Simone Sues RPTA Over Broken Net
Denies rage, says he fell into net; seeks pain-and-suffering damages as court 3 awaits replacement.
He remains captain of Rowayton E and shows no sign of resigning either post.
By Anita Bath·Staff Reporter
Mr. Simone inspects Court 3 Wednesday, seeking damages covering, in his words, 'the net, my knee, and the principle of the thing.'
“Anybody who's seen me play knows I go hard for every ball, mitt on or off.”
ROWAYTON, Conn., Sept. 17 —Andrew Simone said this week he intends to file a civil suit against the Rowayton Paddle Tennis Association, seeking damages for pain and suffering after the net on Court 3 gave way beneath him last Tuesday evening — an incident he described as an accident, not, as one reader had characterized it to this newspaper, a fit of rage. The RPTA confirmed Wednesday that Court 3 will remain closed to play until a replacement net arrives.
According to Mr. Simone, he was covering a low volley, his oven mitt on his playing hand as it has been in every match and excavation project since last spring, when his momentum carried him through the net's center strap. "I was going for the ball. That's it," he said. "Anybody who's seen me play knows I go hard for every ball, mitt on or off." He said he had not yet decided whether the mitt itself would be entered as evidence.
The RPTA's facilities subcommittee places the time of failure at 6:47 p.m., a figure the subcommittee's assistant equipment liaison — granted anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the netting invoice — said was arrived at "by the sound, which several members described as a gunshot, followed by a second, quieter sound, which was Andrew."
Club records show the net had survived eleven seasons and two prior mid-play failures before Tuesday's, the most recent of which was attributed at the time to a squirrel. A replacement has been ordered at a cost of $340, which the RPTA said would not be billed to Mr. Simone regardless of how the litigation concludes.
Reached for comment, the RPTA said only that the matter had been "referred to the appropriate channel," a channel that two board members, speaking privately, said does not currently exist.
Mr. Simone, who has captained Rowayton E for three seasons and has publicly threatened to quit the post four separate times, said the suit has nothing to do with any grievance against the captaincy. He said he has retained an attorney "on a preliminary basis" and is seeking damages covering, in his words, "the net, my knee, and the principle of the thing."
Asked whether he had considered stepping down from Rowayton E while suing the body that governs it, he said, "Those are two totally separate things." After a pause, he added, "I've thought about quitting E, too, for what it's worth. Not because of this."
The oven mitt, club officials confirmed, was returned undamaged to Mr. Simone's equipment bag. The net was not.
