ATA JUNIOR DOUBLES
NEW YORK TENNIS ASSOCIATION
JUNIOR TOURNAMENT
FRED JOHNSON PARK
NEW YORK, NY
JULY 16-19, 2009 Deadline is July 10th
HPSA TENNIS CLINIC
Free Tennis Lessons
IT’S ALIVE!
Ok, it’s Friday and I ventured over to one of my favorite tennis parks again: Haffen, in the Bronx. Hallelujah! Folks have finally decided to come out and hit. No more sage brush or tumble weed. The Park is alive!!!
FREAKY FRIDAY
Where is everybody? I mean, where is everybody who plays tennis at Haffen Park, in the Bronx? Usually, at this time of the year, there’s competitive doubles competition going on with teams on the sidelines waiting to get in on the action. This year, nada! After an unusual Winter of inactivity, I ventured out to Haffen for the first time, last Friday. Fortunately, there was Cesar Cruz -a fellow fanatic and retired Parks Department employee- waiting to hit with somebody, anybody. We hit for about an hour and that was fine for the first time out. Today, one week later, I expected to see the courts filled with people. I mean it was a perfect day, folks. The temperature was about 65 degrees and hardly a cloud in the sky. Guess who was sitting on a bench, alone, waiting for someone to hit with. That’s right, the same elderly gentleman who was out there a week ago, today. He said to me, “…everybody’s retired. No one’s coming out anymore.” I find that hard to believe. We hit for about an hour and the day was not a total loss. I’m giving it another shot, next week. I like to get at least three-days-in-a-week. So far, I’m getting the feeling that I may be relocating to another park, like Pelham Bay or Crotona or Seton. Oh, by the way – when we finished, a young up-and-coming junior came out to get some serve-coaching from his Dad, vice president of the Haffen Park Sports Association. Maybe, things are looking up, after all.
SETON PARK TENNIS ASSN. NEWS
Manny Villarrubia, president of the Seton Park Tennis Association, and his wife Judy said they are about to make a move from the West Bronx to the west coast. Some people say they may be able to find a tennis court or two, in sunny California. Best wishes to Manny and Judy in their new venture.
