"Fitness Park" Tour: Stablewood Farms Park

Ventured out again with the kids to check out another park that will supposedly help me get a good workout in...and again, was left somewhat disappointed. It's starting to look like "interactive fitness equipment" just means "gym machines that happen to be outside."

This park was smaller and had a more typical kids' play area--which meant no chain ladders to climb, which disappointed me but didn't hold the kids back any. Still, it seemed the biggest draw for kids at the park was the adult stationary equipment:

I managed to chase them off and try a few things out myself. There was a rowing machine, a chest press, a leg extension something-or-other, a machine that I guess was supposed to replicate an elliptical, and something else I don't remember. Four of the five were just "meh," but I did take a liking to the chest press. That one was rigged so that your own body weight factored into the resistance: as you pressed the bars inward, your seat rose, and up in the air you went (though only a few inches). That one was more fun than I expected, and had the added benefit of letting me spy on the kids monitor the children as they played:

Of course, since anything "typical" doesn't hold my kids' (or my) interest for long, we soon all got bored with our respective equipment and discovered the park also had a pretty nice, if sludgy-looking pond:

The fountain in the middle is a nice touch, and added a peaceful moving-water sound to a place that would otherwise only be filled with the not-so-peaceful shrieks of children. Which mostly made up for its failure to do its likely intended job of keeping the water from being sludgy and disgusting:

So I think the only reason I'd go back to this park would be to sit and amuse myself on the rear-lifting chest press while the kids explored the cattails and reeds (hopefully without falling in), because nothing else there is really worth the trouble of FINDING the darn park (and no, having been there today isn't enough to ensure I will find the place without multiple U-turns on my next attempt).

I'm hoping some of the other city parks on the "fitness" list have more redeeming features, because this is the last park that appears to be remotely "in my area," and so far, I'm not impressed. But then perhaps it's not fair to compare the city's fitness equipment to the obstacles the Spartan people bring to a race. :)