Recreational sports leagues are back up and running in Oro Valley and Marana, but plenty of Tucsonans still find themselves sitting on the sidelines this fall due to coronavirus-related restrictions.
Games and tournaments are on hold at city-owned fields, and gatherings are limited to 10 people. Pima County continues to limit sports and field use under health department guidelines.
There’s another option for Tucsonans to burn off some energy, bond with friends and coworkers and experience the thrill of competition — all tucked inside an old JC Penney Home Store.
With the words Defy Tucson: Extreme Air Sports emblazoned on the tan and rust-colored facade of the 41,000-square-foot building, Tucson’s most intense trampoline park is hard to miss.
Defy opened last August on the corner of River Road and Stone Avenue. Business was initially booming, according to owner David Weinstein, a self-proclaimed serial entrepreneur who knows a good opportunity when he sees it.
In the mid-1990s, Weinstein co-founded E-Scrip, a computer-based system to electronically transfer prescriptions from doctors to pharmacists. In 2001, he went onto become founding CEO of Surescripts, which is now the most widely-used electronic prescribing system on the market.
Fifteen years later, Weinstein — a New Yorker — found himself in the desert to see his son, a University of Arizona student.
“I visited Tucson quite a bit and noticed there wasn’t really something like Defy in town,” Weinstein said. “The altruistic element of me thought it would be great if there was a place for young people to socialize that was healthy and fun. I wish there’d been something like Defy when I’d been that age.”
Wesley Henderson swings on the silks above a put of foam cubes. The cubes are all removed and frequently sanitized.
When Weinstein began researching trampoline parks across the country, he learned that they were more than a hub for children’s birthday parties and places for parents to let their youngsters burn off energy. In fact, many trampoline park-goers were between ages 15-23 and 25-40. For those groups, it’s “more of a socializing with friends or team-building type of thing,’ he said.
In fact, team-building groups and girls’ or guys’ night out events make up a good portion of Weinstein’s business.
Stepping inside Defy’s sprawling blue and purple-painted desert-themed walls, and it’s clear why Weinstein is drawing an older crowd.
With a dozen different attractions, including a 75-foot zip line, multi-row “American Ninja Warrior”-style obstacle course, stunt fall, trampoline dodgeball and basketball courts and more, Defy is a playground for adults. There are only two attractions with age restrictions —the Super and Euro Tramps — but other areas of Defy, like portions of the obstacle course, are at a fixed height that youngsters won’t be able to reach on their own.
There are also jumping areas for kids as young as 2 and 3 and foam pits for building forts.
Genesis Jimenez, freshman student at Pima Community College, smiles while playing on the zipline earlier this month.
Defy has a few other draws, including its proximity to Tucson Mall and other shopping areas for parents who don’t want to wait while their kids jump. The fact that it’s air-conditioned helps, too.
“Growing up in the New York area, two places I’d go to escape the heat were the mall and the movies,” Weinstein said. “Lots of people watch movies at home now. This is a place where you can’t really do this at home.”
Defy opened its doors to a warm reception last summer. By October, word had gotten out. Weinstein said he developed a loyal following.
“A lot of thought into how the park is laid out and what things are next to each other,” Weinstein said. Three particular attractions — Freestyle, Big Bounce and Ninja — work together in a way that people can have relay races, complete with a timer projected onto a big-screen TV.
On another attraction, King of the Mountain, four planks lead up to a “hill” sitting atop a foam pit. Pre-coronavirus, competitors could take foam batons and try to knock one another off the hill. Weinstein said it was popular for team-building exercises, particularly when a boss or manager was in the mix.
“We also had lots of sports teams come in, mostly for end-of-season celebrations,” he said. “Every month, we had new customers come in. Then corona hit.”
Before the pandemic, Weinstein got the chance to do something extra special for one group of Tucsonans.
One night in December, Defy closed its doors to the public and opened exclusively for the Pima County Bar Association Young Lawyers Division’s holiday party.
Carter Robbins, a senior at Ironwood Ridge high school, jumps into a foam pit at Defy Tucson, 4861 N. Stone in Tucson, Ariz., on September 17, 2020. College Day is all day every Thursday and club days are Friday and Saturday from 9-11 pm.
But this wasn’t a party for attorneys and paralegals. It was for the local foster families involved with the Arizona Children’s Association.
Melissa San Angelo was president of the division at the time and tasked with finding a new venue for the annual holiday party. She reached out to Weinstein to discuss the possibility of using Defy for the party, finding him to be more than receptive.
“It was a blast,” said San Angelo, a lawyer with Gust Rosenfeld P.L.C. “I can’t tell you how fulfilling it was to watch the children and their families just have fun.”
The trip was special for the families in attendance, many of whom had multiple foster children. A trip to Defy was not something they could typically afford.
“It was so great to see so many kids in there running around and having a good time,” San Angelo said. Including a small group of volunteers from the Young Lawyers Division, about 250 people attended the party.
Luis Ontiveras slams home a dunk at Defy Tucson. College Day is every Thursday and Club Days are Friday and Saturday from 9 p.m.-11 pm.
With a pizza party, Santa’s workshop and presents for each child, the event was a roaring success.
“It was probably one of my favorite holiday nights of last season,” San Angelo said. “Being able to give back to these kids at our holiday party and what we had at Defy, for a lot of them, that’s the closest they get to a holiday celebration in their lives.”
So much so that Weinstein extended the goodwill into the new year and beyond. The first Tuesday of each month is Foster Family Night, with discounted rates.
The second Tuesday of the month is Special Needs Family Night, complete with discounted admission, gentle background music and minimized light effects to provide a welcoming atmosphere.
Defy’s gotten creative with other specials, which have come in handy to help drum up business since it reopened in mid-May.
Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. features Books and Bounce, where students can pay a special rate for 90 minutes of study in one of Defy’s open areas followed by 90 minutes of jumping.
Thursdays are college days, and even during a shelter-in-place order by University of Arizona and county officials, students turned out to burn off some remote-learning stress.
Carter Robbins, a senior at Ironwood Ridge High School, does a back flip into a foam pit at Defy.
Like most businesses, Defy made changes in order to reopen following mayor Regina Romero’s citywide closure order on March 16. With increased sanitizing — including the hiring of a full-time employee whose only job is to clean — and dedicated entrance and exit doors, touch-free waiver stations, and other measures to encourage social distancing, Defy’s staff has been trying to follow all the local, state and CDC recommendations, Weinstein said.
This includes periodically removing tens of thousands of foam cubes from Defy’s various pits for deep cleaning.
It’s also drastically reduced its capacity, with only 50 jumpers at a time allowed on the sprawling floor. Before the coronavirus, busy nights would see 265 jumpers bouncing at once, said general manager Sarah Springthorpe.
“Business is still down substantially, but it’s been improving month over month. August was better than July, and September looks promising” Weinstein said. “People are still trying to figure out the new world.”
