Flagstaff Featured Business: Lougheed Field House

The Flagstaff Region Featured Business is a monthly newspaper and web feature presented in partnership by Flagstaff County and The Community Press.

Lougheed Field House
Harvey Street, Lougheed, AB
info@lougheedfieldhouse.com

“Building community through fitness.”

It’s more than a motto at the Lougheed Field House. It’s a raison d’être.

“That’s what we run this place for, is so that the community can come and have fun and be active,” says John Snethun, president of the Lougheed Ag Society, which runs the Lougheed Field House.

And there’s no shortage of opportunities to be active. From badminton, pickleball, and basketball, to soccer, handball and baseball, to weight training and much more, the Field House is a round-the-clock, one-stop shop for all things fitness-related.

There are batting cages, pitching machines and a pitching mound for baseball. There are basketball hoops. There are soccer nets and nets for badminton and pickleball. And it’s all on the turf, which also comes in handy for those just looking for a great surface on which to go for a stroll or run.

“The seniors come in and walk. Younger people come in to run,” Snethun explains. “Generally, the seniors have their workout classes three times a week and the gym is just always, always hopping. There’s somebody in every day.”

Off the turf, and neatly nestled in one corner of the building, is a fully equipped weight training area with the complete gamut of fitness equipment.

That includes CrossFit equipment, and the lightest dumbbells to the heaviest barbells.

“You can work at whatever intensity and fitness level you’re currently working at,” Snethun says.

Local fitness trainers also enjoying using the space to host a variety of workout classes.

“There are lots of trainers in the area and they cycle their classes through. There’s all the normal group fitness classes and yoga, strength training and everything you could imagine,” Snethun adds.

“There’s always room for more trainers, always room for more classes. Just call and book a time because it’s something that everybody’s looking for and we have all the space and all the tools to have great classes.”

Cheryl Frost, a local occupational therapist registered in Alberta, is currently running a fitness class that meets twice a week at the Lougheed Field House.

“It’s geared mostly towards older adults, but it is growing to include us younger adults as well,” she explains. “We do a lot of strength-based movements. So we go through deadlifts and push-ups and all those fun things. And what we’re doing is trying to build muscle mass, improve balance, increase bone density, all of these other things to make us resilient, older adults is the goal.”

And when she’s not leading classes at the Field House, Frost likes to work on her own fitness goals.

“We’re lucky to have this facility here because there’s really nothing else like it around,” she says. “From a mom perspective, I know that my kids are always going to have something to do. They spend time shooting hoops and having dance parties and just playing like how kids like to play and they create and everything. There’s always something for us to do as a family, whether we’re doing it together or apart. So yeah, I think it’s a fantastic place to have available to us in Flagstaff County.”

Jean Frost is a regular at the Field House. She enjoys walking the turf (especially in the winter months) and attending exercise classes. She attributes regular exercise to increasing her flexibility and at least partly helping her to lower her blood pressure.

“Everybody is very welcoming,” she says of the atmosphere at the Field House. “They’re all trying to interact and help you as needed.”

Jan Bergseth, another regular at the Field House, says she enjoys the facility’s “family feeling” and the ability to come whenever she wants.

“There’s no judgment. There’s no expectations. It’s very informal. So I really enjoy that,” she adds.

Of course, as Bergseth points out, the Field House is more than just a fitness facility.

“It’s an important central part of the community,” she notes. “It’s a gathering place, an area for people to come together, not just for fitness or sport or athletic-type things. It’s an opportunity to bring people together for community spirit, for fundraising, for burger nights, for the fair, things like that. And I think Lougheed has worked really hard to ensure that stays strong within their community. They really, really fight for that, and I think that’s very impressive.”

Snethun echoes Bergseth’s sentiments, adding that the board has hosted many community suppers, including their well-attended burger nights.

“Our latest burger nights have included harvest suppers with takeout containers,” he says.

The upstairs kitchen and meeting space are available for rent for a variety of special occasions, such as birthday parties, corporate gatherings, or family events.

The Field House was established a decade ago in 2014. That was after the then-arena was no longer viable. Snethun explains that the plant had experienced mechanical issues and demand for ice in the area had dwindled.

Instead of raising the proverbial white flag, the community pivoted.

“When we had troubles at the plant, when we were losing the ice, there was actually never any communication about just closing the doors,” Snethun explains. “It was, ‘What are we going to do? Is there a way we get ice back or is there something else we want to do in here?’”

The arena’s metamorphosis into the Field House started with lacrosse, Snethun explains.

“Lacrosse was the first thing that we had and they just needed space before hockey was out of everywhere else,” he recalls. “So they came through and had their camps. But our cement wasn’t good and it opened up our eyes that there’s people looking for all of these things.”

Then came badminton.

“That’s what we were into, that’s what we liked,” Snethun says. “And we had batting cages even before we’d lost our ice. So we added another one, added pitching machines and then we just kept adding things as the need arose.”