Sunday, May 25, 2008

Just as Muhammad had to visit the mountain, so those who exercise must seek out a gym -- unless they call Fred Daniels at Fitness Fleet, who brings the gym to them.

For about $90 an hour, Daniels will drive his gym, complete with stair-climbing and rowing machines, elliptical trainers, free weights and much more, right to your front door.

"I always liked working as a personal trainer," said Daniels, who is based in Great Falls. "But I thought it would be a cool idea if I brought my gym to the client's house. I thought they would just bounce out of the house for a workout, and mostly, they do."

The concept has worked well for 18 years, although lately, higher gas prices have necessitated "a lot of coasting," Daniels said, for his approximately 12-by-20-foot portable workout room; the rig that pulls the gym gets only eight miles per gallon for a clientele concentrated in Vienna and Potomac.

Many of Daniels's clients are elderly, disabled or housebound, although all appreciate the convenience he brings to working out.

"It's kind of hard to come up with an excuse when he's right outside your door," said one Daniels client, Jim Litchko of Kensington.

For not much more than a personal trainer charges, Daniels teaches, guides and cajoles his clients, with an obvious convenience factor. "Everybody's different," he said. "My goal is for each client to reach their maximum amount of wellness. And I try to make it fun, to make the hour go by fast."

And then he drives away.

· STILL GROWING: Corrigan Sports Enterprises, which hosts the Baltimore and Frederick Running Festivals, is inaugurating the Baltimore 10 Miler on June 21 at the Maryland Zoo.

· SCIENCE VS. SPORT: The Court of Arbitration for Sport on May 16 reversed the decision of the International Association of Athletics Federations, which held that the prostheses of Oscar Pistorius, the South African "Blade Runner," provided an unfair advantage over able-bodied runners.

While Pistorius's efforts in overcoming his disability are inspirational, it seems likely that his carbon-fiber artificial limbs have been designed to maximize efficiency beyond the capabilities of human legs. Research has shown that Pistorius is the only world-class 400-meter runner to cover the second 200 meters faster than the first. Can't everyone accept that he is simply running a different race?

-- Jim Hage

hagej@washpost.com