Ball machines bring a lot of convenience to the court and a few frustrations.
One of the biggest frustrations is the need to refeed the ball machine by bending down and picking up balls.
But there is one court training aid that removes the need for stopping to refeed the ball machine, the Infinity Play System from OnCourt OffCourt.
Kalindi, Billy, and Joe talk about how the unique design of the Infinity Play System is something tennis and pickleball haven’t seen before.
The following is a transcript of part 8 of our Game Changers Webinar.
Billy:
Alright, let’s take a look at another one, and this is an amazing product, and had a chance to use it myself, The Infinity Play System.
Would you please share about this super innovative product – I love this.
Kalindi:
Yes, I’ll give a little overview, and then I would love for Joe to share on this one; it would be great. He spent a while developing this, so we’d love to hear from Joe more on that.
But yeah, it’s awesome. It’s basically a combination of the multi-twist mini and the Infinity Net system. So, you’re sort of getting two products in one.
I play table tennis as well, and I have a table tennis ball machine, and I was like, dang, these are way better than any tennis ball machine because it connects to the table, and you never have to pick up balls- who likes picking up balls?
Versus with normal ball machines, you have to pick up balls, you certainly couldn’t use a ball machine in your driveway because you would really drive your neighbors crazy with balls hitting their windows and all that.
So, with this, the ball will feed out, then you’ll hit it into the netting, and it rolls back into the machine. You never have to pick up balls as long as you get it into the netting and it works with pickleballs, tennis balls, including all colors of transition balls.
As you can see, super light, there’s a girl of about seven just picking that up with no problem.
And again, coach Jorge Capestany, nicely demonstrates how compact it folds up for storage.
And, of course, if you did want to play on a court, you could take the multi-twist mini ball machine with you and use it like a regular machine where you pick up the balls.
Joe, can you share a little bit more about the development of the product?
Joe:
Some technical details about the machine. The whole system is a great garage option, and it moves very easily. We didn’t put it on wheels because it’s a little bit smaller than the rebounder deluxe we just saw. And without the wheels, it’s light enough to just slide with two people or just one person and move it very, very easily.
And the ball machine, it has a sleeve that goes over the multi-twist mini, which is made for us exclusively worldwide by Sports Tutor, which is the largest and arguably the most dependable and respectable ball machine company in the world. They make products for multiple sports. And this is smaller than the original tennis twist or the current multi-twist which handles pickeballs as well as tennis balls and it holds about 14 balls.
It works on batteries, I think, six D batteries if I’m not mistaken. Battery lasts for about six months unless you’re using it six hours a day.
It’s got a little kicker, so it’s not a ball machine that’s propelled with wheels or air pressure. It’s a ball machine that has five levels of force that translates into the distance the balls are thrown and you want to adjust those and our instructions have recommendations for the different types of balls. And then, because you’re hitting into a relatively small target zone, this machine doesn’t throw the balls too far. So a decently athletic beginner or intermediate would be able to practice hitting into the machine.
Easy if you just want to practice your serve; you just catch the ball and serve it into the target and don’t have to bend down or pick up balls or anything like that.
There are so many ways to practice, and we have videos on our site.
Billy:
Well, as someone who’s had a chance to use it, I can just say I was really impressed with the quality of the design and the size of it.
At first, I thought, this might be a really small target, you gotta be really on it, but it’s actually quiet big, the dimensions of it. My son’s been using it, I’ve been using it. It’s been fantastic.
Joe:
Oh, how old is your son?
Billy:
He’s eight. And having this for the summer, something that entertains him automatically has been a huge win.
So that alone. Not having to feed him balls and him being able to practice on his own has been awesome.
One thing I’ve been thinking about doing is using the Sweet Spot trainer on my racket with this. Because you can have a more subtle, focused practice, just hitting that right spot. So, I’ve been thinking of throwing the sweet spot trainer on top of it and taking a few swings.
Coaches, teams, clubhouses, schools, and individuals can make incredible use of the Infinity Play System – whether it’s drilling hard out on the court or just getting some swings in your basement before work.
No matter what you need, the Infinity Play System is ready to go when you are! Read more about the Infinity Play System right here!
Kalindi Dinoffer is trained in multiple aspects of mindfulness in life and in sports, sharing on her blog MindfulKalindi.com. She is also certified to teach yoga, fitness, reiki, and MFR. Kalindi also serves as VP marketing at OnCourtOffCourt.com, a leading supplier of tennis, pickleball, fitness and yoga training aids and equipment and has been published in Tennis industry Magazine and Pickleball Magazine, and has conducted workshops at conferences around the world. In her spare time, Kalindi plays tennis, pickleball and table tennis and enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking and biking and cross country skiing in the winter.
