Andrew & Nathan Wiggin reach Nationals Semi-Finals

The Hinsdale duo trekked the furthest of any in the 10 & under boys draw at the Nationals -- which this year numbered 20 teams.

Andrew (10) and Nathan (8) played four teams in a qualifying round at the Racquets Club, winning the most games of any of the teams in their bracket.

They advanced to the quarter-finals at the Beacon Hill Club. From this point on, Nathan was the youngest competitor to set foot on the aluminum deck.

In the quarters, the boys beat a talented team from Connecticut, 8-5, to advance to the semi-finals.

Their opponents in the semis -- from Garden City, New York -- brought the heat with tough forehand drives and breezed through the first set.

Digging deep, the Wiggin boys stepped up their own offense and took an early lead in the second set. They held on to a 7-5 victory.

All four players began to show signs of wear and tear as they kicked off the third set. Andrew and Nathan took the match to 30-all at 4-4 in the final set before things went the wrong way. This semi-final match ended 1-6, 7-5, 4-6.

It was a terrific paddle experience and impressive results for a young team at their first Nationals tournament!

Links to Make Reservations and for Events

The links on the right have been updated, hopefully to be a little more convenient. "Court Reservations" now takes you to today and bypasses the password entry. "HPTA Events" takes you into the view of the next few weeks of leagues and social paddle.

Platform Tennis News

This excerpt is take from Chuck Vasoll's latest issue of Platform Tennis News:
http://www.platformtennisnews.com/2008_01_Issue/Web_Sites_Blogs_Email.html

"I gave the “beta” site an “Add-In” in my last issue and was pleased to hear from Paul Wiggin (by e-mail) thanking me for the compliment. We have had further communication (by e-mail) as he asked me to review the Hall of Fame presentation on the “beta” site authored by Bob Brown and Taylor Bowen. This item was already “in the can” (as they say in movie production) awaiting presentation on the existing web site. Mr. Wiggin finally caught up with it and put it on the site. The background of the sport, by the individuals who did so much for it, is presented in a very attractive manner. It is an excellent presentation and well worth the few minutes it takes to check it out. Click HERE to see it.

"Mr. Wiggin also gives a glimpse of the future for the site. He mentions an improved process to record membership and tournament registration, which will go on-line. He issues an invitation to contribute to the site, either once or throughout the season. The “beta” site has made a good start and here’s hoping that the new APTA site can live up to its promise."

Six Draws for the Hinsdale Tournament Announced

Copies of the entry form are available at KLM and HGC. You can also print the Entry form on google docs.

Support the Sport

The TENNIS CHANNEL OPEN in early March will include a one-hour exhibition about platform tennis. In order to promote paddle, a court will be built in Las Vegas just for this match!

Support the cause by buying a $100 raffle ticket.

First prize is airfare and 3 nights lodging for two to see the OPEN.

There are forty more prizes -- 20 Viking paddles and 20 one-hour lessons by PPTA pros.

Hinsdale Junior Paddle Program - Only a Few Spots Left

Update on January 9th --
Only two spots are open at 4 PM (7 to 10 years) and three spots open at 5 PM (11+ years)

Don't Let Your Kids Spend The Winter Indoors. Let Them Enjoy Paddle Outside All Winter Long!!! All levels are welcome.

When: Mondays (January 14Th - March 10) (8-week session)
No Paddle on February 18Th-Presidents'™ Day
4-5PM (7-10 year olds)
5-6PM (11+ years)
End of the year tournament with pizza and prizes!!

Where: KLM (Katherine Legge Memorial Park)
Cost: $160
How to Join: Contact Ellen Magrini at ellenmagrini@aol.com or 773-771-7179.
What it is: Fun, fun, and more fun. Paddle games, paddle drills, paddle parties, paddle playing!

HPTA Board Elections Certified

The HPTA election of 2007 wound up as we rang in the new year on December 31st. Congratulations to:

Mary Doten, reelected as Vice President (term 2007-2009)
Susie Dunphy, elected as Vice President (term 2007-2009)
Ed Usher, reelected as Vice President (term 2007-2009)
Paul Wiggin, reelected as Vice President (term 2007-2009)

Results have subsequently been certified by the firm of Dewey, Cheatem & Howe, LLP. We'd like to thank our travel coordinator, Althea Around, our Swedish attorney, Bjorn Liar, our staff mediator, Sue First, our PR Director, Bea Esser, our staff philosopher, Wanda Y. Datso, our help desk coordinator, Dan Diffino, our head of security, Barb Dwyer, our head of buildings and grounds, Moe D'Lawn, our director of long-range strategic planning, Kay Sera, our director of global warming, Nomar Winter, and our director of ethics, U. Lyon Sack.

Wringing in the New Year with Round Robins

Sixty players participated in two nights of paddle this week at KLM. Partners and opponents changed after each set in this round robin tournament.

The players were drawn from Hinsdale's 4 women's traveling teams and 14 men's teams -- almost 200 people in all were invited to play.

Mixing the group gave new players a chance to pair up with nationally ranked competitors. A few commented that they were experiencing what sometimes feels like a completely different game than the one your buddies typically think of as platform tennis.

On Friday night, several of the top women in Hinsdale paddle turned out to play and raised the issue of which gender is really the weaker sex. None of the men present were silly enough to emulate Bobby Riggs by challenging the national champ to a battle of the sexes.

There were plenty of chances to catch up during the evening in between rounds and for some of us that socializing was just as much fun as the competition.

My thanks to Holly Tritt for running the Friday night round robin. Special thanks to Paul Garvin and Donn York for bringing refreshments for everyone.

The HPTA will definitely need to keep this tradition alive and growing in Hinsdale even as the programs keep expanding! It's too much fun to give up.