In a perfect world.

Sometimes you just have to believe in what you believe or nothing will change. Anyone who is reading this blog knows of my promotion in Ektelon. Anyone who knows racquetball it is not for the money(there is none) lol. I have heard from so many players from years ago about how great this sport used to be. It must still be pretty special you old bastard,you are still playing I say. Do we have the number of people playing as years ago,approx 20 mil; and today 6.5 million today,no. Do we have the big prizes,no. The professional million dollar contracts,no. But I have some positive no's, if that is possible. Do we have to play tournaments until 4 in the morning,no. Do we have to pay for court time,no. Do we have to wait forever for a court,no. Do we wear those goofy 70's shorts, no. Finally do we have to play with those hammer heavy,shoulder tearing,skull crushing racquets, NO. So there is a perfect world for racquetball. We are in the infancy to build it to where it deserves to be. It is bigger than all of us, It is something I love and will not let diminish. So I invite anyone reading this, do something for the sport you love, besides complaining about lighting or other issues on court conditions. Build the sport and show the owners a reason to invest in, and keep the courts alive. Grab a junior, a newbie. Do whatever it takes. I am taking on extra responsibility for my passion,will you ? Jon "Hit Smarter not Harder"

Is it a foot fault, or the feets fault ?

The first complaint of many non racquetball players is the inability to track the ball. I want everyone today to ignore the ball,the swing,the racquet,and even the follow through. I want you to watch only the feet of the players at your club next time you go. I have played people with "decent" racquet skills that dominate the "better" player. There are obviously alot of mechanics involved in a swing,but there are many other racquet sports such as squash,paddle ball and ping pong. All of these players who have played their sport for a while have developed decent foot work. I say anyone can swing a racquet but foot work is an acquired skill. When a person skips a ball or hits a pinch instead of a down the line,look at their feet. The feet tell all. The feet should in most instances face either wall on our shots. Again look at how many peoples feet are pointing to the front wall, especially on skip shots. The feet tell all. Focusing on your feet after a mistake will definitely help your game. Plyometrics, ladders, and speed and agility classes will elevate your game. This is a guarantee. If more people were facing the wall I guarantee people would almost never get hit with a racquet. Why do you think it happens at the lower level. Finally good footwork makes people look much faster than they actually are. So next time you are at your gym or a tourney check out your opponent feet. It could be their impediment. Jon "Hit Smarter not Harder"

Happy Place

I try to keep this space to general things that happen in the racquetball community, and not a personal journal. Where is happiness found on the court? I think it truly depends on the intentions of the player. That's where I come into this question. I want to get better just as most tournament/league players want to. To answer my own question about the where, is a tough one. On one hand I like to win, at what cost ? Does a persons happiness affect their play ? I have seen some players like John Barrett shoot his best relaxed, just as many pros are relaxed, able to leave a loss behind . Then you have players like Sanjay who seem to thrive on the adrenaline in the match. That is during the game. I knew when I started dedicating time to improving my game that it would be a tough road, especially not being a young kid, and entrenched in my bad playing habits. I had a loss at my club in the men's A finals. I felt like I let down myself, my partner, and even my teacher. I beat myself up for two days, rehashing my mistakes and how I embarrassed myself. I had friends call me to try to help me through it, but nothing healed the wounds. Is that what I signed up for . I love this sport,is this who I am going to become in the pursuit of becoming a "champion". When I started this my teacher said patience is needed to see results. I had to take a big step back to realize that time is my enemy for now. It is easy to say "I am patient" but not as easy to live it. Like someone with a disease, there are good days and bad days. I just want to lick this disease, and move onto winning some matches. The good news I do believe that the cure is just on the horizon. Until then I will enjoy the sport that has given me so much, a huge group of good friends, and a way to stay physically fit. See you at a tourney soon. Jon "Hit Smarter not Harder"