A man known to his peers as “the Squirrel” dives across wooden floorboards in an attempt to hit a small, hard ball with his gloved hand. This is Erik Vigsnes, the unofficial fives champion of North America. His speed and proclivity to madly throw himself around the court—hence his nickname—have put him at the top of a group of literally tens of players who regularly play this sport in the United States. In the United Kingdom, it’s a rare bird. Outside of it, it’s a veritable dodo.
The Union Boat Club, in Boston, is one of only a handful of places in the Western Hemisphere where fives is still played. My eyes try to keep up as Vigsnes returns the serve with a shot known as “the cut”—the ball bouncing off walls and around corners before falling dead, granting another point to the champ. Fives can be approximated to the popular American sport of handball, but outside of hitting a ball against a wall with a hand, there are myriad differences.
