Urban Rec launches in The Shire

March 5, 2020 - 4 years ago

The problem with organised sport is that it’s full of douche bags and it’s normally not organised (the irony). Just because you were not destined to play for Australia, doesn’t mean you should have stopped playing. 

Urban Rec is a judgement free, beginner friendly, fun-first-no-dickheads sports club. Now we are coming to The Shire. An exciting collaboration with The Rec Club in Miranda, an influx of niche sports, and a sprinkle of crazy. 

These leagues are especially for the mother-funners out there that want to get fit, but not take themselves too seriously. Do not apply if you think winning at the expense of your oppositions enjoyment is cool. 

What is cool, is the new sports on offer;

• Wednesdays – Mixed Multisport (A potluck and a new sport every week)
• Thursdays – Mixed Dodgeball
• Thursdays – Mixed Hockey
• Thursdays – Mixed Euro Handball
• Thursday – Mixed Volleyball

The end result here is a enviable amount of incidential fitness, an affordable alternative to running on a treadmill, the opportunity to make new mates as an adult – yes that can happen – *gasp*. Oh, and you will remember why you secretly used to love chasing balls around – even though you have two left feet. 

Options glaore. You can pay a $150 deposit and lock in your team – or you can join as an individual and be matched with new friends, or you can bring a friend (for free*), and join a team together. 

Sport, for fun. 

*yes, for free. This season we are offering a ‘bring-a-friend-for-free’ deal to help make the decision easy. Pick a league and team, register – email us, and we’ll add your friend for free. TA-DA. 

How to win a $1,000 Bar Tab

February 27, 2020 - 4 years ago

The problem is Captains never get the credit they deserve. They are always hustling to get everyone to pay, they have to do all kinds of horrific maths, and quite often they can end up short changed. WHATS WORSE, if you captain is disorganised they can miss out on rego, and you can be shunted from the league. 

Pri-rego is how we guarentee your spot. It’s ONLY for teams that play already and it’s a chance to lock in their spot ahead of the general public. It’s a good thing – but to make it better, we always try and reward the Captains that make the effort to be organised. 

THIS SEASON (AUTUMN 2020) WE WENT CRAY. We approached 10 of our clubhouses across Sydney and got you a $1,000 BAR TAB. There is only ONE, and last season we had only 66 teams using pri-rego, so your odds are good. 

How to enter

1. Use Pri-Rego, by accessing the link provided to you and your team mates in week 7, 8, 9 (no excuses for missing it)
2. Pay in full – sorry not for new teams or deposits
3. We will be collating your team name in a bucket, and on April 30*, we will draw and announce the winners. 

Can you enter late, if you miss the pri-rego deadline? No, that would be silly. 

Can you change into another league using pri-rego? Not techincally, but email us within your pri-rego period and we will see what we can do. 

This story is going to end very well for a lucky group of friends who will experience either a) the biggest day/night ever, or b) the most distance covered in a pub crawl. 

GOOD LUCK. 

Urban Rec launches in The Hills

January 24, 2020 - 4 years ago

Big news for little ole’ Urban Rec. This year we have announced new sports and new leagues in The Hills. Based off our current members interests we have decided to launch with just a few sports. 

But even better than that – we have gone all out, and make our team rego fee’s HALF PRICE. Crazy. We are that sure you are going to love it. THAT SURE that you will be back next season, that we are doing this one-time offer. 

LEAGUES ON OFFER

• Mixed Indoor Soccer – 5 aside – $497 for 10 games
• Mixed Indoor Volleyball – 5 aside – $497 for 10 games

FREEPLAY EVENTS

• Volleyball FreePlay – Wed 29th Jan
• Soccer FreePlay – Wed 29th Jan

INDIVIDUAL REGO

As usual, we will be offering individual teams for both our leagues. This is also priced at a lower cost of $89 for the first season. AMAZING, RIGHT? Our indie teams usually fill pretty quick, so make sure you don’t miss out. You can read more about individual registration here. 

The rest, is still unwritten. 

6 Reasons Why You Should Just Stick to Sport - Urban Rec

January 13, 2020 - 4 years ago

If you have ever felt underlying resentment towards running (or even working out), then you should look into doing something that distracts you from what is ultimately happening. Playing sport is the ultimate way to get fit without noticing. Then there’s the calorie counting, if you’re into that - but the sweat, the steps, and the red face says sport is the secret forgotten fitness hack.

Here are 6 reasons you should consider playing sport over any other fitness fad.... 

1. Low commitment - You only need to commit to 10 weeks, no crazy annual subscriptions. Opt in, opt out. Repeat. 
2. Accountability -  Enter your 5 team mates who need you to show up…. or they can't play, that’s one way to ensure you always show up – and you never regret it. 
3. Outdoors – Being outdoors is phenomenal for your mental and physical health. Hello healthy vitamin D. 
4. Cardio is incidental – You don't have to force it. It just happens. On average most people run 2-3km during a game of social sport. 
5. Making friends is easy and non awkward – When's the last time you approached someone on the rowing machine to introduce yourself? Exactly…. Sport is the best way to break down social barriers. 
6. Affordability? The most you will pay is $13 per game, which makes playing sport cheaper than almost all fitness classes on offer.

Choose a nearby location, find a sport you used to love, and join us for a 10 week season, starting in the next few weeks.

UPDATED SMOKE POLICY 2020

January 9, 2020 - 4 years ago

We are in the midst of an unprecedented Bushfire season which has resulted in plenty of smoke haze and plumes. We have worked hard to come up with a policy and procedures that puts our players and staff’s health first. But, we want to ensure you get the games you paid for, while working with the tight availabilty of venues. 

Flexibility with rescheduling: Our priority is making sure you get the amount of games in the season that you registered for (Usually 10). In a situation like this where some games may not be played due to smoke, this may mean we need to be creative, as some of our bookings with venues have strict time frames. If you miss games due to smoke your team may need to play a double header - or in extreme circumstances - if multiple games are postponed due to smoke we may need to play make up games on another night of the week. We will always try our best to make sure we come up with a solution that works for your team. 

Here’s how we will be handling smoke in 2020. Please note this policy is for outdoor sports, indoor sports will go ahead as usual unless you hear otherwise. 

• Firstly and most importantly if your team does not feel comfortable playing in the conditions but you have been advised that games are going ahead, let us know via email [email protected] or phone us (preferably with as much notice as possible) and we will then do everything we can to reschedule your game in the upcoming weeks. There will be no forfeit or default fees but we ask you give us as much notice as possible so we can organise a game for your opposition. Please do not let us know via the captains chat as we will endeavour to get your opposition a game and it causes confusion. 
• For the foreseeable future whilst the smoke conditions are unpredictable, we will be communicating to the Captains Chats on whether games are going ahead that night. We will endeavour to make the first call by 4pm. 
• We use this website to monitor AQI. If the AQI is above 200 we will postpone games. [Note we use this website as the NSW Health website uses a 24 hour average scale which is different to the widely used and trusted AQI Index. The numbers on the NSW website are always extremely high compared to other sites. You can read more about this here].
• If games are postponed we will try our hardest to get your new schedule to you within 2 days. 

If you have heart, lung or any health condition that may be affected by smoke we recommend you consult your doctor to see if playing sport is right for you. 

What we learnt last year that has influenced our new policy

• Often smoke haze is strong during the day, but quickly clears at night. Meaning if the smoke is touch and go, we may make a call later than usual
• We always want to continue games. If you’re keen and it’s safe to do so, games will be going ahead. Some players and teams had concerns and that’s totally fine that’s why it is always your choice to play or not. 

Touch Footy Player Etiquette

November 25, 2019 - 4 years ago

Urban Rec’s of difference from almost all other recreational sport providers, is that we care about the experience had by absolutely everyone involved within our leagues, Including our staff.

As with all Urban Rec leagues, we do not tolerate douche bags. We are inclusive, and welcome all levels of ability, and as a consequence, we are pretty tough on any team or player who goes against our culture. 

To make things super clear, we have compiled a list of Urban Rec Touch Footy player etiquette. Keep these points in mind, when playing in any of our competitions. It’s the Urban Rec way… 

DON’T EVER’s –

• Be so competitive that it can be mistaken as aggression or be seen as intimidating. This covers things like intense defensive line speed and crash ball lines in defence (also, crash ball lines don’t work…its touch.)
• Put your shoulder behind a two handed touch – that’s a pre contact game warm up and has no business here. (ridiculous we know but it has happened).
• Mock opposition or your own team! Goes without saying. Don’t be a dick.
• Move your hand away when about to take a touch with an attacking opposition player – this kind of underhand tactic is reserved only for the highest level of hero, we are talking Batman vs Superman type of hero. Get real and take the touch!
• Make calls or question a call from one of our hosts – This creates a shitty atmosphere and ruins our staff members evening.
  • 7 times out of 10 our host has seen the offence and hasn’t called it for a reason.
  • 8 times out of 10 it doesn’t affect the game.
  • 9 times out of 10 you look like an idiot.
  • 10 times out of 10 the world has moved on and upon reflection its not that big of a deal.
• Wait on the try line when you’re about to score a runaway try for one of your female players. I know it is worth double if you do so, but it’s not what the score bonus is in place for. We implemented the 2 points for female trys as an incentive to encourage players to include the female players in the team, not because the ladies are any more or less likely to score.

DO’s –

• Always put the enjoyment and respect of your opponents, ahead of your desire to win. 
• Socialise with other teams, they are not the enemy.
• Be honest – if you’ve been touched in touch and you don’t stop it really does defeat the purpose of touch.
• Support and coach players that seem to be struggling.
• Play to the ability of your opposition, give beginner players and extra second, but compete when you see a player who knows the game/rules well. 
• Win and lose graciously – its fine to be good and its fine to win, but don’t enjoy crushing a team so bad that it spoils their game (points for and against is NEVER used in our standings). Same goes when you are on the losing side, its fine to lose and it really doesn’t matter if you’ve lost so do so with a smile on your face, you can still have a good time surrounded by mates.
• Cheer for the opposition if they pull off something spectacular.
• ALWAYS shake hands post game, including the host!

Do you play in our Touch leagues? Do you think we have missed something? Is there any behaviour or bad etiquette you would like to see abolished? Send us a message. [email protected] or contact your League Manager. 

Playing Sport in Hot Weather

November 21, 2019 - 5 years ago

The mercury is rising. Heat is unlike anything else, it’s hard to predict, can change rapidly and everyone has a different tolerance to heat.

Unlike other weather conditions in hot weather venues will not let us reschedule our bookings so cancellations in hot weather mean we can’t guarantee a rescheduled game. 

Ultimately it is your call in any conditions weather you play or not. 

Our Heat Policy 

Because most of our games are played at night and it usually cools down over the night, we do not make heat calls during the day. Heat calls are made by the teams and the Urban Rec Event Host, at the venue, prior to the game starting. If your team and the Event Host feel it is unsafe to play, games will not be played. In hot conditions where games are played we may change the structure of the game to give you more breaks. 

As a general rule If it is over 40 degrees at the start time we do not play. 

If a game is cancelled due to heat it will be recorded as a draw. We will make every effort to reschedule the game, but it cannot be guaranteed.

Smoke Haze

When there is a smoke haze, we carefully consider if we should cancel games. If you have a medical condition that is affected by smoke we strongly advise you use good judgement and follow your doctor’s advice as to if you should play. 

Advice for playing sport in the heat

• Stay hydrated, drink plenty of water
• Know your fitness level and take plenty of breaks 
• Wear cool loose fitting clothes, avoid dark colours 
• Wear sunscreen and a hat
• If you have a medical condition that may be affected by heat, consult your doctor as to whether you should play

Again stated – Ultimately it is your call in any conditions weather you play or not. 

Christmas Operating Hours 2019

November 12, 2019 - 5 years ago

Jolly Jolly times as we approach the silly season. Here is the scoop on when we are closed this year!

LAST WEEK OF PLAY 2019 – Week beginning 16^th Dec

FIRST WEEK OF PLAY 2020 – Week beginning 6^th Jan

UR HQ OUT OF OFFICE – Sat 21^st Dec through Sun 5^th Jan

Most of our leagues are programmed to finish in December and will start up in the new Summer season in January, so these dates won’t effect you and your team. BUT, If your league is scheduled to finish in the new year and is running over the Christmas break, you will have two week break. 

If your team know you will not be able to make games in the week of Mon 16th Dec or the week of Mon 6th Jan, please let your League Manager know ASAP. 

As always, check your member dashboard for your most up to date schedule!

Any questions, contact [email protected] 

Pri-Rego Prizepack Giveaway Spring 2019

November 7, 2019 - 5 years ago

We work with some amazing brands and this season we are PUMPED to get these brands in your hands to claim some free member perks for you and the team. This Spring season, any team that uses priority registration to register for the Summer season between weeks 7 to 9, will recieve a FREE PRIZEPACK GIVEAWAY. 

Whats included

• Double pass to random selection of Funlab venues, Skyzone, Strike Bowling or Holey Moley Golf
• $100 voucher to Naked Wines
• Batch Brewing Sponsor Prize
• Random selection of Urban Rec Merch!

How do I claim

• In week 7 of your current season, Pri-rego will open and your captain will be sent a secret link to re-register your team for next season (you will be emailed and reminded about this). 
• Using this link and within the pri-ority rego period of weeks 7-9, your captain will need to register for next season
• On week 1 of the new season, your prizepack will be ready to go!

How Urban Rec was founded

October 8, 2019 - 5 years ago

Have you ever wanted to hear about how Urban Rec landed on the shores of Sydney, Canberra and now Newcastle? This podcast interview is with our Aussie founder, Madeleine Wilkie, and tells the story of how we started with a bunch of flyers and a dream.