CRA Rollout, Summer 2013

CRA Rollout, Summer 2013

Read the CRA Rollout Online at ColoradoRacquetball.com

The Colorado Racquetball Association Quarterly ENews

Summer 2013

ROCKIES RACQUETBALL: July 25-27 Rocky Mountain State Games in the Springs!

YES ... of course it's "on" ... it's always been "on" ... ! Colorado has hosted a State Games every summer, even before 2006 when the first results were posted on the CRA website. Racquetball in the Rocky Mountain State Games is a mid-summer tradition and that little bit of extra drive-time from Denver & Pueblo is always well worth it for first-rate competition and great fun.

So >> hurry to enter and $AVE 30% on the first-event fee! Entries received BEFORE July 12 will be $30 (after the deadline = $45) ... so don't delay!

This multi-sport festival is for Colorado residents of all ages and athletic abilities, and is recognized by the National Congress of State Games, a member of the United States Olympic Committee.

Racquetball will be played at the Downtown YMCA in Colorado Springs, featuring tournament direction by Eddie Meredith, with help from favorite local hostess Barb Sims, along with her great crew. The Y is the Springs' only tournament-sized venue, and is home to the largest roster of competitive players in the area. [ map ] The State Games concept was developed in New York in 1978 with the Empire State Games. Today, more than 400,000 athletes compete in State Games nationwide each year.

Just a few of last year's winners were: Matt Melster in Men's Open, Rock Carrion (MA), Steve Strahler (MB), David Collins (MC), Rico Southee (M45 +), Sammy Payne (M55+) and Chantal Anderson & Eddie Meredith in Mixed

In this issue: • Rocky Mountain State Games Goes Every Year • Dave King Retires • Tournament Update • Club Update • Upcoming Events • Board News • Junior Update • Know your Rules • From the President • From the Editor • National News Past Event Results: • Pepsi Cup • Regionals • Cinco de Mayo

CRA Rollout, Summer 2013

Open. See the full results to check out the rest of the defending champions who may return for another round!

COLORADO LEGACY | Dave King Retires & Gives Back in a BIG Way My very special lunch with Dave King, by Marcia Richards When I first met Dave King, I couldn’t have imagined that – years later – I’d be sitting down to a long lunch to ask him all about his life. Over the years, I never really saw him, never took the time to get to know him. I just knew that, if you were in a hurry, it would be difficult to just pop into Goodson to get what you wanted and be on your way. That took time that I didn’t always have, and it often rubbed me the wrong way.

But Dave liked sharing what he knew about the product you were about to buy – and truly enjoyed interacting with his customers and giving back to the racquetball community. Selling racquetball gear was a "hobby" and he prided himself in giving players high quality product at a very reasonable price … and he wanted you to know that you were getting the best price possible!

Not many players really know Dave, other than he sold and strung racquets at tournaments. (For example, did you know he was a geological engineer who served in the Army interpreting U2 surveillance photos?). Now that he’s phasing into retirement [ at The Village, 4761 East Costello, Centennial, CO 80122 ] I’d like to share what I’ve learned about who he was and who he is today. Or at least who he is to me. Read the full article here >>

CRA Rollout, Summer 2013

TOURNEY UPDATE | Peterson Retains Pepsi Cup According to Richard Romero ... it "should be no more a surprise to you, than it was to us, that the Peterson Team won the Pepsi Cup … again … !" How did THAT happen?!

I can give you a hint … it starts with a team captain who is also a coach and a leader by example. His name is Ray Cordero. Don’t get me wrong. He would be the first to say that it takes a team effort to achieve a team victory.

Read the full story by Richard, Ray Cordero and Rock Carrion, who also shared the full roster of Team Pete, and a happy group photo.

Congrats! >> CRA President Larry Haemmerle and VP Ben Kincses (far right) present the Pepsi Cup to Peterson team captain Ray Cordero (center).

CLUB UPDATES | by Ralph Graham This summer, the Denver Athletic Club offers a Youth Court Sports program in July … an Oil and Gas Racquetball League starting July 15 … Summer Racquetball Leagues for men, women & juniors at all player levels starting July 15 … and a Racquetball Blast one-day shootout with singles & doubles round robins - plus hospitality all day - on August 24.

And August 8-12: DAC will host the Smart Racquetball Elite Camp, featuring Hall of Fame Coach Jim Winterton, former #6 Pro Jo Shattuck, Top Pros and US Team Members Rhonda Rajsich and Nick Montalbano.

Learn training techniques, footwork drills and how to improve your game from the best coach and players in the world.

CRA SPONSORS & SUPPORTERS ENTRY DOWNLOADS & REGISTRATION • Rocky Mountain State Games - July • Smart Racquetball Elite Camp - August • IRF World Seniors - August CRA on Facebook

CRA Rollout, Summer 2013

THE BOARD REPORT | by Marcia Richards, CRA Secretary Somewhere behind the athlete you've become, the hours of practice, the coaches who have pushed you, and the fans that cheer you, is the little girl who fell in love with the sport and never looked back. Play for her! --Unknown Author It's been quite awhile, but the CRA is dedicated to bringing back our monthly ladies days - and started out in June with Chantel Anderson and Michelle Sikorski hosting in Colorado Springs.

A total of nine ladies made their way to the Downtown YMCA, including myself, Kristy Briggs, Val Brown, Avril Haemmerle, Linda Mojer, Summer Arledge and Janelle Williams. Everyone enjoyed a great workout, snacks and catching up with friends, then received a gift just for showing up.

If you're not on our list to get Ladies Day emails, please make sure you let me know and I'll add you. If you want to host one of the ladies days at your club, let us know that as well. Then help us gear up for the season by introducing lots of new women and girls to the game.

We'll also be celebrating a landmark at the upcoming 2014 Racquet for Cure - with a very ambitious fundraising goal. If we're able to raise $15,000 for the 15th Annual event, we'll reach a benchmark $100,000 in total giving since 2000. The tournament was founded in Denver, and we're very proud of having started such an ambitious project (that's been replicated nationwide), so the committee is gearing up for a huge dinner celebration for all the participants this year. Don't miss it!

AND THE WINNER IS ...

The CRA Annual Awards were put out for vote, and the bestof-the-best were named at Pepsi Cup. Congratulations go to: Most Improved: Ginette Chapman and Steve Strahler Sportsmanship: Lucy Jirik and Ray Cordero Best Junior: Erika Manilla Best Event: Mile High Pro Am Best Club: Highlands Ranch

No matter what you like to do – it’s a good bet that CRA offers a way to show off your skills. So shall we sign you up? Volunteering is an easy way to help the sport continue to thrive throughout Colorado!

Just contact any board member to volunteer!

If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in. -Rachel Carson The CRA's focus this season is to build our junior programs throughout the state. We have many programs working independently and would like to get them all under one roof. We would like to gear up this season and get our juniors on the courts, with programs similar to our ladies days with Super Saturdays. If you have program or are looking for one, please contact Dan Davis.

Next year Colorado will host the 2014 Junior Olympic Racquetball Championships at the Highlands Ranch Recreation Center in June, which is a huge boost for Colorado Racquetball in the national community. Let's dedicate this entire season to our young players and to getting more women playing!

CRA Rollout, Summer 2013

IN GRATITUDE | by Larry Haemmerle, CRA President In thinking about my new role as CRA President, I felt it was only appropriate that I recognize Marcia Richards for her decade of service to the Colorado Racquetball Association. Prior to the referee clinic at the Pepsi Cup Team Championships, we presented her with some gifts to honor her dedication to our sport.

Unless you are deeply involved with a state association like ours, you really can't appreciate how difficult it is to devote the amount of time necessary to support racquetball and be able to make a difference. It's hard, thankless work and dedication like Marcia's is hard to find.

So the next time you see her, please offer your thanks for her last 10 years (!) of service as President - and her continuing role as our Secretary. We're so grateful to have Marcia Richards in Colorado!

JUNIOR UPDATE | by Ben Kincses, CRA Vice-President Juniors around the state are already benefitting from the very generous donation of equipment by Dave King, whose inventory of frames and accessories has been offered to numerous program directors for re-distribution to new players.

Once Dave decided to retire, he was challenged with figuring out what to do with the inventory of equipment he’d accumulated over the years. He started with the CRA, asking if we could use 100 junior racquets. We jumped on the offer and invited programmers to start providing juniors with racquets from Dave. Most of the inventory is spoken for; but if you know of a program that is in need, please let us know.

Colorado Springs program directors Mike Kennedy and Kim Pedrie were thrilled to accept Dave's generosity. "Please thank Dave King for his generous gift to our Juniors program. Some of the racquets will be given outright to junior players that really show an interest in pursuing the game. It's one thing to come to a class and borrow a racquet - and another to have their very own racquet to learn with. I've seen numerous juniors playing with racquets from the late 70's and even though they seem to have fun, I'd love to offer one of these racquets to their parents to help the junior have proper equipment." - Mike Kennedy "We've been running Fall and Winter Junior racquetball sessions here at the downtown Colorado Springs YMCA for the last 7 years and it is only through efforts like this that we are able to provide equipment to new and developing players. The YMCA has donated court and membership time (our attendees are not required to join the Y) and with generous donors like Dave stepping up to provide us with racquets, we are all set to develop future players." - Kim Pedrie "The Highlands Ranch Recreation Center is deeply grateful for the racquets, balls and grips that were donated to our Junior Program from Mr. Dave King. Dave's tireless efforts in promoting racquetball, as well as equipment sales, is unmatched by anyone that I know in the state. We at HRCA will miss the faces of both Dave and Lois at racquetball events. I assure you that this equipment will be put to good use for all of our programs, as well as our Junior Program. Wishing Mr. and Mrs. Dave King the best." - Bill Fearing

CRA Rollout, Summer 2013

KNOW YOUR RULES ! New Rules for FALL | by Dave Stone At the annual meeting of the USAR National Board of Directors, any rule changes that have gone through the appropriate process are considered for adoption. This year, the following rule changes were approved to go into effect September 1, 2013. ●

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Revise Rule 2.5(b) to require that players wear proper athletic-type shoes; i.e. players may not play in either bare feet or with only socks.

Revise Rule 2.5 by adding Rule 2.5 (d) “Electronic Equipment. Players may not wear supplemental audio equipment during play (other than equipment used specifically to improve their hearing.)

Revise the USAR’s rules to provide for playing two serves in all USAR events and divisions except for the U.S. Team Qualifying divisions that are played at National Singles and National Doubles to identify members of the U.S. National Racquetball Team.

Revise Rule 3.13(c)10 (the so-called “Carry Rule”) to say that “There is no longer any “carry” rule in USAR play unless the carry was intentional.”

Again, please bear in mind that these rules are not changed until September 1 ... so you're free to play barefoot for another couple of weeks ... !

FROM THE PRESIDENT | by Larry Haemmerle The Pepsi Cup Team Championship is the largest event on the CRA calendar, and drew 164 players this year. It was a great success (thanks to an incredible volunteer team!) and to add some perspective, here are some interesting statistics.

We used all 14 courts between the Highlands Ranch Recreation Center at Northridge and the Littleton YMCA, to play over 260 matches, using more than 275 balls. More than 20 volunteers provided support that (conservatively) totalled 250+ hours devoted to running this intricate event.

The workload included setting up the website, processing entries from all sources, developing the draws, scheduling matches, answering player and captain questions, ordering souvenirs and awards, planning and providing hospitality, monitoring matches, posting draws and results, finding referees, running the referee clinic ... etc.... and ... well ... you get the picture. I offer my sincere thanks to everyone who helped to made this such a special weekend. I'm very well traveled in the racquetball community, so I can assure you that we have some of the finest volunteers in the nation!

On a related note, it's critical that fairness be an integral part of the Pepsi Cup Team Championships. Prior to seeding and preparing each draw, we review the participants to make certain everyone is in the correct division. In fact, we received advance queries from 8 different captains regarding 17 different players. We applied the rules, in addition to generally accepted practices used by Tournament Directors for decades, to adjudicate these

FROM THE EDITOR I like to see how the Rollout shakes out before trying to "editorialize", so my take on this issue is that it's largely focused on women, children, community and connection. Standard stuff on the one hand, but it does leave an opening on the other.

I don't think it's unusual, but many of my longest-term friendships are based in racquetball. So when the Black Forest fire began, I started wondering (again!), where exactly do my racquetball friends live?

After Waldo last year, I learned that Mike Kennedy had sustained only limited home damage (yay!). This year, Mark Sikorski was - literally - in the line of fire. But between last summer and this one, he'd done mitigation and his home came as close as could be, before dodging the blaze.

CRA Rollout, Summer 2013

challenges, as well as our own concerns about players. The goal is to ensure fairness within each division, not to penalize individual players.

To fully develop a policy that ensures each entrant is placed appropriately, a Task Force will be formed to examine the issue - made up of CRA Board Members, as well as some very experienced and respected members of the community who have expressed interest in the project. The Task Force will study the factors that should be considered when players are selected to move up - or allowed to move down - in divisions. Again, the primary consideration will be to ensure fairness, and the study should be completed prior to the start of our fall season.

Full circle around ... the CRA Board contains one Steve Nelson, who is a Denver firefighter - and, therefore, one of my favorite public servants!

My point? Racquetball itself brings us into the company of some of the finest (and luckiest) people - and I'm so often grateful for that! - Linda Mojer

I look forward to seeing you at CRA events. Have a great summer and keep your game sharp!

NATIONAL NEWS | by Larry Haemmerle Another National Singles is in the books and Colorado players had another great year. There were 435 participants competing for National titles, with 12 of our own talent in the draw. The following players won their respective divisions: Amanda Blender, double gold in Women's D and Women's 35+ C, Joe Massa, Men's D, Fausto Santana, Boy's -14, Emily Stanton, Women's C. With a third of our players winning titles and more than half bringing home hardware, Colorado was very well represented. Congratulations!

Here's how our youngsters did at Junior Olympics in Des Moines ... Briana Jacquet Triple silver finish, in Girl's 12- singles and doubles, Mixed 12- Doubles ... Adam Manilla Triple gold B18- singles & doubles, Mixed 18- Doubles ... Erika Manilla Gold G14- doubles, Silver G14-singles ... Nick Riffel Double Silver in B18- doubles, Mixed 18- Doubles, semis in B18-singles.

For their outstanding performances, both Adam and Erika Manilla qualified for the US Junior National Racquetball Team - as did Nick Riffel for his earlier victory at National High Schools - and will all represent the USA in Bolivia, at the International Racquetball Federation World Junior Championships in October.

As you'd expect, expenses for such a trip are considerable, so USA Racquetball is accepting donations to directly support these young athletes as they represent our country and have the experience of a lifetime. Donors of $100 or more will receive a special Olympic souvenir windbreaker (while supplies last), so donate today and show your Team USA pride!

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