Rack ‘em up!

The narrow trail wound close to thick tall trees, and in the dark of night with ferns crowding in on both sides, they needed to be very careful so as not to fall. This was a clandestine meeting deep in the dark woods to decide how to have pool playing without any bar box tables available to play pool on.

With public pool playing possibly weeks or even months into the future, something had to be done, and so the players had gathered for an emergency meeting. The biggest questions were around how many players to have, and who the players would be. Because that fact is nearly all Fort Bragg pool league players would like to play, but space would be severely limited, and it had to be determined how to be fair first, to the owners of the tables.

Will there be a need for porta-potties? You think? And what about the money to service them? Oh, by the way, do you know anyone that would like a porta-potty in the front or backyard of their home? Maybe that might not be everybody, but well yeah, most likely you are right, not for anyone. Will the women players want to field a team? Well, that is a big yes.

How many players per team, and what days and hours of play? I dunno, does every night from 5 ‘ til midnight sound ok? I suspect that would be classified as absolutely no way.

Well, the good news is, discussions have started and players should know soon what has been decided. There won’t be room for everybody that wants to play for sure, because six players in a home are a lot of people, and more than one day a week would be hard for any homeowner. Maybe they will simplify everything and just do tournaments when and where feasible? If you have any ideas, please share them; those with inquiring minds and itchy pool fingers would like to know what you think about all of this.

The Man from Lincoln has his table up and running now. Hugh had a pro do his table, the same person that did Sean and Rick’s tables. The pro personally knows the top pro that did Casper John’s table and was impressed that anyone this far north would know of him or could convince him to come and do a table here. He said the manwas “the very best,” but that he was nearly as good, although it did take himlonger to finish a table set-up.

If results matter, I would agree with him. He did a beautiful job on every table he has worked on locally, and after playing on any of the tables he set up, you would agree too. The difference between a good and a great table is vast on a pool table. Speed is a big difference. You might have a flat table, but to have a ball roll slowly for a table length without seeming to lose much speed takes good felt and superb stretching of the felt. Hugh spent a year fixing up his room, it is a beauty of a roomwithout distractions, no television or music. The only noise is the balls striking each other.

He was given the 4×8 Golden West MFG pool table by a good friend from out of town. The friend came to play after it was finished. He was astonished that it played so very different, faster by far and level were his first observations. When you can slow roll a ball without it going offline, that is a true pleasure formost pool players.