 | |||
 | |||
|
WHERE TO PLAY THE USUAL & UNUSUAL SPORTS IN NYC - FOR NEW YORKERS AND VISITORS The Golf Driving Range at Chelsea Piers 
(photo: Chelsea Piers) Arcade Games / Pinball - Modern Pinball - 362 3rd Ave. b/t E 26th and E 27th St. (Kips Bay) - Two Bit's Retro Arcade - 153 Essex St. at Stanton Street (Lower East Side) - Chinatown's Fair Family Fun Center - 8 Mott St. b/t Worth St. and Pell St. (Chinatown) - Barcade - 148 West 25th St.b/t 6th Ave. and 7th Ave. (Chelsea) - Dave and Buster's - 234 West 42nd St. b/t 7th Ave and 8th Ave. (Times Square) - (see also: Ski-Ball (below) Archery - Gotham Archery - 480 Baltic Street b/t Bond and Nevins St. (Gowanus, Brooklyn) (For beginners and experts) Bicycling - Download a map of the best bicycling routes in NYC free from the Dept. of Transportation. Google: "DOT NYC Bike Map" - The easiest places to ride are Central Park, Riverside Park, Prospect Park, and almost the entire east and west sides of Manhattan along the rivers on a bike path called the "Manhattan Waterfront Greenway." There are many places to rent bikes in different neighborhoods. Billiards - Amsterdam Billiard Club - 110 East 11th St. at 4th Avenue (East Village) - Fat Cat - 75 Christopher Street at 7th Ave South (West Village) - Eastside Billiards - 163 East 86th St. b/t Lexington and 3rd Ave. Bocce - Union Hall (a bar plus 2 bocce courts) - 702 Union Street at 5th Ave. Park Slope, Brooklyn. - Floyd NY - (a bar plus one court ) - 131 Atlantic Ave. b/t Henry St. and Clinton St. (Cobble Hill) Boating (Manhattan) - The Lake in Central Park. Rent boats at the Loeb Boathouse. (The Lake is next to East Drive at 74th Street) (100 rowboats for rent for $15/hour (cash only); seasonal and weather permitting) (gondola rides are $30 an hour) Bowling - Bowlmor Chelsea Piers, Pier 60, 23rd Street at the West Side highway - Bowlmor Times Square, 222 West 44th, bet 7th and 8th Aves - Lucky Strike NYC, 624-660 W. 42nd St. at 12th Ave. - Frames Bowling Lounge - 550 9th Avenue at 40th St (in the Port Authority) - Brooklyn Bowl - 61 Wythe Ave at North 12th St., Brooklyn (combination bar and concert space with 16 lanes. Doors open 6:00 p.m. Must be 21 to enter, but children allowed Sat. and Sun 12-5.) Bull Riding, Mechanical - Johnny Utah's (barbecue restaurant), 25 West 51st Street b/t 5th and 6th Aves. Special Note: Chelsea Piers (Sports Complex) Chelsea Piers - Chelsea Piers is New York's largest sports complex, encompassing three piers just west of 22nd street near 12th Avenue by the Hudson River. There are facilities for a myriad of sports: gymnastics, basketball, indoor soccer, baseball batting cages, a rock climbing wall, a bowling center, a 3-story golf driving, ice rinks for skating and hockey, a health club, a spam and a skateboard park.The Sky Rink is the only year-round ice skating rink in Manhattan. Chess and Checkers - Try your best agains cheese sharks where they filmed "Searching for Bobby Fischer" in Washington Square Park (west side) - Union Square (free to the public) - 14th St and Broadway - Bryant Park (free to the public) - 42nd Street and 6th Avenue - Central Park - The Chess and Checkers Building - (Center of park near 65th street) - Chess Forum - 219 Thompson b/t West 3rd and Bleecker(pickup games for $5 an hour) Climbing, Indoor Rock Wall Climbing (day passes) - The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers, 23rd St. and West Side highway) - Brooklyn Boulders 575 Degraw St. at 3rd Ave., Gowanus, Brooklyn. - The Cliffs at LIC - 11-11 44th Dr. at 11th St., Long Island City - The Climbing Gym at Manhattan Plaza Health Club - 482 W 43rd St. at 10th Ave. - Steep Rock Bouldering - 1506 Lexington Ave at 97th Street. Climbing, Outdoor (day passes) - DUMBO Boulders - 99 Plymouth St. at Washington Street, Dumbo, Brooklyn. Croquet - Central Park, behind the Mineral Springs cafe which is north of the Sheep Meadow at about 69th Street. Watch the New York Croquet club play. Free Monday evening clinics to the public May to Oct. Fishing, Deep Sea - There are many deep-sea day boats out of Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, near Coney Island. Most will provide a rod and reel. (Google: Deep Sea Fishing NYC.) Golf (driving range) - (3-story driving range) The Golf Club at Chelsea Piers, 23rd Street and West Side highway (year-round, 200 yard fairway) - (Golf simulator) Golf Manhattan, 108 W 39th St, b/t 6th Ave. & Broadway - (Golf simulator) Premier Indoor Golf, 1 East 28th St, 3rd floor, at Fifth Avenue Golf, miniature - "Pier 25 Mini Golf" - 225 West Street (West Side Highway) at North Moore St..(seasonal from April) - Brooklyn Crab (On the roof) - 24 Reed Street, b/t Conover St. and Van Brunt St. - Shipwrecked Miniature Golf - 621 Court St. at Bay St. Red hook. (year round; indoor with day glo lighting) Horseback Riding - New York City Riding Academy, Harlem River Path Way, Randall's Island - Chateau Stables - 608 West 48th Street b/t 11th and 12th Aves. (Offers rides in Central Park) - Bronx Equestrian Center, 9 Shore Road, Bronx - Kensington Stables - 51 Caton Place, Flatbush, Brooklyn, (offers rides in Prospect Park) - Jamaica Bay Riding Academy - 7000 Shore Parkway, Bergen Beach, Brooklyn.(woods and beach trails) Ice Skating (all are winter-only except year round Sky Rink) - Ice Rink at Rockefeller Center, 49-50th Sts., between Fifth-Sixth Aves. - Winter Village in Bryant Park - 6th Avenue and 42nd Street - Lasker Ice Skating Rink, Central Park (enter 110th and Lenox) - The Rink at Riverbank State Park, 679 Riverside Drive at 145th Street (roller skating when hot) - Sky Rink at Chelsea Piers, Pier 61 (enter at 23rd and West Side Highway) (year round) - Wollman Rink, Central Park, enter at West 59th and Sixth Ave. - Lefrak Center, 171 East Drive, Prospect Park, Brooklyn - World Ice Arena, Queens. 12540 Roosevelt Ave at 126th St. Kayaking - Kayaking (Pier 26 and Governor's Island) (seasonal ,free) (Google: "kayak NYC") - New York Kayak Company, Pier 40, Hudson River Park(West Side Highway at Houston St.) - Manhattan Kayak (seasonal), pier 84 Boathouse, 555 12th Avenue at West 44th St. New York City Marathon - Largest in the world with over 50,000 runners, and 98,000 applicants to the race lottery. Held on the first Sunday in November since 1970. Goes through five boroughs. Starts on the Verrazano Bridge; ends in Central Park. Ping Pong - Fat Cat - 75 Christopher Street at 7th Avenue South (basement) (other games; jazz) - Spin New York - 48 East 23rd St. b/t Park Avenue and Madison Ave. (basement) (with bar and restaurant; Susan Sarandon co-owns it). Roller Derby - You can view the teams of the NYC organization, The Gotham Girls, between March and August, most often at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice gymnasium, located at 524 West 59th Street at 11th Avenue. Running - Top Scenic Running Routes in Manhattan - Central Park Outer Park Drive (6.1 miles) - Central Park Reservior Loop (1.5 miles) - Hudson River Greenway - Battery Park to W. 59th St. (6 miles) - Hudson River Greenway - W. 50th St. to W. 125th St. (3.7 miles) - Hudson River Greenway - 125th St. to George Washington Bridge (2.6 miles) - East River from Battery Park to 125th Street (7 miles) - Manhattan Bridge (1.6 miles) - Wiliamsburg Bridge (1.6 miles) - Roosevelt Island Loop (3.6 miles) Shuffleboard - The Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club , 514 Union Street, Gowanus, Brooklyn (10 courts) Skee-Ball - Full Circle Bar, 318 Grand St. at Havermeyer St., Williamsburg, Brooklyn. - Barcade - 148 West 24th St. b/t 6th and 7th Avenue, Chelsea. - Ace Bar - 531 East 5th St. b/t Avenue A and Avene B., East Village Swimming (Beaches) - Robert Moses State Park (Long Island) (trans: LIRR and bus) - Orchard Beach (Bronx) (trans: 6 train to bus) (the water is murky) - Coney Island (Brooklyn) (trans: subway to Coney Island stop) - Brighton Beach (Brooklyn) (trans: subway to Brighton Beach) - Rockaway Beach (Queens) (trans: subway to Rockaway Beach; or ferry from Wall St.) - South Beach (Staten Island) (trans: Staten Island Ferry plus bus) Swimming (Indoor) - The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers - 23rd St. and West Side Highway (Chelsea) - Chelsea Recreation Center - 430 W 25th St. b/t 9th and 10th Aves. (Chelsea) - McBurney Branch YMCA - 125 West 14th St. b/t 6th and 7th Aves. (Chelsea) - Sportspark - 250 Main St. at North Loop Road (Roosevelt Island) Tennis - USTA Billy Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, Queens (World's largest public tennis facility, 42 courts) - Hudson River Park, along the river, just north of Spring Street, has three free courts. Otherwise you need a permit to play on the many city courts. Trapeze - Trapeze School New York / Outdoors -Pier 40 - Houston St. and the West Side Highway, (outdoors May to October) - Trapeze School New York / Indoors / Year Round - actual address: 467 Marcy Ave., Williamsburg, Brooklyn; enter at 30 Tompkins Avenue. 
|
||
