Find us
The Old Pattern Shop, Ynysfach Road.
The stone warehouse with the arched windows and the black steel door, between the college and the river, five minutes from the bus station and seven from the train along the Taff Trail. Forty free spaces in the yard, bike racks under cover, and a Sunday run that starts at the door.
Getting here
Where
The Old Pattern Shop on Ynysfach Road, the stone warehouse with the arched windows and the black steel door, between the college and the river, five minutes' walk from the bus station and the town centre.
Parking
Forty spaces in the yard, free for members and trial visitors, with the gate open whenever the gym is. Bike racks under cover by the door and a shower that is not just for the members.
Train and bus
Merthyr Tydfil station is a seven-minute walk along the Taff Trail. The bus station is five minutes. The Sunday Hill Run starts at the door and goes up the trail to Cefn.
Access
Step-free from the yard, a wide door, a lift to the mezzanine studio, an accessible changing room and toilet, and a hearing loop at the desk. The floor is one level; the quiet corner is nearest the door.
Who comes
Merthyr, Dowlais, Cefn Coed, Pentrebach, Troedyrhiw, Aberfan, Treharris and the Rhymney side; about a quarter of members drive in from the Heads of the Valleys road because of the classes and the trainers.
Hours
Open 6am to 10pm weekdays, 7 to 8 Saturday, 8 to 6 Sunday, with the desk staffed 7 to 9 on weekdays and 8 to 6 at weekends. Outside staffed hours members use a fob and every area is on camera.
Lost? Ring the desk on 01685 960 240, 7 to 9 weekdays.
Sunday, 8am
The Hill Run: up the Taff Trail to Cefn, back for coffee by half nine.
It started as four people and a dog and is now the biggest class of the week: twenty on a good Sunday, every pace from walking to racing, up the trail past the viaduct to Cefn Coed and back along the river, with Gav at the back and whoever is fastest at the front. Nobody is left behind, the dog still comes, and the coffee at the desk afterwards is the best in the building because Jan makes it. Free for unlimited members, £7 for everyone else, and the first one is free for anyone in their trial week.
The full timetableA free week. All of it. No card details.
Seven days of the floor, every class on the timetable and an induction with a trainer, booked with a name and an email. Join afterwards at the website price with no joining fee, or do not, and nobody rings you. About six in ten people join.