Why I went for rubber floors this time

Got tired seeing folks trip on that concrete court behind our community center. Last summer Jenny from our volleyball team sprained her ankle bad – concrete eats knees for breakfast. Remembered reading about rubber flooring shock absorption online. Thought it might be cheaper than tearing up the whole court too.

How I picked the rubber stuff

Started by poking around hardware stores. Sales dude kept throwing words like “polymer blends” at me. Nah man, I just need black rubber sheets that don’t melt when kids spill Gatorade. Saw three types:

• Rolls like giant yoga mats
• Puzzle pieces that snap together
• Solid slabs thicker than my wallet

Went with puzzle pieces cause Larry from next block promised to help install.

The nightmare prep work

Man oh man, cleaning that court sucked. Pressure washer broke halfway through so I scrubbed weeds outta cracks with this old kitchen knife. Found enough lost change to buy lunch though! Used my kid’s sidewalk chalk to mark center lines since measuring tape kept snapping.

Putting it together

First piece took thirty minutes – kept forcing wrong edges. Then Larry showed up laughing at me. We kicked into gear:
Step 1: Lay first tile near net pole
Step 2: Hammer pieces together using rubber mallet
Step 3: Chop weird shapes with box cutter when hitting curves

Halfway point we ran short. Supplier messed up my order – puzzle pieces came from different batches. Some were stiff as boards, others flopped like wet noodles.

The duct tape solution

Those mismatched edges kept popping up. Wanted to cry when rain started. Then grabbed heavy-duty duct tape. Covered seams with industrial gray tape – looks ugly but works. Bonus: makes cool ripping sound when peeling off later.

Testing the final product

Made neighborhood kids jump on it while I timed bounces. Volleyball now bounces waist-high instead of ankle-high. Even did elbow drops like wrestlers – barely felt it. Only worry? Black rubber gets HOT in sun. Might paint white lines later so it doesn’t fry shoes.

Total cost surprised me – half of replacing concrete. Back still hurts from laying tiles though. Worth it? Absolutely! Now if I can just get Larry to return my hammer…