Grand Slam

Noe and I watch a lot of tennis, as you may have gathered from previous posts about attending tennis tournaments in Indianapolis and Newport. This year, we decided that being so close to New York provided too great an opportunity to pass up: we made the decision to attend our first major, the U.S. Open.

We took the Metro-North from New Haven into Grand Central and then hopped on the subway to get to Queens (FYI - the parts of Queens you see from the subway windows do NOT look like "The King of Queens"). We could see the silhouette of Arthur Ashe stadium as the train pulled in - wow.

The Billie Jean King Tennis Center is the most beautiful sports venue I have ever seen. The grounds are meticulously landscaped and extremely clean. Noe and I kind of stood stupidly and stared for awhile before deciding where to head first.

We chose to get in the line to go into the grandstand (the smallest of the three stadiums). We were rewarded for our patient waiting when we walked into the small stadium and on the court was none other than Gael Monfils, one of our favorite up-and-coming French players. Monfils is incredibly athletic and is known for leaping and diving all over the court. He also slides a lot. Naturally, this style of play is particularly effective on clay, but Monfils manages to employ it on a hard court as well. We could hear his sneakers squealing before we even entered the stands.

Monfils running for a shorter shot

After Mofils sewed up his victory over Jermey Chardy, we headed to our nosebleed seats in Arthur Ashe (the big stadium). We had thought about just buying grounds passes but figured if we were going to our first major we should try to see someone really big. Neither of us imagined we would actually see our current favorite, Rafael Nadal. But sure enough, thanks to the luck of the draw, that is exactly who ended up playing the afternoon headliner on Wednesday. And before him, Venus Williams. So we ended up with an excellent double bill, totally worth the money. Actually, had Noe and I known it was going to be Nadal, we would have shelled out the bigger bucks to sit closer.

After the Nadal match ended, we wandered the grounds for awhile. We explored the food and beverage options (the Open has all kinds of food, from sushi to seafood to pasta to crepes; and tennis attracts high-end booze sponsors like Grey Goose, who had beverage carts set up every five feet), then we checked out the wall of champions. We perused the outer courts for awhile, catching Robbie Ginepri's win.

We were headed back to the grandstand to watch some of Lleyton Hewitt's match when we noticed a small crowd gathering. We followed, and found ourselves about three feet away from John and Patrick McEnroe, who were doing some commentary for one of the TV broadcasts. (The guys behind us were debating whether or not to yell "Jimmy Connors rules!"; they ultimately decided on NOT.)

We watched Hewitt grind out the first set with Chela, then sadly gave up our seats to catch the subway and head back to CT. The sadness of leaving the Open was slightly dampened when I found the Grand Central Market still open and was able to make a Murray's run, but we still spent the train ride back wishing we could have stayed.

The U.S. Open is the best sporting event I have ever attended. The grounds are nice, you can see high-quality play up close, and tennis fans are great - they like the big names, but if an underdog starts making a good run, they rally behind him or her. There are about a million different languages being spoken all around and every chair umpire has a different accent. If we stay in CT, I definitely plan to attend this event in the future.

Hall of Famers

Sometimes I hear myself say something and think "Wow. Did I really just say that?" Like when someone asked "Hey Amy, what did you do this weekend?" and I replied "Well, I spent Sunday drinking Chardonnay while sitting courtside at a grass-court tennis match in Newport."

I know how it sounds. But...its true. That is indeed how I spent my Sunday.

My classic tennis-watching pose,
trying to get players in the picture

Jonathan Edwards, the winery where I work part-time, was a sponsor for the Champions Cup - or as I like to call it, Old Man Tennis - at the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Because Noe and I are kind of tennis geeks, I was able to snag us a pair of tickets from the girl who does outside sales and events.

I didn't realize that they were VIP tickets - box seats, lunch buffet, and free booze. That was a pleasant surprise.

The first match we watched was Jim Courrier versus Pat Cash. The great thing about these kind of tours is that although you are seeing high-quality play, the players are much more relaxed and interact with each other and the crowd a lot more. Courrier and Cash were full of witty remarks. The second match was between Todd Martin and Mark Phillipoussis, who, to be totally honest, I really only know of because he was on the stupid reality show a few years back that I believe brought the term "cougar" into the mainstream lexicon.

Here are some photos from our super-classy afternoon:

Serving

Pat Cash surrounded by fans

There is a such thing as a free lunch... and this is that lunch

Noe is pretty happy with our VIP status

Things I Intend to Use This Week

1) Mountain Bike - will use to ride to work (it's nice enough weather and close enough distance that there is no excuse to put it off any longer) and perhaps Noe and I will ride at Bluff Point next weekend.

2) Tennis racquet - tennis lessons start tomorrow! Yay! I know it won't be as good as Ryan and Gary, but I am dying to play again.

3) Golf clubs - I inherited these when Noe bought new clubs, although he bought me my new bag to carry them in as a present. I used these today at the driving range - I was terrible. It was nice to be outside, though!

4) Buns the cat - wait a second...she doesn't really fit in with all this athletic equipment...although I did put her on a harness and walk her around the backyard; does that count as exercise?

Something Newport

I had Monday off work (yay Catholics!) so Noe and I decided to drive over to Newport, Rhode Island. Newport is about an hour or so north east-ish from New London, right on the water. (I still don't understand why Rhode Island is its own state - or called an island - but I can't deny they have some nice coastline.) To reach the town itself, we drove over something that looked like a mini Mackinac Bridge.

Mini Mac?

Being a Monday afternoon, Newport was pretty dead. Noe and I bummed around by the piers for a little while and browsed some shops - including one where you could essentially buy your lobster fresh off the boat - but we got bored quickly and headed down to the Tennis Hall of Fame.

The International Tennis Hall of Fame

I had sort of imagined the Tennis Hall of Fame as a large estate on expansive grounds. It's not. It is in an old casino wedged into a row of shops across the street from a thoroughly modern strip mall.

It may not look like much from the front, but once you walk under the green awning, you're transported into an entirely different time and place. You step off the streets of Newport and onto the oldest grass tennis court in America.

That's more like it.

I have been intrigued by the idea of grass courts ever since I seriously began watching tennis about three years ago. I really had failed to notice up to that point that tennis was played on different surfaces. I guess I thought everyone played on hard courts, which I now realize is pretty stupid, considering the only tennis event I could have named back then - Wimbledon - is famously played on grass.

I want to play on a grass court because I want to see how the softer surface affects the bounce and speed of the ball. Since I have only played on hard courts, the idea of playing on grass is completely exotic.

I digress.

Ten bucks buys you admission to the museum and the grounds, so we poked around the museum first (Noe and I are such nerds, I know). The displays cover everything from the origins of the game - Henry VIII was an avid "court tennis" player - to the modern hall of famers. There's a large display devoted to the infamous Billie Jean King-Bobby Riggs showdown, some fun displays of old-time tennis outfits, and a LOT of racquets.

I think I want the one with the bow.

When we were finished inside (meaning Noe had successfully pried me away from the life-size photos of Andy Roddick and Rafa Nadal) we explored the grounds.

Hello.

I had no trouble at all imagining people in turn-of-the-century clothing sitting in the grandstands, taking in a game and drinking lemonade. I desperately wanted to run out on the courts, but the presence of two suspicious lawn boys kept my behavior in check.

On my best - reluctant - behavior.

Visiting the hall of fame reminded me how much I really miss tennis. I started playing right before we moved, played that entire summer, and haven't played since. Well, when we got home from Newport I went online, and lo and behold, I found tennis lessons through the Groton Parks and Rec department. I know I'm not going to luck out the way I did in Ann Arbor with Ryan and Gary, but at least, I'll get to play again. I start next week and I am already dreading how rusty I am sure to be.

Noe and I finished our day in Newport by walking part of the Cliff Walk, a 3.5 mile stretch on the bluffs overlooking the ocean. We stuck around Salve Regina University and the Bellevue mansions - pretty nice digs.

Me on the Cliff Walk

The Breakers

It was a nice, relaxing day off made even better by the promise of tennis on the horizon. So far I'd say spring is off to a good start.

Whoa.

James Blake (who I just saw play in Indianapolis a little less than a month ago), the number two-ranked tennis player in America, upset the world's number one-ranked Roger Federer in the Olympic semifinals. Blake had won only one set in their past eight matches.

Read the whole story here: http://www.nbcolympics.com/newscenter/news/newsid=213610.html#blake+power+upsets+federer

Noe and I got this shot of Blake warming up in Indy.
We were standing about five feet away from him.

This was my attempt to get a picture of me and Blake,

but he kept moving around, like he was playing tennis or something.

One for the ages

Two years ago - heck, even as recent as the spring of last year - if you had asked me if I would stay indoors and watch a tennis match, I would have looked at you like you were crazy. Of course, at that point I had no idea how tennis scoring worked and it all seemed very confusing.

When I met Noe, I watched a few of his matches (for those of you who don't know, Noe is an excellent tennis player. If any of my Connecticut friends who read this blog play tennis and want a good match, call Noe). The first few I watched, I had no idea what was going on and didn't even have the helpful TV commentator to give me a vague idea of who was winning. And then there was the time my cousin Olivia watched a match with me and yelled out that the ref looked like our Uncle Rick, causing every player on the court to look at us in disgust and make "SHHHHHH" noises.

Noe's very patient teammate Fred must have seen the confused looks on my face every time I attempted to watch a match, because one day he came over and sat with me for an entire set, explaining exactly what was going on and how the scoring worked. This made watching the matches much more enjoyable.

Not too long after that match, Noe and I went to the tennis shop and picked out my racket and a new pair of K-Swiss sneakers - I was going to attempt to play that game that had befuddled me mere weeks before.

I lucked out big time.

When I had signed up for the Ypsi Township tennis lessons, I was not expecting anything spectacular. What I did not anticipate was the township hiring Ryan Rooney and Gary DeGuzman to teach the lessons. I didn't know Ryan and Gray at the time, but Noe knew them from the local tennis circuit - and they knew who Noe was, too. They were thrilled to get his girlfriend in tennis lessons.

Not only were Ryan and Gary awesome instructors, but after the official township lessons ended, they agreed to meet at designated courts every Tuesday and Saturday and teach drop-in lessons for whoever wanted to come. Most of our class showed up. Because of them, I was able to get great instruction and play at least twice a week all summer. And I really loved tennis.

Sadly, I have not played much since I got out here to Connecticut, a fact that I am hoping will change. Unfortunately, the parks and rec options in the Ypsi/Ann Arbor area were better than the Groton/New London region, and Noe doesn't get a corporate membership to any of the clubs out here like he did at Huron Valley - so we are both a little out of the tennis loop.

However, in the absence of playing tennis, we have watched a lot of tennis. Due to our somewhat ridiculous satellite television package, we get the tennis channel. Plus, tennis is always on at weird hours since most of it seems to be played overseas. But yesterday an epic match was played on network television.

This year's gentlemen's final at Wimbledon may be the best tennis match the world will ever see. For those who don't follow tennis (and really, who does? I never used to) Roger Federer of Switzerland and Rafeal Nadal of Spain are two of the greatest tennis players ever.

Tennis players, much like hockey players, do not photograph well during matches.

Federer has twelve Grand Slam titles to his name. He had won Wimbledon five times in a row. He was going for six - attempting to beat Bjorn Borg's record set in 1980 and tied by Federer last year. The only slam title to elude Federer is the French Open, the only slam played on clay. And four French Opens made up Nadal's slam titles.

The two have met in the finals of slams repeatedly over the last few years, with Nadal always victorious on clay and Federer usually the victor on grass or other surfaces. The gap has been closing, however - last year, Nadal managed to take Federer five sets in the Wimbledon final before succumbing.

This year, Nadal snapped Federer's winning streak on grass in a four-hour plus match that was nothing short of exhilarating. Even two rain delays couldn't keep this match from playing out at the maximum level of excitement. The two never once looked fatigued, even though they played five sets and a number of lengthy tie breaks. Darkness had started to fall when Federer's usually reliable forehand slammed the ball into the net and Nadal hit the ground in relief.

Although I was rooting for Nadal, I want to acknowledge that Roger Federer is an amazing athlete. The most appropriate modern comparison is probably Tiger Woods - both dominate their sport in a way that intimidates most of their competitors. But if you saw Nadal play Wimbledon, you know he not only wanted it, but deserved it. He earned his victory.

Makes me wish I still had Ryan and Gary around.

Lazy Sunday (and Monday, and Tuesday...)

First of all, I want to apologize for the rather sporadic and lame blogs of late. I have been busy and, when not busy, fairly burned out. As most of you know, I had a houseguest weekend before last (my awesome cousin Katie - check out her blog and her FABULOUS artwork - of which I now have a custom piece of - here). Then I proceeded to be so slammed at work that the last thing I wanted to do was turn on the computer when I got home. As for the lack of weekend updates, well, that was a combination of too many drinks at Hanafin's and good-old fashioned laziness.

Speaking of which, my eight readers, you really need to read me the riot act if you don't start seeing some running posts on this blog. I am scheduled to run the Indianapolis Mini-Marathon (half-marathon) on May 3rd and so far my training has consisted of a few Hip Hop Hustle classes, twice-weekly kickboxing, one tennis lesson and some sporadic three-mile runs. I am going to go out a limb here and say I am probably NOT in good enough shape to run the Mini at this moment in time.

Now, I have managed to pull off some pretty spectacular (insert saracasm) athletic feats in my time, such as joining the soccer team senior year of high school without ever having touched a soccer ball in my life and playing 11 minutes in goal in my first indoor game. I ran the Detroit half-marathon last year on very little training and I ran Nashville and Indy on back-to-back weekends.

However, the older I get the harder it is to do anything with a complete lack of preparation (this observation is not strictly limited to athletic endeavors - procrastination has started to work against me in general.) On those rare occasions thatI have gotten on the treadmill lately, it's been rough going.

So starting tomorrow, I am going to log at least 15 miles a week. This can be broken down into three five-mile runs, five three-mile runs, or a number of other combinations. The only potential problem is if I don't run at all during the week and find myself having to run all fifteen on Saturday. If I do this for the rest of March I should at least be back in the habit of running and can appropriately increase and taper off through April and (fingers crossed) be somewhat prepared for Indy in May.

I will update you on my progress. And I promise not to lie in my blog.

Now for the good news: I found a place that has reasonably-priced small group tennis lessons! Yeah, it’s only once a week and the instructor has nothing on Ryan and Gary, but that’s not the point. The point is that all the lamenting I’ve done about not getting to play and all my threats to sell my racquet on Ebay have been in vain – I don’t have to give up tennis. I am hoping that I can be good enough by summer to play with Noe and not A) throw my racquet or B) cry (both of which have happened before). Things went pretty well this past weekend, so my hopes are high.

All right - enough fitness blogging. Other people (like Lisa!) do it much better. But I will keep you posted on my progress and cross your fingers that I can stick to my fifteen mile-weeks. I need all the help I can get!