First memories of playing badminton + China Open 2010

I remember back in middle school, I was introduced to badminton in my 7th grade PE class. My Asian friend demanded that I be her partner because naturally, I quote, "Asian teams will dominate". Sadly, I disappointed her. :(

It's funny how things change so drastically. My teacher held her racket, which was bent out of shape, and was teaching us the rules of serving. Under the waist, has to go past the service line, etc etc. One student curiously raised his hand and asked "What if we serve it, it hits the top of the net, but it still goes in?"

My PE teacher chuckled and said "Hahaha, I've never seen THAT happen before, and I doubt it will, but I suppose that would count as in."

Little did I know, a few years later, I'd be seeing those kinds of serves at least a few times a day. Not only would I be seeing them, I would be serving them, intentionally keeping them as close to the net as possible, praying deep down that that very scenario of clipping the net would help me in confusing the receiver.

____________________________________________________________

IT IS NOVEMBER 30, 2010 and the China Open Super Series 2010 has begun!

You can check the seeded entries, tournament organization and scores here on tournament software.

A big GOOD LUCK to the Americans making us proud this year! Tony Gunawan, Howard Bach, Iris Wang, Rena Wang, Paula Obanana, Iris Lee, Halim Haryanto & Mathew Fogarty.

Tony Gunawan&Howard Bach are going up first against Fu Haifeng&Cai Yun-- that should be a fun game to watch!

In addition, it's nice to see Taipei's Wen Hsing Cheng and Yu Chin Chen as FIRST SEED in Women's Doubles!!! A big congratulations to the both of them for putting Taiwan on the Badminton map!

Frankly, though, I'm most excited to see Vita Marissa and Hendra Gunawan of Indonesia. Seeing them play at the Taipei Open has me excited to see them win another one (I hope!). Vita Marissa is undoubtedly my favorite mixed player...not only does she play well, but she always seems so happy on and off the court. Wish I could be like that....!

Anyways, keep updated on the China Open 2010! Feel free to comment below to guess who you think will win each event, or who you're rooting for this year!
_______________________________________________________________

SBC is ready to be open to the public!

Planning to be open Dec. 3rd, 2010! Don't forget to go check it out and sign up for a membership to make use of their awesome promotions!

Hope you're getting ready for the BCD+A! See you at the club!

BCD+A T-Shirt Preview + SBC?

The holiday has come to an end, and I heard many people scored some good badminton-related Black Friday deals online!

Don't forget that although Black Friday stampedes are over, Cyber Monday is JUST around the corner, and that means online stores are getting ready to have their digital shopping carts filling up for the holidays!

Make sure you do your research and look for some good Thanksgiving holiday deals online...it's never too late to stock up!

___________________________________________________________________

For those of you playing in the BCD+A Open Tournament 2010 , make sure you check tournament software to scout out your competition! Not only can you use it to look at the players you're going to be up against-- you can look up past tournaments and see how they've faired against earlier opponents. You can never be too prepared!

Here's a little preview to the T-shirt:

Here's another tip: (although it seems obvious, many people don't do it). Try watching a match of your favorite players before training and before your game. Not only will this keep you engaged in improving the way you play, but this will also pump you up to do your best at the tournament!

And be sure to make friends with your opponents--whether you win or you lose-- and other players as well. You'll never know what good tips they'll provide!

_____________________________________________________________

Seattle Badminton Club opening has been delayed, and they expect to open within the first two weeks of December, in time for the BCD+A.

Make sure you e-mail them to ensure your spot as a member so you can benefit from the awesome promotions they have going on!

If many of you have been exploring the various tabs that are on SBC's main website, then you should be excited about Wendy Carter, who will be the new Head Coach!

Excerpt from the website:

"The club’s head coach, Wendy Carter, represented Canada and was one of the top players in the world through the late 70s and early 80s – ranking as high as third in the world in Women’s Singles in 1978. She has a Level 4 Canadian Coaching Certification, and is currently the USA Badminton Region 4 Head Coach. Wendy has also coached the US Uber Cup Team and World Championship teams in recent years. As one of the highest qualified coaches in North America, Wendy Carter will lead the coaching staff in our club to provide professional services to players of all levels!"

Wendy's been quite famous in WA badminton history, and it's safe to say that many of us are excited to see her there!

_________

I've also received a lot of questions regarding the drop-in fee at the new club.

To my knowledge, it goes like this:

Adult drop-in fee: $7.00 a day (tax included)

Seniors (60 and over), Junior (under 18) or Student (with valid student ID): $5.00 a day (tax included)

Renting courts are

$15.00 per hour + tax for Members

$18.00 per hour + tax for Non-Members

These are both for Non-Peak times, and reservations must be made 48 hours in advanced through e-mail or phone.

_____________________________________________

So mark your calendars!

Don't forget to comment, subscribe to the right, and link BadmintonSquare!

See you soon!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! Hope everyone is enjoying their holiday. Stay warm!

_____________________________________________

Badmintology's Weekend Warrior Open 2010 is coming up...starting tomorrow evening!

Their T-Shirt designs were just released...you can check them out at

Badmintology Main Website

The draws are out, too! And they were nice enough to post up bussing information in case you're afraid of braving the ice!

For those of you not able to attend this time, they plan to have their next tournament, the Roller Coaster Open, on Febuary 18-20, 2010. Gives you a little time to find a mixed doubles partner after Valentine's day....? (I've actually heard many many badminton-related Valentine's day stories...but I'll be saving them until February! :D)

________________________________________________________________

Oh...me? Why...I double majored in Communications and Badmintology. Yes. The study of badminton. (harharhar)

For those of you wanting to start playing tournaments...or have been scarred by higher level tournaments, I would highly recommend signing up for Badmintology. It's a great experience--it's well organized, very friendly, and they split it up into 3 different levels so you can feel comfortable at playing your best-- Blue, Red and Green. (If it makes anyone feel better, I played in Green!).

It's a great place to meet other badminton players, experiment different levels...and best of all, there are other activities to engage in while you're not playing! (I hate waiting! RAGH!) At least, that's how it was last time I went!

For a minor recap, I went during the MoonLight Open 2010 during the end of September. It was a sort of...mini-vacation before school started for me.

MyJPScion, one of their sponsors, had set up a booth with a PS3 for you to race cars and win prizes. (I lost. so, so horribly.)

There's a wide age range of players as well, and they're all so friendly...no matter what level.

Best of all, it's cheap, and you get a free t-shirt for just participating!

So go for it! And feel free to e-mail or comment with your own thoughts and/or pictures, and I'll be happy to post them up here :)

__________________________________________________________________

Anyways. I hope all of you are enjoying your holidays! Keep reading--I'll be posting the BCD+A design ............some...time...soon! ;)

I'll see you at BCD+A 2010!

Snow-ed in?

Well, my part of the world cannot survive with snowfall-- the roads get all iced up, and it's courageous to venture out with your car...it doesn't matter whether you're a fantastic driver, cars will come sliding backwards out of nowhere. It's pretty terrifying.

Even after all of this, I still have people asking me whether I'm going to the gym today. Love it.

For those of you who are snowed in and need your badminton fix, there are plenty of things you can do:

Badminton Online

I actually had a friend send me that link when I was in Taiwan and hadn't played for 3 weeks. It's terribly hard, mind you, but I've had some friends who were determined to beat it. Needless to say, they tend to do well in real-live tournaments....

Everyone knows about Wii's Deca Sports. I actually have this game...a whole group of us have a tendency to all go play badminton, have dinner at my house and end up playing this. Apparently, we just never get sick of it.

And then....I hear of Super Badminton 2010 for the iPhone/iTouch/etc.

Youtube Link

Made for the iPhone/iTouch for badminton addicts like us, I've get to try it out. I do own an iTouch, but for some reason, prices for gadgets on the iPhone appear more expensive than they are.

"What? 99 cents? I'll have to think about that..."

This 3D rendition is $2.99 in iTunes, and it claims to have gotten more than one million app downloads. :O So far, the reviews have been pretty positive...although the overall ratings aren't...?! Anyone have it?

Link to Buy

_____________________________________________________________

BCD+A

For those of you wondering, the shirt has been completed. Sponsored by Yonex, they'll be a charcoal color and the design...well, you'll see.

We have a fantastic turn-out, and seeing that people have found the ability to toy with the country, it seems very diverse! (American, Korea, Canada, Phillipines...!)

Open A Men's Singles: 9

BCD MS: 24

Open A Women's Singles: 3

BCD WS: 7

Open A Men's Doubles: 10

BCD MD: 18

Open A Women's Doubles: 7

BCD WD: 7

Open A XD: 12

BCD XD: 15

CRAZY exciting, seeing that this is the FIRST EVER TOURNAMENT FOR THE NEW SEATTLE BADMINTON CLUB! There will be no home court advantage here, so watch out!

I see plenty of new names on the lists, so I can't make any predictions! I'll say one thing, though-- past winners of BCD HAVE signed up, so do your studying on tournament software!

Draws will be posted Thursday Dec 9, 2010, the Thursday before the tourney. Mark the date and check back then!

Washington State Badminton Association has been notorious for giving our big trophies (WA Open had ones that could twirl!) so make sure you secure your spot! :)

Start training, athletes, and we'll see you there!

Victory Dance

Hey badminton boys and girls!

There are so many badminton tournaments coming up soon (Badmintology, BCD+A, ClearOne New Years). With preparing for these, there are a few things an athlete can/should do:

+ Keep a healthy diet (drink water, eat your fruits and veggies!)

+ *AT LEAST* weekly training (If not 3-4 times a week!) / Staying Fit

+ Finding your partners

+ Looking up your competition

+ Establishing your victory dance.

No, this is no joke. For any of you that like to linger on BadmintonFreak to watch videos on your favorite players, many of you can't help but notice the triumphant things that players do to express their enthusiasm.

IE:

The air guitar.

The fist pump?

The roar.

And my favorite:

Ah! I was so happy when I saw this one! Love it. Wave and pop, Lin Dan....!

When I went to the Taipei Open this year, the mixed doubles finals were so close (22-20, 14-21, 22-20) that when Vita Marissa finally won, she quite literally JUMPED on Hendra Gunawan.

Well, I won't lie--most regular players don't really have a victory 'dance'...it's mostly for the screen, I suppose. But some of you will be surprised at yourself-- you put it into your victory without even knowing it! I kind of hide in the shadows and take pictures of people in their matches, and I've seen quite a few!

Although I won't post them, I'll be scouting the next few tournaments to see if I see anything impressive! :)

Afterall, it's all about the fun.

"Just have fun. Play. Enjoy the game." - Michael Jordan

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

IT IS THE LAST DAY to sign up for the BCD+A Tournament!

Please roll on over to TOURNAMENT SOFTWARE AND SIGN UP NOW!

________________________________________________________

HAPPY 100! (+ CLEARONE New Years)

I'm celebrating too early.

Upon reaching 100 views, blogpost has decided to reward me generously by creating a disfunctional "Stats" tab so I can't see where all my lovely viewers are coming from.

:( sad face.

Make me happier by linking my blog to your friends so I'll have more incentive to post great stuff on here :)

In other news, I can quite literally hear my racket suffocating inside my girli-fied badminton bag, begging me to go play. Today is Thursday, meaning I'm scheduled (by myself) to play at night. But thanks to my COM201 paper due tomorrow, that's not going to happen.

Neither did I play last Saturday...I was studying for my COM201 midterm.

WHY DOES COM201 HATE BADMINTON SO MUUUCHH?!??!??111?!?11!//?/

Neglected. Bags have feelings too.

My laptop that has photoshop got a virus this past weekend. I'm really computer stupid, so I tried to system restore, will killed my saved file for the BCD tournament. On the bright side, I had e-mailed it to Clinton shortly before, so it's safe and sound--but no blogpost on it! YOU WILL JUST HAVE TO SIGN UP AND WAIT FOR THE TOURNAMENT :) (I swear I did not plan this.)

******************
So last year I made a weekend trip up to Canada for the C1 Boxing Day Tournament. It was amazing-- waking up, exiting your hotel and seeing all your friends getting breakfast together in the same lobby. That was a fantastic vacation.

Besides the fact that the car broke down.

....

but that's a story for another day. I'll provide illustrations for that one.

Anyways, the same friends and I decided that we'd make it a yearly thing and make a trip up to Canada, so we've been planning it for ages until...

CLEAR ONE CHANGED IT TO THE NEW YEARS TOURNEY.

NOOOOOoooOooOoooOOOOOO...

There goes my awesome trip plan :( Anyways. Heres the tourney information:

ClearOne Badminton Centre Center (rofl)
New Year's Tournament
When?: January 1, 2, &3, 2011
Where?: ClearOne (Browngate)
Unit #100
4351 No.3 Road,
V6X 2C3 Richmond
B.C.
Canada
Tournament Link: Sign Up Here
Perks?: They're sponsored by Yonex, and they'll be using Yonex Nylon birds. I hear last year they made people supply their own birds--really? I don't remember, but I hope that was a rumor...ungh. Anyways, tournament also comes with a Free Tshirt. yeaahh!*

*I believe two years ago, they had really nice dry fit long sleeve shirts. I remember last year many WA players went up mostly for the shirt, and were really disappointed. So, fair warning, don't go for the shirt.


The annual ClearOne tourney is considered a more competitive tournament...at least for the players in WA. Good if you're up for a little competition and a wide range of new people to play with. Give it a shot if you find local tournaments too boring for your taste.

And of course, for those of you who prefer not to be competitive, or don't really know what you are...Badmintology is always a good alternative...although sign up for their tournament next weekend is over, you could always drop by and take a look and sign up next time. Who knows, I might poke my head in for a bit...

-----------------------------------

ALSO....DON'T FORGET TO SIGN UP FOR THE BCD+A.

Two Canadians have already signed up! Don't be sluggish, Washington! This year should be a fun tournament! (And I see a Korea in there, too...whathuh?!?!!!!)

__________________________


Don't forget to subscribe to the right -->
And feel free to spread the word about BadmintonSquare :)

Seattle Badminton Club

I'm happy to say that there are a grand total of....

7 PEOPLE WHO HAVE SIGNED UP FOR THE BCD+A.

Wow guys. World record. Really.

Go sign up now they can ensure enough food and trophies for everyone! All US players: Make sure you send payment ahead of time...you don't want to pay for the $10 surcharge at the door.

____________________________________________________________



Speaking of the Seattle Badminton Club (I know you were thinking it), the grand opening date has been pushed back a tad...just to create a little bit more suspense.

whaaaaat.

I won't lie-- it's really exciting to be getting a new club in the Seattle area. Even though it's not really Seattle--it's Kirkland. But hey, all the closer to Hoffman's Bakery in Kirkland Downtown.

I hear SBC looks fantabulous-- there at 10 courts. Hardwood floors ...green courts with white lines. Reminds me a little of tennis...I guess that's just to give us the little hope that there's such thing as an outdoor sport in Seattle.

The place is really spacious. There are areas to socialize and a little kitchen area with a refrigerator (I like to play with cold birdies). The ceilings are really high, and the court area is really spacious. There will also be a separate carpeted area for sitting in between games and cuddling with your loved ones.

By loved ones, I mean you and your racket.

I'm hoping they'll remember to put chairs outside near the front desk-- there's a lot of room there, and the cute guys need a place to sit....I hear they've hired a pretty cute front desk girl who's working part time (Thursdays and Sundays. .....I heard.)

All the jokes aside, I'm crazy excited for this place to open. Nothing like expanding the market of badminton and infesting others with our addiction. :)

You can actually look at the photos of the renovation process on the website here:

TA DA!

It's probably not as fun as tracking Apolo Anton Ohno or your favorite Jonas Brother on Twitter. But hey, check it out anyways.

FREE!!!!

Ok. nothing's free, but now that I've got your attention...there's actually a promotion going on if you sign up for a membership early.


If you join by November 30, 2010 then there's no initiation fee, and you get either 20% off first 6 month membership or 10% off yearly.
Join between December 1, 2010 and December 15, 2010, and you'll get 20% off the first 3 months or 5% annual.

BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE!

OXYMORON CLEANS STAINS.

Wait. Wrong commercial.

If you're one of the first 100 members, you get to choose either a free SBC/Yonex polyester shirt or 50% off a pair of shoes.

Personally, I went with the 50% shoes...I have too many badminton Tshirts. Just counting the ones from tournaments, I have about 24 cotton Tshirts...

SPEAKING OF TSHIRTS !!!!!!!!

BCD+A.

DO IT.

NOW.

I GUARANTEE AN AWESOME SHIRT. (made by someone who is awesome. obviously.)

I don't think Lin Dan would appreciate this post.

Good morning! It's a lovely Sunday, and thanks to America's lovely first amendment, I am free to practice my own religion: Badmintonism.

There's your lovely history lesson. You can go tell your parents that reading blogs is more productive than attending school. A wise man once told me, "School is for fools!" True story.

The other day, as I was updating my blog, I noticed the left column had a Google article on badminton:

WHAT?!?!?!?!??!?!??!?!?!??!?!?!??!??!11111!?11

Maybe it's because I've been Googling the wrong images these past few years.

Well, I tried it again, and this is what it gave me:

I prove my point.

Haha just kidding. It looks pretty hot...I like the color of the grip. Oh, you mean the guy? Oh...uh. No comment.

Maybe Lin Dan doesn't have the PERFECT face, but I'm sure he'd be guaranteed a title at the next American Idol (if he was American. Which he's not. Chinese Idol?)

He puts so much emotion into the music. It's like an angel's voice graced the surface of the earth....oh wait. Those are birdie feathers.

Karaoke, anyone?

Simon Cowell would not approve.

No? How about a guest appearance on Glee?

Anyways, he's considered pretty hot stuff. Lin Dan is to Asia as David Beckham is to......well...everyone. Including Asia. He models for various brands, and it's been an ongoing rumor that he took his girlfriend (Women's singles player Xie Xingfang) to an Armani (??) store and the owner flipped out and gave him a free suit. Snap. Baller status.

Ahh. Who knows. I have yet to see this guy in person. I'm sure he's lovely.

..............................

Don't forget to sign up for BCD+A Tournament

Today's also the last day to sign up for Badmintology (CANADA)!

...............................

Next post on Tuesday! Don't forget to subscribe to the right! :)

//EDIT FROM BCD+A POST: The birdies MAY be AS-40's rather than AS-50's...oh well. :) Join anyways. //EDIT//

Badminton puns. (+ Badmintology)

(A day late! Ah! Let's pretend I posted this yesterday. Happy Veteran's Day!)

Badminton.

Bad-mint-on.

Bad-min-ton.

I'm sick of all these lame puns that people come up with to put on T-shirts about badminton. I remember back in my high school team, I would cringe whenever I saw our t-shirts and bulletin board proudly displaying how lame we were.

"We put the bad in badminton!"
"Bye Bye Birdie"
"GOODminton"

And as they say it, they EMPHASIZE the words as if we don't GET IT.

OMG, BAD? OH HOHO LIKE IN BADMINTON. I DIDN'T NOTICE THAT! HARHARHAR.

As time goes on, the imagination goes wild and the puns just get worse.

"My dog Minton just ate two of my expensive shuttlecocks!
"Bad Minton!"

Please shoot me.

"That mint is spoiled? Well, go put that bad-mint-on the trash."

HAHAHA. GET IT? GET IT? THE BAD...MINT? IN...THE TRASH?

Oh my god you're so funny.

not.

Don't even get me started with 'shuttlecock'. Get your minds out of the gutter...this blog is PG-13. Yeesh. Sick-o.

I'm no expert in slapstick comedy, but I'm smart enough to know that these aren't.

Please. Stop. These dumb puns are ruining the image of the sport. (At least, I like to blame it on the puns and not on the fact that mainstream American media thinks non-contact sports are lame. YOU ARE THE ONLY PLACE THAT CALLS FOOTBALL 'SOCCER', AND THE ONLY COUNTRY THAT PLAYS WHATEVER YOU CALL 'FOOTBALL'.)

We're not the only sport with a lame name.

But I guess I won't get started on that.

(side note: I looked on Urban Dictionary for 'shuttlecock', and this was one of the results:

"Its a "birdie" used in playing badmitten or however you spell it."

B-A-D-M-I-N-T-O-N, BUTTFACE.)

---------------


JUST A REMINDER

BCD+A Tournament info was on the last post, and the deadline for the application is November 21, 2010.

BCD is fantastic. Really. Do it.
___________

BADMINTOLOGY: WEEKEND WARRIOR OPEN 2010

For those of you not doing anything this Thanksgiving weekend (Yeah, Canada, Thanksgiving is in NOVEMBER. Haha, just kidding. Kind of.) Badmintology is having their 3rd tourney of the Season.

When: November 26-28, 2010
DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 14, 2010 (SEND IT IN SOON)
Where: Moscrop Secondary, 4433 Moscrop Street, Burnaby, BC
Cost: $20CAD for the first event, +$10CAD every other
Perks: Their Tshirts are ADORABLE. Winners get an extra Tshirt, and they give out trophies and medals as well, and little gifts here and there. They have sponsor tables set up by JPScion and Rocktape, I believe...BUT PLEASE NOTE that you have to sign up for at least 2 events to get a free Tshirt...otherwise, they're $9 if you preorder and $12 if you buy at the table. (Correct me if I'm wrong?)
More information: Link to Badmintology

Personal note: I actually attended their last tournament, the MoonLight Open, and I had to say it was a lot of fun! People there are really friendly, and you don't have to fear if you're a beginner--they separate events into 3 different levels. Perfect for a beginner like me ;) Not sure if I'm going this time...but if I do, look for me there!

Badminton is a manly sport. (+upcoming BCD+A tourney)

(Those of you who subscribed, put your e-mail in again...Feedburner just started working.)

^ It's working now!

Badminton is a manly sport.

Taufik will eat your babies for breakfast.

I don't get where some people get off on thinking that badminton isn't really a sport. (then again, why is poker on ESPN? "Hey man, imma go work out...gotta get ready for my poker game later..." wth.)

Then again, I'm not the best candidate to prove them wrong. When I play badminton, I'm completely clueless.

I tell them I can't hit the birdie hard enough, so then they tell me "Just imagine the birdie something that you hate."

Uh. yeah. Gave that a shot.

Or even worse.

Whoever said Photoshop>Paint is proven wrong.

And for the record, Batman is better than Spiderman. Anyday.

....

So to actually make this blogpost relevant, heres a tournament coming up in the near future:

BCD+A Open Tournament

To commemorate the (soon to be) opening of Seattle Badminton Club , the annual BCD has decided to be in December rather than November, and is now open to A level players. Whoopee!

Dec. 10-12, 2010

Deadline: Nov. 21, 2010

Price: $25.00 USD for the first event + $10 every additional.

Where: Seattle Badminton Club (10858 117th PL NE, Kirkland, WA 98033)

Perks: Yonex sponsored...meaning AS-50s, prizes and Yonex T-shirts (designed by yours truly. Don't worry-- I used photoshop. not paint.) Food included. And don't worry, BCDers, A is a separate event.

Link: http://tournamentsoftware.com/sport/tournament.aspx?id=E5AEFE24-D5BE-4B10-8C17-77EE5251FD01

Blog should be updated every Tues, Thurs, and Sunday....

Subscribe to the left!

Up, up and away!

FINALLY...!

Creating this blog has made me realize just how horrible I am at using a computer...it's like giving a monkey a piano (loud screeching noises included).

Anyways. For those of you who know me, I figured since I hang around badminton courts so much, I could blab about my badminton encounters with the rest of you!

Uh huh. Yeah. Who are you?

That's me in the red.

Just kidding.

Uh. You can't really tell that that's me...but hey, that's pretty much what I look like at every tournament, anyways. (Credits to Clinton for letting me borrow his D90 all the time)

I'm a 3rd year student in uni...I play in tournaments around WA (and one in Canada!)...but I mostly shoot pictures, design graphics for Tshirts, and volunteer. In other words, I can't hit the birdie...but I try! I use an Armortec900 Technique, which was given to me by my brother and roommate for my 19th birthday. I like to write, and BadmintonSquare is just a little project for me to keep up with all the badminton things going on in the NorthWest, and hopefully across the world...? :O

Badminton is both a competitive sport and a social event for me, so this blog is just to give an overview on past tournaments, upcoming tournaments, places to play, and random funny things that I encounter, like this:

HAHAHA what a lame picture...oh wait. That's me.

Anyways, thanks for reading! Subscribe/follow on the sidebar to the right (please and thank you!), and comment below (anonymously, if you wish).

If you want anything posted or have any concerns (about how awesome I am), then e-mail me at onattyso@gmail.com

Thanks, and welcome to BadmintonSquare! :)