Base fitness centers get new look

  • Published
  • By Dan Hawkins
  • 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs
SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Fitness buffs at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, will notice a change of scenery at both the Pitsenbarger and Levitow fitness centers when they go for a workout due to the ongoing upgrade of aging fitness equipment.

The new equipment includes cardio machines such as bicycles and treadmills, strength and free weight equipment and aerobic room amenities such as beauty bells.

The equipment at both centers is being replaced in a five-phase process that began in September and will conclude in December. Four of the five phases are complete and the entire upgrade is scheduled to be finished by the end of the year with the addition of new dumbbells and weight plates.

With 2,000 personnel using both facilities on a daily basis, the fitness staff pushed hard for two years to secure the funding necessary to undertake the $579,000 renovation. The project was funded by both Headquarters Air Force funds and from local end-of-year funds made available during the fiscal year 2011 closeout.

Ms. Cindy Conn, 82nd Force Support Squadron Fitness and Sports Manager, kept the overall mission focus in mind while grinding through the funding process.

"Seventy-five percent of the equipment at both the Levitow and Pitsenbarger Fitness Centers was replaced," said Conn. "We want to keep Team Sheppard physically fit, helping the overall mission of training at Sheppard Air Force Base."

Conn stated that all of the old equipment still in working condition was sent to the Defense Reutilization Management Office and had already been reallocated to an Army installation.

Airman Troy Buthe, 365th Training Squadron, said he likes the new look. "I come here three days a week, and I like all the renovations they have done," he said. "It's good variety for my workout, and my buddies and I enjoy it."

Future plans include an Air Education and Training Command funded project to outfit the aerobics room at Pitsenbarger Fitness Center with new fans and other aerobic gear.