(by Steve Hopkins)
PingPod was born as a pop up on Canal St. When the team saw the joy that a ping pong table in a garage brought to so many people, they knew they needed to find a way to make table tennis more accessible to many more people in NYC and beyond. Doors were opened to the first location on Allen Street earlier this year. PingPod, the world’s first network of autonomous table tennis pods.
The new facility features custom tables, two walls of glass which allow those outside to watch, lockers, and refreshments. The concept is to provide playing areas in high traffic, easily accessible locations that operate autonomously. You sign up to play through an app, that same app opens the door when you arrive. You can also use the app to purchase drinks or send reminders to your playing partners or to access videos of you playing.
The Allen Street location will be offering a handicap league starting in July. The league format is a giant roundrobin with matches occurring on a flexible schedule at the Pingpod location. Full league details can be found here. A new robot has also recently been added at the club with the ability to practice with pre-programmed drills.
Its high tech. It’s fun. And it’s a new take on a table tennis facility that brings the tables to where the consumers work and live. Keep an eye out – a PingPod may be coming to your city soon.
Location: 42 Allen Street, New York City
Reserve Your Table Today: www.pingpod.com/reserve
Contacts: www.pingpod.com | (212) 535-3553 | info@pingpod.com
