WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOUR TENNIS IS WASHED OUT? {1999}
By Vince Chiarelli, PTR, MRT and Owner of String Along With Vince in Largo
Another soggy day in the sunshine state; it doesn't make for a good opportunity for tennis...or does it? I am often faced with people in a panic because their favorite (or only) racquet needs stringing, or re-gripping and there isn't enough time to get it done and get to their match. What to do? What to do?
Along comes a washout from the heavens. Tons of water descending on the courts; I guess we can forget about tennis until the weather clears up, right? Wrong! This is your best chance to get to the tennis shop and get those strings and grips replaced, pick up some balls and whatever else you need, so you don't run out when the weather is good. If you have more than one racquet, a rainy day is also a good chance to get them customized so they have the same weight, balance, and swingweight.
I must say that recently, some of my customers have caught on to this simple but logical strategy. Rainy days are almost as busy as sunny ones lately. But there are still many folks out there that go into panic mode before an important match, because they didn't bother to use that bad weather to their advantage.
Another aspect of preparation we usually forget is the mental end of the game. Bad weather days are the perfect opportunity to sharpen your focus and work at eliminating some of that emotional baggage we all carry into a match with us. Catch up on those back issues of your favorite tennis magazines. Articles abound about cerebral as well as physical game improvement tricks and techniques. Check out some of those matches you recorded from the last Grand Slam but never had the chance to watch. There are several tennis self-help books on the market that will go a long way toward alleviating some of those mental stumbling blocks we deal with as soon as the first ball is served.
There is probably as much to do to improve your game when playing isn't possible, as there is when you are out on the courts swinging a racquet.
It looks like I have to get back to my stringing machine. Another customer in panic mode just walked in the door. Don't let it happen to you.
Copyright 1999 (Previously published in THE LATEST RACQUET - Nov./Dec., 1999)
By Vincent A. Chiarelli, CRT
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