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Racquetball - Anyone play?

mscriv

mscriv

macrumors 601
Original poster
Aug 14, 2008
4,932
618
Dallas, Texas
I grew up playing a lot of racquetball in the late 80's and into the 90's. I stopped in college and didn't play for many years, but recently I've begun playing again. I'm trying to live a more healthy and active lifestyle and I know the game is great for exercise. It feels good to get back on the court and the local gym we have joined has a great program with a "club pro" and leagues. I know the sport has lost a lot of its popularity over the years and few people are even exposed to it. Any of you fellow MR community members play racquetball?

I really need to upgrade my gear, a 15 year old racquet isn't going to cut it! :D
 
Similar story here - played all through highschool, stopped in college, played off and one after that, but haven't played any in several years now. I've had a few Ektelon racquets (CBK, Toron) and E-Force (Bedlam something-or-other) but my favorite is a Head LiquidMetal. I don't recall the exact model (and they change every year anyway) but it was their top-of-the-line $200+ model, and is an awesome combo of weight, power and control.
 
Played it, but not regularly. My (small) hometown strangely had 2 Racquetball courts, so it had some popularity there.

I played a lot more Squash though, so the first thing I did on a Racquetball court was nearly take my own head off... it takes a lot of getting used to the faster/bouncier ball. :p
 
Same story as yours, I played a lot about 20 yrs ago and have been thinking of playing again. Awesome cardio workout and much better than just running. My club has about 4 courts and they look fairly busy most of the time.
 
elistan said:
Similar story here - played all through highschool, stopped in college, played off and one after that, but haven't played any in several years now. I've had a few Ektelon racquets (CBK, Toron) and E-Force (Bedlam something-or-other) but my favorite is a Head LiquidMetal. I don't recall the exact model (and they change every year anyway) but it was their top-of-the-line $200+ model, and is an awesome combo of weight, power and control.
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Yep, I played with the original Toron, had a brief stint with Head racquets, but returned to Ektelon and really loved playing with the Strobe for years. The "club pro" at my gym is sponsored by Ektelon and is willing to help me find the best racquet for me among the current models that are available. Leagues start next week. I'm extremely rusty, but it's amazing how fast the mental aspect of the game comes back to you in terms of positioning, knowing where the ball is going, and most likely what your opponent is going to hit (pass, pinch, splat, etc.). It's going to take me a lot of practice to get my old form back, if that's even possible after knee surgery. :D

whooleytoo said:
I played a lot more Squash though, so the first thing I did on a Racquetball court was nearly take my own head off... it takes a lot of getting used to the faster/bouncier ball. :p
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Squash, there's a game that I always thought looked really neat, but never got the chance to play. They make several kinds of balls for racquetball now with different speed ratings. Apparently, the fastest ones are pretty incredible. I do remember that when I played Egan Inoue was one of the top pros and his drive serve in racquetball was clocked at 188 mile per hour. :eek:

zen97 said:
Same story as yours, I played a lot about 20 yrs ago and have been thinking of playing again. Awesome cardio workout and much better than just running. My club has about 4 courts and they look fairly busy most of the time.
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I see your location is Dallas, what club do you go to? Feel free to PM if you don't want to put that out there. I know the Maverick Athletic Club in Arlington is a big racquetball spot. I play at the Lifetime Fitness in Mansfield. Apparently Dallas has a pretty big racquetball community and the Ektelon Open used to be played at the Landmark Fitness Club off of 635 north of downtown. Get back on the court and give it a shot, like you said, the cardio is great.
 
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mscriv said:
I see your location is Dallas, what club do you go to? Feel free to PM if you don't want to put that out there. I know the Maverick Athletic Club in Arlington is a big racquetball spot. I play at the Lifetime Fitness in Mansfield. Apparently Dallas has a pretty big racquetball community and the Ektelon Open used to be played at the Landmark Fitness Club off of 635 north of downtown. Get back on the court and give it a shot, like you said, the cardio is great.
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Funny enough, I got 3rd in Men's D at a tournament the Landmark many, many years ago. In high school I played at Brookhaven Country Club (nice facility but racquetball is underrepresented when compared to golf and tennis) then later in the two Plano rec centers (lots of courts, but they did NOT do a good job keeping the floors clean. It was like they were sprinkled with sand at times - super slippery.)

As you say, not only is it great for cardio, it's great for hand-eye coordination and great for the mental aspect of always thinking ahead a shot or two or three. Jogging on a treadmill is dreadfully boring, playing racquetball is wonderfully engaging. :cool:
 
Well, it's been a year since I started this thread. And my game has steadily improved over that time. In fact, I've been awarded a sponsorship contract with Ektelon for the 2014-2015 season. Next weekend I'll be playing in a tournament and for the first time I'm entering the A division. If there's anything I can do to help answer any questions about the sport or gear then just let me know. If there is anyone in the DFW area who would like to get together for a game then let me know.
 
mscriv said:
Well, it's been a year since I started this thread. And my game has steadily improved over that time. In fact, I've been awarded a sponsorship contract with Ektelon for the 2014-2015 season.
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Nice! I used to play a lot when I first moved to Northern VA. But then I started to traveling for work, so eventually it just slipped off the radar. Wouldn't mind getting into it again.
 
Heading into another year of Ektelon sponsorship. I play regularly and enter tournaments on a monthly basis. At this point I've worked my way into the top 1500 USAR (USA Racquetball) rankings. My goal is to crack the top 500 in the next year.

Again, if anyone has questions about the game or gear then let me know. If you are looking for a fun way to stay active then racquetball is a great choice. In the past year I've also been introduced to outdoor racquetball and that is really fun too.
 
Yeah, that is kind of sad. Sports are such a great way to maintain health, build relationships, and just have fun.
 
Would love to still play, but my knees are pretty shot.

I had a decent kill shot once upon a time. Then I went to lobs because I taught 8 different people to play the game and now it's luck if I can drop one in the corner.

It's a great game though and hope my kids will pick it up as they grow older.
 
I used to play a lot of squash, but haven't touched a racquet in probably 4 years. I played racquetball a few times, but its a very different sport than squash.

Amazingly I've never actually played tennis in my life. Interesting, considering both of my parents used to play. Believe it or not, badminton is actually my favorite racquet sport.
 
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