Mosswood!

Hello Pong Enthusiasts!

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Local Pong

Last week, walking around Mosswood Park, I stopped in disbelief when I saw a brand new pong table sparkling in the sun. Later, I biked down to the park with my neighborhood pong friend to try it out. Despite a slight breeze and a fierce early afternoon sun, we smashed the ball for well over an hour. Several people smiled as they spied our ballet of backhands. Parents strolled with children, drummers convened at the sunken amphitheater, and couples played tennis. I have high hopes for Mosswood as a home to community pong.

A lot about the Mosswood table will help it succeed: it's right at the front door of the rec center, it's next to three brand-new tennis courts and a practice backboard, and the twenty-million-dollar renovation improved the entire park so people are checking it out. One afternoon, I met a family heading to the tennis courts. With a bit of encouragement, the dad stepped up to the table and found some pong flow. I'm planning more visits to check on the developing scene and be part of it. Come to Mosswood and play. Stay tuned for regular meetup times.

Global Pong

If you happen to be in Los Angeles or Malmö this summer, snag some tickets and go see the world's top pongistas at the US Smash (Jun 26 - Jul 5) and Europe Smash (Aug 8 - 15). If, like me, you are not planning on being in LA or Malmö, many of these matches will be shown live on YouTube. The commentators can be terrible, but Adam Bobrow is the exception, slinging silly similes and translating Chinese from coaches live on the sidelines.

Last week in Lagos, Satsuki Odo, a 22-year-old rising star from Japan, and her elder compatriot Honoka Hashimoto, met in the title match. Their warm-up was hilariously flawless and the match was heated. Honoka is a 'chopper', who returns most shots from deep behind the table with a big sweeping backspin stroke. Long rallies are common and dramatic. This style of play inspired the "expedite rule". If you pull up the match, you can also catch the doubles finals earlier in the video.

Please feel free to send me an anonymous note from the site or email me at ethan@baypong.org.

Ethan