Minimizing injury risks at sacred holy land & collision_zones around table_tennis tables
Please read the disclaimer page first if you can.
What is a sacred & holy land ? It is the area about 3 feet and beyond lengthwise for each table is sacred holy land for lobbers, choppers and counter-loopers. I am fully aware of the fact that most players, especially lower level players, do not spend any time in this area. Nevertheless, it is a serious injury risk if players:
What is a sacred & holy land ? It is the area about 3 feet and beyond lengthwise for each table is sacred holy land for lobbers, choppers and counter-loopers.
What is a collision zone ? It is the area to the sides of each table when each individal table is not barriererd.
In permanent setups such as in rec rooms of Carpenter Park Rec Center or Oak Point Rec. Center or rec area of TMRC , collison zones MUST be completely eliminated by fully barriering each table on all 4 sides. Otherwise it is a serious safety violation. This is NOT optional such as with temporary setups inside gyms at TMRC or Liberty.
I am fully aware of the fact that most players, especially lower level players, do not spend any time in the sacred holy land area. Nevertheless, it is a serious injury risk if players:
- Leave bags or other stuff in sacred holy land behind any table , not just your
- Leave the bleachers there
- Sit there in sacred holy land or in collision zones
- Just hang around there in sacred holy land or in collision zones
- Just walk back and forth for no reason (This is also why I have been begging TMRC to get rid of the signup board on the far back wall and just use one signup board for all 12 tables
Keep in mind that it does not matter if you leave your personal items right behind the table you are playing. It is still a problem because when you switch sides with your opponents at teh end of each game, your opponenent could trip on your bags and injure themselves.Also if someone is walking near your bags, they have to walk around those bags & the risk of them running into you or your opponenents while you are playing also increases that much.
Please always keep your personal items such as bags right next to the table you are playing on or even better, under it. This also gives you a chain of custody because if you leave your bags on the bleahers or near bleachers etc, you cannot keep an eye on your personal items & someone else could walk away with your bag deliberately (theft) or by pure accident (identical looking bag or racket etc). Both things happen more often thnyou think at all recreation centers
What most players do not seem to understand is this > If you are not someone who uses the sacred zone, you may think it does not matter if you put your bags there. But what happens when you switch ends with your opponents for the next game & if your opponent uses the sacred zone? What if he or she trips on your bags & gets injured? Who is responsible?
This is also the same problem if you are standing or sitting in the sacred land because your friend or relative is playing on that table.
Think about not just yourself but others as well.
If someone is standing or sitting in holy land explain to them politely why & ask them to move.
If you are playing in Carpenter Park Rec Room and if someone is sitting in the sofas behind you, warn them that you are not responsible if you accidentally rip their face off. Carpenter Park has refused to move these sofas despite repeated requests over a few years.
Please also make sure you warn anyone using the air hockey table or pool tables since Carpenter Park has refused to barrier the table despite repeated requests over a few years.
If you are playing in TMRC rec room warn everyone around you to stay away. TMRC has refused to barrier the table despite repeated requests over a few years.
If you are playing at Oak Point Rec room, make sure you warn those playing pool or foosball. Oak Point has refused to barrier the table despite repeated requests over a few years.
So it would help greatly if you keep your bags under the table you are playing and not leave them in the area right behind your table.
The bleachers have roller wheels & can be moved from this area.
I completely understand why the bleachers are sitting
where they sit for basketball or volleyball sessions. You do not want the
bleachers behind the nets to prevent players running into them &
injuring themselves. But this also the EXACT reason why you do not want the
bleachers sitting in the sacred holy land. In both cases you do not want the
bleachers you do do not want the bleachers facing
the length of the basketball court or table tennis court but you want them
on the sides
This is why it is so frustrating for
me when even players who use the holy sacred land a lot do not take the initiative
to move the bleachers away from the holy sacred land and set them against
the shorter width wall before the session starts
Have a look at the attached pictures of bags & bleachers in the sacred holy land in TMRC & Carpenter Park.
Carpenter Park is even worse & even more crazy because those sofas are there just to make the rec room pretty and that is sadly hilarious because players who are sitting there are sitting ducks for an impending high-speed collision.
BTW FYI the Plano Rec. does not like you moving the chairs from the Rec. area into the gym.
Take a look at the 3 diagrams below for Carpenter Park Rec. Room, Oak Point Rec Room & TMRC gym that further explains the concept of holy & sacred land as well as collision zones.
For rec rooms with permanent setup sucas at Carpenter Park Rec room or Oak Point Rec Room and TMRC rec area, permanent barriers on 4 sides for each individual tables are an ABSOLUTE MUST to minimize injury risks.
For weeky setups inside the gyms, individual barriering of tables is not possible if you will have like 8 tables at Liberty or 12 tables at TMRC
Additional details about each current setup & proposed safe setup for all three recreation centers are shown in separate webpages in this website. Click on the 4 links below to view them
Carpenter Rec Room : Current dangerous setup & proposed safe setup Oak Point Rec Room : Current dangerous setup & proposed safe setup TMRC Rec Room : Current dangerous setup & proposed safe setup TMRC Gym 12 tables : Current setup & proposed safer setup
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