McKibben Gym is on Barkeley Avenue at Fort Carson, Colorado. It holds a 4.3 rating from 190 Google reviews.
Before anything else: this is a Physical Fitness Center on an active US Army installation. You need base access to get through the gate. There's no public membership and no day pass that will help you. If you're not military, a dependent, a DoD civilian or otherwise badged, this record isn't for you.
The record is also old, with nothing written since September 2020.
PT Hours Can Cost You Your Session
A member in November 2019 slips in the warning that matters most: "Love this gym! Best selection of weights and equipment on base, my husband loves that there's enough weight benches. I love being able to get my resistance training and still work in some cardio in the same spot. Must be aware of PT hours, but overall a great gym with friendly staff."
"Must be aware of PT hours."
On an installation, units run physical training in the mornings, and post gyms are routinely dominated or reserved during those blocks. If you turn up mid-PT expecting a quiet floor, you'll find a company in it.
She doesn't say which hours, and nobody else does. No opening hours appear on the listing at all. So that's the question to settle with the desk before you build a routine around this place.
It's The Best Of The Bunch, By Two Accounts
This is the sort of comparison a civilian gym page can never give you.
A member in September 2020: "Great equipment. Everything you need. Iron Horse gym is too crowded and not enough equipment. I never have to really wait for equipment at McKibben. Best gym on post in my opinion."
He names the alternative, Iron Horse, and says why he left it. Crowding and equipment.
A member in September 2020: "The free weights selection is outstanding."
A member in November 2019: "Best selection of weights and equipment on base."
Three people, one message: the free weights are the reason to come here, and there are enough benches. If you're deciding between Fort Carson's gyms, that's your answer, subject to it being five years old.
The Best Review Isn't About Equipment At All
A member in January 2020: "This is my favorite place to workout. I come here five days a week. Since I'm a Retired Military Disabled Veteran. I get to workout with Soldiers and they compliment me on being 73 years old and still talking to Soldiers and motivate them."
Seventy-three, disabled, retired, five days a week, training alongside serving soldiers.
I'd take that over any equipment list. It tells you the room isn't hostile to people who aren't twenty-two and in shape, and it tells you retirees with base access do use it.
The Odd One
There's a three-star from June 2020 that isn't really about the gym: a soldier grumbling about being tasked to the facility without being assigned to a specific unit, and describing it as a waste of time with five people in the building.
That's a complaint about duty assignment, not about McKibben. It drags the average without telling you anything useful about training there. Worth knowing when you look at the 4.3.
What's Missing
No opening hours. No phone number. No PT-hour schedule, which is the one thing this page has established that you need.
The MWR page is at mwrfortcarson.com.
5785 Barkeley Ave, Fort Carson, CO 80913.
FAQ
Can civilians use this gym?
No. It's on an active Army installation and requires base access.
What are PT hours?
Unit physical training blocks, when the gym is busy or restricted. A member warns you to know them; nobody publishes them. Ask at the desk.
Is it better than Iron Horse?
A member says so, citing crowding and equipment shortages at Iron Horse. That's one opinion from September 2020.
How current is the record?
It isn't. The newest written review dates from September 2020.