Odds and Ends

 I had an hour and was in San Ramon on a Monday morning.   I found the courts off of Alcosta Blvd.  They have four courts with lights and the same kind of fencing as found at the Downs, i.e., the aisles open for balls to run lengthwise.

I was in luck and they needed a fourth.  It was a beginners game and I was happy to bat it around with the folks.  Everyone was wonderfully friendly and we chatted a bit after the games.  They scattered and some of them were off to take lessons.  They had been playing for a year or so.  

They play Monday mornings around nine, so if you are in the area, it's a nice place to play with friendly folks.

I played the other day with a new partner and found it a struggle.  Partner was of reasonable skill level in terms of hitting the ball, but what was difficult for me was that he stayed on his side of the court.  Middle coverage is required by both players as the ball moves around.  I watched a pro match the other day and the players were shifting like little crabs and so quickly that I checked to make sure I was playing the video at normal speed.

There are a couple of PB techniques that I'm trying to incorporate into my game.  The big one is to try to hit balls from a small space around my body.  In other words move enough so that I am not stretching.  If I can get close to the ball there is more time to hit it and the stroke is much shorter.  I'm finding the accuracy and pace control is better with this.  The second item is when hitting drives from the kitchen line do not swing at the ball, just block it back.  My usual practice is to swing at it, which makes for a longer stroke with more difficult timing.  It also makes it more difficult to get back to "ready" if the shot comes back.  More on this in the upcoming Cambria post.

I think that's it.  The weather has been tough to get out and play.  The blog is not dead, but I really don't have much more to say.  Any suggestions, guest posts, etc., are welcome.