Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Utilize Your Snooker Table For Family Entertainment In Unusual New Ways

By Matthew Kerridge

Many people buy a snooker table with the express intention of using it for snooker match-ups. This is to be expected. But keep an open mind. A book case can be used for storing books, but if you do some informal research you will notice that many bookcases are being used to store a wide variety of non-book material. After looking at the usual uses of snooker tables, let us explore some possible alternative uses.

When Queen Victoria sent Colonel Chamberlain to the mess halls of India, she did not expect him to invent a game. But that is just what he did in eighteen seventy five. There were several pool-type games in current use, but the Colonel put together a basic set of guidelines which became the basis for today's snooker game. The word, snooker, was a military word meaning, newbie. Then it became attached to the snooker game and stuck. The twelve by six foot table is now the standard sized snooker table.

When people decided to bring their popular outdoor games indoors, they had to adapt the rules of play for the new environment. It is unsafe and inconvenient to chase balls through the home with sticks. The use of a large table enclosed by a cushion was the response to this problem, opening the way for the numerous pool type games that followed.

The cushion surrounding early tables was a haphazard affair at best. Many different systems were tried before Englishman John Thurston made a hugely useful design leap. He seized upon the new developments in rubber processing to make the cushion more stable and durable. This innovation began the modern era of snooker table construction.

The familiar green wool covering of the snooker table is a reminder of the origins of pool games in the outdoor setting. The green wool covering is made with a nap running in one direction. Consequently, this makes a difference to how the ball performs, depending on how it approaches the nap. This is not an issue when playing on a table topped with slate. There are different grades of the green wool for use on different types of tables. Those destined for heavy duty public use are outfitted with a stronger grade of wool cloth than those destined for homeowners' dens.

I think that old, disused tables have a possible second career in the nursery. With multiple births on the rise, why not give the new Octo-mom an old billiard table as a changing station for many babies at a time? All diaper changing supplies could be stored in the centre. Then the squirming child would be safely contained there while the mom ran round the other seven babies. Also, when the little ones start to grow into busy toddlers, an old table with sheets hung from its sides would be the ideal castle, cave, tent or command center for the little tykes in their imaginative play. It could be their own little world. Finally, as more parents delay childbearing until later in life, an old table could give them a break. You won't have to chase your offspring along outdoors, bent in two to support him as he masters the two wheeler. Do it on your sturdy snooker table! Give him a shove and send him off. Save your back! If you love your child, have another adult present at the other end of the table.

Get a sturdy snooker table so that it will survive many years of family use. The investment you make will pay off over the years. This will be especially true if your great grandchildren take their first unaided bike rides upon its surface.

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