So my kid’s been bugging me about volleyball practice all summer, right? But our backyard’s just dirt and weeds. Saw those fancy permanent courts online – yeah no way, looks like a divorce waiting to happen. Got this crazy idea: why not make chunks of floor you can actually move? Store ’em when you ain’t using ’em? Sounds good in theory.

The Great Wood Hunt

First things first, needed wood. Cheap stuff. Headed down to the big orange box store. Pressure-treated? You betcha. Don’t want this thing rotting next season. Grabbed a bunch of 2x4s for the frame and some decent plywood sheets for the top surface. Lugged it all home in the truck – back already complaining. You know how it is.

Measure Twice, Cut Once? Try Ten Times

Dragged everything to the garage. Laid out the plywood sheets first. Marked ’em up to split into smaller sections – gotta be manageable chunks, right? Figured 4×4 foot squares. Fired up the circular saw. Noise city. Sawdust everywhere, wife glared from the kitchen window. Cut the plywood tops first. Then tackled the 2x4s for the frame underneath. Tried making “joists” underneath for support, like a tiny floor. This part sucked:

• Alignment Nightmare: Getting those 2x4s perfect under the plywood edges? Nope. Kept drifting. Needed like ten million clamps.
• Splinter Central: Seriously, treated wood is brutal. Got more splinters than a porcupine. Raged.
• Weight Gain: Screwed the frame to the plywood top. Lifted one panel… felt like lifting a cow. Way heavier than planned.

The Lightbulb Moment (Wheels!)

Stared at these giant, stupidly heavy wood squares blocking my car. My brilliant “portable” plan was busted. Then I remembered those old dolly things for moving furniture in the basement. Ding! Grabbed heavy-duty casters – the locking kind. Screwed four onto the bottom of each wood chunk’s frame. Magic! Now I could tilt the panel slightly and roll the darn thing. Changed everything. Portability saved.

Surface Pain & Assembly Fun

Needed some kinda smooth surface on top. Sanded the plywood roughly. Put down some cheap laminate flooring strips. Just clicked ’em together floating on top. Easy part for once. Didn’t glue it down – figured if one got wrecked, just swap it out.

Laid out the chunks side-by-side on the grass. Made a decent size court area. The puzzle piece part was actually cool. They butted up pretty well. Good enough for bumping the ball around without tripping on gaps. Kid went nuts practicing serves. Mission accomplished.

Where It Stands Now (Literally)

This thing ain’t Olympic grade. The laminate will probably bubble if it rains too much. Panels are still clunky beasts even with wheels. Takes maybe 10-15 minutes to set up or tear down. But hey: it rolls under the deck for storage, kid plays volleyball, and I didn’t pour concrete or get divorced. I’ll call it a win. Time for a beer.