Portland Ob »n war December 21. 1979 Pag 9
Play ping pong for exercise and fun
Sports Talk
by Ron Sykes
Sports Editor
The 24th edition o f the Far West
Classic unfolded last Tuesday night
with the favorite OSU Beavers facing
the Idaho Vandals. OSU w ill send
some talented players into the contest,
but one certain to emerge as a strong
all-tourney guard is Mark Jeffrey Rad
fo rd , 6-4, 189 lb s., 20 years old
(G ra n t,P o rtla n d ). M a rk has been
selected the past two years in a row on
the Pac 10 honorable mention aJI-con-
ference lis t.. . . He teams up with Ray
Blume to give the Beavers one o f the
outstanding collegiate guard tandems
in the n a tio n ... .M a rk was selected
along with teammate Steve Johnson,
last year to play on the USA team that
toured China and Europe. . . . He was
also selected honorable mention all
coast by U P I. . . Radford has been
very consistent during his initial two
seasons at OSU.
M ark scored consistently in the 20s
during his playing days at Grant, but
while starting every game since his
Frosh season, the 6-4 student has yet
to score 20 points or more for OSU.
Radford is a deadly shooter but has
toned down his offense to concentrate
most o f his energy toward defense and
team play.
Radford has definite pro qualities.
In fact B o sto n ’ s then coach Dave
Cowens on a scouting mission last year
to see a Washington State player was
impressed with Radford and said, " I
can't believe that guy {Radford] is only
a sophomore."
The Boston red-head was quite im
pressed with M a rk’s overall game.
But don't concede this 24th classic
to the highly ranked Beavers. Remem
ber Clemson from the always tough
Atlantic Coast Conference, with that
big front wall, 6-10, 6-10, and 6-10.
That’s a lot o f beef for a college team.
Oregon’ s Ducks under second year
coach Jim Harvey w ill only survive the
first round and that against N orth
Carolina. Charlotte is not a shoo-in.
Give it to the Ducks by 3 points. If
Harvey ever wakes up and starts his
best guards Richard Wright and Barry
Walker, then the young Ducks just
might begin to show some potential.
Harvey has yet to play the pair togeth
er for any time at all.
Mark Radford, OSU's talented guard, goes for the ball
Richard W rig h t, the 5-9 transfer
from Old Dominion has shown steady
improvement and adds both sppe and
outside shooting to the Duck attack.
W right and Walker could become a
dynamic duo.
Fuelish questions
Right or wrong?
To save gas, i t ’ s best to:
- T u rn on the air-conditioner rather
than open the car windows.
-W a rm up your engine fo r only 30
seconds before driving o ff.
Right, on both counts.
According to the U.S. Department
o f Energy, i t ’ s more fuel-efficient to
tu rn on a ir-c o n d itio n e rs in late-
model cars rather than open the w in
dow s. A t speeds o f 40 m .p .h . o r
more, the wind drag from open w in
dows results in m ore gas consum
ption than using the air-conditioner.
W arm engines do perform best,
but keeping an engine running fo r
more than 30 seconds does no good.
It takes 20 minutes o f warming up to
reach maximum efficiency. It's bet
ter to keep the engine only running a
half-m inute or so before you drive
o ff. The engine warms up as you
drive.
S hort trip s o f five miles o r less
amount fo r 15 percent o f the mileage
on U.S. cars, but consume over 30
percent o f the gas. Why? Because the
trip is over before the engine begins
to operate at peak efficiency.
In its "D riv e for Conservation,”
the Energy Department is sponsoring
a travelling exhibit that w ill visit 125
cities over the next year. Visitors can
clim b in to a car mounted on a special
platform and follow audio-taped in
structions that show how to cut gas
consumption dram atically.
C o n s e rv in g gas n o t o n ly saves
money but also curbs car exhaust, a
m ajor cause o f air p ollution, says the
Oregon Lung Association. To con
tinue the fight against pollution and
lung disease, answer your Christmas
Seal letter. I t ’ s a matter o f life and
breath.
N F L p la y o ffs this weekend___
Take Dallas over Rains. Steelers easily
over Dolphins. Philadelphia to whip
fampa by six. Take San Diego to beat
an injury-ridden Oiler team.
When w ill Coach Jack Ramsey
return Lionel Hollins to his rightful
place in the starting lineup? And when
w ill he fin a lly realize that A b d u l
Jeelani is more productive than the
current Bobby Gross? And when will
Kevin Kunnert return?— he is really
missed now and will be valuable down
the stretch to relieve a tirin g Torn
Owens. And when w ill this NBA mad
ness ever end? See you next year. To
all tny readers, “ Have a happy one.”
I t ’ s the season o f holly, mistletoe
and ping pong tables.
Jim Scott, coach o f the Portland
Com m unity College men’ s table ten
nis team, thinks more people may be
buying table tennis sets and starting
to learn the game in December than
any other time o f the year.
Scott has a few tips on equipment
and how to play the game:
- D o n ’ t th in k it is n ’ t a to u g h
sp o rt. S cott loses fiv e pounds in
three hours o f play every Wednesday
evening.
- A ta b le th a t fo ld s away w ill
probably be used more than one that
doesn’ t because it w on’ t get loaded
down as a catch-all table fo r other
hobby equipment.
- The thicker the table, the higher
the ball w ill bounce when it hits.
Scott suggests buying regulation 3/4
inch th ic k tables ra th e r than the
thinner ones.
- An adequate home table can be
made using sawhorses to hold a sheet
o f 3/4 inch plywood.
- Table tennis raquets with sand
paper fronts and backs are inexpens
ive but they are illegal in tournament
p la y. B uy a ra c q iie t, p id d le o r
bat(those are all correct names) with
rubber cushioned by a thin layer o f
sponge fo r a quieter game and higher
bounces.
- W ear c o m fo rta b le , n o n -s k id
shoes when playing w ill make one
less like ly to slip and able to play
longer.
- Inexpensive ping pong balls cost
more in the long run because they
crack i f they are hit hard, as in a slam
Play.
Scott has been teaching table ten
nis classes at PCC fo r the past seven
years, as w e ll as co a ch ing .
‘ ‘ R ecreation sh o u ld be the m ain
reason to play table tennis fo r most
people” , Scott said. " I t ’ s fun, but
you can get a lot o f exercise.
“ A tough game can be so grueling
that I lose about five pounds each
night I play.” Scott said table tennis
builds muscles in the p laying arm
and wrist, both shoulders and in the
c a lf muscles o f the legs, and, i f
players assume the correct posture,
in the waist.
“ To get exercise in the game you
have to play to w in. I f you stand
there with both feet fiat on the flo o r
and d o n ’ t move around then you
w o n ’ t get any exercise and y o u ’ ll
probably get bored with table tennis,
to o .”
Scott said players should crouch
near the table with bent knees ready
to move laterally to get in to a good
position to meet the ball.
“ You d o n ’ t want to be reaching
way out fo r the ball, but to move
with the b a ll.”
Scott recommends any book by
fo rm e r n a tio n a l c h a m p io n D ick
Miles as a guide to im proving home
table tennis play.
Early AMERICAN
M U _ _ _
’W totteut
i • n 3 r m
A course in table tennis taught by
S cott w ill be o ffe re d w in te r and
spring term at the Sylvania Center
b e g in n in g M o n d a y , Ja n u a ry 7th
from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.
A good sport fo r persons o f all
ages, Scott’ s oldest student was 6
years old and seven and eight yea
olds have accompanied their parent
to the class.
SPORTS HOUR
JOE'S PLACE
1801 N.E. Alberta
ILL
DRAFT YOU FOR ONLY 150
Days: Sat., Sun. & Mon.
Call: 288-8786
For More Information
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