City
Limits Table Tennis Club
By Wayne Wistrand
Looking for a friendly club with lots of action and great
coaching? Then the City Limits Table Tennis Club is just right for
you! On my first visit I was impressed with the membership. Although
competitiveness abounds, everyone is more than happy to give you a match and
offer advice regardless of the rating difference. Carl Hardin (a National Level
Coach) has helped many players in Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia and even Florida
with his innovative coaching and support. Carl’s more notable students include
Samson Dubina (current Ohio State Champion), Bob Powell (six-time Ohio State
Champion) and club members Thomas Yost, Paul Yost and John Kizer. The following
is an e-mail received from Samson:
“I
started playing table tennis when I was twelve years old. My strokes were
horrible. When I was fourteen years old and rated 1100, I received an
invitation from the Ohio Table Tennis Association to be trained by Mr. Hardin
for a few days. My game improved a little bit after the first session.
“Several
months later, when I was rated 1200, I again had the opportunity to be trained
by Mr. Hardin. After four days of training I was anxious to try out my new
skills. I returned to our table tennis club and the same day began beating
1800 level players! My dad would periodically drive me 220 miles down to Mr.
Hardin’s club to be trained for several days. After a total of two years, my
rating rose from 1100 to 2100. Now I am seventeen years old and rated 2260,
thanks primarily to Mr. Hardin’s coaching.”
Carl
Hardin ran the C&D Table Tennis Club until the building inspector failed the
electrical system. The club was in a school, which was converted into
apartments. The building manager informed Carl that he could not afford to
rewire the basement and the club was forced to close. Carl, club members and
friends searched for a solution. Berndt Mann (Columbus, Ohio – Hard Bat
Evangelist) had played in several of Carl’s tournaments. He contacted Carl and
suggested looking at multi-sport facilities. Dorothy Hardin (Carl’s wife) then
suggested contacting the City Limits Family Fun Center.
Carl
approached Rick Noel (manager of the City Limits Family Fun Center) in nearby
New Boston and the “City Limits Table Tennis Club” was born. Rick Noel was
very enthusiastic about having the club in his facility, and is training with
Carl. Play is on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday from 4-11 PM. The
tables are set up on the indoor soccer field, which offers air-conditioned
comfort, excellent lighting and surprisingly good traction and support on the
Astro turf. In addition to the four high quality tables (Spintech, Donic, Stiga
and Butterfly) from the old club, two new blue Butterfly Centerfold Rollaway
tables were added. A Newgy RoboPong 2000 (with 40mm upgrade) and a catch
net/bucket system for service and multi-ball practice are available.
Open
House was February 24. The club ran a very successful youth and beginner clinic
on April 7 and hosted its first tournament May 12-13. The reviews from the
players were very positive. A 9-person giant round robin format is used, so
players play eight matches! With approval of dates from the Ohio Table Tennis
Association the club would like to hold 3-4 tournaments each year.
While visiting
West Virginia, Andrew Gooding (West Virginia Division of Don Iguana Labs penhold
tester) invited me over to the club to play. Andrew makes the trek several times
a week to play and train. I was so impressed that I now make 4 to 5 trips per
year from Florida! Also, after a few days working with Carl Hardin my level
immediately jumped and I now have a better understanding of the games
intricacies.
So if you live in or near
southwestern Ohio (or are traveling by), stop by and join the fun, get some
coaching or purchase some equipment. Membership is $25/month or $4/day. Check
the club web page http://pages.about.com/cj1hardin/ or call Rick Noel
(740-456-2489) or Carl Hardin (740-574-1353, email: carl@runbox.com). There
are players rated from 800 and 2000 at the club.
