Located in Manheim, Pa., Spooky Nook Sports is the largest indoor sports complex in North America. This 700,000-square-foot facility serves as a fitness space for locals and a training center for student, collegiate, and professional athletes.

“In the past, fitness facilities were focused on fitness alone, and the emphasis was on machines and how many they could cram into a space,” said Jim Launer, managing director of athletic operations at Spooky Nook Sports. “There also was only a small focus on weights, and the floors were an afterthought. Typical fitness surfaces included carpet or thin rubber surfacing over concrete with the main benefit being that they were easy to clean. The focus is now on strength and conditioning – jumping, sprinting, throwing and crawling.”

Recognizing the popularity of functional training, Spooky Nook converted six indoor tennis courts into a fitness and training area for its members in December 2015. This space features a performance track, turf field, turf hill, basketball court, weight lifting area, and sled lane that were developed with Ecore Athletic surfaces. Two additional sections in this space include pickle ball courts and a “Ninja Warrior” course.

Spooky Nook’s functional training area is unique, because it features seamless surfaces with smooth transitions between spaces. Another distinctive feature is its performance track. “Ecore convinced Spooky Nook to install a track,” said Bo Barber, vice president of marketing and business development at Ecore. “Today, the track is one of the most used features. It’s the only 200-meter indoor track within 300 square miles.”

Another defining feature is Spooky Nook’s turf hill, which was also developed with Ecore flooring. It’s one of only three in the U.S., with the others located in the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., and in a private training facility for professional athletes in Texas.

“The turf-covered hill is a safe and challenging training alternative to outdoor hills and a unique feature that really sets our facility apart from most others,” said Launer.

The turf hill offers athletes two training grades, with one side rising at a 34-degree angle to intensify workouts at a steeper incline, and the other launching at 24 degrees. Each side has a curved slope to ease into the incline to avoid injury or strain. The turf hill features Ecore’s Speed and Agility Turf products, which enables athletes to gain traction and maintain stability and support without using cleats. This Ecore surface doesn’t require infill either, which eliminates the mess of cleaning up loose rubber beads that would become displaced throughout the facility.

“The turf-covered hill offers our athletes the opportunity to train with an incline on a material that mimics actual grass year-round, without being impacted or delayed by outdoor weather conditions,” said Launer. “And, the turf material provides exceptional grip and versatility that allows athletes to practice in their training shoes and receive the same reactivity underfoot that they would with cleats on grass.”

Spooky Nook’s inlaid lifting platforms are comprised of about 2,500 square feet of Ecore Monster Roll, featuring custom graphics, in the free weight and heavy weight training areas. Monster Roll is a 22.5mm system that creates a durable surface with firm footing. Another 1,200 square feet of Everlast UltraTile was installed in the machine training area. UltraTile is a 2’x2’x1” performance rubber tile that offers noise and shock absorption qualities.

Rounding out the functional training area are the turf field and basketball court. The turf field features Ecore’s Training Ground with Nike Grind TurfX, which mimics natural grass, making it the ideal indoor training surface. The sled lane features Ecore’s Speed and Agility Turf, while the basketball court surface is outfitted with Bounce 2, which provides the look of wood, but with more durability.

For more information, visit www.ecoreathletic.com.