Mark Burik (00:01.496)
Hey everybody and welcome to the Better at Beach podcast. My name is Mark Burke and I'm here with my main man, Brandon Joiner. And today we are going to give our opinions on the best beach volleyball facilities and places to play in the U.S. Speaking of beach volleyball facilities.
If you have a facility, if you have an area to play, if you know that you rent local courts or have local courts that are rentable and you want us to come to your town this year, by the end of 2025, we'll have run close to 50 camps across the country and internationally. And we'd love to keep adding those on and we'd love to come near you and bring some high level coaching to a new area. So get in touch with us.
You can also look at better beach.com forward slash camps and book your own private camp, but our upcoming camps, of course, our all inclusive camp in Punta Cana Dominican Republic is coming up November 29th, a week of all inclusive life and beach volleyball training, hanging with pros and daily tournaments and competitions as well as parties.
On September 26th, we are going to Seattle, Washington at fourth Avenue beach, October 3rd, Youngsville, Louisiana, October 10th, Long Island, New York, October 17th in Orlando, October 31st in Fort Myers and November 7th in Virginia beach and December 12th at third coast volleyball in Houston, Texas. And we are about to add a bunch of new dates. And if you get in touch with us.
Maybe we can add a date in your local town. So we just got back from Oklahoma city. Apparently the hot bed of beach volleyball. Who knew? and they've got boom box beach there, which just opened up in January. And I, you know, we're supposed to probably count.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (02:00.354)
Good news. Good news. Yeah.
Mark Burik (02:15.116)
down, but as far as I've seen so far over last like two years of running these three day camps in the U S I have to vote this new Oklahoma city boombox in Oklahoma city as the top beach volleyball facility that I've that I've been to.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (02:36.686)
Yeah, I mean, I think just our experience alone, like one this weekend was it was just special. No, I will side note. I think we're given our little end of close camp speeches. It felt similar to I say, I think a lot of the times I say a lot of the same things because I think you and I are we're blessed and that
Mark Burik (02:45.57)
Mm-hmm.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (03:06.532)
we get to call this a profession. And the fact that we're welcomed in by communities and we truly do develop like pretty cool bonds with people throughout the weekend. This weekend, I think it was the first time that you and I have done a camp together in a while. So that was really cool to be back out on the road with you. And then we had Maddie in there who's become a staple of our organization and
Mark Burik (03:18.146)
Yeah.
Mark Burik (03:35.597)
Yeah.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (03:36.422)
Yeah, it's just like, it's cool to like, Maddie had some really cool words to say at the end and kind of got me a little emotional because I was just like, man, like, one, I love that I get to do this and two, the fact that we're greeted and treated the way we are. just, means a lot, you know, and I think this camp specifically, you know,
Mark Burik (03:58.413)
Mm.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (04:05.19)
The facility itself is fantastic. You can tell that Lee, the guy who kind of started it, started it all, he's one of a kind. He opens his doors to people. He really does care about the sport and just like growing it in an amazing way. And when the facility itself is fantastic and then you also have those community leaders.
that are a part of it. I think that that goes hand in hand, you know, if some people can have an amazing facility and not have that person at the helm. And so they're really lucky out there, but dude, it's rare that we go to a camp and I never once thought about doing something outside of the facility. Like we were there from 7.45 in the morning.
Mark Burik (04:38.381)
Hmm.
Mark Burik (04:58.936)
Right.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (05:04.587)
until like eight o'clock at night every single night like at no point were we in a hurry to leave because that facility it's just like not only is it cool to just look around and see how beautiful it is but also just the the people that fill it it just makes it a place that you want to be at which i think is is really cool
Mark Burik (05:27.33)
And they're doing a lot of cool add-ons. mean, they built, they had a smart planning. They built a twin building. Say they've got beach volleyball, very similar to DeKine in Tacoma, where they built twin beach volleyball and indoor volleyball. DeKine has them all under one roof, but this, since they're able to build fresh new buildings, they had the indoor completely rented out. So it's leased to one of the local clubs.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (05:34.342)
Thank you.
Mark Burik (05:56.858)
And then they've got one for beach volleyball. So they're bringing all volleyball players in there, which is great, because if you're a true beacher, you know that we we often steal those indoor players and bring them into the fold. It is and, you know, just like from the kids who play and the people who play. The ability to touch a ball, I'm still furious when I hear that.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (06:09.51)
Hard to run away from the sand.
Mark Burik (06:25.71)
indoor coaches are trying to get their kids not to play beach volleyball. It's like, you don't want your middles to be able to set. you you don't want your opposites to be able to pass. Like what if you had entire athletes with all skills and like, it develops bad habits. No, you get more touches and the only thing you need to do is speed up hands.
That's the only thing that you then have to calibrate. And then once you just teach your hands as different sports, it becomes really easy. You just make that shift from I'm on the beach or I'm on indoor. So now I need faster hands. Everything else is direct translation golden. Like, OK, if you're going to shoot on the beach, are you going to use a lot more cut shots? No, but you'll get those hitting reps for indoor.
And I also think that one of the indoor players biggest mistakes when they come out to the beach is trying to become a beach player by like adding shots to their game when, Hey, if you were detonating successfully indoor, just detonate on the beach. I just keep that. And now you have an easier bailout with shots. But if you look at the world tour, especially on the men's side, it's just all cranking. People are crushing the ball. Like shots become.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (07:45.329)
yeah.
Mark Burik (07:48.834)
I'm not going to say rare, but, you're out there to hit on the world tour. So you get a lot from both and coaches, please. You know, I, I think that if you're not, when you're practicing six on six or training an indoor team, if you're not spending a significant amount of time playing twos or threes where everybody has to dig set and hit, it's a huge mistake because you're not developing.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (07:53.126)
and
Mark Burik (08:17.646)
total athletes. need specialized generalists is what they call it. Like somebody who can do every skill, but they're extra good at one because they've gotten extra reps at that.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (08:23.269)
Yeah.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (08:29.222)
Yeah, I would, you know, I've never said this out loud, but like, think it would be extremely beneficial for indoor coaches, like every two or three weeks having one practice on the sand. You know, I think it's like.
Mark Burik (08:46.894)
There's a lot of current NCAA teams that do that already. You know, they bring their girls out to like play on the sand and have some fun, give their knees and their backs a little bit of a break. And then it's a new environment. It's fun and you get to play all the different skills.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (09:03.014)
And it's like, I think one of the things that happens if coaches from the indoor side do go out to the beach, they almost treat it as like a holiday or they're like, this is my time to just let my kids play and like have fun and goof off. But like, like you said.
Mark Burik (09:13.934)
Mm-hmm.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (09:22.552)
All of those skills are so transferable to indoor that like the way I think about it is like, it's so funny that we use that quote from the, I use that quote from dodgeball all the time. Like if you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball. And it makes so much sense because it's like, if you can pass, if you can like get your footwork right and your platform stable and everything like that on sand, then when you're inside, it's, it's easy. It's almost elementary.
Mark Burik (09:50.882)
Yes.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (09:51.14)
You know, and then there's so many extra rules that you can do an indoor as far as like passing with your hands. And so like, if you have that, still have that same coaching mentality of like, Hey, we're out on the sand, but I'm still going to hold you accountable on like being good at the skills. Then you're just making your job easier indoor. And yeah, I think it's, it's kind of funny. Like if you were, if you were a parent, know, and
Mark Burik (10:08.782)
Mm-hmm.
Mark Burik (10:21.173)
If,
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (10:21.254)
I think parents are pretty good now of being like, no, I'm not going to force my kid into one area. Like you grew up a volleyball player, you have a daughter. And like, if she wants to play volleyball, I'm sure you'll be like, cool. You're also probably going be like, I don't really want to be that coach, like full on coach dad, unless you're coaching the team. But like, you're going to let her find her own.
her own avenue as far as what her passions are and what she wants to do. And it's funny that coaches, even though a lot of them are probably parents and probably think that way, they probably are fighting that idea with kids that aren't theirs. And I think if...
Mark Burik (11:11.906)
Mm-hmm.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (11:15.938)
If you're coaching an indoor team and you introduce them to sand and that person ends up going and moving to full time sand gets a scholarship and does all these things, you're still the person in that kid's mind that was like, my gosh, I was on this indoor team, but we practiced on the sand and I just fell in love with it. And it was all because of this coach. And that's like, that's such a cool thing to be able to say. so yeah, I think like.
Introduce the kids all these different ideas. There's going to be some that like I have some of my best friends that love indoor more than beach, you know, and it's like they still played both but they chose their Avenue and introducing them to all of these different ideas is really cool because volleyball communities a volleyball community like We have indoor buddies. We have beach beach volleyball player buddies. We have grass volleyball player buddies
Mark Burik (11:54.733)
Mm-hmm.
Mark Burik (12:08.407)
Mm-hmm.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (12:09.092)
And everyone's kind of just chosen their avenue of what they like the most and none of them are the wrong answer. It's like, yeah, you can't just.
Mark Burik (12:16.462)
And I think for those parents who are getting the pressure from the coaches or getting the pressure to the travel team, the club, like, no, they need to be here six, they need to be here 10 or 12 months. You have to understand that it's kind of like the pharmaceutical, some medical sales where they're incentivized to keep them there, you know, throughout that club. So part of them saying,
They need this sport because they need to be better at this sport. They're also helping, you know, fill their own pockets, protect their own job. So you have to take that as, I'm not gonna listen to the club director, you know, the person that's there when I'm hearing this advice. I want some outside advice, like talk to somebody else, talk to another elite coach who is coached both indoor and beach.
And just see the difference that it makes because the amount of reps that I got from, for indoor by playing on the sand, I can't get 11 people and rent a church basement. I can show up at a Parkinson or a local park and get three people or two people to get reps on the beach. So it was an avenue for me to actually get better at indoor in the beginning. but because it was the only thing that was available. Right.
Okay, if it's always available, then do what's easiest or what's most fun, but you can't really always take a club director or coaches word for it because they just want to make sure that you're at their practice or you know, you're paying their dues. So
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (13:53.957)
Yeah, it's a tricky situation of running a business but also promoting the youth kind of thing. It's a tricky balance. I'll admit that.
Mark Burik (13:59.97)
Yeah.
So yeah, Oklahoma City Boombox has now taken my number one spot and we haven't been to all of them. So this might be a sliding scale, but for now, for what I've seen with lighting, with space, height of the ceilings, the setup of the social area with all of the different games and their kitchen and their bar were just.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (14:13.37)
No.
Mark Burik (14:29.888)
Absolutely fantastic and yes, a place like I want to create where this is your home. Like stay here, live here, have breakfast, lunch and dinner here and be, you know, happy and then like play volleyball in the meantime. I want to create a home, not just a facility. And I think they've done that there. But what do you think would come next on your list? And this is for, should we just talk about indoor or should we talk about all facilities?
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (14:37.349)
Yeah.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (14:59.91)
Let's start off with indoor. I think the indoor is a cool thing that is becoming really popular. You know, I have to throw a shout out to my people back in Virginia Beach, mainly because I grew up playing there. That's where I kind of learned how to play beach volleyball. And same idea. I don't think so. TVA in Virginia Beach, they
they've kind of gone through a couple different stages where they used to have two facilities next to each other. One of them was all indoor. And then they had rented out this little building that had four beach volleyball courts. And that one was okay. It was cool. It was really, it was pretty small. The courts were pretty compact. But then a couple of years ago, they moved their indoor facility to the convention center and then
So all of their leagues and practices and stuff like that now take place there and they turn that building into their sand facility. And so it's five courts, pretty decently spread out. each court has a decent amount of room. And once again, the like hangout scene there is just fantastic.
Mark Burik (16:06.422)
How many courses is it now?
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (16:26.87)
It's always cool. Like when people are in leagues, like they've done a great job every night of the week. I think they have a different league and then they have like free play on a couple of nights. but the thing that I love is like someone will play in their own league on Monday and then Tuesday, a lot of their friends are playing and they're not playing and they still show up. You know, and I think that that's a really cool sign of like the community that you've built is, is really strong.
Mark Burik (16:47.512)
Yeah.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (16:56.142)
Yeah, so I throw TVA in there. I think they're still figuring out the whole, which is very typical with indoor facilities, the whole like sand dust situation. But they've got these like sliding doors that they open up. They've got a good ventilation system in there. So it's gotten better over time. But yeah, as far as as far as facilities that I always look forward to going back to.
Mark Burik (17:07.086)
Mm-hmm.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (17:23.654)
That one's really high on my list. I think I'm a little biased just because I also get to see my family. Special shout out. Today is baby B's, baby Brandon Beckett, Woody's first birthday, my nephew. So I want to send a little special shout out to him. So whenever I go back to Virginia Beach, I get to see my family. I also get to see all my friends that I created there.
Mark Burik (17:39.243)
Nice.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (17:53.1)
Yeah, so Virginia Beach is high on the list. I know I still gotta get you out there. Haven't been yet, but yeah, it's fun community.
Mark Burik (18:02.01)
for number three then I guess we're at. I know.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (18:06.278)
Yeah, all of these can be kind of jumbled because I think you've been to a couple, I've been to a couple. like we have, don't, the one that we have for sure together is, um, is the Oklahoma city. Although I can think of another one that I also really enjoy.
Mark Burik (18:16.75)
boombox.
Mark Burik (18:22.658)
Okay, next on my list has got to be Grand Zance in in Loughlin, Ohio. It's been around for I think 30 years, something close to that. It's got maybe seven indoor courts and then they use the land outside to also get a few more courts out there. So as far as the indoor outdoor capacity, I think it's great. Ceilings are good. They've got a good, good bar and food there.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (18:25.371)
That was the one I was thinking of.
Mark Burik (18:52.73)
and it's well run by somebody who like really cares by about ball volleyball and John Drake as the GM out there. so that's, that's really high on my list because of like the restaurant, chill vibe and the fact that it has these different sections, you know, they've got the main, I think five courts and they've got the two little ones and that they keep adding on. So.
grand sands in Loveland, which is right near Cincinnati, Ohio. that's, that's going to the, to the top of the list for sure.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (19:27.29)
Yeah, for sure. I like that.
Mark Burik (19:29.582)
I really like next and almost tied for that would would be the sandbar in Salt Lake City. They also have that indoor outdoor. I think the only thing that is just slightly missing, even though if you went there, you wouldn't think it made a difference. But like the hangout area, so they've got a bar they've got
very simple food, you know, they did it in a smart way. They have a commercial kitchen, but it just became a headache in the beginning. And so now they just have like microwavable quick heat dinners. And so you can get your food, you can get your drink and the hangout is, it's one big bar, basically that, that just looks at the court from the same level. And then they do have this upper deck where there are some other offices and places that they can run.
birthday parties. But I just think that during the winter, the social vibe is just falling short of what Oklahoma City did, where instead of this big wide open, like you get to play cornhole inside, you get to play, what is it the little soccer guys, foosball? Yeah, inside and they're gonna, he said already that they're gonna add.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (20:50.702)
as well.
Mark Burik (20:55.95)
a bunch of those games too. So I always like to see the whole beach vibe, beach culture and give me a reason to hang out and a comfortable place to sit and chill. But that changes for Salt Lake during the summer because then they have the outdoor fire pits, those nice Adirondack low beach chairs. And so I really do like the vibe that happens once they open the garage doors during the warmer months and they can get them outside. So
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (21:13.572)
Right.
Mark Burik (21:25.054)
Stan Bart was, was really good to us. they welcomed us. We, we were in there running regular classes for eight months and then we still get to go there occasionally, but their leagues and tournaments are just so sold out and packed, that it's not like a necessity.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (21:25.158)
you
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (21:41.094)
you
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (21:44.792)
Yeah, for sure. Yeah, and I think kind of moving on to the next one. I haven't been to these, but the ones up in, I've heard a bunch of great stories of them, are the ones up in like Washington and Seattle. Is it Tacoma?
Mark Burik (22:04.894)
Mm. Talking about you talking about 4th Avenue Beach or or DeKind because 4th Avenue Beach is brand new and we're about to head there. So I'm excited to see it. It's brand new.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (22:11.332)
I think I will.
Okay.
Okay. Yeah. So maybe I mean, I've heard nothing but good things at the ones that we've run at run stuff at. So I guess that would be the cop, the kind. Yeah. And then also isn't Tacoma indoor as well. Okay. Gotcha. Yeah. So I've heard good things about that one as well. We've, I think every time we go there, it like sells out and it's like,
Mark Burik (22:33.878)
That is the same. the kind is into, yeah.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (22:46.726)
A majority of the time when we run these three day camps and clinics, we have an interesting split as far as like people traveling from out of town and people being there. But the Tacoma one seems like it's a majority of locals, which is always, that's such a cool feeling for us too, because it really feels like we're like adding to that beach volleyball community.
you know, and raising the whole level of that area. Obviously we love it when people come and visit from out of town. Personally, if I was not running these camps, I would have loved this because it's like, Oh, I've always wanted to go to Austin. Like, let me go, let me, let me hop on this better beach camp. Oh, I've always wanted to go to Oak. Well, I don't know if you will say they want to go to Oak on the city. I want to see a different facility. Let me go here. Um, but like,
Mark Burik (23:38.21)
Yeah
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (23:43.0)
Especially these areas that are like super cool and like kind of bucket list places with beautiful views and everything like that I Get it, but it's also really cool when we get a lot of locals from the area so we can feel like we're like building up that that's special community
Mark Burik (24:03.192)
You know, we still haven't been to QBK, just outside New York City, and well, just outside Manhattan, it's in New York City. And we still haven't been to Beach House in Boston. And both of those, I believe have four courts and a pretty similar setup. So I'm really interested and kind of eager to go and visit those. I always just think like, man, four, four is like the minimum.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (24:07.152)
Yeah.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (24:15.546)
to them.
Mark Burik (24:32.686)
like that is your basement size for being able to create and grow a sustainable community. And I always say that under four, you've got to run a club. Like you got some spare hours for whatever, but if you're going with under four for a facility, okay, that's fine. But I think the only thing that's gonna support that really long-term is if that is your.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (24:32.805)
Yeah.
Mark Burik (24:59.79)
club and that's the home of your club and then you fill in the remaining hours because to run a league on only three courts and then have enough hours where other people can sign up enough levels going on across like we had that in Oklahoma. was a group of open men playing. was a group of 12 year olds literally throwing a ball.
over and back. And then there are a few like B and A groups. So if you walk in for the first time, you go, there is a place for me no matter what level I am. And so that's, that's my goal for our facility. When we build it is it has to be big enough where if you walk in at any time and there's games going, you can say, I'm an open player. Yep. There's an area for me. I'm a brand new beginner. Like this is not intimidating because I see my level.
And then that whole middle swath, which is the largest group, that's, you need to find a big enough zone for that. So I know that in some cities, getting that type of land, getting that size of building is difficult. but QBK and beach house have really managed to grow their business and keep their facility strong with only four courts. So I'm kind of hoping and expecting that they grow to another.
or a bigger facility. And we're seeing more facilities now pop up in the Salt Lake City area. I think two new ones were just added. And so there's there's room in cities for multiple of these. And especially during the winter months where you can't get outside beach volleyball is the friendliest friendliest sport that you can get involved, not feel bad when you're playing fours or sixes aside from like
Maybe basketball and soccer can be pretty cool. You know, but then we don't have to worry about like ACLs and ankles at every moment. So it's really friendly and fun to see somebody who is 45, 55, 65 diving, know, diving in their sport and getting dirty. There's, there's something really cool about that.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (27:20.814)
Yeah, I've had this conversation with a lot of my friends that don't play volleyball and they'll like reach out to me and say like, I'll move into this new city. Like I know that you've, you've traveled a decent amount. Like Hermosa is now the longest place I've ever lived in my life. And so like, what did you do when you moved to a new area? And I was like, you know,
I'm really lucky because I have volleyball and every place I go has has a volleyball community and I know what I'm going to get out of it. I know it's going to be special. I know that I have the ability to make really good friends there and I always tell like my friends. So for anyone listening if somebody is moving to a new place, tell them to join a volleyball league. It's like it doesn't matter if you're a fresh beginner or if you're somebody who's been playing for a while just join a league because
One, it's a fun sport. You get a really good workout. And for some reason, there's not that like pressure associated with other sports of being good. It's like everyone knows how hard it is. And a lot of times there's so many different leagues as far as twos, fours, sixes, whatever you want to do where we can make the sport seem easier. Yeah, and it's just a really good way to meet
Mark Burik (28:27.438)
Hmm.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (28:46.182)
really amazing community. So I always say, yeah, hey, I know you've never played a single point in your life, but join a volleyball league. I promise you, if nothing else, you're going to find friends that you can hang out with outside of the court as well, and you're going to always enjoy seeing them. So it's, yeah, it's a, I definitely agree with that.
Mark Burik (29:01.56)
Mm-hmm.
Mark Burik (29:09.048)
For indoor facilities, I want to give a shout out, but also like some support to the one out in Long Island, North Beach volleyball. They've got a great warehouse. I think with some big investments, can be really elite because they do have a really cool hangout area. have the, you know, darts, they have a little bar, they've got cornhole. The thing that they...
just did though is they took all of their beach equipment that they're used to setting up on an impermanent basis, which like just for the three months of summer. And they use that same setup for the nets. And so me as somebody who has constructed hundreds of nets in his life and like raised and lowered, I couldn't figure out in under 30 minutes.
how to flip it between girls and guys height. And like you need to call a worker over instead of just get the metal slider poles, get a real tension on your net and open that up. And I would also like to see them just level out their lighting a little bit so that it's brighter and it feels more energetic once you get in there. But aside from that, they've got such big potential right there to make that thing pop. And they've kept it.
pretty beachy and I think they've saved a lot of dollars somewhere, but at least one by one, just get those metal sliders in there, get the permanent poles set up so that everybody can easily flip it from top to bottom.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (30:48.504)
Yeah, I think the net setup is really important. With our Hermosa classes, we've been going through the same idea where there's this David Brandon and Kelsey Brandon have this SoCal Beach Foundation in California where they do an amazing job for the beach volleyball community and they've provided these sliders.
that you're talking about on almost every single court in Hermosa. But the commercial zone in Hermosa is one of those areas that the city just doesn't want them to touch. And I've reached out to the city a bunch of times because I'm like, one, Hermosa does a really cool job of providing events, especially right now. we do, they do like movie nights on the beach and concerts on the beach.
And I love that Hermosa has that it's super exciting, but the only downfall is that after these events, the workers of the city have to go back out and put up these nets and putting up a volleyball net is, it's not like the easiest thing in the world, especially if you have no idea what you're doing. so like these workers, I know that they're doing their best.
Mark Burik (32:02.058)
Nope.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (32:10.758)
Like when they get out there they're like, all right this net has to be off the ground and it has to be kind of tight but like Kind of finicky, you know, like when I was it when I was a kid and I would get to a volleyball net I was I was the guy that was like, all right Let me tie this as tight as I can and then I'm gonna put 17 knots in it so that But the only problem with that is that I'm sure now looking back I'm like man I was making someone else's day behind me a nightmare
Mark Burik (32:29.895)
Hahaha
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (32:40.024)
And so, yeah, I think the.
Mark Burik (32:42.22)
By the way, if you don't know how to tie volleyball nets or you're trying to set up your strings, we have a video on YouTube that shows you the best setup, tying a bowline to one end of it and making the string a self-pulley and then an easy slip knot that you can just learn. then once you've done it a couple of times, it makes net setup really easy if you have to fix like your local courts.
And if you're really into volleyball, like you should always get, I forget what they're called, not the cranks, but the straps that you could slide through with the locking teeth that have both of the S hooks on the end. yeah, yeah. Just add those to your bag because you never know when you're gonna need them to get a net height right. And really you only need a couple of good tools, but if your public beach doesn't have that.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (33:27.44)
yeah, like the ratchets, ratchets traps.
Mark Burik (33:41.459)
you can, you can fix heights and nets pretty easily like that.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (33:47.815)
Yeah, I know there are a couple companies out there that provide really good services as far as setting up those nets for you or just giving you the equipment. think Sandcourt Experts is one of them. And so, yeah, definitely find the equipment because the equipment, even though it might be a bigger cost upfront.
Having that equipment set up, you can do it your own way. can create the sliders yourself and then screw them to the poles, that works too. If you're one of those engineer tight lines. But yeah, the equipment alone, it goes a long way. Because even the camp this weekend that we were in, we had a bunch of different groups. had female groups, we had intermediate men's, we had a higher level men's.
Mark Burik (34:17.358)
Mm-hmm.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (34:37.922)
And so we were bouncing between like kind of women's height, men's height, coed height, and it takes you 15 seconds to change this net height because of the systems that they have. And as far as maintaining a facility, it makes sense to have that as well because if you're going to have that simple system,
then that's going to be less wear and tear on your equipment. So it's going to last way, way longer. If you have people that are constantly pulling on these nets and whether it's you as a facility owner taking you away from something else you should be doing, or it's just somebody's not available. So people are trying to figure it out on their own. That's when ropes break. That's when straps break. That's when the nets themselves start to get deteriorated. So it's, it's worth investing in that's for sure.
Mark Burik (35:05.474)
Yes.
Mark Burik (35:28.695)
Hmm.
Yeah. So that's a pretty decent rundown of all of the most of the indoor places that we have and haven't been to and that like we have personal personal experience with. And there's a bunch of really good ones that also create really great vibes for outdoor at X beach in Austin is magnificent. Third Coast in Houston has a true
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (35:42.64)
Bye.
Mark Burik (36:00.022)
true beach vibe once you get in the fence. It's in.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (36:03.558)
Side liners in San Antonio, Texas is doing it right with their out for facilities.
Mark Burik (36:07.342)
Texas dude, they're popping. Dallas has a bunch. and we can't get out of the conversation without also mentioning, in New Jersey, Highline facility, the roof, the way that it's kind of peaked, it's, it's different heights at different times. the courts are slightly pinched and within the volleyball side, they also don't have that like true, true vibe of this is where I want to hang out all day.
you're there for volleyball, like that's it. But when they set up their corporate events, then they doll it up a little bit. yeah, really, really good indoor spots. And if you have an indoor facility that you think we should visit, please get in touch, go to betteratbeach.com forward slash camps. can sign up, you can just click on the place where it says book your own camp or email support at betteratbeach.com.
and we can bring a bunch of professional players and elite level coaching to your facility. And if you are the owner or the manager, you know, you get to relax for a weekend. We'll take those court hours. You've got three to seven courts that you won't have to book that weekend. And you can you can be guaranteed that we will take care of it like it is our own home because we want to come back there. We want to treat our hosts really well. And
Yeah. And we want to keep up our pretty stellar reputation.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (37:37.542)
Yeah, so I'm sure there's probably some people listening that are like, Oh, I can't believe they didn't mention this, this indoor facility or this facility. Like, yeah, trust us. We want to come like, let us, especially if it's an amazing facility, even if it's just a court in the park. Um, yeah, let us know. We're not biased. We're not going to hate on anything. long as we have, as long as we have sand and a couple of nets.
Mark Burik (37:47.2)
If we didn't get us there.
Mark Burik (38:00.846)
No
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (38:07.714)
We're ready to go.
Mark Burik (38:09.41)
Yeah. And at the very least, like when we come and visit, you know, we'll share our ideas. That's what we did with Lee over in Oklahoma city. You know, we shared all of the ideas. They were smart before they built their facility. They did a fly around with their investors and visited all of the top facilities in the country. and, and interviewed with the owners and managers, but, we've seen a lot of them. I've seen a lot of ones that work and a lot of ones that have struggled. And so.
We, you get us to your facility, we can have those conversations, which I personally love those conversations and at least get a whole new idea from somebody who's seen, you know, 10 other ones across the country, the ones that are doing well. And there's one facility that I do want to shout out and it's, the one in Gothenburg in Sweden. If you guys are ever headed to Scandinavia, you have to go to Gothenburg, and you have to see their indoor facility. have a five star restaurant.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (38:42.939)
Yeah.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (38:58.093)
yeah.
Mark Burik (39:07.788)
The ceilings are massive, like sky ballable ceilings and a lot of courts and those Europeans are really into training. Like they, they like their training. If they show up to a court, they're like, well, who's going to coach? And being from the U S it's like the coach is the rarity. And over there, they're like, well, of course we would have a coach. Why wouldn't we? And maybe that's, maybe that's an indicator of why, you know, Europe is starting to kick our butts on the world tour.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (39:30.436)
You
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (39:37.51)
Yeah, those cold countries somehow figured out a way onto the sand and look at that.
Mark Burik (39:42.742)
Yeah. I just heard we have we have two people in town in Hermosa just met them and they listen to it. So Katrina and Waldo, if you guys are listening, you told me this morning that you listen to podcasts. Hello. But they said that in Berlin, they have a 50 court outdoor facility that is set up by the by the local government. 50 outdoor courts. Let's get there.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (40:11.631)
Yeah. Yeah. I think I got a little German blood in me as well. I don't know. see. But yeah. Yeah, there you go. that's cool. Yeah. Real quick before we, you know, now the list is just strolling with us. But two other facilities I came to mind, San Diego, Wave Beach.
Mark Burik (40:11.916)
Get us to Germany, guys. Get me back to my homeland.
Mark Burik (40:20.268)
There you go. Maybe we could pick up some dual passports on the way.
Mark Burik (40:25.805)
All right.
Mark Burik (40:38.093)
Yes.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (40:38.788)
That one is fantastic as far as like beach vibe. That one's sick. And then, Corey Seeger out in, New Orleans at, white sands. That's another one. Yeah.
Mark Burik (40:51.22)
yeah, that, that one's elite. That's gotta be on the, the, outdoor. Cause we didn't, we didn't even touch the ones that are, that are outdoor. And some of these outdoor ones have great, great vibes. so this was an indoor specific or if you didn't mention you. yeah. So that's it. if you ever come out to Hermosa guys, let us know, or if you want us to come to your city.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (41:03.204)
Yeah. Next, next step, next step. Yeah. Cool.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (41:14.47)
Good luck.
Mark Burik (41:18.658)
let me know there's somebody actually helping us set up a camp in Costa Rica. So we'll be going there in a few weeks and it's just going to be filled with their local players. They've got enough for us to be there on their own. And so we're going to run a little trial camp out there on a small basis and then see if we can get a much bigger one like a six or seven day camp down in Costa Rica, which has been
I am my list for a little while. So it doesn't matter what country you're in. If you've got a squad, we like traveling. So let's run.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (41:52.452)
Yeah. Now that we're not playing anymore, we need an excuse to travel.
Mark Burik (41:57.474)
That's right. Yeah. Keep up our miles and status.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (41:59.558)
Exactly.
Mark Burik (42:02.732)
All right, that's it for today. We'll see you on the sand.
IG @Brandon.Joyner_ (42:09.008)
on the sand.
