Hey Peeps, haven't posted in a while *moving/working/new pup* so i thought i'd give ol BCD a holla... i've since moved from Surrey to the Joyce area and today i walked the dog over to collingwood inquiring about the badminton times etc. Was told that wed nights 8:45 till 10:15pm was drop in... i was like oh ok, cool and i hear that they play here on Sunday too.. The petite asian lady looked at me with a little pity i believe and said 'Oh yes but that's for advance players only' .. *pause* Me: Uh... ok... um.. well what time is it usually? PaL somewhat reluctantly: oh.. it's.. 10 till 1... Me: oh ok thanks (whereupon i waddled on outta there) Now i may not be the most athletic looking person (being just shy of 6' and 275 odd lbs) but who's to say i may not be an advance player? either way, i don't really consider myself advance, probably intermediate, but i was a tad bit insulted although i'm sure the lady didn't mean it AAaaanyways, my question is, for Collingwood Sunday's, how much of an 'advance' player was one be in order to participate? should i do the drop in on wednesdays first and have a looksee at the 'advance' players? just wondering
It is true that Sundays are for the advanced players. I was told that too. There are a few places near Joyce area that you can go. If you can't play on Wednesday then you can do a search with this website, http://www.city.vancouver.bc.ca/communitypages_wa/index.cfm, good luck. Renfew CC and BCIT are very close to your place.
Hi Nitemeister, I do apologize if you felt insulted, but yes the PaL did not mean it in any way, besides, she would not be able to tell a person's ability even if you were 7' & 95lbs or came walking in wearing everything Yonex! She's suppose to advise people who enquire about the Sunday session that it is for advanced (or high-intermediate) players only. The Sunday session was originally conceived for advanced players and for those who wanted to play using feather instead of plastic shuttles. The current Wed & Thur evening sessions are open to all levels of play (mostly beginners) and sometimes people presume it was the same for the Sunday session. On the other hand, there has been a few Wed/Thur players who thought since they were the "best" meant they could compete against the advanced Sunday players. When I see a new face, I try to get a feel for their ability by asking them how did they hear about the Sunday session and where do they normally play. Typically, I advise them that it is for advanced players but they are welcome to play one game and I will be able to tell if they are up to our level. There has been many times at the initial greeting that the player was quite convinced they were an advanced (or high-intermediate) player, but when we got onto the court, they had to ask which lines we were using or could not even hit a basic clear or a low serve! How I would define the player's level would approximately be... Intermediate - good serves - able to hit consistently forehand smashes, drops, clears, & OK net shots - poor backhand clear (or looks like a tennis backhand) - basic footwork & knowledge of defensive/offensive positions & transitions - can return (lift) smashes and get to some drop shots High-Intermediate - excellent tight serves with variety - able to hit effective smashes, drops, clears, & good net shots - able to hit proper end-to-end backhand clears & drops (down the line) - good footwork, able to get to all corners efficiently, along with endurance - can communicate well with partner & make proper def/off transitions - can return smashes that force your opponents to lift Advanced - can attack low serves - very strong forehand & very tight net shots - effective backhand smashes, clears & drops - very good deceptive shots - can return (place) a smash that wins the rally consistently - can consistently finish/win the rally when playing the net offensively Nitemeister, you attended my Xmas2003 badminton session and should have a feel for the players with the higher calibre of play. If you are unsure, you could always drop by and check Sundays out! Just remember, the first Sunday back will be Jan 8th! Cheers!
Lol wow i'm impressed BMS, remembering all the way back to 2003 esp considering there were so many players.. I do appreciate the input guys, and like i said i'm sure 'Pal' didn't mean it in an insulting kinda way.. she did think my pug was cute so it's all good hehe Also thanks for your breakdown for the diff skill levels BMS- To be honest i wish i could say i was advance lol but unfortunately my endurance level isn't quite what it used to be so chances are i'd be sucking wind by the 8th/9th point.. But i'll definitely come by check it out come new years.. i've been wanting to play for ages so i'm stoked that i can just walk over
My first run into Collingwood, I talked to this one extremely nice guy. He didn't mind at all when I told him I was a lowly low intermediate many years back. He then walked onto the court and OH-MY-GAWD proceeded to thunder smashes against his opponents like there was tomorrow! I was watching on the sidelines. He was the national junior champion in the late nineties, I believe. -dave
