Players show up for Shuffl eboard Club practice

On Jan. 5, nine stalwart Shuffleboard Club souls showed up for practice at 9 a.m. to play informally or to use separate lanes to work on a particular skill.

Mark and Rita Filohoski are new to both Leisure World and the game of shuffleboard. Mark was there for the first time last week while his wife has been playing since the Turkey Shoot in November. They did not sign up to play in a league because they are only here for part of the year. When asked why he decided to play, Filohoski admitted, “If she likes it, I like it.” Rita likes sports and was a high school physical education teacher at one time. She said she kept feeling like she had played shuffleboard in the past and recently remembered she had. However, it was the street kind with the wooden barriers. She added, “This game and club are nothing like that.”

Experienced player Fred Carpenter has belonged to the club for a long time and has been involved in league play in the past. Now he only comes to practices, which works out best for him. He said that ever since the COVID-19 pandemic he has been “a little hesitant with big crowds.” He partners with member Shel Magnusen for practices and also plays bocce ball. He thinks it is the kind of sport one naturally gravitates to after games like golf, tennis and pickleball and likes that there is finesse and strategy to being a better player.

—Barbara Gardner

Mark and Rita Filohoski

Fred Carpenter