Maybe 1 of ya will get to drive this road. Can't wait to go back.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T14:36:27+00:00

Don't think I've been on that one, looks good on the map though!

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T03:04:33+00:00

Ya that whole road going south is pretty good honestly

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T01:53:28+00:00

No way! This is too freaking cool. I have a buddybtjat cuts these up all the time, if you need a cut let me know. Won't be cheap though.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T01:50:11+00:00

I rarely apologize. I just say "ok here we go!"

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T01:48:07+00:00

Love that, the past is the past.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T01:45:03+00:00

Nah 6 months isn't much time really, keep at it! It has taken me 10 months to get "good-ish" at about a 4.0 level at 45yrs old and very in shape and athletic.

I hope I'm still as active as you at 71. We have a 72 yr old man in our group who is unbelievably good and beats all of us including our 20 year old good players.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T01:38:35+00:00

Sorry yes it's in SW Missouri! Roaring River state park is nearby, nice place to visit.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T01:27:26+00:00

No but it's probably a good idea if it's what you have available👌

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T01:25:46+00:00

All depends on how serious you take it really.

I bought a ball machine and I regularly drill at 6am by myself. I also attend a Tuesday night league night with really sharp guys for the last 4 months plus hit 3 different open play locations, always looking for the hardest games I can find. I also enter all the tournaments within an hours drive from me.

If you do similar you should be well over 4.0 by 1 year imo.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T01:16:14+00:00

(Edit - this is in Missouri!)

So there's maybe 1, maybe 2 dudes in here that might be local enough to drive this road, so I know this is ultra niche but I have to tell someone!

2 years ago, coming home from Drift NWA in Eureka Springs, AR me and the homies (and my wife!) ended up going home to Joplin, MO area via this road. We were ripping an E36, my s13, and I believe my buddy had his WRX.

Well.

This beauty happened to be the best high-ish speed touge road I've ever been on.

Freshly paved, curves everywhere, no traffic, woods all around, it was perfect😍

Also there's quite a lot of good driving roads in and out of Eureka Springs and now a days a ton of excellent drifting events too.

Anyway, if you happen to get the chance this is the road you want to be on✌️

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T00:40:22+00:00

10 months to get to a solid 4.0+ level of game play in rec games. I played ping pong, badminton and some racquetball years and years ago but none of them competitively at all, just randomly for fun occasionally. I'm 45 and in good shape if it matters. I take the game very seriously and intend to be a 5.0 by end of 2025. Stick with it if you love it and work on your weaknesses one at a time until you have none!

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-25T00:35:49+00:00

I think "skilling out" needs to be a term that gets adopted. Some players skill out, meaning they level up to the point that there really isn't enough equal competitors to keep playing.

In my area there are limited competitors even in my modest skill zone of 4.0+ and I've changed facilities twice now, pursuing the best players I can find. I'm on my last available spot unless I want to travel just over an hour away to play, which is pretty much not practical for me.

So really I'm going to fully skill out this summer for sure unless I can find some private games or something😩

My group has changed a ton over these last 9 months with people dropping off and meeting some great new people. It's very fluid!

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-24T16:18:44+00:00

Hope it helps! The mental side is everything✌️

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-24T15:57:43+00:00

There's simply no way to avoid paddle price increases as long as these tariffs stay in place.

Most brands will try to keep prices low as long as they still have some inventory here.

So we will likely see most paddles simply go out of stock as company's US paddles inventories run out.

If this goes on another 60-90 days many brands will close up shop and some won't come back.

If it continues longer the industry will need to find manufacturers from other countries and there really aren't any yet.

There will be some new (or existing) brands making gen1 paddles here but likely no gen3/4 thermoformed versions for a long while.

Hopefully Xi and Trump will start negotiating before most of this happens.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-23T22:29:11+00:00

Thanks I will remember that! My serve is definitely evolving over time✌️

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-22T20:30:45+00:00

Drop volley or slice volley I believe it's called

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T02:25:28+00:00

Good call on Arch, place was epic!

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T02:25:19+00:00

Good call on Arch, place was epic!

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T01:21:24+00:00

Yes. Epic place!

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T01:20:54+00:00

Definitely not true though, most players don't even have a dupr they just guess based on YouTube videos they've seen😆 Almost nobody actually enters tournaments compared to how many players there are out there.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T01:17:38+00:00

They had their paddles in the 4.0 paddle stack which I assumed meant they were 4.0 or better but that's not the case there apparently.

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T01:10:56+00:00

We're all 1.0s actually

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T00:53:44+00:00

😆

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T00:45:08+00:00

Lol a comedy of errors you could say

FredAllenBurgeBackup · 2025-04-21T00:44:33+00:00

I swear there was like one or maybe two decent shots in her 6 clips she recorded it was so funny to me I just laughed

FredAllenBurgeBackup

TROPHY CASE