The radio came on this morning, and the very first words I heard were from one of the many remakes of Joni Mitchell’s Big Yellow Taxi*:
Don’t it always seem to go
That you don’t know what you’ve got
Till it’s gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot
Perfect. Thanks, Joni.
“Paradise” is our sport as we know and love it: the pure joy of walking onto a court with friends on a Saturday morning…the satisfaction of being an athlete at whatever age you are, from 6 (or younger) to 93+. The “parking lot” is analogous to courts being taken out to serve other not-nearly-as-good (in our minds) uses. We recently received an email from Kimo Hansen in Texas:
“Please help me help an avid racquetball player save a sole court at a condo in Austin. My friend needs all the backup and racquetball history, future intents and justification for why racquetball exists. She will be attending an important meeting with lawyers and condo owners in order to keep the one and only court they have without installing basketball hoops in the court...your help would be greatly appreciated!”
In pondering the concept of saving courts and what persuasive arguments could be provided to compel those who don’t “get it” (like we do) to Save Our Courts, the reply:
“The USA Racquetball website (www.usaracquetball.com) is full of information about the benefits of racquetball, our history and our bright future, programming for court usage, etc. With the one court, of course, the latter is limited, but see if you and your friend can get the folks at the complex to think about multiple uses for the court without altering it, so that racquetball could still be played. Activities like wallyball (which just requires several holes in the side walls to attach the net, http://www.wallyball.com); Wacquetball (up and coming, still in its infancy...check out www.wacquetball.com); even basketball (one goal, mounted on the back wall, that folds up flat against the wall when not in use…it's a little annoying as an occasional court hinder when playing racquetball, but it's better than losing the court); yoga, tai chi, aerobics classes, etc. are other considerations for use of the space. And…here’s a new one for you…check out Court Soccer! http://www.byui.edu/scroll/archive/20040518/sports2.html.”
So how else can we protect our “paradise?” In the most efficient and scalable way: The Media! Tournament directors, this is a matter of adding “contact the media” to your event checklist. John O’Donnell, Jr., when hand carrying news releases about the upcoming NMRA International Championships to radio and TV stations in the Champaign area, wasn’t doing anything magical – it was common sense. He simply leveraged his passion and his local relationships to lure two TV stations to come out to the event, to arrange a radio interview, and to get the Champaign News-Gazette to publish a quarter-page article. John was smart about it…not only did he deliver the basic information about the event, he also gave them a human interest angle they couldn’t resist: Retired U.S. Army Colonel Ben Marshall competing at 92 years old!
Each and every one of you can be a celebrity in your own area. Come on, don’t be shy, it’s not about you, it’s for racquetball. The next time you win a local, state, regional or national championship, or even compete in one, find yourself someone who can write a simple press release for you, and send it to your local media. States, take the lead on this – it’s your job to make sure racquetball isn’t a well-kept secret. Find a writer, a journalist, a computer graphics person, get them together and point them toward the future.
(Note: considering visibility, did you know there’s a radio show dedicated solely to racquetball? It’s Ray Davis’ Racquetball Roundtable, on WNJC 1360 am out of New Jersey, begun in 1998 and airing every Tuesday evening at 9:00 p.m. Eastern. You can listen to it on your computer www.racquetballroundtable.com. Ray invites anyone with comments or suggestions to contact him at rdavis@racquetballroundtable.com.)
To all – come out to the Leadership Conference in Colorado Springs in September and join the dialogue about stepping up.
Don’t it always seem to go
That you don’t know what you’ve got
Till it’s gone…
Not on our watch!
Cheryl Kirk
President
* ©Siquomb Publishing Company