I’ve seen anywhere else to date. However, value is in the eye of the beholder. If you’re a drop-in shirt hound and you're good with the price, grab one. The name and logo are pretty cool. I wouldn't have minded one but they didn’t have one in my size, so the decision was made for me. Either way, the shirt is not my primary objective so I wasn’t worried about it. In Summary Happy Hour CrossFit is a small place, but they really get the job done. Jamie is a great coach, and did a great job with the variety of members. I felt welcomed. The facility is in good condition and things are well laid out for the small size. A very good overall experience. You’ll have to make your choice for you on your best mode of transportation to get there but I did not feel unsafe on my walk there. And, it’s a very short cab ride from the port if you prefer to go that way. Contact Info:
Happy Hour CrossFit 671 East Bay Street Nassau, Bahamas (242)445-7297 [email protected] https://happyhourcrossfit.com/
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11/2/2022 10:07:56 pm
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