Arlington, Massachusetts Badminton Club

Special Notices

Here is the latest info updated 20-Nov-13.
The first night of the Fall 2013 Season was Thursday 12-Sep-13. Skipped Thursday nights during the season are: 28-Nov-13.
It is known that in the Spring 2014 Season, there will be no badminton on 11-Apr-14 and the following school vacation week.
Monday night play for the Fall 2013 Season will consist of nights likely starting 16-Sep-13 and possibly running through 16-Dec-13, except skipping 14-Oct-13 and 11-Nov-13. Doubles hours will be extended 30 minutes to have an ending time of 9:50 p.m. As of 9-Jun-13, Monday doubles play was sold out, but if you wish to be on the waiting list for the Fall, send your request with your name, gender, home address, phone number, and badminton experience to elainegam@rcn.com. The Fall 2013 Monday Doubles fee is $125.
As of 22-Oct-13, there is only one available opening to sign up for a Fall 2013 Season Monday activity, and that is for a Family Half Court for the 6:00-7:00 p.m. time slot:
Monday Family Badminton has one half court available at 6-7:00 p.m. for any level of play. Good chance to play as a family or learn as a family. ArlRec has coach Chauncy Liu available to help you learn or improve your game. ArlRec supplies the shuttles (birds) and there are racquets available to borrow or purchase. If you don't have 4 players in your family, then team up with a neighbor or friends. No age limits. $165 for 18-Nov-13 to 16-Dec-13 season on half court, 2 to 3 players. Contact elainegam@rcn.com 781-646-8681.
Monday Doubles Play for the First 2014 Season will begin on 6-Jan-14. Hours are 8:10 - 9:55 p.m. and there is room for 17 players. The cost is $150 per player. The likely playing dates are: Jan 6,13,27; Feb 3,10,24; Mar 3,10,17,24,31; Apr 7,14,28; May 5,12,19, and make-up days Jun 2,9.
The Arlington Badminton Club meets for open play on Thursdays during the school year at the Dallin School Gym in Arlington, MA from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m., unless a special night is scheduled. This activity is open to all adults (age 18 and older) with game-playing skills. Season passes are offered first to the previous season's pass holders and then to those on a wait list maintained by Elaine Gampp. There is a limit of 28 passes available.
If you want to get onto the waiting list for a Thursday Fall 2013 season pass, please email Elaine immediately with your name, gender, home address, phone number, and be sure to tell her this is for the Arlington Club. Elaine's email address is: elainegam@rcn.com. The Fall 2013 Thursday Arlington Badminton Club Season fee is $125.
Walk-in players are accepted at $15 per night (on Thursdays). Club attendance allows for a few walk-ins who can play a regular adult game. A walk-in player will be asked to temporarily stop playing or skip a rotation whenever there are 70% or more season pass holders playing. Come early and stay late for the best playing opportunities. Players are supposed to be adults 18 years or older; however, advanced youths may request to be considered based upon their ability to play a regular adult game.
On Thursdays, walk-in attendance at the Dallin Gym is welcome to start between 7:00 and 8:00 p.m., but if there are 70% of the club members playing at 8:15 p.m., you must stop. Then at 9:20, walk-in play can resume (fee $15). Or you may choose to play for the just the first 1.5 hours then quit for the night (fee $8). Bring exact change or be prepared to get no change.

For Monday Doubles, which starts at 8:00 p.m., walk-in play may be done only if there are less than 18 pre-registered players playing. A Monday Doubles walk-in player should be prepared to stop playing when the attendance reaches 18. The fee will vary from $5 to $10 depending on the playing time. Bring change or be prepared to get no change.

There are also Family Badminton sessions on Mondays from 6-7 and 7-8 p.m. and on Thursdays at 6-7 p.m. at the Dallin School. Email elainegam@rcn.com to sign up or ask questions. Please be sure to include your full name, address, phone number, and gender, and the names, ages, and gender of youths when inquiring, as well as the experience of each player to enable good court usage. Chauncy Liu is the coach for the Family Sessions. The 2013 Fall Season fee is $220 for half-court or $420 for full-court. The Monday 6-7 p.m. time slot is sold out. The Monday 7-8 p.m. time slot has one court available. The Thursday 6-7 p.m. time slot is sold out.

Fees for passes are NOT refundable, and previously-paid walk-in fees cannot be credited towards season pass fees.

Passes are issued per season, and the fee is a "season fee", not based upon a certain number of nights. In the event that there are skipped nights due to weather or an unplanned school event, there will be an attempt made to schedule make-up nights. However, such make-up nights cannot be guaranteed.

You can get to this page with this shortcut URL: http://abc.wolfberg.net, and similarly, you can get to the Winchester Badminton Club web page using: http://wbc.wolfberg.net
MONDAYS at Dallin School

This describes Arlington Recreation Sessions for Youths, Families, and Adults. For more information or to enroll, email elainegam@rcn.com or call Elaine at 781-646-8681 (11 a.m. to 11 p.m.).

Arlington Recreation is offering badminton sessions for families and youths at the Dallin School Gym located at 185 Florence Avenue and George Street, Arlington Heights. (Park behind the school, enter via left door, walk straight down the hall to the gym.)

Chauncy Liu will coach all sessions, and each session will be geared to the needs of the players. Thus the times, descriptions, and fees differ slightly with each session. Shuttlecocks will be supplied. Some racquets will be available for use, and often there are racquets available for purchase.
Monday Families Times: 6-7 p.m., 7-8 p.m.
This session is structured for families to play with their children. Chauncy Liu will assist with playing techniques and join in family games with some coaching. To be on the waiting list for the Fall 2013 Season, send your request with your name, gender, home address, phone number, and badminton experience to elainegam@rcn.com or call Elaine at 781-646-8681 (11 a.m. to 11 p.m.).

Monday Doubles Time: 8:00 - 9:45 p.m.
As of 11-Jun-13, this activity is sold out for the Fall 2013 Season. To be on the waiting list for the Fall 2013 Season, send your request with your name, gender, home address, phone number, and badminton experience to elainegam@rcn.com or call Elaine at 781-646-8681 (11 a.m. to 11 p.m.).

This page is organized into the following sections:

Introduction
Club Contacts
A Map Showing the Club Location
Directions to the Dallin School from Route 128
Directions to the Dallin School from Cambridge
Directions to the Dallin School from Lexington Center
Directions to the Dallin School from Winchester Center
Entering the Schools
Your First Time
The Ladder System
Rules for Play

Introduction

This club has been meeting since early 2007 at the Cyrus Dallin Elementary School on the corner of Florence Ave. and George St. in Arlington, MA, off Park Ave. between Route 2 and Massachusetts Ave. The club meets most Thursdays during the school year. Occasionally a make-up night may be scheduled on a different weeknight. Winchester Recreation offers an alternate place to play on Tuesdays at the McCall Middle School in Winchester, MA.

The club does not play when there are special events being held in the school gym, or when the school is closed due to school holidays, school vacation days, or snow days. When in doubt, e-mail or call one of the club officials listed below, or call the Arlington Recreation Hotline (781-316-3886) or Office (781-316-3880).

Hours, fees, and rules of play are similar to those of the Tuesday night Winchester Badminton Club, which has been operating for many years.

Hours of play are from 7:00 p.m. to 9:50 p.m. Players are asked to abide by the requirement they be out of the building by 9:55 p.m. In order for this to happen, all equipment in the gym must be put away. Players are asked to volunteer to do the tasks; if there is insufficient volunteered help by the players in putting the equipment away, play must stop by 9:30 p.m. to allow for the custodian to do this.

No player is permitted to enter the building or gym prior to 7:00 p.m. Dress is casual, with rubber-soled footwear required. The gym is set up with three standard badminton courts. Red lines are painted on the gym floor with doubles and singles lines on all three courts. The ceilings are very high - higher than most gyms; it is unlikely you can hit a bird that high.

If it is snowing, sleeting, raining, or sandy, please do not wear your court playing shoes from the car to the gym If you have no other shoes that you can wear, put plastic bags over your sneakers. Please do not wear shoes into the gym that have snow, ice, sand, or water residing in the treads.

This club uses the 21-point game rules for all games.

The club supplies, at no additional charge, tournament-grade yellow Yonex 350 nylon birds for play, but if the players assigned to a court agree unanimously to use an alternative bird for their match, they may do so.

This club operates in a similar manner to that of the Winchester Badminton Club. The evening consists primarily of game play, although you can frequently get in some practice early or late. Play is almost exclusively doubles, but there are not regular partnerships. Instead, as explained below in the "Ladder System" section, attempts are made to arrange matches with even strength on both sides, as well as to diversify partnerships throughout the evening. The club does not provide refreshments or snacks, and no shower facilities are available. Restrooms and water fountains are located just outside the gym.
Club Contacts

Questions, such as whether or not the club will be playing on a particular evening, should be directed to:
Mike Wolfberg 978-496-1397 (Westford)
e-mail: wolfberg@alum.mit.edu
Elaine Gampp 781-646-8681 (Arlington)
e-mail: elainegam@rcn.com
Arlington Recreation Cancellation Hotline 781-316-3886
Arlington Recreation Office 781-316-3880

A Map Showing the Club Location

You can view a map, showing where the club meets.
Directions to the Dallin School from Route 128

Take Route 128 (same as I-95) to Exit #29, Route 2 and head East. Go almost 3 miles to Route 2's Exit 57 for "Dow Ave. Arlmont". Proceed on the exit ramp about 1/2 mile to the flashing yellow signal. Turn left under Route 2. After stopping at the STOP sign, continue straight on Dow Ave., and take this about 1/3 mile to the end. Turn right onto Rhinecliff, and then in one short block, turn left onto Florence Ave. The school is the on the far left corner at the next street, which is George St. To get to the school parking lot, turn left onto George St. and then go right behind the school.
Directions to the Dallin School from Cambridge

Take Route 2 West out of Cambridge, past the Alewife T Station. Take Route 2's exit 57 for "Dow Ave., Arlington, Belmont". From the exit ramp, merge onto the access road and continue 0.3 miles, passing a church on your right. Then turn right onto Dow Ave., and take this about 1/3 mile to the end. Turn right onto Rhinecliff, and then in one short block, turn left onto Florence Ave. The school is the on the far left corner at the next street, which is George St. To get to the school parking lot, turn left onto George St. and then go right behind the school.
Directions to the Dallin School from Lexington Center

Take Mass Ave. East. Follow Routes 4 and 225, which divert from Mass Ave. past the town center. After this diversion, you will pass the Wilson Farms farm stand on your left. 1/4 mile past Wilson Farms, bear left at the fork, following signs for Route 2 East. After crossing Route 2, bear right to continue heading to Route 2 East. Before getting on to the highway, bear right on the exit ramp for Exit 57, "Dow Ave.". Proceed on the exit ramp about 1/2 mile to the flashing yellow signal. Turn left under Route 2. After stopping at the STOP sign, continue straight on Dow Ave., and take this about 1/3 mile to the end. Turn right onto Rhinecliff, and then in one short block, turn left onto Florence Ave. The school is the on the far left corner at the next street, which is George St. To get to the school parking lot, turn left onto George St. and then go right behind the school.
Directions to the Dallin School from Winchester Center

There is a small rotary in Winchester Center, where Church St. is one of the streets which connects there. As you leave the rotary, you will pass a gas station and then a drug store on your right where there is a "Prescriptions" sign on the building. Take Church St. away from the center, crossing Route 3 (Cambridge St.) at a signal.

Zero your trip odometer at this intersection. Proceed up the hill on High St., and you soon pass the Ambrose School on your right. Then:

At 1.2 miles on your odometer, you will pass a fire station on your right. Bear left at the fork and come to a STOP sign, and merge left onto Lockeland Rd.
At 1.5 miles, bear right onto Ridge St., and its name soon changes to Forest St.
At 1.9 miles, turn right onto Park Ave. Extension.
At 2.0 miles cross Summer St., which is Route 2A.
At 2.5 miles, cross Massachusetts Ave. at a signal, and go about 1/3 mile up the Park Ave. hill to the Florence Ave. signal.
Turn right onto Florence, and proceed three blocks (about 1/3 mile) to the school. To get to the parking lot, go past the school, and turn right onto George St. and then go right behind the school.

Entering the School

Players are expected to enter the school via the rear door - the one with a handle near the parking area behind the school. The gym is located in the center part of the school at ground level.
Your First Time

There is no club-joining fee, but you are expected to sign in and either pay the per-session walk-in fee (if/when walk-ins are able to be accommodated) or pay the half-season fee. On your first visit, you will be asked to fill out a small form, so the club can keep you informed of news, such as cancellations. Part of data collected includes an e-mail address. An e-mailing list is maintained by Mike Wolfberg, especially to inform players of cancellations. Mike maintains one list to cover announcements for both Arlington and Winchester badminton activities. If you ask Mike to be added to the e-mail list, please also say in what town you live. If you provide an e-mail address but would also like to be informed of a cancellation via phone, please make that known. These addresses are not publicly available - Mike keeps them on his own computer.

You will also be asked to fill out a magnetic name-card on which to print the name you prefer to be called - perhaps your nickname. Elaine may make this card for you. This name-card will be used on a ladder arrangement to determine the make-up of courts of 4 players.
The Ladder System for Selection of Team Players

At the very beginning of an evening, until the courts begin to fill, there may be time to get in a few games of singles, should you be so inclined. But after more than 8-12 players are available, the rest of the evening reverts to doubles play.

Name magnets of available players are arranged vertically on the left side of the PLAYING BOARD, under WAITING TO PLAY. The player (PICKER) whose name is at the top of the WAITING TO PLAY list (ladder) picks three players to make up a court. The selections must be made from among the top ten names on the ladder. The PICKER places the names on the first top-most empty magnet card in the center of the board under WAITING FOR COURT, keeping the names in the same order as on the WAITING TO PLAY list, except with the PICKER being the last player (#4) on the magnet card. If you are a newcomer, seek some guidance on the selection and pairing of partners from either the attendant on duty or one of the more experienced players.

Please inform the other 3 selected players that they have been selected, and how many courts need to be emptied prior to your team playing. This is very helpful in keeping games moving quickly. As courts become available, the top WAITING FOR COURT card of 4 players will be moved to the first empty court in the PLAYING ON COURT column.

When the four players have finished their game and come off the court, the vacated court is then available for the first team under WAITING FOR COURT. Courts are numbered sequentially, with Court 1 being nearest the entry to the gym. When leaving the court, the team PICKER is responsible for removing his/her group from PLAYING ON COURT, and replacing it with the first team under WAITING FOR COURT.

The PICKER of the team leaving the court, then moves the individual player name magnets back onto the WAITING TO PLAY list, immediately below the last name and in the same order in which they had been arranged on the team's magnet card. After placing the team's names back on the ladder, the now empty card is moved to the bottom of the WAITING FOR COURT column.

After completing your game and replacing your team card with a WAITING team, it is helpful to call out the name of that team’s PICKER and the court number you have vacated. When there are many players waiting, the attendant on duty will often move the magnets to help keep games moving quickly.

If you are selected and elect to not play with the selected group, you have the option of declining to play. The PICKER will place your name at the bottom of the WAITING TO PLAY list. If you wish to take a break from playing, you may place your name at the bottom of the WAITING TO PLAY list or remove it from the board. When you wish to resume play, you would again place your name magnet at the bottom of the WAITING TO PLAY list.

When you are done playing for the evening, please remove your magnet from the PLAYING BOARD and return it to the STORAGE BOARD, replacing it in the correct Alphabetical Order by the bold magnet name.
Please, do not hesitate to seek some guidance on picking and pairing teams.
Please mix your selection of players for more interesting play.
Not-so-great players, please limit choosing the more experienced players to just once a night.
Rules for Play

House rules dictate that foursomes should not switch courts once they have begun to use a court for play or practice.
The club supplies plastic birds, but if the players unanimously decide to use an alternative bird, they are welcome to do so.
When a bird hits the ceiling, it is considered to be OUT. If it hits any other obstruction, such as a rope hanging from the ceiling, the play is taken over.

The following are standard badminton rules - new as of 2006 - but are included here for the benefit of newcomers:

Standard 21-point games are played. Every rally results in a point. Service court is based on the evenness/oddness of the score of the serving team; the right court is used when the score is even, and the left court is used when the score is odd. When the serving team loses a rally, the serve goes to the other team. When the serving team scores, the players interchange court positions, and the same player continues as server. When the score is 20-20, a 2-point difference is required to win, up to a maxumum score of 30.
A bird's touching the net during play does not affect the play, even on a serve. This is unlike tennis. If a player or the player's racquet touches the net, it is a fault against that player.

Experienced players will help explain the boundary lines and other rules of play to first-timers. The USA Badminton web site includes a description of the rules of the game, but it doesn't seem to describe the boundary lines.