Hello TTD CCers!
What a great and fun TT weekend!
Long AAR (After Action Report) follows... will give you the FRAT (Frag Reading All That version first):
FRAT version
Sat = Played Der_Echte 1 match - lost 3-0; played a match with 42andbackpains and luckily won 3-2... 42&bp should beat me easily
Sun = served/drilled with Carl for ~15 mins; played with Der_Echte 1 match - lost 3-0; played with NextLevel ... also coached by both Der and NL
Had a great time this past Saturday and Sunday!
UNABRIDGED VERSION
Saturday, Oct 1, 2016
Der_Echte and the rest of the Goon Squad’s NYC Mission started ~4pm at the Korean TT club in Flushing. I could not join them until much later due to and weekend/family duties. Also, my wife celebrated her aunt’s birthday with a family dinner.
Got to the restaurant at 6:30 pm. 30 mins wait for a table. Took my wife and her aunt another 30 mins to decide what they wanted to eat. Took another 30 mins for the first dish to be served. I’m sitting there staring at my watch LOL Finished cake and left. 3 hrs. Lots of tension and anticipation in me due to the whole day.
I got to the Korean TT club at ~10:30pm. The Squad were pretty much done for the day. Had my gear and because of the time, was ready just to hang out and chat and not play. Der said he still had many sets left in him.
We warmed up for 5 mins or so, my Chuck Knoblauch syndrome continued. Chuck was the 1990’s baseball 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] baseman who towards the end of his career, couldn’t throw to 1[SUP]st[/SUP] base, which is one of the primary throws/skills a 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] baseman needs to execute. Some mental block. Using my Avalox P700, I’m missing the table on basic shots like FH during warmup. It has been 2 weeks like this. Prior to my malaise, I’ve been hitting/playing with the Avalox for ~4 months and was used to it as it became my primary blade. My solution was to warmup with my backup racket, an off the shelf 1980’s DHS racket, which I slapped on 2 old rubbers. It is way heavier than I am used to, as I’m an oldschool penholder and play with single side only. But my strokes were landing properly. Switched back to the Avalox for a few more shots and the match begins.
I didn’t expect to win against Der-Echte, a 2000-level player, but was going to give him my all. Saw his fast Rambo loops in a previous Goon Squad mission in doubles as well as face his high-toss serves, so I had some idea what I would be going up against.
By Der’s estimates, I won 80% of my serves and he won 90% of his serves. Lost 3 straight, mostly at 7 or 8 if memory serves. Have video of the match, will probably post, just didn’t have time to edit yet. All I remember was me eating all his serves. Couldn’t read them. After the match, Der confided to me that all he did was serve downspin and then topspin the whole match ... 1-2 .. same serves, same sequence! Man, I suck at reading serves, but also suck at discerning any patterns. LOL
What I didn’t expect was how underrated Der’s trash-talking game is! He is at least 2500! I tried not to let it get to me, generally don’t let it get to me, but the seed was planted firmly with the trash talking. What cemented it was my helplessness and free points he got off my botched attempts at return of serves.
I had a few decent rally winners, but for the most part, match was un-highlight worthy IIRC. Will review the video to see. Service returns continue to be a huge Achilles Heel for me! Thanked Der for the match as well showing me what I need to work on via match.
Played my friend 42andbackpains for a set. It was the first time in 30 yrs since he played with both sides smooth rubber. For the past 2 yrs, he has been using short pips on his BH. Eked out a win 3-2 over him, but I wasn’t executing my game/style the way I wanted to and felt he should’ve won. With his lessons with a professional coach, truly expect him to be a formidable player very soon. Feel he should beat me easily as well as our mutual old 1980's TT crew. If not for his backpains etc ... if he's healthy, WATCH OUT!
Everyone called it a night and we went to a restaurant for a midnight dinner. I was not hungry and just sat there soaking in TT discussions from players higher level than me. In attendance, Carl, PPHolic, Der and 42&bp. Awesome night!
An aside: it’s one thing to read on the forums that someone speaks a foreign language, it’s another to see it in action. Der was FLUENT in Korean and it was awesome listen to him speak with the club owner!
Sunday, Oct 2, 2016
I was resigned to the fact I could not join Der and Crew this day at the New York Indoor Sports Club (42andbackpains’ club). We had enolled our son in a prep course for a special high school admissions test. I’m the chauffeur 99% of the time during the weekends. Dropped him off at school 9am. Went with my wife to pick him up at 3pm. ~3:30pm, as I got off the highway, get a text from Carl asking how many sheets of rubber was needed on Der’s Nexy Amazon PH blade for me to test out. Had my son reply as I was driving. But Carl’s timely text message had my wife ask who it was. I explained it was my TT friends asking me a question. I reminded her that it was the same friends as yesterday and they came out of town. She said do you really want to go play? I explained that yes I generally would like to play, but it’s extra special as they were from out of town. She said ok go but asked what time I would be back. I said I think they will end it at 6pm. I got home ~8:30pm. Doghouse! LOL at me.
Got to the club ~4:30pm. I started off serving to Carl for maybe 15 mins my pendulum fast side-top serve to his BH. He has trouble with this serve and I wanted to help him out. He returned most of them, some with the BH pick/flick, some with his BH loop. He didn’t ‘eat’ as many. Truly hope that helped out his game!
NextLevel arrived and he worked with Carl a bit. Carl had to leave and we took a group pic. Reposting Carl's pic from Der_Echte in NYC thread:
I looked around and recognized a few members from my club! Hardcore TT fanatics - members of 2 clubs! Don’t recall if I mentioned my club is a NYC Dept of Parks recreation center. We share the space with stationary bikes, Olympic lifting, and weightlifting machines. So perhaps not the most ideal of playing conditions but members only pay 100 dollars a year and Seniors pay $25 a yr! In NYC, you cannot beat 100 a year membership fee. Other downsides are generally jam-packed, long wait for a table sometimes, generally due to overcrowding – no real chance just to drill on a table, and many people walking to and from to the weight rooms.
Der drove Carl to the train station. I was waiting for a chance to play NextLevel, and loosely practicing serves. A club member asked to play and I obliged. I was testing out Der’s Nexy Amazon PH blade with MX-P rubber. I have never used both the blade and the rubber. Perhaps a bad test as both blade and rubber were new for me and I didn’t have a ‘control’ variable.
I stood on the FH side and BH blocked my partner’s loops for maybe 30 mins. Then started a match. Lost 2 straight, mostly me adjusting to the blade/rubber. Surprisingly, I adjusted pretty fast to the combo. I expected a longer learning curve. I then proceeded to serve my version of a pendulum sidetop serve. Partner ate many serves or were on the receiving end of my smashes from his popped up returns. Was able to squeak by taking the match winning 3 straight. I didn't call him out for his illegal serves. For parts of the match, I was working on what Der advised/worked with me on: slow topspin loop to counter heavy downspin, get reset in ready stance and attack the usual block which generally would be high. I punched some, loop drived successfully very few and smashed some.
I went to another table as a woman asked me to hit with her. I’ve hit with her at my club and pleasantly surprised to see her at NYISC. As I hit with her, I see Der playing the gentleman I just finished with and to Der’s credit and title of Table Tennis Ambassador, he gave a few pointers to the gentleman!
Der comes to my table and I politely explained to my partner, despite language barrier, I wanted to play Der as he was from out of town… I think she understood.
IIRC, all I did was serve side down the whole match to Der and he would push it back to my FH and I topspin looped it and ready for 5[SUP]th[/SUP] ball attack via smash, punch or loop drive. Still have problems with serve receive. Lost 3 straight, but it was more drilling but in an actual match. Der commented that I made a lot of the 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] ball slow topspin loops, more than he has seen me before he coached me. An aside, recently JeffM posted a match vid in which he beat his opponent and NextLevel commented pretty much that the same combo of slow topspin loop and get ready to attack the blocked loop should be one of JeffM’s staples.
Played NextLevel next. Lost pretty easily, I think all at 5 or less. I was not thinking too clearly in serve placement ... served mostly long and fast to NL’s BH which he adroitly returned. Didn't remember to serve short to FH. Der on the side reminded me to try to serve sidedown and go for slow topspin loop. Many of my serves were too long and NL attacked them all not affording me a chance to 3rd ball slow topspin loop.
Unedited video courtesy of NL's channel:
4:19-4:24 – after nailing my 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] ball punch down the line, I missed my 5[SUP]th[/SUP] ball smash LOL at my inconsistency
4:37-4:49 – most memorable point for me, not because I actually returned NL’s serve, not because I saw the net ball, waited and successfully returned nor because I smashed the 6[SUP]th[/SUP] ball for a winner, BUT because of Der’s reaction to the point … he posted a comment about our Saturday match, that some of my smashes were moments to flex my bicep and here he was, right after my smash he got up and did just that… had me cracking up!
~12:16 – 32:58 NL coaching me
I got a text from my daughter informing me my wife is upset with me as I told her I believed i would finish at 6pm. Got home at 8:30 pm. Apologized to both NL and Der but I had to leave or else ... lol
Thanked them both for their gracious sharing of time, experience and playing with me!
p.s. the 2 things I need to remember of the many things I've learned this past weekend is:
1) Serve downspin, get a push to my FH, loop slow topspin, get reset and prepared for 5th ball attack
2) wrist motion - how to serve a real pendulum serve (i have a pendulum serve with wasted motion); serve receive; and loop
Sincerest gratitude to Carl, PingPongHolic, and 42andbackpains. And again my deepest gratitude to Der_Echte and NextLevel for working with me!
