‘Dive’ in to volleyball at new Denver sports center
The Dive Volleyball and Sports Center (Dive) is the city’s newest sports facility focused on providing competitive and fun indoor volleyball for all. Dive was established by Shane Speciale, a long-time Colorado resident whose background in the IT field includes the successful founding of his own public health software development company.
Speciale began playing volleyball over 8 years ago with the Colorado Gay Volleyball Association (CGVA), an organization that provides volleyball leagues and player education to the GLBT community. With the desire to improve and become more involved, he began running leagues for CGVA. At the time, CGVA only offered spring and fall seasons. Consequently, he formed his own summer league, which has evolved into the leagues Dive currently offers.
Once he started directing leagues, Speciale realized the difficulty in running successful programs. Fed up with having to change facilities nearly every season, play at inconvenient times in poorly located gyms, and continuously increasing costs, Speciale saw an opportunity to open a facility dedicated to adult indoor volleyball in the metro area. After a year’s worth of searching for a complex that met regulations, Speciale found the perfect spot.
Dive is located at 2335 Delgany Street, a few blocks from downtown and the new Union Station light rail terminus, as well as a couple minutes from both I-25 and I-70. Within its walls, there are 4 regulation-sized courts, a concession space, and a viewing area for spectators.
More importantly, Dive offers a safe and welcoming atmosphere, an environment where everyone who walks through the door is treated equally and with respect. Speciale has infused a zero-tolerance policy for any behavior contradicting those principles. With 1 gay-focused league and 2 gay-owned third-party organizations using Dive, people of many walks of life enter the facility and each one is as welcome as the next.
Despite only being open for a few months, Speciale has already been contacted by many leagues and club teams interested in the use of Dive’s centrally located facilities. CGVA, Colorado Volleyball Connection, and Volleyball Latino are currently holding spring leagues. The Denver Juniors volleyball club deems Dive as their home facility. Dive will also host juniors tournaments for USA Volleyball Rocky Mountain Region (USAV-RMR) and No Limits Volleyball (No Limits) as well as clinics for No Limits and a summer camp for Total Athlete Volleyball.
On April 5-6, Dive will be the host site of CGVA’s Last Dig in Denver. In its 17th year, Last Dig is a North American Gay Volleyball Association (NAGVA) sanctioned tournament. Dive will welcome 30+ teams from over 12 states to compete in 3 ranked divisions. Roughly 1/3 of the registered teams are from Denver, with out-of-state squads coming from Orange County to Boston and everywhere in between.
In 2013, Last Dig was nearly discontinued due to the lack of a venue and dedicated director. Speciale volunteered to run the tournament and eventually found a site after exploring over 25 potential venues. His role as tournament director, and subsequently his adventure in finding a venue, played a factor in his decision to open Dive.
There are many plans for the future of Dive in the works. Speciale hopes to increase the amount open gym and drop-in hours, host more adult tournaments, and find ways to maximize non-peak hours. Dive is also looking to host activities other than volleyball, such as adult dodgeball, crossfit and yoga classes, and charity events.
If you are interested in learning more about what Dive has to offer, you can visit their website or email Shane directly at shane@divevolleyball.com. You are also welcome to ‘like’ their Facebook page for additional and up-to-date information.
