“Fast. Furious. Fitness.” That’s the motto of the United States Racquetball Association, and what the Iowa State Racquetball Club tries to adhere to when playing or practicing.

The ISU club, founded in fall 2003, consists of 30 to 40 singles and doubles players of all skill levels who play in tournaments across the country. Some club members will go to the Intercollegiate Nationals tournament at Arizona State in Tempe, Ariz., from March 29 to April 1.

The club is getting ready to host the second annual Cyclone Ballbuster Racquetball Tournament, which will take place from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Feb. 25 at the Lied Recreation Athletic Center, and is open to all collegiate racquetball players and the general public.

Iowa State’s club refers to itself as “the ballbusters” because there are players on the team who have a tendency to break racquetballs.

“Oftentimes you hit a racquetball really hard and it busts,” said Russ Powers, co-president of the club.

Powers said he attended the national tournament last year, and he’s optimistic the club can do well this year at the tournament.

“If we take some of our better [players], I do see us doing pretty well in singles and doubles,” Powers said.

In preparation for the ballbuster, as well as for nationals, the club played in the International Racquetball Tour Lewis Classic in Sioux Falls, S.D., Friday to Sunday, along with nine of the top 12 racquetball players in the world, as rated by Irt-tour.com.

“It’s fun to watch the pros,” said Casey Wright, club member and tournament coordinator. “We went to Chicago last year and watched [professional] doubles. It’s amazing to watch.”

Matt Guetzko, co-president of the club, said the team tries to find tournaments that are close to Ames, which helps to keep travel costs down and allows more members to attend.

“We try to let people know of any tournament that’s in a close proximity to Ames – within about four hours,” Guetzko said.

Powers said the club is a great chance for students to participate in an extracurricular activity and meet new people.

“I think the best thing we offer is a good chance to come out and get some exercise and make some friends,” Powers said. “It’s a chance to get out and meet people outside of our university. We’d love to have a hundred people come down and play with us.”

The club practices every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at the rec from 6 to 8 p.m. Players are matched up with other players of a similar skill level so they can work on their game.

The registration deadline for the Ballbuster tournament is Feb. 22 at midnight. To register, or for more information regarding upcoming events and how to join the club, visit the club’s Web site at www.stuorg.iastate.edu/racquetball.