FAQ

Today’s letter should help you navigate and better understand the club. We are a unique club centered on a very unique sport. If you would like to learn more about the origins of the game, you can read and watch a video history here: http://platformtennishalloffame.org/event/the-founders-2/

If you would like to learn the game from the best instructors in the sport, we’ve posted the first 10 Tips from the APTA (American Platform Tennis Association) for you to learn from, right on our blog!  Check out the first one here, or go into our blog page and select PADDLE 101 from the categories list. All the videos are worth watching, when you have the time. You will also find that watching them multiple times throughout time will help your plat quite a bit.

 

https://thecedarclub.org/2016/06/01/lesson-1-drive-return-serve/

If you haven’t heard the story regarding the origins of our club, we have the story framed right when you enter the club. Basically it all boils down to a group of 30 guys that were playing paddle together for years at the Highland House restaurant. When the restaurant decided to get rid of the courts, the only way that the group could stay together was to form their own club. A small number of dedicated enthusiasts created an LLC and invested to launch The Cedar Club. Those of us that have followed are eternally grateful that they took the plunge, since it has evolved into the club that so many of us love today.

You have most likely joined the club as a league member. As such, we schedule a prearranged match for you each week (except your one bye week every nine weeks). If you are one of the top 40 players on the ladder, you will play two-thirds of your matches on Thursdays. If you are in the bottom 40 players you will play two-thirds of your matches on Wednesdays. The remaining 1/3 of your matches will be played on Tuesdays.

League is played in all weather conditions, except lighting storm. Matches are only cancelled by the consensus vote of all four members scheduled for the match. If it is raining, bring dry clothes to put on after your match. The different weather conditions are one of the interesting variables of the sport.

The club provides your match and the ball necessary to play. If you lose the ball, please have someone on the court (how about the guy who hits it over the fence and loses it or won’t retrieve the ball) drop $4 into the ball fund box on the wall next to the sliding door as you grab a replacement ball. Also, if you need a ball for any personal games that you schedule please also place $4 in the ball fund box. Ball fees are on your honor. At $4.00 a ball the club still loses money since each sleeve of 3 balls costs about $15.00.

You are expected to find your own sub when you cannot make your scheduled match time. Do not email all 80 members. Please look at the schedule to see who is playing before or after your match. Call or email one of those members who are ranked near you on the ladder. Some guys have created a list of about 10 guys who are ranked near them and shoot off an email when a sub is needed. Most guys will jump at a chance to play a second match. We also have social members who are listed at the bottom of the ladder who are willing to play. If you don’t get a response within a couple of hours, offer the spot to a second member or others. This isn’t hard to do. It shows respect to your fellow members that you didn’t leave them hanging and found an appropriate sub.

Please only email everyone when you have exhausted other options or it is a last second emergency. Nobody likes to receive 20 emails about matches that they really are not a fit for. Sending an email to all and forgetting about it is not acceptable. There is nothing worse than busting your butt to make it to the club for a 6:00 match to find out that you are a guy short and you can’t play a real match. We need to make sure that this never happens.

Tap beer is included in your membership fee. You will notice a good amount of pizza is eaten at the club. This is not provided by the club but again by a few members. If you enjoy eating the pizza, feel free to stop by the store and pick some up and bring it with you to share from time to time. The same can be said for any food that you find at the club.

You may also book the whole club for a personal party/outing. There are guidelines for this in our Club By-laws. These are printed and placed in the binders under the locker next to the refrigerator. An electronic copy will follow in another email very soon. Basically, you book the club the same way as booking a court, through our Yahoo Calendar. There are some fees for the private use of the club. We do have a $100 fee to reserve the whole club for an evening or afternoon. You are also expected to provide your own food and beverages.

Want to get some extra paddle in?  Have a paddle party with friends? Hone your game for an upcoming match?  Then feel free to book time on our court calendar via Yahoo.  It’s not too hard to do.

Here’s how:

STEP ONE: Go to the Yahoo Login page.  CLICK HERE

STEP TWO: Sign in using these credentials…
Enter your email:  Thecedarclub  (see adjacent image)
Password: Paddle6060

STEP THREE: You’re actually signed into The Cedar Club’s Yahoo Email account (so no messing around). Simply click on the MAIL icon.  Then click on the CALENDAR icon (found in the upper left of the page.  This will take you to the actual calendar.

STEP FOUR: Check to see if you date and time is available and then click on the “New Event” link.  Book your time and you’re good to go!  Please try to limit your play to 2 hours or less.

STEP FIVE: Log out under the CEDAR tab in the upper right of the page.

Remember, we do have two courts available for play.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ NOTE FROM THE BOARD _ _ _ _ _ _ _

• For private events before 5PM there is a 2 hour max.
• For private events on Friday night and the weekend, after 5PM you can reserve for more than 2 hours
• When the courts are reserved for private events, members should not show up and try to use the courts, even if there is a court not being used.  People are reserving and paying.  Members not involved in the event should not be on site.

  Over the holidays, all league and Thurs/Fri reserved courts will be removed from the calendar.  Lessons should not be scheduled over the holiday breaks.

Try to make it to an open paddle. As mentioned above, these are on Saturday mornings at 10:00 – 1:00. We play a pick-up match format. After you play a set, if others are waiting you rotate off. If others are not waiting, feel free to keep playing. We tend to have 15 – 20 guys show up most weeks. It has really turned into a great weekly event that many frequent.

Please also remember that we are not like other clubs that you may belong to. At The Cedar Club, members are expected to clean up after themselves. We do not have any paid staff that cleans or throws away cups and other items that you leave behind. A vacuum is behind the front door. If you make a mess, clean it up. Please don’t leave used cups lying around. Our trash cans are located in the corner to the left of the sliding doors. If you notice salt from the parking lot or leaves during the fall, feel free to pitch in and keep the clubhouse looking as nice it can.

While we do not have paid employees, we do have some awesome members who volunteer endless hours to make sure that your experience is a great one. Running a league with 100+ members is no easy task. It takes a great deal of time and project management skills to pull it off. At times, something/someone may fall through the cracks. If that happens, we will try our best to right the situation. But please remember, we also have day jobs and might not necessarily have the time to discuss how you feel that you should be rated 20 spots higher than you currently are during work hours. If you feel that a major mistake has been made with your ladder placement, feel free to reach out to us (use the Contact Page and send us your thoughts). The ladder does work. Over time it places everyone pretty much where their play dictates.

If you are the first person to enter the club, you will need to remember our door code (please see a Board Member for the current code).  Each button has two numbers on it. Make sure that you are pushing the right side of each button to enter this code properly.

When you are the last to leave the club, please do the following:

• Turn down the thermostat to the mid 40’s. Please don’t turn it off completely.
• Make sure that there aren’t any cups or debris lying around. Even if you didn’t make the mess, you are able to quickly clean it up.
• Check that the sliding doors are locked.
• Check that all lights, beer signs, T.V.’s and stereo are turned off.
• If the portable speaker was taken outside, please make sure that it is placed back next to the stereo and plugged into its charger.
• Press the lock button on the front door as you exit.

The club sponsors three tournaments a year. The Club Championship and the Fall Classic follow the same format. All league and social members are eligible to play. You are paired with a partner based on ladder position. The highest and lowest available members are paired and so on until the middle of those available are paired. This makes for great tournament and day. Everybody has a chance to win and receive their club championship vest.  The February Swing is our mixed doubles tournament. This tournament is formatted by the ladies and is also a great day of fun at the club.