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Dan Kachtik poured the concrete, bolted down roof panels, and put up the beams to literally build his affiliate, King William District CrossFit. In this episode of the Optimistic Podcast, Coach Mike talks with local CrossFit gym owner, Dan, about the process of building his gym. After hearing multiple people tell him “you can’t do this” and “it’ll never work”, a bidding war for the land, and sharing a gym with CrossFit Unchained for over a year, Dan now has his brick and mortar gym in south San Antonio. You can tune in using the links above and read about their conversation below.
From Corporate to CrossFit
Before CrossFit, Dan Kachtik worked at corporate fitness studios such as Life Time and managed MBS fitness. After following the CrossFit mainsite in 2006, he decided to take the CrossFit Level 1 Course. He traveled to CrossFit San Diego, where Dave Castro taught the certification with his assistant Pat Barber, and Jason Kalipa was one of the participants.
King William District CrossFit
King William District CrossFit has been in a few locations in San Antonio. In their first location, the landlord gave them the boot, giving him only a week to vacate the space, which also included moving all the equipment.
Then came the great search to find a new space- a plot of land to own and not lease, so he wouldn’t have to deal with any more landlords. But during this time, he had to have a temporary box for his members to workout in. Cue Arthur, the owner of CrossFit Unchained, who graciously allowed KWDCF to share his gym space. The two CrossFit communities joined together, with Dan and Arthur splitting up the coaching schedules.
During this time, Dan Kachtik got a map and drove down the streets of San Antonio looking for land that he could purchase. He stumbled onto a piece of property next to the railroad owned by the Union Pacific. After a 6 month process, the Railroad agreed to sell the land. Dan put down his offer but at the 11th hour someone else tried to buy it. Putting all his cards on the table, Dan made his final offer and got the land. And that was only the beginning of the long journey to build King William District CrossFit.
More from the Episode with Dan Kachtik
The buildout was a grassroots effort with Dan, family, and gym members pitching in to help. Press play to hear more about the building process, his corporate fitness jobs, and his family roots.