LAKESHORE BADMINTON ASSOCIATION

 Tournoi de Badminton in Pierrefonds
by Peter Kohl

I went to watch the players play,
They were here to play to the end of the day
The event is called a Tournament
And throughout the day much energy is spent
The locals call this ‘ un tournoi annuel ’
And les règles sont dans un manuel

All these folks come to ‘ frappe le petit moineau ’
And before they start, they say « Allo «
A warm-up is the thing ‘ Obligatoire ’
And if successful they ‘ fêtent en gloire ’
Some stretch, some jump or skip a rope
And all have a winner in their dream or hope.

A ‘ Filet ’, raquette et ‘ little bird ’
Are on the court, as all wait for the word
To start to practice “ pour deux minutes ”
And later, if you win there will be gratitude.
Peut-être your partner is in ultimate form
And be comfortable in the outfit worn.

You serve and serve and do some drills
And many times you check the shuttle frills
Le moineau must fly very strait and true
And hopefully it’s good for all of you.
Pretty soon the Marshall calls to start the game
And now all are serious; and looking for some fame.

A smash and a Plume fall from the shuttle cock
And quickly one grabs a spare from stock.
In competitions are used some plumes pour le vrai
Qui volent ben mieux with great speed they say.
Les autres; they play avec le plastic bird
Destroying just about every third

The bird it fly fast; parfois it lose a plume
The way they hit it, maybe it fly to the Lune
Yet it will not fly far, as speed is lost
And destroying birds is quite some cost
To get the high returns, some players ‘ sautent ’
With both feet up in the air quite ‘ Haute ’

Le Moineau, flies terriblement vite
This proves that les joueurs do not on their laurels sit.
Les volants of the plastic kind
Are for those players in speed left behind
> That theory is not all that true <
For many older players like me and you.

Les volants fly so fast back and forth
As competitors strain to prove their worth
Worth to claim that coveted cup
Or be consoled, just for showing up
Many moons ago, some friends called this a “ Sissy Game ”
And when they tried it, were later lame with much pain..

As we watch this bird flying at haute vitesse
We also admire the ultimate finesse
In how they manage to dribble this ‘ moineau ’ over the net
Then cover the court as fast as a jet
‘ Agile et Vite ’ are des réquisits
To compete all day, with no chance to sit.

Les joueurs n’ont pas des gros bedons
For there is no chance for weight to go on
They burn those calories much too fast
And at the dinners, the deserts they pass
Many of them play this game for exercise
As a workout, this decision is very wise.

Elimination trials; then to the quarter finals
Ils sautent souvent, et virent des spirales
Then crouch down low to catch those close to the net
And on their faces you can see determination set,
Set on winning those matches and more
And get to the finals with a winning score.

Plus qu’ils approchent le filet, ils riaient
And at the same time their bodies they plièrent
They bend and contort to get the bird
And signal to their partners without uttering a word
The partners then react to the message relayed
And adjust their return with feigned delay.

Pour avoir de souplesse et de l’énergie
Ils gorgent des bananes and drink regularly
Les ‘ Sandwichs ‘ sont dévore pendant des repose
And for a short time, talk is of ‘ autre chose ’
When announcement is heard, they are up again
They play the devil, another victory to gain.

At the end of the tournament are only divisional winners
Who then go out and celebrate victory dinners
Tous les joueurs ont donnez leurs meilleurs efforts
Et doivent se contenter avec ce sport
De continuer de jouer pour s’améliorer
And at next tournament de réessayer

I learned at this tournament there are lots to prepare
Et que beaucoup de monde; many tâches must share.
To make such a tournament, an annual affair.

Peter Kohl
2011- 04-30 / 05- 04