Madison Indoor Activities

The Madison Mallards take to the diamond each summer for three months of collegiate baseball, gathering players from across the country as they hone their skills for a shot at the pros. The Mallards took home a Northwoods League championship in 2004, cheered on by some of the most devout and rowdy fans in the league. In 2012 the team set a collegiate attendance record, drawing more than 217,000 fans.

All of Badgerland Bowling Centers' six locations have a lot in common. At each location, groups hurtle colorful balls down slick, glossy lanes, refueling at an onsite restaurant between matches. All of the alleys host birthday, work, and fundraising parties and tournaments such as the Badgerland Bowling 300 Club—which has doled out more than $35,000 in cash prizes since 2002—and the Badgerland Open, which welcomed 113 competitors in 2011, one of whom snagged a grand prize of $500 and 1,000 bragging rights.

But like sextuplets working undercover for the CIA, each center also maintains a unique identity. At Badger Bowl in Madison, live music floods the lanes on weekends, and dancers jump and jive on West Coast Swing nights on Wednesday. Nearby at Dream Lanes, laser and disco lights slice through fog amid thundering music during Ultra Bowling every Friday and Saturday evening.

Dance Fabulous's instructors think that dancing should be a stress-free experience. With that in mind, they’ve crafted a lineup of commitment-free drop-in classes that introduce students to hip-hop grooves, teach them core-strengthening belly-dance shimmies, and help party away calories with energy-packed Zumba moves. The lineup also includes more sensual classes meant to boost students' confidence, such as aerobic striptease dance and core-strengthening pole dance. During Hot Heels Hour classes, participants learn a new routine designed to be performed in pumps, which help strengthen cores, lift buns, and aerate the front lawn if practiced at home.

In addition to their drop-in classes, the instructors also schedule private lessons, which may cover the styles taught in group classes or focus on ballroom techniques or wedding choreography. Their adult parties come with similar themes, with lessons in styles from break dancing to striptease to Irish step. The studio was also named one of The Daily Page's picks for best places for a kids' birthday party; soirees can center around such themes as cheerleading, West African dance, and ballet. The staff offers a kids' hip-hop classes and a once-a-month family dance party, during which parents can tenderly pass down their ability to do the worm.

The tough-as-nails ladies in the Mad Rollin' Dolls roller-derby league wow audiences with equal parts strength, speed, and glitter. Since their first season in 2005, skaters and MRD volunteers alike have donated their blood, sweat, and tears to the sport that promotes female athleticism and team spirit in a fun, competitive atmosphere. During the 30-minute bouts, fans cheer and sneer as the jammers attempt to lap the opposing team for points, and the blockers clear the way for their mates while putting the hurt on those who try to stop them. The season's schedule culminates in a championship match, in which the two mightiest teams battle for the title and a lifetime supply of solid-gold mouth guards.

Since the team is committed to supporting their community, a portion of the proceeds from each Mad Rollin' Dolls bout goes to various charities, which in the past have included Safe Harbor Child Advocacy Center, Alliance for Animals, and Badger Childhood Cancer Network.

Megan Ryan Kaiser doesn’t remember her first hot-yoga session as a transcendent, transformative moment. She recalls the feeling of intimidation that almost sent her packing. Over time, the class did enhance her life, but it might not have without the support of a welcoming community of students and instructors. She struggled to find such an affirming place to pose after moving to the Madison area from Los Angeles. Instead of continuing her search, she decided to build the community she sought by launching Dragonfly Hot Yoga.

Students of all shapes, sizes, and skill levels flock to the studio’s award-winning classes, which range from beginner-friendly Intro to Yoga sessions to Advanced Flow routines filled with challenging inversions and arm balances. Spacious classrooms let students move freely, and flooring specifically designed for hot-yoga classes repels sweat and odors. During most yoga classes, the room’s temperature rises to 85–105 degrees, which promotes flexibility and toxin release. The instructors also lead traditional fitness classes, including a boot-camp-style workout filled with resistance training, calisthenics, and plyometrics. Before and after classes, students bond over tea and books in a lounge that’s as cozy as a fireplace wearing a hand-knitted sweater. To help busy parents integrate yoga into their routine, the studio also offers childcare during many morning classes and private yoga sessions, which can be scheduled at a convenient time

Madison Pilates’s owner, Marissa Lins, founded her studio to nurture a supportive fitness community for students of all levels, including those who aspire to become Pilates teachers themselves. The staff of comprehensively trained instructors leads a schedule of beginner to advanced classes with a therapeutic approach, taking time to encourage and guide students through verbal cues, hands-on instruction, exercise demonstration, and professional-quality semaphore.

During newbie-friendly Pilates sessions, teachers introduce the basics of floor-based mat work, where pupils support their body weight themselves, and the fundamentals of spring-resisted equipment workouts, where apparatuses such as the Pilates Reformer and the Wunda chair resist or support students’ movements to add strength-building benefits. Students in the intermediate- and advanced-level classes incorporate more demanding Pilates techniques while learning to monitor their own form during each smoothly controlled movement. In addition to group sessions, the teachers also lead private lessons for attendees seeking one-on-one instruction or help with their income-tax paperwork. Nestled amid a bouquet of towering oak trees, the Madison Pilates studio boasts a practice space with gleaming, wood floors and ceilings that are high enough to accommodate Paul Bunyan's coat rack.