Ryan Chambers, right, owner of Anytime Fitness, expected to open in September at Martell Plaza off Martell Road, is shown on one of the upright bikes available to fitness clients with his parents, Gloria and Royce Chambers. Photo by: Marcia Oxford Corinne Moore, wine grape grower, welcomes wine lovers to the grand opening of her Amador County Wine Cellar in Amador City Aug. 25 and 26. Photo by: Marcia Oxford Darren Johnson, owner of DJ's Branding Iron at Sutter Hill, and cook Dave Baas, are ready to serve generous portions of delicious rotisserie chicken, tri tips or pork to hungry customers. Photo by: Marcia Oxford Members of the American Sewing Guild, Placerville Gold Country Chapter, which has about 30 Amador members, show off pillow shams they and other members have sewn. Shown from left are Roseanne Lauters, owner of the Old General Store in Drytown where guild members meet and sew, and ASG members Peggy Breyer, Volcano; Jan Hopkins, Plymouth; and Suzette Heinrich, Pioneer. Photo by: Marcia Oxford

So you get off work at midnight or later. You're too wired to sleep. You really want a workout, but where to go? By some time in September, you can head for Anytime Fitness in Martell Plaza, the first 24-hour, 7-day a week professional fitness club in Amador County.

Anytime Fitness, owned by Ryan Chambers, is offering discounted, one-year memberships at $35 a month now through the opening of the 4,500-square-foot facility. Call 223-3636 to sign up. After that, membership is $39.99 a month.

Members will be able to access the site using a security-access card even when the club is not staffed. Security cameras are poised to monitor the premises non-stop, and the club will have security devices allowing members to contact law enforcement in case of an emergency. Fitness followers will be able to use treadmills, ellipticals, upright bikes, recumbent bikes, weight selectable machines, cable resistance weights and free weights.

"Basically, we could accommodate 20 pieces of cardio equipment," Chambers said, with a crowd capacity of about 60 people at a time. He is one of more than 1,000 Anytime Fitness franchise owners across the United States and internationally, and the company is projected to hit the 2,500 mark within four years.

Previously a certified personal trainer at Heptagon Athletics in Palo Alto, Chambers said his transition to Amador and the new business was inspired by his dedication to a family credo of public service and his desire to return to Amador, a place he has enjoyed since he was a youngster.

"My entire family has served the public and it's in my blood that I do the same by sharing my passion for health and fitness and offering a great fitness club that's open all the time," he said.

As for his commitment to public service, Chambers is following in a path set by his parents and other family members. Chambers' father, Royce, is a retired San Jose firefighter, his mother, Gloria, is a retired San Jose teacher, his sister is an emergency room nurse, one grandparent was a retired police officer and two are retired school teachers. For Chambers, service to the community is pretty much in his DNA.

Chambers, who moved here in May from Mountain View to open his new club, lives in the home of his grandfather who had a lengthy tenure before retiring from Oakland law enforcement.

"I think it's great that my son moved up here to open this center," Royce said. "It will be convenient for employees at the prison and the Jackson Rancheria or anyone else who may get off late and want to work out. Here's where they can do it."

Ryan's mom, Gloria, added, "I'm very proud of Ryan for starting this business. Believe me, he really walks the walk. He's not one of those who just talks the talk."

Amador City wine tasting bar to hold grand opening

Amador County Wine Cellar, the newest winetasting venue here is, indeed, in a cellar, a welcoming cool haven at this time of year.

The cellar is Corinne Moore's venture and a natural extension of the vineyard she planted nearby in 2002 with Sirah, Grenache and Mouvedre grapes. She sells those to Allen Kreutzer, winemaker at Drytown Cellars. His is one of five labels served in the cellar with six varietals on hand for tasting and for sale at a discount during the grand opening Aug. 25 and 26 from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Amador City.

Look for the site inside The Miner's Pick, where Roger and Connie Peterson feature mining antiques. You may be greeted by the Peterson's friendly dog, Bandit, before descending steps from the shop into the wine cellar. The business will be open Fridays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Moore, a native of South Africa, grew up in a family where her dad was a gold miner and raised horses and grapes. Seeking adventure and wanting to see "how the other half lived," she relocated to the United States in 1983 and spent 20 years as marketing director for various high-tech companies in the Silicon Valley. Burned out by that industry's demands, she moved to Amador City in 2000, keeping in mind her dad's own mining career. As well as Drytown Cellars, Moore also represents Avio, Nua Dair, Convergence and Lang, and plans to add more wines and wineries soon.

"There are a lot of small wineries people don't know about here, because you probably won't find them on the Shenandoah (Valley) loop," she said. "And people who visit Amador City may not have time to go over to Plymouth, so they can stop by and savor Amador County wines here.

"Originally, I wanted to buy property for a horse ranch and hobby vineyard," she continued. "I also wanted to be close to Tahoe because my son, Nic, was a snowboarder. The horse ranch didn't work, but now he's helping me with my vineyard and helping renovate my old farmhouse." Nic is an electrician by trade, she added.

In addition to the six varietal wines Moore currently offers, she is also showcasing the chocolates which she features on her chocoholics.com Web site, in operation for a decade. Chocolates from DeBrand, San Francisco Chocolate Co. and Grand Avenue Chocolates among others, produce the bars, niblets, cookies and truffles sold there.

"I'm really excited to be here," Moore said. "I've already had good response from people I've spoken to. This gives me a chance to promote Amador County wines and grapes and enjoy having a little business in Amador City." Moore currently serves on the seven-member board of the Amador Wine Grapegrowers and is a member of Amador Winemakers Association for home winemakers. She earned a bronze for her 2004 Sirah at this year's county fair.

Parking is available in the Imperial Hotel parking lot opposite The Miner's Pick; opposite Andrae's Bakery & Cheese Factory and on Keystone Alley. For other information, call 267-0104.

New Sutter Hill eatery offers rotisserie specials

Darren Johnson admits it's quite a stretch from his 10 years selling automobiles in the South Bay Area to opening a restaurant, DJ's Branding Iron at Sutter Hill. "I was up here with a friend and looking for a place to eat," Johnson said. "I saw there was a restaurant, but it had a 'for sale' sign on it. I made a call, but I didn't think the deal would go through. I was two weeks from jumping on a plane and going to Europe," he said, laughing heartily.

The venue was previously operated by a family, but the owners, who are contractors, opted to leave their restaurant to build spec homes around the country.

"We all have illusions that we can cook better than anybody else," Johnson continued. "I put my illusions together and said let's rock and roll. If I can cook as well as I believe I can, then I'll run this restaurant. I brought in Dave Baas who cooks everything to my specifications. He worked at Cattlemen's and Sonoma Joe's, so he's got a good background."

Johnson developed the simple menu available to diners Monday through Saturday beginning at 11 a.m. Beef, chicken, pork roast or ribs are slow cooked in an enormous Old Hickory brand rotisserie, then made into sandwiches or family packs with a choice of sides and a build-your-own-salad. Describing himself as a food purist, Johnson avoids smothering meat in sauce or marinades to bring out what he considers "the full flavor of the meat."

With the meat, diners can also choose cornbread, chili, macaroni or potato salad. The "build your own" salad offers three lettuce choices, more than 10 "makings," four types of cheese and eight dressings. Johnson also offers daily specials, most recently a French dip topped with grilled onions and Swiss cheese plus a blend of au jus and horseradish and a side at $7.95. He has applied to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to serve beer and wine, which he expects by the end of this month.

The succulence of the meat is due to the rotisserie, in which can be grilled 36 chickens, 20 tri-tips and a large ham if need be: The Old Hickory is the largest one manufactured by the company.

Born and raised in the Lodi-Lockeford area, Johnson said he spent most of his life on ranches and is elated to be "back in the country where people are so pleasant."

DJ's Branding Iron is at 13-A Ridge Road. To order ahead, call 267-9100.

Sierra Business Council to meet Sept. 13

"Sustaining Sierra Forests" is the theme of an event presented by the Sierra Business Council and being held Thursday, Sept. 13, from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Sutter Creek Community Center. The event is free and open to the public. However, registration is required at nstreegan@sbcouncil.org or call (530) 582-4800, ext. 12.

The program includes presentation and release of the "State of the Sierra Forests" report with discussion of key findings and trends; presentation of the "Thriving Forests Compendium;" and discussion on opportunities to invest in this area's forests' sustainable future.

'Building Customer Loyalty' set Aug. 28

Sierra Executive Institute will present a four-hour seminar on "Building Customer Loyalty" on Aug. 28, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the American Exchange Hotel in Sutter Creek. The seminar, made possible through Ziglar Certified Training, will focus on "turning a customer base into a referral engine," according to coordinator Robert Mees. The event is sponsored by Balancing The Books and Staples and is limited to 20 participants. A three-course lunch is included.

For cost and reservations, call (800) 598-8239 or go online to www.AmplifyLLC.com/go/sierra.

Sewing Guild sews up shams for benefit

Individuals and members of three Amador County sewing guilds have had their sewing machines whirring to whip out hundreds of pillow shams they are selling to benefit Camp Out for Cancer taking place Sept. 22 at Argonaut High School.

The women meet monthly at the Old Drytown General Store, where owner Rosanne Lauters established a site for various sewing activities soon after she and her husband Jay opened the store two years ago. Participants in the "pillow pile-up" participate in the American Sewing Guild, Placerville Gold County Chapter, Mother Lode Quilt Guild and the Sierra Gold Quilt Guild.

Last year, the crafty sewers raffled and sold 150 shams for $432. Sales of root beer floats at the store prior to the 2006 Camp Out for Cancer brought in another $500. This year, everyone hopes to do even better for the Amador Support, Transportation and Resource Services program, which provides vehicles and volunteer drivers to patients requiring cancer treatments available only in the valley.

Adding to the appeal of the colorful shams this time around are 7-inch squares incorporated in individual pillows, each designed by youngsters eager to participate in the program. "We told the kids this is giving back to your community without a checkbook and they really rose to the challenge," Lauters said. The results of the sewers' project can be seen in stacks around the store. The shams sell for $5, those with a pillow form are $10 or buyers can purchase five chances for $1 on a pillow sham as the shams will be raffled off during the camp out.

To raise even more money, the Lauters will again sell root beer floats over the coming Labor Day weekend.

"At our store, we have the Sew Threads, which is community sewing on items like pillowcases," Lauters continued. "We also host Mixed Bag which works on a variety of projects. Uncommon Threads members use embroidery machines, and we're starting Drytown Quilters, a community quilt group on Aug. 27."

The seamstresses also produce other diverse products to meet special needs, including bibs; "cool" ties embedded with cooling beads to send to the military; and pillow cases for in-take centers so children have something to pack their clothes in. Guild members are also kicking off a new project, sewing child-size quilts that can be kept in emergency vehicles in cases where children must be removed from homes due to domestic violence or in case of fire. One of the groups will also make baby quilts for the Pregnancy Help House.

"Once we got the pillow sham project going last year, we went crazy," Lauters said smiling. "I made about 80 myself, and then friends started sewing. We have an unofficial motto here - sew, eat and laugh. It seems to work."

For information on any of the sewing groups and upcoming events, call the Old General Store at 245-6914.