special to the garden island “It’s a different game than the one I played for 40 years,” table tennis player Parr Farris said of the sport, which is offered at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center a few times a week. Farris
special to the garden island
“It’s a different game than the one I played for 40 years,” table tennis player Parr Farris said of the sport, which is offered at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center a few times a week.
Farris credited Darren Carillo of Kekaha as the magnet that brings table tennis enthusiasts together. Carillo’s training in China and at Texas Wesleyan University gives him experience greater than most fans of the game.
Farris said they would like to get younger people involved to have fun and to understand that there is a higher level of play. In ping-pong, a more familiar game to many, the paddle face has bumps or “pips.”
In table tennis, however, the pips face in, so the paddle has a smooth rubber face.
“This makes for a much faster game, a game of speed and spin,” Farris said. For him, this makes the game an “everyman sport” because it requires hand-eye coordination and quickness, rather than strength or size.
Farris also described table tennis as a calorie burner and an excellent aerobic sport, as it’s not uncommon for players to break a sweat during an intense match.
Devin Ortal, a regular at the Kalaheo center, said he was introduced to the game as an elementary student when he attended the Boys and Girls Club in Waimea. It wasn’t until he started playing while attending the Oregon Institute of Technology that he fell in love with the game.
Ortal wanted to continue to play on Kaua‘i, so he searched the Internet and found Carillo’s name. He made contact and is now a regular at the Kalaheo center.
Other experienced regulars include George A. Papapetrou and Michael Chandler. Papapetrou is an internationally ranked player who moved to Hanapepe from Florida and earned his ranking through competitive tournaments.
Chandler, a Kaua‘i native, was a table tennis club champion at Brigham Young University in Utah. He was introduced to the game while attending BYU Hawai‘i, then known as Church College of Hawai‘i. Chandler said there were a number of good Chinese and South Pacific (Samoan and Tongan) players who taught him the game.
At one time, the Chinese dominated the game. The basic difference between the Chinese and the European/American style of play is how the paddle is held. The Chinese use the pen grip, which, as it name implies, resembles the way one holds a pen. The European/American style uses a hand shake grip.
There are also different ways to hit the ball that create a variety of spins.
But even with all the nuances of the sport, interested participants don’t need to be experts to join in the fun at the Kalaheo center.
Farris said the regulars help beginners develop their skills up to the level where they can enjoy the game.
“The idea is to have fun,” he said. “All people need to bring to the table … is a desire to have fun and play table tennis, and we will take it from there.”
The group welcomes children as young as 6 as well as senior citizens.
Clyde Vito, who manages all activities at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center, said he is always on the lookout for activities to offer the community in addition to the current senior program activities, Tahitian dance, aerobics, kajukenbo and table tennis.
A hip-hop dance class begins Sunday afternoon, and Vito is considering ‘ukulele classes and adding more youth-oriented classes.
For more information on center activities, call Vito at 332-9770.
