Category Archives: Bowflex

So, they deducted the $2200 from my account Sunday night, and I intended to call them Monday or Tuesday to ask for a tracking number for the shipment, but forgot to both days. I called them this morning and they not only gave me a tecking number, but advised that it was already out for delivery. I was shipped Monday, and was already in a truck in my neighborhood this morning at 10AM. Hooray! Except that when I got home there was a note on my door saying they had been by and couldn’t deliver it without a signature & physically handing the packages to a human being. Oh, and that they would try again tomorrow between 10AM and 2PM, when I am sure to be at work. So, I called the number provided, gave the slip number, and spoke to a UPS customer service agent about trying to get my package. I advised that I was not able to have a neighbor sign for it, I was not able to have them redirect it to my work (since I couldn’t carry the 4 boxes totalling 230lbs home on my bicycle), and I couldn’t be home to receive it before 3:30PM any day. The “customer service” representative tried to tell me there was no way to guarantee a delivery time (Residential deliveries are made between 10AM and 7PM), and there was no way to send a truck out a second time, even though they are theoretically on the road for an additional four hours past the time I was talking about the problem. We went over these few things a few times, until the third or fourth time around that circle, she said she could contact my local station and have them call me to try to make arrangements. She…
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That’s it, it’s ordered. I decided not to wait to call back what’s-her-name tomorrow, since no one there really earned the commission. Random is fine with me. So, I called my bank first, to be sure the purchase would go through, and instead of just giving me a temporary increase in my daily spending limit, made a permanent increase to $2500/day. So, that’s good. Between that & some trouble re-ordering checks, working with my bank took about 18 minutes. Then I called Bowflex, and since I had requested the video through the website, they already had all my information in their computer pulled up automatically via callerID & a clever database, which was nice. I just said I’d like to buy the Bowflex Ultimate, no I wouldn’t like an additional 100lbs of resistance ($99, available whenever I’m ready to order it), no I wouldn’t like nutritional suplements, and he verified my address, took my Visa check-card number, and told me it would be delivered in three to four weeks. Oh, and that it comes in multiple packages, not necessarily delivered at the same time. Which I always think is great; I imagine someone getting half a bowflex and wondering why it doesn’t go together properly. So, the entire call to Bowflex, including their phone tree, hold time, and ordering, right through hangup was 2 mintues, 39 seconds. Effecient. I wonder what that guy’s commission is, for less than 2 minutes work. Oh well. So, we’ll see how long it takes to get to me, and whether it arrives all at once, or over the course of several days, and I’ll post again about it. Until then, don’t worry, I won’t be posting about the Bowflex for a few weeks….
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So, I received Bowflex’s free video and informational packets yesterday. The most interesting thing to me about the video is that it is apparently their infomercial on a cassette tape. It even asked me to call and request my free copy of itself a few times. Now, since I had never seen the full infomercial, only hundreds of shorter commercials, I actually got to see some material I hadn’t seen before. Watching people use the machine is a lot better than imagining it or looking at tiny still photos on their website. Plus, it was a lot of fun to watch muscle-bound freaks having trouble using half the resistance they were using with free weights due to the lack of momentum. Of course, they could all have been lying, but it was pretty clear there was only one actor in the bunch, and he was busy being the spokesperson. The brochures and paperwork that was packaged with the video didn’t have any information that isn’t on their website, which says a lot of good things about their commitment to the internet. Actually, I believe there was some information (about accessories) that was on the website and not in the paperwork I was sent. So they’re actually keeping their website up-to-date faster than their physical promotions. Again, evidence that their website is a major source of revenue, and a respected part of their business. Between the video & brochures and their web presence, I felt that the physical sales pitch was lacking, like a remnant of something that used to be relevent instead of a modern sales tool. Still, for anyone who has not seen the Bowflex infomercial and has never visited their website, this informational package could be quite valuable. I already have people asking to borrow it. Oh, and…
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I have begun the first steps on the way to ordering my Bowflex Ultimate. Last week I requested their free video & informational packet (look for a review when it shows up this week), which I should receive any day now. I called their customer service department today and found that their phone reps work on commission, and that they do not allow me to directly use my MBNA Gold Option Loan (originally for my iMac) to pay for a Bowflex. They accept all major credit cards over the phone, will finance me directly (which I do not want to do, since I already have the credit available for this, and don’t need additional new accounts openned in my name), or will accept a check, though that increases the time until I receive the Bowflex by up to a couple of weeks. I called MBNA to see if they could somehow move the credit available to me on the loan to my MBNA/Desert Schools Visa (of course not, that would be too easy), or work something else out. They gladly xfered the $2200 I need directly into my Desert Schools checking account. When that xfer has been processed (within the next 3 days, they say), I can then use my Visa Check Card to purchase the Bowflex. The MBNA account has a normal interest rate of 15.99% (recently reduced from their introductory 19.99%), but for that $2200 it is only 9.99% through the end of the year, which is nice, depending on how much bonus money I can wrangle up during the rest of the year. The Bowflex representative I spoke to has the next three days off, but asked that I call her back directly & gave me her name & extension & schedule (this was my clue that…
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About 17 months ago, I signed up at a local fitness center that had just opened up right on my way home from work, so it was convenient for me to get to on my bike. I pre-paid for a year’s membership because with that package they threw in an extra six months, and reduced the sign-up fee. It was a really good monthly rate compared to most places. It would have lasted until the middle of August without me making one more payment. I worked out there off and on, doing strength training a couple of times a week, and Yoga at least two times a week, plus the occassional spinning class, for about 5 months. Then I stopped going for a while… You know how it goes, sometimes… Life and laziness gets in the way of working out… and about a month later I tried to go back again and found that they had closed. Completely. Out of business. Poof, gone! That was about a year ago, and other than the bike-riding I do every day just to get around, I haven’t worked out at all in the last year. I paid for my membership in advance, so my fitness budget was blown for a long time. World Gym bought the place and re-opened it a few months later, but their cheapest membership was three times what I paid before, and twice the fees at Pure Fitness, just a couple of miles out of my way. Plus their focus is boxing, and … I don’t really want to learn boxing. So for the last year I’ve been glacially thinking about what/how/when I’m going to start working out again. I’ve been meaning to (but not taking the time to) do Yoga, since I have several Yoga DVDs and a…
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