When Led Zeppelin and The Doors Played Woodinville

Just think -- it could have been known as the Woodinville Generation, rather than the Woodstock Generation. In July 1969 – just weeks before the iconic music festival occurred in upstate New York – Woodinville hosted a similar event at what was then called Gold Creek Park.

More than 20 musicians and groups performed at the show, known as the Seattle Pop Festival. Among them were Led Zeppelin, the Doors, The Byrds, Chicago Transit Authority, Chuck Berry, Santana, Ike & Tina Turner and the Flying Burrito Brothers. Yes, with 50,000 in attendance over the three days, it was substantially smaller than Woodstock. But still…

The commemorates the festival with a framed poster and photo from the event hanging at the club; look closely, and you’ll see that a decidedly Woodstock-like atmosphere prevailed.

Even before the festival, Gold Creek was a colorful presence in the community. The facility opened as an amusement park in the mid-1960s, says current business manager Charlotte Ochoa, whose family bought the property in 1976. Owned at the time by Seattle dog food magnate William Tyrrell, it featured swimming pools, picnic grounds and, in the domed building, an ice skating rink.

The S.S. Lollipop, a steam paddle wheeler, toured a hand-built canal on the property and a small train ran on a track around the perimeter. There was an old-west style garrison – Fort Bixby – which still exists, although it’s not in good repair. According to Ochoa, author Stephen Cosgrove (Wheedle on the Needle), who wrote at the fort, was married in the surrounding stockade.

And that miniature Space Needle you can see from the Woodinville-Redmond Road? According to Ochoa it was an exact replica when an engineer who worked on the 1962 World’s Fair site in Seattle built it. She says a number of people who helped construct the fairgrounds parked RVs at Gold Creek and rode busses into Seattle to work. “This was out in the tules,” she adds.

Today, the busy health club retains some of the feel of its funky, unconventional history. “Our buildings are so unique,” says Ochoa, who owns and operates the business with her brother, general manager Peter Dahl. Indeed, many of the original structures remain.

Ochoa and Dahl’s father, William Dahl, bought the 70-acre property in 1976, “much to my mother’s surprise,” laughs Ochoa. An architect, Dahl purchased it with the intent of turning it into a health club. “He was a great idea man,” she says, adding that in the end, “it was a great thing for my parents.”

One of the first things Dahl did was turn the dome into a tennis facility, complete with three full-sized courts surrounded by a circular jogging track. The track is still there, but today the 24,000-square foot building houses a basketball court, a tennis practice court (complete with ball machine), and volleyball, ping-pong and pickleball facilities.

Adjacent to the dome, a former dance hall now serves as the weight room. A cardio room is next door. According to Ochoa, trainers are available to help with the equipment; members can contract with them for personal training services.

The main building also houses locker rooms, saunas, a co-ed hot tub and steam room, and four regulation racquetball courts. Wallyball (like volleyball on a racquetball court, explains Ochoa) is available as well.

Keeping the facilities in good operating condition is “very labor intensive,” notes Ochoa, adding that her brother is a master at maintenance and repairs.

At the heart of the club, at least in name, are the driving range and the tennis building, which Dahl added to the property in the late 1970s. With six Plexi-paved courts, the building houses Gold Creek’s sizable tennis program. The driving range, unlike the rest of the facility, is open to the general public. Both covered and grass tees are available, as are a putting green, chipping area and sand trap. The range is lighted for nighttime play.

“The golfers are as addicted to their sport as the tennis players,” says Ochoa. “That’s a good thing for us,” she laughs.

Rounding out the facilities is the indoor swimming pool; it is kept at 86 degrees, which Ochoa says keeps both the lap swimmers and recreational users happy. There is a party room, and sliding glass panels open to grassy outdoor areas when weather permits.

Gold Creek offers 30-plus fitness classes a week, says Ochoa, everything from water aerobics to yoga to circuit training, cycling and ZUMBA, all free to members. “We’re very fortunate to have some of the best instructors in the area,” says Ochoa.

Ochoa also speaks highly of the club’s clientele. “We have a great relationship with our members,” she says. With many of the 1,200-1,500 memberships held by families, the club serves approximately 3,000 users at any given time. A number of people have been members since the early 1980s.

Gold Creek’s clientele come in all ages, shapes and sizes, says Ochoa. It’s not the kind of club where you feel like you have to dress a certain way or put on your make-up before you go workout, she explains.

Day care is available and the Club attempts to accommodate users’ needs with flexible membership options. You can even bring your dog to walk the path to the Sammamish River, or to play fetch on the grounds; biscuit are available at the check-in window.

That’s the appeal, says Ochoa. “It really is down home.”