Extended Lunch Break

If anyone has ever been interested in a new tennis racquet and went to their local tennis club to try out a “demo” racquet they will understand or unfortunately not understand what I am about to talk about. First off, most sales reps for tennis companies only educate whatever tennis instructor is under contract with them. Therefore any other tennis instructor has no clue about how the new Wilson tennis racquets play compared to the Prince racquets they are under contract with unless they go out of their way to play with them all. In result customers get “tricked” by these instructors to buy whatever racquet the instructor they are most in contact with is trying to sell. This is a small problem I have, but there is not much of a way to stop companies from doing this. An instructor sells racquets for them and in turn gets free stuff. I get it. However, what I don’t get is that tennis racquet companies are making racquets that look exactly or almost exactly like each other and consumers and instructors are being confused all the time. At a busy tennis facility, most of the instructors are already on the tennis court when costumers come and want to demo. Some of these customers come out to their instructor and ask for help on choosing a racquet but a lot of them don’t and will ask whoever being the desk for a racquet, which they know nothing about. Sometimes these customers will just take whatever racquet they have heard of, others will just take whatever one has colors they like, and the rest will just try to copy what the professionals use. I can’t even count how many times I will see an 11 year old or younger kid come on the tennis court with a tennis racquet that weights over 11 ounces unstrung. Now some of you reading this will have no idea if 11 ounces is heavy or light and that is part of the problem. An 11+ oz racquet should only be used by an advanced player, most likely a high level high school player or better. A racquet at this weight may feel okay just hitting a couple balls but in a real match it can give you severe arm soreness if you can not handle the weight. Tennis companies are coming out with so many racquets at the same time with similar names that customers are most likely to pick out a racquet that is totally wrong for them. There are also many cases like the Wilson K Factor line where two of the racquets look identical to each other but K Six One Team is 10.9 ounces strung and the K Six One 95 is 12.3. Numerous times an adult or kid will come out with the 12.3 ounce racquet and I will have to look at the inside label and tell them that they got the wrong one. Also, what is the deal with the slight differences in string patter to totally confused people even more. To go along with the K Factor line, there is a K Six One 95 with (16×18) string pattern and one with (18×20) and are both the same weight. What do you tell someone who tries the one racquet one week and totally loves it and the next week they grab the other one by mistake and totally hate it. Right there Wilson probably lost a sale. I like that these companies are coming up with new technologies and ways to make everyone happy, but they really need to think of the average customer and even the somewhat educated tennis consumer. I really don’t think most of the USTA 4.0 level adults or even most of the good high school players really have a clue about tennis racquets. I see too many of them go out and buy 2 Babolat racquets and then 4 months later buying 2 Wilson racquets and then just continuing the cycle. In conclusion, there are many things that screw with the consumers mind and that really make the tennis instructors life harder. I wish these tennis companies would take a little more time to educate full tennis staffs and put out as much information as they can to the average club player so they can really buy the right racquet for themselves. 

Throughout my 15 years of playing tennis tournaments I have come up with a pretty good idea of what a serious tennis player should bring to each tennis tournament no matter the magnitude of the tournament or whether it is indoors or outdoors.This list is based on personal knowledge I have gained through USTA junior tennis tournaments, high school tennis matches, collegiate tennis matches and regional tournaments, men’s open tennis tournaments, USTA adult tennis leagues, regionals, and sectional tournaments, as well as being a USPTR certified tennis instructor. Having a consistent packing and preparation ritual is the best way to completely prepare yourself for any situation. This list is geared towards male tennis players, but can be used as a majority guideline for female tennis players as well. 

• Professional tennis bag. Preferably one that will hold 4-8 tennis racquets and most of the other items on this list. I prefer a tennis bag that has straps on the bottom that can be used as a backpack to prevent unnecessary arm strain.
• 2 Tennis Racquets. Bring at least 2 of the exact same tennis racquets incase of string break or a cracked frame.
• Extra grip. Occasionally a grip will become unraveled or too sweaty to hold onto. In this case you could switch racquets, but what if the other racquet has loose strings? That’s right, just change grips during a changeover. 
• Resin bag or lotion. This product applied to your palms will prevent sweat on your hands and give you a great grip during a hot day. 
• Foldable chair. You most likely can’t fit this in your tennis bag but many foldable chairs can be easily carried. Many tennis facilities have chairs or benches on and off the tennis court, but some don’t. If you have a chair and your opponent sits on the ground or better yet does not sit at all you have an advantage over them in comfort and fatigue.
• Small cooler or hot/cold lunch bag. If needed put in ice pack to keep drinks colder.
• 2 bottles of water and 2 bottles of your favorite sports drink. You may need more than this if you are a heavy drinker. I like a variety of flavors because If I drink too much of one I tend to get sick of it and then don’t drink during changeovers. If I have a variety I like to mix up the freshness of water with the sweetness of the sports drink when I am in the mood for either.
• Several snacks. Some prefer bananas, I prefer Powerbars, granola bars, Nutrigrain bars because they are easy on my stomach during a match. With bananas I tend to keep burping banana up throughout the match. Gross right?
• Large towel. Take this towel with you to the back of the curtain on each side you play. This will give you a quick “towel off” between points. Not only is this good for keeping sweat away, but it also gives you an opportunity to take a breath and focus between points. Why do you think the pros always ask for the ball boy holding the towel?
• 2 shirts. Bring at least 2 extra shirts and hopefully more. Depending on how much you sweat during a match you may need to change shirts. In addition, you should always change shirts after a match to freshen yourself up and to recompose yourself for your next match. 
• 2 shorts. You most likely won’t change shorts during the middle of a match, but after your match it is a good idea.
• 2 pairs of underwear. Whether you prefer boxers or briefs it doesn’t matter. For the same reason as shirts and shorts you will want to change in-between and after matches. 
• 1 pair of socks. Most likely you will only change socks after a match. If you have another match coming up you will need new socks. 
• 1 pair of sandals. Before, in-between, and after each set of matches you should ditch your socks and shoes and wear sandals of some sort. This gives your feet a chance to relax and cool down. The inside of your shoe can get very hot and sweaty and cause blisters and other forms of foot damage.
• 1 hat. A hat holds back long hair, helps absorb sweat that could go in your eyes, keeps sun out of your eyes, and prevents sunburn on your face.
• 1 pair of sunglasses. Some people are very uncomfortable playing tennis in sunglasses. I am one of those people. However, if you’ve ever been caught in a blinding spot of sun you will realize how much it not only effects you seeing the ball on your toss, but blinds you with sun spots for the next second or two, you may consider wearing them until you switch sides of the court or the sun moves.
• Sweat proof sunscreen. Some people are concerned about the health risks and some aren’t, but if you’ve ever played a tennis tournament and been torched by the sun, you probably remember how difficult it was to sleep that night let alone play your match the next day with a bad sunburn. 
• Assortment of band-aids. You never know when you are going to get a blister or where it will be. Having an assortment of shapes will help you comfortably fit a band-aid on a thumb, knuckle, ankle, heal, or toe.
• Moleskin. This product is a great help in the case of a bad blister on your foot. Moleskin aids as a padding on one side and an adhesive on the other to stick right to your foot without moving. It has helped me many times.
• Ankle wrap. You never know when you are going to slightly twist an ankle during a match. If you have some wrapping tape you can just use that if a trainer is not available.
• Knee brace. Some people have a lot of knee problems and others don’t. Either way it shouldn’t matter. You don’t know when you will twist a knee a little and need to secure it to continue playing.
• Deodorant. Depending on the type; some of these will leak so be sure to get something that won’t melt and put it in a small ziplock. Deodorant is a good way to prevent some sweat build up in your armpits, as well as not be so offensive smelling after your match.  

There may be some confusion as to what the Wilson [K] Blade actually is. The perfect answer is that it is several different racquets that will be coming out in late January and not just one new racquet. I mentioned in an earlier blog about the Wilson [K] Blade Tour and that racquet is a 93 square inch racquet. The newest [K] Blade I have seen posted for pre-order on some websites is the standard new version of the [N] Blade which is a 98 inch square head. The specifics are listed below. In addition look for future information about the [K] Blade Team tennis racquet that will be a lighter version of these racquets.  

This picture was created by enjin from Kleszczow, Polandfor a contest where they have several given pictures to use in their end result. This picture ended up in 4th place but in my opinion was the coolest picture. To get a larger picture, more details about this picture, and more info about this contest go to: http://www.crestock.com/blog/design/contest2007/entry.aspx?id=5773

Blingo is the search engine that gives away prizes every day like movie tickets, iTunes gift certificates, plasma TVs, cash prizes, and even a Ford Mustang, just for searching the Internet. The search engine is powered by Google search and after much success the site was bought by Publishers Clearing House. In my year of using Bling as my home page and main search engine I have won 2 movie tickets that I received within a week and they worked at every movie theater I tried them at. I also won a $5 credit for Amazon.com. If you do the easy sign up you can refer friends and if any one of them win a movie ticket, a gift card, or another prize you would also win that prize. It’s a pretty sweet deal for just using the equivalent of Google search in my opinion. There isn’t even advertising on the site or search results any different that Google has. It’s practically the same thing. I wish I had thought of it first.  

Here is how Blingo works:     

1. Enter your search in any Blingo search box and click the search button.
2. Each search (up to 25 per day) is a chance to win great prizes instantly. To date Blingo has given away 60,662 prizes, and new prizes are announced on the site every day!
3. If your search is a winner, you’ll see a page that pops up instead of your search results. Just tell Blingo where to send your prize, whether it’s a movie ticket or a new car! It’s that simple. 
4. Just click on the “Win with me on Blingo” picture on the top and get started. You have nothing to lose. Only to win!

  I am lucky enough to work in an atmosphere where my clients tend to give gifts of appreciation for the holidays. A lot of times there are those certain families where you expect they are the kind of person who will give you a little something for months or years of working with them or their children, there are times when those people don’t give you anything, and then there are times when someone you don’t expect anything from at all or someone who you have little or new contact with will give you something and you will be like “whoa”. This year I have had some of each and have received the usual array of chocolates, Moose Munch, beer, cash, and gift cards. I have to admit my favorite thing to get is either the cash or the new trend seems to be the Visa gift cards where it can be used as a debit card for that amount.  Best Buy and Barnes & Nobles can also be good gift cards to give out because there are lots of options in these stores such as electronics, books, movies and music. This year the gift cards I dislike are the ones for Champs Sports or Foot Locker. Although a lot of my interests are in sports these people do not realize that these sport stores located mostly in malls are vastly overpriced compared to online sporting stores such as Fromuth, Holabird Sports, and Tennis Warehouse which can range from just about wholesale pricing to a little bit over that for most of my tennis needs and general sports needs. These gift cards of $25 almost make up for the amount the shoe or basketball jersey is overpriced in the store. Now I am not saying that I am unappreciative of these gifts. I am overjoyed they even had the idea to give me something at all. I am just saying that unless you really know the person you should give cash, a Visa debit card, or a gift card to a store that everyone can find something at such as Best Buy. Now I have to stuff several gift cards to Champs Sports into my wallet for several months after continually going into the store and coming out empty handed. Unless I suddenly decide that wearing basketball shoes is somehow cool again like it was when I was playing basketball in eighth grade I will probably have those damn cards stretching out my wallet seems for a long time. 

Pixar will be releasing their new movie WALL-E on June 27, 2008. The movie trailer does not give much information about the plot of the film but the tag-line for the film is: “After 700 years of doing what he was built for - he’ll discover what he’s meant for.” The movie is set in the year 2700 after years of humans destroying the planet to almost pure waste. WALL-E which stand for Waste Allocation Load Lifters - Earth class, was forgotten about for years with only human relics and a VHS of “Hello Dolly” to keep him entertained. At the end of the trailer we see a large space shuttle come down and WALL-E latches to it and is carried off into space. I have to admit I am very interested in seeing this movie. It appears to me to be the next great animated movie.          

In early 2008 Wilson will be coming out with series of new [K]Factor tennis racquets including the most anticipated kBlade Tour which is a mix of the nBlade and K Factor Tour 90 which Roger Federer is known for. This new racquet will weigh 11.4 oz  kbladedescription.jpg

Peter Jackson and New Line Cinema have squashed their differences and will be making two Hobbit movies supposedly coming out in 2010 and 2011. There are some rumors that this may or may not be a 3D film. I personally would like to see the movies stick to the Lord of the Rings mold and not be a total change like the Star Wars films became. Can you imagine sitting down and watching all five Lord of the Rings series in a row? 

As many have stated this should be called World of Warcrack. This game is beyond addictive even when you realize how repetitive it really is to play so much to get new armor and weapons to just need new items once you just got your old ones. Luckily I gave up my addiction several months ago. I noticed immediately that I had much more time on my hands. I ended up going to sleep earlier which in turn gave me more energy at work. I also now had time to go the gym again which also was an energy boost. I highly advise for anyone who plays WoW to take a short break and see how you feel. I bet you will feel like a new person again.