It started with some rope, a volleyball, a pair of nylons and a house with a cathedral ceiling.

Today, Dave Omtvedt’s Solo Spike machine and training program is used by universities and high schools across the country.

Omtvedt, a Madison Lake volleyball enthusiast played in leagues for 20 years until taking time off to raise kids. When he decided to get back into the sport five years ago, he found he’d lost his timing. He needed to practice.

“We had wood floors and a vaulted ceiling at home. I took a rope and put a volleyball in a pair of my wife’s nylons and tied them between two rafters,” Omtvedt said. “I was surprised how realistic it felt when I hit it.”

Omtvedt spent the next two years developing a prototype Solo Spike machine, which features a volleyball held between two bands on a pipe that can be raised or lowered. He uses a computer software program and video camera to tape players’ approach and spike, allowing him, or a coach, to look for a player’s flaws frame by frame.

Omtvedt, who said he had moved up through the ranks of Taylor Corp. companies and was on his way to someday head one of their firms, used his vacation time to go to area high schools and colleges to demonstrate his invention.

“I knew there was interest there. I’d been in sales, so I know that what people were saying about the product was good.”

He quit his job, cashed in his 401k and savings, found a manufacturer — Pro Fabrication of Madison Lake — and started Solo Spike.

His machines, which sell for $2,700, are used by 150 high schools and 40 universities, including several with Division I volleyball teams.

While the machine provides the tool to practice spikes, it is the related training programs that bring improvement for players, he said.

The heart of the training is the video/computer system that lets Omtvedt, coaches and players watch their approach and spike.

“Watching themselves really helps them understand that when I tell them to do this, this is what will change. It’s hard for people to understand what they’re doing wrong until they see it,” Omtvedt said.

One common mistake is taking too-long a first step as they rush the net. Another, he said, is right-handed hitters not getting their left hand high enough when they jump.

“Getting the left hand high increases the leap height and it positions their body better for a stronger spike. Everyone thinks their left hand is up high, but when you show them on the video, they see it isn’t.”

Students who take the training are videotaped over and over. The videos can be easily superimposed so a player can compare, step by step, an early attempt at a spike with a better effort after hours of training.