February 2004 Monthly Archive
February 2004
Research Can Help Keep You at The Top of Your Game
Every business owner needs to be knowledgeable about the industry from which he or she makes a living. In tennis, not only do you need to know about the ups and downs in the market and how they will...
Racquet Sports Industry/U.S. Tennis Court & Track Builders Association Facility-of-the-Year Award Winners
Once again, we've joined forces with the U.S. Tennis Court & Track Builders Association to bring you examples of excellence in court construction. Each year, based on entries submitted by a USTC&TBA member, whether a contractor, designer or supplier,...
Industry News
DecoTurf Picked As Surface for Olympics The 2004 Olympic tennis competition in Athens, Greece, this summer will take place on 16 courts with a DecoTurf acrylic surface by Andover, Mass.-based DecoSystems. DecoSystems, a division of California Products Corp., announced...
Tampa's Tennis Republic
With a "by the people, for the people" view, MP Tennis' ladder promotion is reaching new heights.
Writing Our Own Tennis History
In your hands is a little bit of tennis history — the premiere issue of Racquet Sports Industry. This new magazine, which we're calling RSI, comes about as a merger between two industry stalwarts: Tennis Industry magazine and the...
Racquet Power and the Ideal Racquet Weight
What is the ideal weight of a racquet that will give the maximum possible power out of the racquet? Most elite players use a moderately heavy racquet, around 340 grams or so, but is that the best weight for...
Lookin' Good!
In tennis apparel, new fabrics and designs will captivate your customers.
The Future is Now
Recent economic news is leading industry-watchers to see positive signs for the new year.
Survival of the Fittest
For racquet manufacturers, the strong are not only surviving, but they're also producing some of their best frames ever.
No Compromises!
Tennis shoe manufacturers are finding ways to give players all the benefits, with no trade-offs.
A Turning Point?
Polyester is changing the way consumers buy strings, making stringers even more important to the player's game.
RSI Outlook 2004
As industry professionals gaze into their crystal ball, they see reasons to be optimistic in the new year.
Special Attention
As many court builders know, attention to detail can make or break a project. With so much on the line — money, reputation, referrals — the top court construction companies know that they do, indeed, need to sweat the...
Rising to the Challenge?
In an effort to reach Alan Schwartz's 30 by 2010 goal, the USTA — and the industry — is pushing ahead with some key initiatives.
Wilson Stamina 17
BRAND & MODEL Wilson introduced Stamina in 2002 as a durability-oriented synthetic gut in 16 gauge only. Since then, Stamina has become so popular that Wilson now offers it in two additional gauges — 17 and 18 — and...
What's Your Business Worth? It Depends on Who's Asking
How much is your tennis business worth? Of all the things asked of retailers and facility owners, placing a value on your operation often is the most difficult. This is, in part, because the value of any business often...
Want More Business? Take a Look At What You're Doing, Then Change It
I've spent the last two decades visiting tennis resorts, clubs and camps in order to give avid players advice about where to go to play tennis. The research has taken me to more than 350 tennis resorts and clubs...
Tennis elbow
Q: As one who suffers from tennis elbow, I’ve read issue after issue of Tennis magazine looking for articles dedicated to this condition, but found only scant mention of pricey medical procedures and the “Hit or Myth” column by USRSA...
Stringing unusual racquets
Q: I realize that I am not going to be able to string every racquet that my customers bring me in twenty minutes or less, but I feel as though I am spending an inordinate amount of time on racquets...
Creating New Tie-Off Holes
Sometimes the tie-off hole for a racquet isn’t very well placed. You may have three strings crammed next to each other on the grommet strip, all of which are blocked when you go to tie off. Rather than fight with...
Grip Wash
I play in warm, sunny, central Florida outdoors where I’ll match the sweat drenching summer heat and humidity index with any other place. An overgrip is essential. But oil and other grime can quickly overwhelm even a brand new overgrip,...
Soft String and Blocked Holes
Sometimes with a soft string it is really difficult getting through a blocked hole. Needle nose pliers don’t grab well enough and you “smush” the end of the string. After cutting the end of the string to form a “plastic...
Short-side Short-cut
It is weird reading about the different ways stringers measure their short-side string, because the method I use is so fast and fool-proof that I can’t imagine doing it any other way. Run the string through the first main on...
Storing Stencil Ink
Here’s a tip to keep the stencil ink tip from drying out. Place a little plastic wrap over the tip before you screw the cap on. The plastic wrap forms a seal and prevents the drying process. 5 sets of...
Photographic Evidence
Recently I was inspecting a racquetball frame and noticed a crack. I took a picture of the frame before cutting out the strings, and called the owner to advise him that while the frame might be okay, I couldn’t be...
Sharp Stenciling
A clearly stenciled logo makes a very nice finishing touch to a freshly strung racquet. The key to good contrast with the strings is to make sure you get good ink coverage. Unfortunately this almost always means that there...
Circle of Quality
I wanted a distinctive way to mark racquets to indicate that they had been serviced at my store. I came up with a colored stencil in the shape of a ball in an area of the racquet outside the...
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