Oxford Place Tables

A Brief Introduction…

 

We have nothing but positive things to say about this table tennis installation at the Oxford Plaza, 1055 West Hastings Street. Visiting this space for the first time reveals a ping pong oasis, set amid the skyscrapers of the downtown core. Two high-quality ping pong tables, a Cornilleau “Park” and a Tiger Ping Pong “Plaza”, complete with racquets and balls supplied by the building’s management, are set in a line a little less than 20 feet apart along the plaza just west of the building entrance. During mid-day hours on summer afternoons, these ping pong tables ought to become quite popular as they offer a comparatively cool, shady place to play amid the hustle and bustle of the downtown core. Of course, there are some issues such as ball-eating shrubberies, potential collisions between players playing with backs to one another, and the ever-present office smokers. This is THE best place to play ping pong outdoors in the summer heat.

Ping Pong In Vancouver's Evaluation

The Tables 95%

The two ping pong tables at Oxford Plaza are very good outdoor tables. Recently added to complement the first table, the “Park” model by Cornilleau, is a new “Plaza” model by Tiger Ping Pong. Both tables have have ultra-durable playing surfaces consisting of densely laminated resin; both are set on metal frames built to last. The bounce is lively. These two brands and models have become the standard tables to consider for any permanent outdoor table tennis installation. As mentioned, the management company has provided Stiga racquets and balls so anyone can play here!

The Playing Area 80%

As we’ve mentioned, this is a remarkably peaceful place to play ping pong in the heart of busy downtown Vancouver and far-from-the-madding-crowd. It’s a green recreational oasis greeting ping pong players thirsty for a game. The playing area is a plaza a few feet off the sidewalk, enclosed on the west side by a perfect ball-stopper: a two foot concrete wall with wooden plank seating with shrubbery beyond. Be prepared to keep a keen eye on just exactly where the ball enters the shrubbery, though! We bring a small net to string across the west-side benches to prevent the ball from entering the shrubberies. To the east, the playing area is open and balls can travel far. To the north, sections of the 2-foot wall with seating provide barriers to ball travel. To the south, same thing, but with two open sections allowing balls to travel to the street. There’s plenty of space around the tables but there could be possible “player collision issues” with the tables being in-line with each other. If crowded situations arise, the east-most table can be moved a few feet further east to increase the gap between the tables. Neither table is bolted down and both can be shifted a wee bit (with 4 people) to create more space.

The Wind factor 80%

While Oxford Place is generally sheltered on all sides by buildings, expect your ping pong ball to be animated periodically by breezes channelled through the towers surrounding the plaza. Despite this, seasoned outdoor players will likely think that the winds are not too bad at Oxford Plaza. It’s not as windy as the stone tables at Concord Pacific Community Park, the melodious steel tables at Empire Fields, or the tables behind city hall set on the open Helen Gutteridge Plaza. All of those locations are open plazas with little to no structures or trees to buffer the wind.

Busy-ness 20%

Of all the existing public ping pong places (within the bounds of Vancouver) reviewed by this website, Oxford Place will be the least busy, hands down. Of course, publishing this fact may change things. With the constantly changing light reflected off the buildings, numerous trees and pockets of deep shade, Oxford Place is the perfect place to play in Vancouver on a hot summer day. A big thank you to the developers who placed this table here, and to ping pong adventurer Phil LaFlamme who discovered this table for the ping pong community.

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