CRA Rollout, Fall 2009 by With Substance, Inc.

Tournament Trail Juniors Tidbits Results CRA Board

FALL 2009 EDITION www.ColoradoRacquetball.com

PRESIDENT’S CORNER — by Marcia Richards, CRA President

s the president of the CRA for over five years and as an involved player and programmer for most of my adult life; I am afraid that too many of my ideas will never happen. I keep coming to the end of my term feeling like my job is incomplete. Why is it in those 25 to 30 years junior programs and bringing women to the game is still a priority across the United States!? Is it that when these programs are introduced, you feel like the tree in the picture standing alone waiting for the juniors, women, and new players to come to you? We all have great intentions and ideas that just never seem to get off the ground. We are so deeply rooted, not willing to step out of the box to try something NEW! I tried all summer long to start a teen league at the Littleton Family YMCA with little success. But the 12-and-under league finally started showing some growth. I reached out to our summer camp program and they brought the kids to me. It WORKED! Plans for continuing this program throughout the school year are in the planning stages and students who attend the afterschool program now have the options of playing racquetball as one of the students’ choices. I challenge all program directors to try to implement a similar program at their facilities. If you already have a program in place, don’t stand alone…email our junior committee. Deb Beldring, Dan Davis, and Carol Pellowski will coordinate the programs in the state and start networking ideas. The goal for this season is to have enough juniors to have a state tournament just for juniors. We will offer two separate categories (a competitive and recreational) to meet the needs of the juniors. Maybe you want to get involved but do not know how… The CRA will host a clinic for programmers interested in starting grass roots programs. The clinic will offer outlines on instruction and share ideas and equipment packages--everything you need to start a program. Again, we need the participants necessary to have these programs flourish. So the CRA is applying for a grant to help our state implement a strong grass roots program throughout the state. If you are an interested parent or player who wants to give back, be sure to contact us, as we are in the process of finally beginning to walk the talk! The time is NOW to start living in the eyes of the young…make sure our sport continues to be around when we are no longer playing. n

University Racquetball Club Impact

By Drew Thompson, Recent DU Graduate

never played racquetball until I went

to the University of Denver. I grew up playing tennis, instead. When I was a freshman, my friends introduced me to the sport and I continued to improve and became competitive. At the annual DU Club Sports Carnival, I met Justin Rose, Founder and then President of the team. I was reluctant to join at first, but was eventually convinced. In retrospect, I was so glad to have made that decision. Once I joined the team, I started playing in the quarterly in-house tournaments. As my confidence rose, I began traveling with the team and playing in intercollegiate tournaments around Colorado. I played well and enjoyed meeting and playing different people from around the state. Junior year, DU Racquetball began holding weekly practices and I saw my skills improve dramatically. That year, I went to the National Intercollegiate Racquetball Championships in Kansas City, Kansas. continued on page 2...

University Impact...continued from page 1 It was my first tournament outside of the Colorado intercollegiate tournaments. I was happy with my performance, and even though I did not win medals myself, it was great to see my DU teammates come back with medals. After seeing the caliber of players at the national level, I told myself I would practice more to be better prepared for the following year. The following year, DU Racquetball increased its intensity and brought in Jo Shattuck to coach the weekly practices. I played better my senior year at all of the competitions, including Nationals Intercollegiates in Tempe, Arizona. Even though racquetball at DU is not a varsity sport, it still had a great team feel. From a road trip to Kansas, to volunteering with junior programs, to hanging out by the pool in Tempe, I enjoyed every minute I spent with the team. I met so many people and made many friendships that will last a lifetime. I also learned a sport that I can play for the rest of my life. n

Upcoming University Racquetball Meets: y OCTOBER 3 University of Wyoming Cheyenne y NOVEMBER 1 University of Colorado Boulder

Articles, Advertising & Letters: CRA ROLLOUT ATTN: Cindy Tilbury, Editor 3131 East Alameda, #205 Denver, CO 80209 303.888.4461

Collegiate Racquetball Club Questions & Answers by Ben Kincses, Denver University and CRA Board Member

How do I start a club at my college/university? Contact your school’s intramural or club sports leader to find out what you need to do to make racquetball an official school organization. At most schools, all you have to do is obtain a form and explain how the club would work. Organize an interest meeting for the students. Post flyers around campus, make a Facebook event. Tell them about in-house tournament options, as well as competitive tournaments. How do I make sure I have a successful club? Set up an in-house tournament that can be ongoing throughout the semester (flex leagues work best with college students). Communicate to the players via email, Facebook, and website, if possible. How do I get school funding? Approach your student government and/or the club sport leadership. Ask them how and when you need to apply for funding. Do I have to have an official club to participate in the collegiate tournaments? No! It doesn’t matter if you are the only student that plays racquetball at your school and you don’t have an organized club, you can still participate in our tournaments, as long as you are a full-time student, as defined by USA Racquetball’s collegiate body. Invite all of your players, if you can. How many meets/tournaments are there during the season? There are five or six tournaments every academic year, with most of the tournaments being one-day-only events. Around February of each year, we have a multi-day event in preparation for the intercollegiate nationals. (The National Intercollegiate Championship is hosted around the end of March / early April.) How much does it cost to participate in these meets? Participating is fairly inexpensive. Our local meets cost anywhere between $3 and $8 dollars per person, depending on the facility and organizer. Can my school host a tournament? Yes! Contact me, the collegiate director, at gibneb@gmail.com and we will find a weekend that you can host a tourney! What does it take to host a collegiate tourney? Hosting a collegiate tournament is easy. All you need to do is secure the host facility and the collegiate director will assist you with some of the tournament formats you can use. How do I get a team coach? Let the CRA Board know that you would like a volunteer coach or helper and they will do their best to find some good players to help you out. Fundraiser ideas? We recommend doing a little fundraising for equipment and travel expenses, so that money will not be directly out of pocket. Parent and sponsorship letters can be sent out. Host a tournament. Put on an Applebee’s pancake breakfast fundraiser. Resell school-branded products at tournaments (water bottles, headbands, etc). For more information about any of these ideas or if you have an idea, please contact the collegiate DU Team Players (left to right): Armando Vasquez, Ben Kincses, director. n Mason Hays, Braz Kendall, Bryan Corell, Drew Thompson

Colorado Collegiate Racquetball Clubs

by Cindy Tilbury

olorado universities are very active with racquetball clubs, but you may not hear

about them if it has been many years since you were in school. I recently asked the team contacts to tell us a little about ir clubs, and to let us know what we can do to help promote collegiate racquetball. Here are two of their stories.

Colorado University at Boulder – John Whittier, RB Team President Thank you for the chance to highlight our collegiate team. The CU Racquetball club attracts over 50 students each year to the CU Boulder recreation center’s five courts. We did not attend nationals last year because it was the week after our spring break. Our biggest challenge so far has been managing the large volume of people on only five courts, but our goal for this season is to set up a core team of players who are dedicated to competing at both intercollegiate and local tournaments. To that end, we would greatly appreciate if the community could support us by lowering the cost of entry to tournaments, as most of our players are unable to afford the entry fees. Our club is open to all students and faculty members at CU Boulder. University of Denver – Armando Vasquez, RB Team President The University of Denver Club Racquetball Team was started in the fall of 2003. At first, the club mainly organized tournaments for the students of the University to play in against each other. Since then, though, we have started holding practice once a week with a professional coach (Jo Shattuck the past two years), participating in the CRA University Touring Squad League, and participating in the Intercollegiate National Championships. This past school year was our third year entering the competition. We took a team of five men’s players and one women’s player--a first for our team. We were happy to return with three individual medals, despite missing the best player on the team. This upcoming year we are looking forward to becoming better and competing at nationals at a higher level. The biggest challenge for our club is getting people there on a regular basis. There are three or four people who constantly show up, and it shows in the improvement they make from the beginning of the year to the end. However, there are other players that I wish we could get to show up to practice every week, because I feel like they would become good/great players if they just put a little more time and effort into the game. It is also tough to get people to travel to the University Touring Squad League Tournaments with us. Because of the timing of the racquetball season, students are either enjoying the weather outside, or at the mountains skiing and snowboarding. It is difficult to get people to commit to being indoors over the weekend from time to time.

is backing you. DU also plans to have a fundraiser or two throughout the year to raise money for our trip to the national tournament. If we could get the community to participate in the fundraiser events, we would greatly appreciate it. The University of Denver Club Racquetball team practices at the Coors Fitness Center in the Ritchie Center at the University of Denver. We have two panel-walled courts, both with full glass back walls. n

John Lomonaco Memorial Grant by Cindy Tilbury

ave you ever wanted to go to Houston National Singles? Do you know someone who has always wanted to go to National Singles? Check out the next USA Racquetball eNewsletter and you may be going!

An all-expenses-paid trip (up to $2,000) to the USAR National Singles Championships in Houston, Texas, May 26 through 31, 2010, has been anonymously donated by a friend of John Lomonaco of West Hills, California. John Lomonaco, an avid racquetball player and USAR/NMRA member, passed away on May 5, 2009, at the age of 57 after playing at the Spectrum Club in Canoga Park. He was a good friend and a past national champion.

The DU Club Racquetball team is open to the students, faculty, and staff of the University of Denver.

The recipient of the John Lomonaco Memorial Grant may be male or female and must be at least 18 years of age and a U.S. citizen. He/she will submit an application to the USAR and write an essay of 500 words or less expressing why he/she wants to attend National Singles next May. Full details and the application form will be found at www. usaracquetball.com. The deadline for submissions is December 31, 2009, with the recipient announced on or before February 28, 2010. This is an annual grant. Keep it in mind for 2011 and beyond if you cannot get to Houston in May.

We need support from the local racquetball community in the upcoming year. We are hoping to have our team members entering CRA tournaments on top of the collegiate tournaments. They can usually be spotted because they wear University of Denver apparel. Words of encouragement and moral support while they are playing their matches can help our players have more fun and build their confidence on the court. As we all know, playing the sport is a little easier when it seems like the crowd

If you need a little more information about National Singles, feel free to contact me (Cindy), Marcia Richards, or (best yet), Jim Hiser and the USA Racquetball staff in Colorado Springs. We hope to see you there in May! n

DU Club Racquetball’s goals for this upcoming year are: 1. Increase the number of women’s players at tournaments 2. Be more active in the racquetball community, especially with the youth programs 3. See an increase of at least half a division in our players over the school year

Update Your USA Racquetball Profile Online

he CRA Newsletter has transitioned to an electronic format. As you know, it is presently available on www. coloradoracquetball.com. We may, however, move to an email (members only) format in the near future. Please take the opportunity now to update your USA Racquetball membership profile-most especially supplying your current email address so you don’t miss any issues of this cutting-edge publication! Please follow the steps below to update your profile: 1. Log into www.usra.org 2. Select Membership Login in the upper left hand box 3. Enter your six-digit USAR membership number and password* 4. Update the information in the profile 5. Click on Edit Contact Info 6. Log out Now, wasn’t that easy? *If you don’t know or have misplaced your membership number and/or password, contact Heather Izzett at hizzett@usra. org. Thanks for taking the time…and be sure to visit www.coloradoracquetball.com for tournament schedule revisions and competition results. n

CRA Board of Directors ELECTIONS Board Nominations & Elections Three positions will be open for election in 2010; all sitting board members are eligible to run for re-election, and general nominations will be accepted through January 15. If the number of interested candidates is equal to the number of available positions, no formal election will be held and all will be appointed. Run-off elections are conducted only if warranted by candidate interest. If you are interested in working with the CRA board in any capacity, contact a current CRA board member and we will get you the information you need to get involved. n

CPRT PRO NATIONALS — LAS VEGAS

CLOUSE WINS CPRT NATIONALS

he Classic Professional Racquetball Tour (CPRT) closed out the 2008-09 season with the DPH CPRT Pro Nationals at the Las Vegas Athletic Club and Woody Clouse put on a show the entire weekend. A CPRT draw of 24 faced off, including Team Ektelon Clouse, Ruben Gonzalez and Mike Ceresia. Woody Clouse locked up the CPRT 2008-09 season top ranking with a dominating win over Cliff Swain. Clouse did not lose a game through the entire DPH CPRT Pro Nationals event, including the 9-3, 9-4, 9-2 finals. Clouse finished the season with two wins to go, along with a finals appearance at each of the other CPRT season events. Gonzalez lost a tough semi, which finished off another great year for the sports “freak of nature” as he finished #2. Final Ranking for the top 10 CPRT players: 1 Woody Clouse 2 Ruben Gonzalez 3 Jimmy Lowe 4 Cliff Swain 5 Doug Ganim 6 Mike Ceresia 6 Kevin Peters 6 Mike Booth 9 Tom Travers 9 Mike Beltran 9 Gabriel Medina

Woody Clouse

A full slate of amateur singles and doubles divisions with over 170 players filled out a great weekend that benefited the Boy Scouts of America and the National Fibromyalgia Research Association. CPRT is a professional tour featuring racquetball’s greatest stars who are 40 years of age and older. Classic Professional Racquetball Tour is “Stars of the Past Supporting the Future of Racquetball”. You can view the CPRT matches online at www.racquetballonline.tv. CPRT updates can be viewed at www.classicproracquetball.com. n

Meet Larry Haemmerle, the Newest CRA Board Member

by Cindy Tilbury

he current CRA board members warmly welcome Larry

Haemmerle to the group. Larry recently moved to Colorado from southern California, where he has been actively involved in racquetball and other sports since the early 1970s. He has competed at all levels—Novice to Open—run tournaments, and coached some accomplished California players. He has already spearheaded the CRA effort to put together a tournament kit for state and other tournaments. Look for Larry at the tournaments this year and introduce yourself to our newest board member.

Some of Larry’s other serious sports ventures include: • Undefeated high school senior wrestler • Successful in amateur bowling tournaments • Team member in adult club level soccer • Winner of mountain biking races

Not For LADIES Only

EDITOR’S CORNER —

2009 Denver IRT Pro Stop

by Cindy Tilbury

We were again the chosen city to have the incredible all-lucite-call court set up on our very own 16th Street Mall for the professional guys to play in and for all to watch--for FREE! The event was almost as amazing as last year. The amateur event, run by Jo Shattuck and her excellent staff, was great, and everyone got to hang out with the pros and get their autographs. The semifinals were rain-delayed until the next day, but it was bright, warm and sunny on Sunday for the two semis and the big final. Jack Huczek beat Rocky Carson to get into the final, and Kane Waselenchuk beat Shane Vanderson, as expected. The final match was tied at a game apiece after two games, but Kane took the next two games to win the match and defend his title. The fans went crazy. For complete results, go to http://www.r2sports.com/tourney/viewResults.asp?TID=5807. y If you appreciate Verizon Wireless and Motorola’s support of this fantastic event, show your support by purchasing Motorola for your next phone, and using Verizon Wireless as your cell service provider. IRT Pro Commissioner Dave Negrete would like to know if you do that--he is always in search of success stories to tell current and future sponsors of racquetball events. You can email him at negretz@comcast.net. y I got a chance to go to Junior Nationals in June in Michigan, and it was such a treat. I don’t have kids (so no junior players, of course), and I forget how incredible that event is each year. Of course, our own Colorado players did extremely well, and we congratulate all of the Colorado Junior medal winners. As a board of directors, we want to encourage more junior playing all the time, and while we want to get kids in who have never played, to introduce them to the greatest sport in the world, we also have some national champions right here in the Denver and western slope areas, too. y Debbie Beldring and a good friend of mine both attended the USAR Elite Lite Camp, taught by Jo Shattuck, Rhonda Rajsich, and Jim Winterton in August. I heard rave reviews from both—not just because they didn’t The sports have to get up at 6:00 am and run a few miles. The sports psychologist and psychologist and expert coaching advice could help your game, too. Think about attending next year. If you feel expert coaching the need to improve your game for the 2009/2010 season, advice could help however, I encourage you to take some lessons from Jo your game, too. and the other local experts—unless you are playing against me in my tournament divisions, of course. The CRA Board is putting together a tournament kit that we will refer to when we put on State Championship events. You may also benefit from our work. Contact Larry Haemmerle if you would like to know more info about putting on tournaments, and all of the steps and supplies involved. Marcia and the crew make it look pretty smooth, but you’d be amazed… y In May, I had a friend come into town to play some Mixed Doubles. I thought I was going to have trouble getting a group of teams together to play, but not only did I find lots of teams willing to come out on a Saturday afternoon, BUT it was the coolest thing when everywhere the racquetball people were buzzing about the Pepsi Cup a few weeks from then. I take the club team championship tournament for granted, but most states/areas don’t have anything like My friend was this—especially after the regular tournament season has been put very impressed to bed. We are blessed to have so many club team captains who with Colorado get jazzed about the tournament and put their teams together to racquetball in the have the best showing possible. My friend was very impressed with Colorado racquetball in the summer being so strong. summer being Thanks, John Foust and Marcia and the tournament team who so strong. puts it on year after year. It is definitely a Colorado treasure. y I found some great Reebok shoes that work fabulously for racquetball (after I got cushy insoles, of course), so I am good for another few years before I have to go through the trouble of breaking in another pair. Crisis averted once again and I haven’t been in a playing slump in quite a while. n

by Cindy Tilbury

ou may know that I have been working in Cleveland since May, so I’ve tried to arrange the Ladies events remotely, and I think we put on a winner in August. I got rave reviews from the ladies who arrived early for the clinic put on by Marcia Richards at the Littleton YMCA. She generously offered to videotape the clinic attendees, so they could review their mechanics and take home some visual pointers. The rest of the morning was all play, and then it was time for our signature potluck. I don’t know how we do it, but we always seem to have too much food. I’m grateful to be in a state where we have such a wonderful group of women who play and come to learn to play. This isn’t the case in every area. Our next Ladies Day event will be in October, and I will send out details soon. If you are not already on my emailing list, please let me know you want to be on it. CRA members are not automatically on it, since you don’t have to be a CRA member to join our events. If you know some ladies who would like to try racquetball, please bring them to one of our events and we will take some extra time to make sure they feel special. The new racquets from all of the manufacturers are out, and ready to be demo’d by players wanting a change, a replacement, a backup, a gift. Contact a sponsored player at your club for a demonstration night—you can tell the sponsored players by their manufacturer-logo’d clothing. If you are a rather adventuresome person who loves to hang out with other ladies like yourself, I would like to recommend a very special tournament. Please consider going to the January Women’s Senior Master Racquetball tournament in Gaithersburg, Maryland. It is a 35+ singles-only, all-round-robin, self-refereed tournament and there will be lots of dancing at the banquet. The WSMRA also offers B/C divisions for the ladies who want to play but would not be competitive in the Open/A age divisions. Try it once and you will be hooked. Contact me, Lori Inskeep, Marcia Richards or Debbie Beldring if you have questions about this tournament, or want a traveling companion. Our hostess, Brenda Loube, has some special things planned for the players this year. It should be another great ladies tournament. n

Tidbits

By Cindy Tilbury

► Ektelon’s Second annual Women and Racquetball Day Across America will be this February on Saturday, the 27th. We will be planning several Colorado events geared toward finding new women/girl players, and keeping the current group enthused about racquetball. Examples of the planned events include: • Introductory clinics at clubs across the state • Clinics and exhibition matches • Mini tournaments with instruction • Potlucks ► If you would like to host an event, invite someone to put on an event, help out, or attend, please contact Marcia@coloradoracquetball.com and she will get you involved. ► The CRA Board of Directors is looking for volunteers. We always are, but we actually have a particular duty in mind, so please consider this: We need one person in charge of organizing fundraisers. If that is something you are good at, we would LOVE to speak with you. They can be tournaments, but they don’t have to be. We, as a board, can help line up people to make the events happen, but it is a rather specialized skill, so we need someone to put on a few throughout the year (and especially the summer). The fundraisers might be for juniors, college teams, seniors, ladies, scholarships, or high school programs. ► One other specific volunteer we need could really help out the CRA by working the tournament desk (assigning courts and/or updating matches in the computer). ► One more person would be appreciated if they would volunteer to send out hard copies of league and event sheets to clubs, possibly including the ROLLOUT newsletter. ► Email our CRA president or talk to one of the Board if you have any questions about these volunteer positions. ► Overheard at a recent tournament: “As your coach, I strongly suggest you take two weeks off, and then quit the sport altogether.”

Colorado Leagues and Shuttles Some of the shuttles and leagues available around the state include: Goodson Recreation Center 6315 S University Blvd Centennial, CO 80121 303-798-2476 Shuttles are offered Sat 9 & 10:15 am, Tues and Thurs 11:45 am and Th 6:30 pm. Call 303-798-2476 to register. Registration for all shuttles starts at 7:30am the day of the shuttle.

Apex Park and Recreation District (formerly North Jeffco) Racquetball and Fitness Center 12120 W 64th Ave Arvada, CO 80004 303-431-9004 Shuttles on Mon, Wed and Fri at 6am Tues and Thurs at noon; Sat A/B shuttle at 10am; Sun at 9am

8 courts available Single visit: in-district adults $5.25 Non-district adults -$7.25 Punch cards available: In district – 30 visits - $114 15 visits - $59 Non-district – 30 visits - $150 15 visits - $85 Monthly punch cards for unlimited visits: In district - $52 Non district - $69 Website: www.ssprd.org

8 courts available Single visit: Residents: $4 Non-Residents: $4.75 Punch Cards: Racquetball Shuttle Card 10 visits (pays for ½ of a court for 1 hour) Residents: $35 Non-residents: $42.50 10 one hour reservation punch (courts are paid by the hour): Residents $70 Non residents: $85 Website: www.apexprd.org

Littleton YMCA 11 W Dry Creek Ct. Littleton, CO 80120 303-797-9622

Highlands Ranch Rec Center 8801 South Broadway Highlands Ranch, CO 80126 303-791-2500

Shuttles on Mon and Thurs at 6pm first come first served

Shuttles (No need to call in advance): MWF Noon to 1pm – All levels M 5pm to 7pm – Full game round robin

New Ladies league forming on Tuesdays 4 courts available Single visit: $12 adult w/o a member $8 adult with a member Punch cards available: 10 visits - $80 20 visits - $150 Website: www.denverymca.org

If you would like your shuttle and league information published/ updated, please contact Cindy Tilbury, cindy@ coloradoracquetball.com. We would like to regularly include all drop-in and scheduled events in the Rollout, as a service to not only our racquetball community, but also out-oftown racquetball visitors. n

10 courts available Pre-Sign-Up Shuttles – For 10 Weeks F 5pm to 7pm – A/B/C shuttle F 7pm to 9pm – Open/A Contact Joe Perrault 303.532.6096 to sign up Come with a member Guest Fee Adults $6.75 Website: www.hrcaonline.org

Photo courtesy of John Foust

CRA 2008-09 Tournament Results

For all results of all divisions, including the professional divisions, please visit our website at www.coloradoracquetball.com.

Pepsi Cup Club Championships

June 4-6, 2009 / Highlands Ranch Rec Center Division MO MO ME MA MB MC WO WA WB WC

First Jeff Mayorga Anthony Herrera Earl Haskins Paul Katz Brian Hunter Mark Sheedy Debbie Beldring Nicole Cordova Whitney Giddings Mary Stanton

Second David Guentert Jeff Mayorga Bruce Evans Clayton Shaffer Rod Pullmann Lewis Hazen Janelle Williams Maria Small Gravina Deanne Erskine Elena Malbacias

Highlands Ranch, CO Tournament Director: John Foust

Third/Semi Eric Metherd Lee Beckwith Ray Shovlain David Radke Michael Matheson John Zenyuch Cindy Tilbury Sherry Wilmes Tina Snyder Heidi Bauer

Fourth/Semi Mathew Christensen Dan Davis Brian Bollig Tim Balzer Doug Picard Zubair Khan Gaye Faulkner Lucy Jirik Loretta Marks Lindita Winters

MO Dubs G. Davis / L. Beckwith D. Stone / E. Waser R. Fiske / M. Mares E. Haskins / M. Nigro MO Dubs J. Mayorga / J. Perrault E. Meredith / A. Herrera L. Beckwith / R. Sorenson M. Nigro / D. Davis MB Dubs B. Tway / C. George B. Hunter / R. Lambert M. Sikorski / R. Cornell E. Post / T. Lenahan WO Dubs G. Faulkner / J. Williams M. Richards / L. Inskeep M. Small / S. Wilmes L. Mojer / M. Sikorski WB Dubs D. Degitis / L. Marks T. Snyder / W. Giddings C. Scott / R. Hamlyn C. C’de Baca / E. Manilla XO Dubs B. Bollig / D. Beldring D. Wilkison / E. Haskins M. Vrabel / M. Richards L. Mojer / E. Meredith XB Dubs C. Bullock / D. Winter D. Erskine / R. Pullmann Z. Bilem / L. Stadig M. Stanton / K. Strahley

State Games of America

Colorado Springs, CO July 31 - August 2, 2009 / Lynmar Racquet Club Tournament Director: Eddie Meredith Division MO MA MB MC MD MN M25 M35 M45 M55 Bint Division WO WA WC

First Second Semi Semi Anthony Herrera Jordan Walters Joey Lee Ray Cordero David Duscher NE Vince Striedieck Miles Venzara Peter Castillo CA Reginald Green John Dawson VA James Payne TX James Jenista John Archambeau Martin Olmedo Joe Williams NE Agner Martinez David Barber Matt McAdam Daniel Archambeau Michael Lapins Brian Jennison Patrick Lewis Colin Spear John Selaya MO Cliff Peterson Ray Cordero Vince Striedieck Alfredo Suendermann WY Mike Smalley Craig Clayton GA James Payne TX Ralph Graham Mike Robinson Reginald Green Michael Stephens Dave Letsche James Heilman Matt McAdam Daniel Archambeau Josh Selaya MO First / Semi Second / Semi Deb Beldring Janelle Williams Michelle Sikorski sets up for a Nicole Cordova Chanel Anderson backhand off Elizabeth Selaya MO Summer Arledge the glass Petty Hartmann

XO Dubs J. Lee / M. Sikorski XA Dubs D. Cordova / N. Cordova B. Sims / J. Garcia S. Arledge / G.Massaro XB Dubs A. Mazyck / E. Selaya MO C. Anderson / D. Barber J. Jenista / P. Hartmann

2009 Pepsi Cup Club Team Results 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19

CLUB FINAL Flatirons Athletic Club 312 Goodson Rec Center 273 Carmody Rec Center 249 Highlands Ranch Rec Center 219 Trails Fitness Center 164 Apex Racquetball & Fitness Center 131 Lynmar Racquet & Health Club 119 Conditioning Spa 82 Littleton Family YMCA 82 CAC / Monaco 67 Bally Westminster 26 Lone Tree Rec Center 23 Denver Athletic Club 19 Longmont Athletic Club 9 Castle Rock Rec Center 8 Orchards Athletic Club 5 Buckley Air Force Base 4 Star Athletic Club 4 Thornton Rec Center 2

STATE RANKINGS —

Top Colorado USA Racquetball Rankings Colorado MEN CO US 1 11 2 28 3 30 4 56 5 121 6 125 7 297 8 325 9 489 10 576

Player Name City Robinson, Derek Littleton Clouse, Woody Highlands Ranch Herrera, Anthony Grand Junction Carson, Anthony Superior Walters, Jordan Pueblo Otto, Tyler Pueblo Ormonde, Todd Pagosa Springs Camacho, Felipe Pueblo Ramos, Jose Pueblo Christensen, Mathew Denver

Colorado WOMEN

CO US 1 29 2 63 3 64 4 67 5 68 6 71 7 74 8 90 9 91 10 111

as of August, 2009

Player Name Shattuck, Jo Williams, Janelle Tilbury, Cindy Beldring, Debbie Richards, Marci Keenan, Mary Hagen, Tina Parsons, Shirley Meyer, Christine Gaspar, Maylen

City Denver Highlands Ranch Denver Littleton Littleton Colorado Springs Colorado Springs Rangely Arvada Colorado Springs

Lynmar Correction Dear readers,

Photos courtesy of John Foust

In the Spring, 2009, edition of the CRA Rollout, we incorrectly reported that Lynmar Racquet and Health Club in Colorado Springs will close in August. Chris Griebe, General Manager at Lifetime Fitness, contacted me to set the record straight. I deeply regret this reporting error. Life Time Fitness officials have reported that their Colorado Springs center remains a part of their strategic development plans; however, specific timing of the future opening has not been released. The company also indicated that plans for Lynmar have not been finalized and the club will remain open for the foreseeable future. Over the past 35 years Lynmar has set the standard for racquetball at both the competitive and recreational level. Lynmar will continue to remain active in the racquetball community, adding activities for the upcoming racquetball season including, fall and winter leagues, one-day shootouts, and an open tournament later in the year. Lynmar will continue to serve as the National Training Center for USA Racquetball and will host the US Junior Team Camp and the HighPerformance Training Camp this August. The good news is racquetball is alive and kicking at Lynmar! It’ a perfect time to join the Lynmar/Life Time Fitness racquetball family. Life Time will communicate with members as updates become available. Cindy Tilbury, Editor

Tidbits

► Do you doodle? We always need newsletter and website clipart and we are willing to pay for it. If you like to draw and are thinking about it, create some fun racquetball clipart for us. Just start with a purple or green ball, put some arms on it, maybe add a racquet, or draw it doing something clever. Capture that on the computer and send it to us. How much easier could that be?! ► Overheard at a recent junior racquetball tournament: “I’m so proud! My son has started throwing my signature tantrum!”

Blaine Tway and Charlie George proudly accept their winner plaques

CAC Monaco Challenge Doubles Exhibition Match: Adam Manilla, Woddy Clouse, Danny Alonzi and Derek Robinson

CRA Tournament RESULTS continued ... Summer Sizzler

August 12-15, 2009 / Goodson Rec Center Division MO MA MB M45 M50 MA Dubs

First Second Douglas Clayton Eric Metherd Brock Norris Doug Picard Robert Toro Zubair Khan Douglas Clayton Earl Haskins Geoffrey Drissel Brock Norris G. Drissel / T. Kuss C. Good / T. Good

Centennial, CO Tournament Director: Bruce Burkland Third Simon Payne Miles Venzara Jonny Pinto Bruce Evans Doug Picard A. Prott / C. Goldsmith

Fourth Joe Perrault Arthur Howard Charles Goldsmith Arthur Howard Miles Venzara B. Ray / R. Farrington

Outdoor Junior Benefit Tournament June 20, 2009 / Rangeview High School Division MO MA/B MO/A Dubs

First Ben Croft Armando Vasquez J. Mayorga / D. Guentert

Cinco de Mayo

Second Charlie Pratt Ralph Graham J. Perrault / P. Flores

May 5, 2009 / Pueblo Athletic Club Division MO ME MA MB MC M55+ WO WA MO Dubs MA Dubs MB Dubs XO Dubs XA Dubs

Aurora, CO Tournament Director: Kevin Holmes Third Dave Guentert Ben Kincses C. Pratt / J. Shattuck

Pueblo, CO Tournament Director: Deb Beaudry

First Second Semi Semi Tony Carson Nick Giunta Matt Melster Joey Lee Adam Manilla Kevin Hernandez Jo Shattuck Richard Romero Ron Fiske Victor Manilla Ben Kincses Michael Morales Gabriel Massaro Jason Christopher George Coleman Mark Beaudry William Clark Buck Weimer Ethan Hunter Derek Stevens Al Martinez Johnny Blecher Philip Gaerlan Benny Terry Jo Shattuck Debbie Beldring Marcia Richards Shirley Parsons Summer Arledge Cecily Archuletta Shelley Coltrin T. Carson / M. Melster J. Lee / N. Giunta D. Beaudry / T. Watkins D. Guentert / J. Walters G. Hutton / V. Manilla F. Sandoval / G. Massaro C. George / S. Guzman J. Blecher / T. Sison B. Terry / B. Copeland J. Zamora / R. Carleo B. Mehegan / D. Beldring K. Bartmess / S. Lucero M. Richards / N. Giunta B. Mehegan / D. Beaudry J. Shattuck / D. Guentert C. Pellowski / M.Melster S. Arledge / G. Massaro B. Sims / J. Garcia C.Pellowski / T. Smith C. Archuletta / R. Archuletta

40+ Doubles Players! Consider playing in the November 12-14 NMRA Doubles-Only round-robin tournament in the San Francisco Bay area. Request a partner or roommate, if necessary. www.nmra.info

JUNIORS —

Junior Nationals in East Lansing, MI

by Victor Manilla

unior Olympics was held at Michigan State University in June. Of course, the age divisions were all individual championships, but the states also compete against each other, and a state can bring as many players as they want. Oregon wins the number game year after year, followed by California. But Colorado, with our seven players, placed fifth overall, and we had several National champions. Winners in the 14s, 16s and 18s are invited to represent the US at Junior Worlds. This year, that competition will be held in the Dominican Republic in December. Adam Manilla qualified for the US Junior Team and will be doing some fundraising in an effort to pay for the trip expenses. Help out the US Junior Team where you can. The players from Colorado were: Adam Manilla B14 Doubles – First; B14 Singles Gold – Third Erika Manilla G10/12 Doubles- Third; G10 Singles – Second; X12 Doubles - Third Matt McAdam B12 Singles Gold – Seventh; X12 Doubles – Third; B12 Doubles - Fifth William Metherd B12 Singles Red – First; B12 Doubles – Eighth Tyler Otto B18 Doubles – Fifth; B18 Singles Gold – Fifth Zach Pellowski B14 Singles White – Fifth; X14 Doubles – Sixth Nicholas Riffel X14 Doubles – First; B14 Doubles – Second; B14 Singles Gold - Seventh We are very excited about our kids and we especially appreciate the support of our clubs, players, and community--everyone has been awesome! If you have input about the junior programs nationwide, please see me and I will pass along your thoughts to the USAR through the US Junior Committee. Editor’s Note: Colorado has some great young players! Let’s all get out to the clubs and recruit a few more for the 2010 Junior Olympics and beyond. We should also make an effort to bring this tournament back to Colorado in the future. n

Left to right: Brother/sister team Adam and Erika Manilla display their new medals in Michigan; Team Colorado junior coach Anthony Herrera and USAR Venue Coordinator Eddie Meredith relax by the pool at Junior Olympics; Ryan Francis and Erika Manilla get Esprit Athlete awards in Michigan

June Outdoor Junior Benefit Tournament by Kevin Holmes

hanks to everyone who came out on a cloudy day in June to play some outdoor racquetball and raise some money for junior racquetball events. We had about 25 participants, and the results are listed in this ROLLOUT. I hope to do another tournament next spring or summer, and most likely, it will be at Sinclair Middle School. I will have players pre-register, instead of showing up for a shootout. If anyone is interested in helping out, let me know. Get your outdoor games ready for the 2010 season! Feel free to contact me or the CRA board if you have questions on outdoor racquetball rules and courts. Also, the World Outdoor Racquetball association (WOR) would love to have you join their organization and play in WOR-sanctioned tournaments all across the US. n

Above: USAR Executive Director Jim Hiser and US Junior Team Coach and Pro Cheryl Gudinas watch the outdoor court action in Michigan

IRTNetwork.com is Now Online!

As an avid racquetball watcher, you have been glued to your PC screen watching amateur and Women’s Pro matches at www. racquetballonline.tv. It is so fantastic. Pablo Favre and Angela Grisar do an excellent job bringing us those matches. This past week, the IRT Men’s Pro Tour debuted their own online network for viewing the men’s pro matches online as they are being played. That site is www.irtnetwork.com and you won’t believe the quality of the video and commentary. The service will be offered for a small subscription fee with full viewing and archived matches, OR you may watch a tournament live all weekend for one price. The announcer for all pro matches will be John Scott. Tune in and check out the action!

Tidbits

► Do you ever go to the club and no one is there to play? Do you just go home? We suggest drilling for the hour you would have played. For specific drilling routines for the most effective use of your time, contact one of the CRA board members or an Ampro-certified instructor. Start with straight-in forehands and backhands, backwall setup kill shots, reverse pinches, drive serves, lob serves, ceiling shots, and splat shots. Inevitably, when someone sees you drilling, they will ask you to play. Consider finishing a chosen set of drill shots before playing, even though playing is ALWAYS more fun. ► Do you like to play racquetball outdoors? There are courts on the east and west sides of town, and the courts in Aurora at Rangeview High School are not locked. For a change of pace, have your Saturday morning (or whenever you regularly play) group meet at the Rangeview courts for some outdoor singles and doubles. If you see high school kids watching, invite them to try it and give them a mini-lesson. The other (west) courts are in Englewood at Chenango and Broadway at Sinclair Middle School, and the handball association keeps them locked. Stop by on weekend mornings and the handball guys will let you play if they are not using all four courts. They also plan to light those courts for night games in the next year. That means fewer shadows! ► The telephone number and address for the CRA are changing: 307.259.8397. For the past five years, Marcia Richards has used her home number and address for CRA communications. It will take some re-thinking, but you will now want to program the new telephone number, 307.259.8397 in your phone. Check the www. coloradoracquetball.com website for all the latest updates on the phone and address. ► Who will be checking the new telephone and PO Box for the CRA? We are lucky to have Armando Vasquez as an assistant for our organization. Armando is the current #1 position racquetball player for the Denver University club and he plays A-level tournaments. His main duties will be to be the main contact for all State tournament player inquiries to ensure there are no delays when other tournament staff cannot check the messages during their full-time jobs. Welcome, Armando, and thanks in advance for all of your help. n

Pepsi Cup Flatirons Team Coach

by Deanne Erskine

ost would say that racquetball is an individual sport. Whether it is a weekly “challenge court” at the health club or a local tournament, we typically strive for selfaccomplishment and are rewarded as individuals,or two individuals if you are playing doubles. However, this racquetball culture changes every June in the Denver area. This year’s Pepsi Cup Colorado Team Racquetball Championships were held at the Highlands Ranch Recreation Center under the wonderful direction of John Foust. While this was only my second year participating, 2009 marked the 24th year for this unique event. I have thoroughly enjoyed this team experience as a member of the Flatirons Athletic Club (FAC) of Boulder team (Pepsi Cup Team Champion again this year). The success of the FAC team can easily be attributed to one man, Rick Sorenson. To teach this team concept to a group of racquetball players is no easy task. Rick has a great way with ALL sorts of personalities and really makes “grown ups” understand what it’s like to be a part of a team. He puts hours of thought into how each person can make a contribution to the team—contributions they can feel great about. He is respectful, thoughtful, and hard as nails all at the same time. Sometimes he has to watch over us, sometimes he has to “speak” to us, sometimes he just nods, but I think anyone who has played for Rick knows all the time he spends with us is genuine. He loves He loves to to win, no doubt, but is also proud of his team no matter what. win, no doubt, Our team practiced together, watched each other’s matches but is also proud together, and gave valuable input towards helping each person of his team on the team achieve their goal. It was an amazing feeling looking out the glass back wall, seeing and hearing teammates no matter what. cheering me on! Having words of wisdom (or not) ready for you when you took a timeout, Rick was always there. I truly valued my time with this team and our “Captain”. Recently, I had the opportunity to take a leadership class. One of the assignments I was given was to write about my best team experience, about the best coach I had ever had. I have been teaching for twenty years now, and have coached a variety of sports to young kids for 15+ years. I thought for sure my best experience would come from my youth, either from junior high soccer or high school basketball. But to my surprise, my best experience came from playing racquetball at the Pepsi Cup for a great team and even greater coach. Thanks Rick!

Racquetball on YouTube by Cindy Tilbury

ou have probably found many racquetball videos uploaded to the YouTube site. If you haven’t already seen this one, I suggest you check it out. It is less than 20 seconds and it shows a very special outdoor racquetball shot from this summer’s WOR Championships in Huntington Beach, made by top pro Andy Hawthorne. Enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmRW2pHtZKI

Birgitte DESIGNS

678.538.8966 / KarinP@BirgitteDesigns.com Graphic Design & Layout — Web Graphics — Photo Enhancements

Entering Tournaments Online

by Cindy Tilbury

Click Future Racquetball Tournaments.

or some of you, entering tournaments online is a piece of cake— no trouble at all, really. However, at tournament time, Marcia Richards gets so many calls about this that we wanted to highlight this process for our new online entrants. We hope this helps a little, but please do call the tournament director if you still have questions. If it is a Colorado Racquetball Association tournament, you simply use your computer’s web browser to go to www.coloradoracquetball.com, click the Tournaments/Results link on the left.

Find the tournament you want to enter, by date, and click it to get the tournament information.

Then find the link to the tournament you want to enter. Click Register and log in. If you do not already know your r2sports.com login ID and password, you can use the search function to find yourself and have the password sent to you. If you are the tournament director and you need to enter another person, log in as a tournament director, and then use the search function to find players by first or last name. If you do not already have a profile, please create one. You’ll need your USAR number, if you have one. Don’t forget to add your shirt size, for future souvenir ordering, and a picture.

Click the Registration link to enter with a credit card.

If you have an r2sports.com user ID and password, use them to log in. This user ID and password are NOT the same as your USAR member number. You can easily have your password sent to you if you have forgotten. Once you are done creating or updating your profile, or registering successfully for your tournament, you will get an email confirming your actions. n

If you’re entering a non-CRA tournament, go to www.r2sports.com, then Current Tournaments.

You Can Play

™

Take time to Play Experience Teamwork Practice and Perfect Your Skills Push Beyond your Limits Take Risks Celebrate Your Successes Remember…… You Can Play

Brenda Loube

CRA Board of Directors OFFICERS

Marcia Richards, President Marcia@coloradoracquetball.com 303.738.9797 Linda Mojer, Vice President Linda@coloradoracquetball.com April Settell, Secretary April@coloradoracquetball.com Lori Inskeep, Treasurer Lori@coloradoracquetball.com

Board Members Debbie Beldring Debbie@coloradoracquetball.com Dan Davis Dan@coloradoracquetball.com Larry Haemmerle Larry@coloradoracquetball.com Ben Kincses Ben@coloradoracquetball.com Steve Nelson Steve@coloradoracquetball.com Mark Sikorski Mark@coloradoracquetball.com Cindy Tilbury Cindy@coloradoracquetball.com Assistant Armando Vasquez Armando@coloradoracquetball.com

USA Racquetball 1685 West Uintah Colorado Springs, CO 80904-2921 719-635-5396 / FAX 719-635-0685

USAR/CRA â&#x20AC;˘ 1685 West Uintah Colorado Springs, CO 80904-2921

TOURNAMENT TRAIL Dates

Oct 17-18 Oct 21-25 Oct 22-25 Nov 5-8 Nov 12-14 Dec 10-13 Dec 14-20 Jan 1-3 Jan 15-17 Jan 15-17 Jan 22-24 Feb 5-7 Feb 11-14

Linda Mojer

Tournament

D.U. Fundraiser Shootout US Open Gift of Life Fundraiser Colorado State Doubles NMRA Doubles-Only Killer Open IRF World JRs Championships Doubles Benefit f-CRA JRs Colorado Madness Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Senior Masters Icy Blast Racquet For The Cure USAR National Doubles

April Settell

[2009/2010 Season]

City

Contact

Denver, CO Jo Shattuck, 303.949.7785 Memphis, TN USAR, www.usra.org Colorado Springs, CO Maylen Gaspar, 719.390.6571 Arvada, CO CRA, 307.259.8397 San Fran Area, CA Tom Curran, www.nmra.info or 513.490.7472 Centennial, CO Bruce Burkland, 303.483.7070 Santo Domingo, DR USAR, www.usra.org http://www.internationalracquetball.com/00irf.htm Littleton, CO Dan Davis, 303.564.9069 Arvada, CO Brent Anderson, 303.431.9004 Gaithersburg, MD Kendra Tutsch, ktutsch@wisc.edu Thornton, CO Mike Coulter, mike.coulter@cityofthornton.net Highlands, CO Marcia Richards, 303.949.7785 Tempe, AZ USAR, www.usra.org

Lori Inskeep

Deb Beldring

Dan Davis

Cindy Tilbury