Tennis Lesson #1: But it's more fun to hit AT the coach...
Last night was my first Seattle tennis lesson. I would like to take this opportunity to compare and contrast the differences between here, and the lessons I took back in Texas:
- Venue neighborhood - In Texas, the tennis center I went to was in a middle-posh-level suburban neighborhood at a community center next to a library. In Seattle, it appears that this tennis center is in a very gritty section of town next to a bunch of muffler and/or salvage shops, and lots of houses with bars on the windows. The parking lot had lots of warning signs that said "High Prowl Area: Do Not Leave Valuables in Car! Lock Car!"
- Venue itself - In Texas, it was about 20 immaculately maintained outdoor courts. There were lots of benches to sit on and watch other players, plus a little pro shop where they would string your racket or sell you a $200 tennis skirt. In Seattle, for obvious reasons they have indoor courts. At the end of each baseline there are huge tarps, and you have to walk down the hallways behind these tarps to get to your court through a little tarp flap doorway. Along the alleys on each side is a bunch of netting so you don't whack a ball into another court. It was loud and sneaker-squeaky, and totally felt like P.E.
- Coach's fashion - In Texas, all the tennis pros were all-too-aware of what the hot professionals were sporting, and tried to wear the same. My coach wore Oakley wraparound sunglasses, and after Wimbledon last summer, showed up with the Nike bandana thing just like Federer wore in the tournament. (Note: only Europeans can pull off that look. Subnote: my coach was not European.) In Seattle, all the coaches had on little navy blue pants/sweater uniforms kind of like the linesmen wear.
- Coach's age - In Texas, all the tennis pros were probably in their late 20s/early 30s and very fit. In Seattle, they were easily all over 40, and my coach in particular was probably in his 50s.
- Coach's coaching style - In Texas, we hit the ball. A lot. A lot of lining up at the baseline or service line and whacking balls and running to get back in line. And he had little spots for us to aim at on the court. He thought it was as funny as we did when we tried to nail him with the ball. There was minimal talk, other than a brief explanation of the drill, a quick reminder on form, and feedback after you hit your shot. In Seattle, he spent 20-30 minutes of the hour and fifteen minutes talking. We dribbled the ball with our rackets. We set our rackets down and tossed the ball to each other. We picked our rackets back up and practiced swinging them in the air. He never really told us where to aim, except explicitly to tell us NOT to aim at him. Hopefully this was all just because it was the first lesson, and he was trying to gauge our skill level, so he can challenge us a little more in the next few weeks.
- Coach's philosophy on tennis - In Texas, I'm not sure they had one other than "emulate the people on the pro tour as closely as possible, even to the degree where you wear a stupid bandana." In Seattle, it was totally obvious that my coach really missed the days of wooden rackets. Every time he would explain something, first he would explain it, then explain how it "used" to be, then re-explain his original explanation of "modern" tennis in contrast to the old-school way. He literally called it "modern tennis."
- Degree of exertion - In Texas (and granted it is f'n hot in Texas) I would go through about a quart of water in an hour. The sweat...oh, the sweat! My shirt and hair would be damp. Sometimes I would have to sit in the parking lot with the AC on max blowing directly at my face for 5 minutes to cool off and catch my breath before I could even leave the grounds. In Seattle, I was never even winded except for maybe once the time *I* decided to run. Hopefully the coach will crank up the intensity. I am there to sweat and maybe pass out. Come on, Tom!
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