to Boston Area MA and Southern NH Badminton Clubs

Arlington, Massachusetts Badminton Club

Here is the latest info updated 21-Feb-23.

The Winter/Spring 2023 Season will begin on January 6 for Friday nights of play through April 7. Play is from 6:30 through 9:30 p.m.

The Spring 2023 Season will begin on April 14 for Friday nights of play through June 30. Play is from 6:30 through 9:30 p.m.

The Spring 2023 Season will begin on April 11 for Tuesday nights of play through June 27. Play is from 6:30 through 9:30 p.m.

This activity is for players aged 16 and up. The fee for the these nights is $185, whether you are an Arlington resident or not. The fee is non-refundable. You can also drop in for $25 per night with cash at the door.

Fees for season passes are NOT refundable, and previously-paid walk-in fees cannot be credited towards season pass fees.

Beware that the school sometimes cancels badminton evenings with less than week of notice - perhaps with a one-day notice.

Play is at the Cyrus Dallin School Gym located at 185 Florence Avenue and George Street, Arlington, MA. Park behind the school, enter via left door, walk straight down the hall to the gym.

Shuttlecocks are supplied. Some racquets will be available for use, and often there are racquets available for purchase. Chauncy Liu also strings racquets.

Registering for Season Passes can be done at Arlington recreation.

You can get to this page with this shortcut URL: http://abc.wolfberg.net.

This page is organized into the following sections:

Introduction

This club has been meeting at this venue since early 2007 at the Cyrus Dallin Elementary School on the corner of Florence Ave. and George St. in Arlington, MA, off Park Ave. between Route 2 and Massachusetts Ave. Use "10 George Street" in googlemaps.com to show you the closest point to the rear parking lot.

The club does not play when there are special events being held in the school gym, or when the school is closed due to school holidays, school vacation days, or snow days. When in doubt, email or call one of the club officials listed below, or call the Arlington Recreation Office (781-316-3880). Also, school "Inclement Weather/Program Cancellations" are posted at https://www.arlingtonrec.com/info/dept/details.aspx?DeptInfoID=908 For general ArlRec Office email inquiries use: recoffice@town.arlington.ma.us

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No player is permitted to enter the building or gym prior to 6:15 p.m. Dress is casual, with rubber-soled footwear required. The gym is set up with three standard badminton courts. Red lines are painted on the gym floor with doubles and singles lines on all three courts. The ceilings are very high - higher than most gyms; it is unlikely you can hit a bird that high.

If it is snowing, sleeting, raining, or sandy, please do not wear your court playing shoes from the car to the gym. If you have no other shoes that you can wear, put plastic bags over your sneakers. Please do not wear shoes into the gym that have snow, ice, sand, or water residing in the treads.

This club uses the 21-point game rules for all games.

The club supplies, at no additional charge, tournament-grade yellow Yonex 350 nylon birds for play, but if the players assigned to a court agree unanimously to use an alternative bird for their match, they may do so.

The Thursday Club operates in a similar manner to that of the Winchester Badminton Club. The evening consists primarily of game play, although you can frequently get in some practice early or late. Play is almost exclusively doubles, but there are not regular partnerships. Instead, as explained below in the "Ladder System" section, attempts are made to arrange matches with even strength on both sides, as well as to diversify partnerships throughout the evening. The club does not provide refreshments or snacks, and no shower facilities are available. Restrooms and water fountains are located just outside the gym.

Club Contacts

Questions, such as whether or not the club will be playing on a particular evening, should be directed to:

Chauncy Liu 617-642-1099 (Malden)
email: ChauncyLiu@hotmail.com
Arlington Recreation Office 781-316-3880

A Map Showing the Club Location

You can view a map, showing where the club meets.

Directions to the Dallin School from Route 128

Take Route 128 (same as I-95) to Exit #29, Route 2 and head East. Go almost 3 miles to Route 2's Exit 57 for "Dow Ave. Arlmont". Proceed on the exit ramp about 1/2 mile to the flashing yellow signal. Turn left under Route 2. After stopping at the STOP sign, continue straight on Dow Ave., and take this about 1/3 mile to the end. Turn right onto Rhinecliff, and then in one short block, turn left onto Florence Ave. The school is the on the far left corner at the next street, which is George St. To get to the school parking lot, turn left onto George St. and then go right behind the school.

Directions to the Dallin School from Cambridge

Take Route 2 West out of Cambridge, past the Alewife T Station. Take Route 2's exit 57 for "Dow Ave., Arlington, Belmont". From the exit ramp, merge onto the access road and continue 0.3 miles, passing a church on your right. Then turn right onto Dow Ave., and take this about 1/3 mile to the end. Turn right onto Rhinecliff, and then in one short block, turn left onto Florence Ave. The school is the on the far left corner at the next street, which is George St. To get to the school parking lot, turn left onto George St. and then go right behind the school.

Directions to the Dallin School from Lexington Center

Take Mass Ave. East. Follow Routes 4 and 225, which divert from Mass Ave. past the town center. After this diversion, you will pass the Wilson Farms farm stand on your left. 1/4 mile past Wilson Farms, bear left at the fork, following signs for Route 2 East. After crossing Route 2, bear right to continue heading to Route 2 East. Before getting on to the highway, bear right on the exit ramp for Exit 57, "Dow Ave.". Proceed on the exit ramp about 1/2 mile to the flashing yellow signal. Turn left under Route 2. After stopping at the STOP sign, continue straight on Dow Ave., and take this about 1/3 mile to the end. Turn right onto Rhinecliff, and then in one short block, turn left onto Florence Ave. The school is the on the far left corner at the next street, which is George St. To get to the school parking lot, turn left onto George St. and then go right behind the school.

Directions to the Dallin School from Winchester Center

There is a small rotary in Winchester Center, where Church St. is one of the streets which connects there. As you leave the rotary, you will pass a gas station and then a drug store on your right where there is a "Prescriptions" sign on the building. Take Church St. away from the center, crossing Route 3 (Cambridge St.) at a signal.

Zero your trip odometer at this intersection. Proceed up the hill on High St., and you soon pass the Ambrose School on your right. Then:

Entering the School

Players are expected to enter the school via the left rear door - the one with a handle near the parking area behind the school. The gym is located in the center part of the school at ground level. Enter and walk straight down the hall to the gym.

Your First Time

There is no club-joining fee, but you are expected to sign up for a season pass in advance or pay the per-night walk-in fee (if/when walk-ins are able to be accommodated) or pay the current season fee. On your first visit, you will be asked to fill out a small form, so the club can keep you informed of news, such as cancellations. Part of data collected includes an email address. An emailing list is maintained by Mike Wolfberg, especially to inform players of cancellations. Mike used to maintains one list to cover announcements for both Arlington and Winchester badminton activities. Chauncy has taken over this responsibility. If you provide an email address but would also like to be informed of a cancellation via phone, please make that known. These addresses are not publicly available.

You will also be asked to fill out a magnetic name-card on which to print the name you prefer to be called - perhaps your nickname. Chauncy may make this card for you. This name-card will be used on a ladder arrangement to determine the make-up of courts of 4 players.

The Ladder System for Selection of Team Players

At the very beginning of an evening, until the courts begin to fill, there may be time to get in a few games of singles, should you be so inclined. But after more than 8-12 players are available, the rest of the evening reverts to doubles play.

Name magnets of available players are arranged vertically on the left side of the PLAYING BOARD, under WAITING TO PLAY. The player (PICKER) whose name is at the top of the WAITING TO PLAY list (ladder) picks three players to make up a court. The selections must be made from among the top ten names on the ladder. The PICKER places the names on the first top-most empty magnet card in the center of the board under WAITING FOR COURT, keeping the names in the same order as on the WAITING TO PLAY list, except with the PICKER being the last player (#4) on the magnet card. If you are a newcomer, seek some guidance on the selection and pairing of partners from either the attendant on duty or one of the more experienced players.

Please inform the other 3 selected players that they have been selected, and how many courts need to be emptied prior to your team playing. This is very helpful in keeping games moving quickly. As courts become available, the top WAITING FOR COURT card of 4 players will be moved to the first empty court in the PLAYING ON COURT column.

When the four players have finished their game and come off the court, the vacated court is then available for the first team under WAITING FOR COURT. Courts are numbered sequentially, with Court 1 being nearest the entry to the gym. When leaving the court, the team PICKER is responsible for removing his/her group from PLAYING ON COURT, and replacing it with the first team under WAITING FOR COURT.

The PICKER of the team leaving the court, then moves the individual player name magnets back onto the WAITING TO PLAY list, immediately below the last name and in the same order in which they had been arranged on the team's magnet card. After placing the team's names back on the ladder, the now empty card is moved to the bottom of the WAITING FOR COURT column.

After completing your game and replacing your team card with a WAITING team, it is helpful to call out the name of that team’s PICKER and the court number you have vacated. When there are many players waiting, the attendant on duty will often move the magnets to help keep games moving quickly.

If you are selected and elect to not play with the selected group, you have the option of declining to play. The PICKER will place your name at the bottom of the WAITING TO PLAY list. If you wish to take a break from playing, you may place your name at the bottom of the WAITING TO PLAY list or remove it from the board. When you wish to resume play, you would again place your name magnet at the bottom of the WAITING TO PLAY list.

When you are done playing for the evening, please remove your magnet from the PLAYING BOARD and return it to the STORAGE BOARD, replacing it in the correct Alphabetical Order by the bold magnet name.

Please, do not hesitate to seek some guidance on picking and pairing teams.
Please mix your selection of players for more interesting play.
Not-so-great players, please limit choosing the more experienced players to just once a night.

Rules for Play

The following are standard badminton rules - new as of 2006 - but are included here for the benefit of newcomers:

Experienced players will help explain the boundary lines and other rules of play to first-timers. The This Wikipedia article includes a description of the rules of the game.


back to the top of this page This page, maintained by Mike Wolfberg, was last updated on May 25, 2023 .