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Aided by a 60% increase in revenues last year, Aqua Massage International has expanded both its factory and production staff in Mystic, Connecticut. The company’s improvement in revenues was due, in large part, to the owners’ decision to place their automated massagers in shopping malls, charging users a little more than a dollar by the minute. And why would a person choose to get a massage from a machine over one administered by a human being? “A lot of people don’t like others to touch them, and others don’t want to take off their clothes,” Lee Cote, co-owner of Aqua Massage, recently told the New York Times. “A full-body massage, with the oils and everything else, takes time; you’ve got to get undressed, take a shower afterwards, etc.” With AquaMassage, users don’t get undressed or wet; they simply lay down inside the unit, and a spray bar equipped with 36 jets, contained in an acrylic canopy, massages the full length of their body.

FitLinxx is pleased to announce that its FitLinxx Network now comprises more than 1 million registered exercisers. Driven by increases in both participating clubs and the number of users per facility, the network has grown tenfold over the past five years. “The main reason for the continued growth of the FitLinxx Network is the simple fact that members love it,” explains Keith Camhi, CEO of the Stamford, Connecticut-based company. “The product enables a fitness center’s staff to help members stay with their fitness program and get results. And that, in turn, helps our customers succeed—financially, via improved member retention, attraction, and increased personal training revenues, as well as in terms of mission fulfillment.”

FreeMotion Fitness, Inc., of Colorado Springs, Colorado, recently shipped a total of 46 cardiovascular units—i.e., its NordicTrack 9600 treadmills and Incline Trainers—to seven WOW! Work Out World facilities in New Jersey. “We’re excited that such a high-profile and reputable company has decided to choose our treadmills,” notes Allison Porter, territory manager for FreeMotion. “Work Out World has had a very positive experience with the Incline Trainers we installed last year, a fact that has clearly contributed to its decision to purchase more machines.”

Matrix Fitness Systems has agreed to provide strength and cardiovascular equipment for the United States Golf Fitness Association’s (USGFA’s) international headquarters at the La Costa Resort and Spa in San Diego, California. The USGFA facility will offer Matrix selectorized, free-weight, multi-station, and plate-loaded products, as well as a variety of the company’s cardiovascular machines featuring the Fitconnexion personal entertainment system. “We carefully evaluated equipment and teamwork opportunities with nearly a half-dozen of the fitness industry’s leading providers, but chose Matrix because, in addition to the machines’ quality biomechanics and built-in electronic networking capabilities, they incorporate uniquely rich and appealing finishes, and non-threatening, rounded designs, setting a new standard for equipment aesthetics and function,” observes Larry Castro, president and founder of the USGFA. “My goal is to provide designer-quality equipment that’s aesthetically pleasing, non-intimidating, and substantial.”

Planet Yoga, Inc., has released its teacher training program schedule for 2003; all of the programs will take place at the company’s main studio in Hermosa Beach, California. Dates for the Basic Planet Yoga course are January 31-February 7, May 16-23, July 18-25, and September 12-19. The Intermediate training program will be held July 10-13, and November 6-9, and the Advanced course will take place October 9-12. Participants are required to have at least one year’s experience practicing yoga for a minimum of seven hours per week.

When American Environmental Review, a television show that appears on Public Broadcasting System (PBS) stations nationwide, went looking for companies that have had a significant impact on national waste tire management, they found RB Rubber Products, Inc. The show’s producers concluded that RB Rubber, based in McMinnville, Oregon, had “made a major contribution to the advancement of environmental technology and information,” and decided to feature the company and its recycled rubber programs on an installment of the program. To view an online video of the episode, log onto www.rbrubber.com/corp_video.thml.

There promises to be even more excitement than usual at this year’s Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association (SGMA) World of Sports Innovation @ The Super Show, scheduled to take place in Las Vegas, January 20-22. Exhibitors and attendees will not only attempt to set a world record for the largest collection of sports and commemorative pins ever assembled, but there will also be cameras on hand to document the event for a one-hour television program—called “The Super Show Sports Special 2003”—scheduled to air on the Fox Sports network in March. World of Sports Innovation exhibitors can actually purchase a guarantee—for $3,000—that they’ll receive coverage in the program. “Through television, we’ll showcase this industry’s latest and greatest product introductions to the buying public,” says John Riddle, president of SGMA International, of West Palm Beach, Florida, which owns The Super Show. “By signing up to take part in the TV special, World of Sports Innovation participants can ensure that their products and messages will reach a focused audience—all at a portion of the cost that they’d spend for comparable advertising time,” adds Peter Haines, show director.

The United States Professional Tennis Association’s (USPTA’s) first annual silent auction, held at its recent World Conference on Tennis in Las Vegas, was a star-studded, high-scoring affair. Among the items that precipitated aggressive bidding were: tennis racquets autographed by Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Anna Kournikova, Andy Roddick, and Serena Williams; a Wheaties box signed by Sampras; an oversized tennis ball bearing Agassi’s signature; two footballs inscribed by Tom Brady; the V1 Tennis Pro Coaching System software package; and a number of resort vacation packages. In all, the auction raised more than $5,300 for Lessons for Life, the USPTA’s umbrella program for charitable fund-raising. “The silent auction was a great addition to our 75th anniversary conference,” concludes Tim Heckler, the CEO of the USPTA. “Our industry friends helped us by donating some desirable items, the auction added a new sense of excitement to the buying show, and, of course, all of the fun was for a great cause.” Other events included an awards ceremony honoring the accomplishments of Alan Cutler and Will Hoag. Cutler proudly accepted the association’s 2002 Industry Excellence Award for his contributions to grass-roots tennis, while Hoag received the Alex Gordon Award for Professional of the Year. “Alan is a great example of a teaching professional who uses his own ingenuity, available industry resources, and a good dose of altruism to create programs that introduce tennis to new players,” notes Heckler. As head tennis professional for grass-roots programs at Whittier Narrows Tennis Center in South El Monte, California, Cutler has organized free public clinics for some 600 players, and also volunteered to coach local high school teams. Hoag has been director of tennis for the Coral Ridge Country Club in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, since 1973, and is a past national president of the USPTA.