They might be fads, maybe they are superior to anything else out there, but at its core, this notebook item is all about old school.

This is a reminder of the simple pleasures of exercise available to anyone at any age.

Remember table tennis? The people who show up three times a week at Big Island Table Tennis Association at the YMCA rediscover those simple joys the game has for all ages.

“We are always interested in more people,” said Lory Hunter, president of the BITTA for the last 18 months. “Everybody gets along, everybody plays with everybody, the top players will always hit with those who are newer and you might get some tips along the way.”

Hunter and husband Stewart, retired from the Navy, moved here 20 years ago and his devotion to the game eventually drew her in.

“He was always going off to play a couple times a week and it got to the point where I thought I should go see what was going on,” she said. “It didn’t take much and I was hooked.”

Stewart had played as a kid and then again in the Navy and jumped back into the game in Hilo. These days when he goes to the YMCA for table tennis sessions — Tuesday 1:30-4:30 pm, Saturday 3-8 pm, Sunday 5:30-8 pm with a $5 drop in fee — he packs three shirts because it doesn’t take long that the cardio involved makes your shirt look like you just went through a car wash, without the car.

The Hilo group, with about 20 devoted members, have their sites set on the 2019 Big Island Open in Waimea from April 5-7 when five players ranked in the island’s Top 10, will seek to improve their standing.

None of them, Hunter freely admitted, is prepared to challenge Hawaii’s best, Carlos Ko from Oahu, who routinely competes for national awards and championships.

But in Hilo, this is definitely an all-ages sport, with 95-year-old Nancy Kasamoto playing on a regular basis in the low impact game that gets the blood pumping and the heart beating.

The other big event for the island is the November meet at Honomu Gym for the Hawaii Island Open and Aloha State Championships.

That event draws anywhere from 30-50 contestants and last year featured players from Japan, Alaska and California.

For more information, call Hunter at 808.961.2816.

Kohala Table Tennis Tuesdays & Thursdays, FREE to play from 6-8:30pm @ Old Court House @KohalaCivicCenter

Waimea Table Tennis Mondays & Wednesdays, FREE to play from 3:30-6:30pm , Waimea Community Center

http://www.tabletennisandmore.com/hawaiiplacestoplay.htm