Col Ritchie - 60th Birthday Party - 11 December 2010

Does anyone know how much work Col puts into our Club? If you are a junior member, you probably know of the care he gives to organising Friday nights and the care he gives to make sure new players receive a warm welcome. If you are a competition player, you probably know how much time Col is prepared to put into finding a reserve for you. If you notice how good our courts looks, you probably know how much time Col puts into cleaning and maintenance. So many of us have benefited from Col's hard work. 

10 years ago club members joined together on the occasion of Col's 50th birthday to celebrate and say thank you for his generousity in making our club the friendly place to play. After 10 more years of  selfless service, we have another opportunity to thank Col and celebrate his 60th birthday.

The party night has been booked for 11 December 2010 starting at 7:00 PM. Write that date in your diaries now. It will be an opportunity for you to wear any of your purple clothing that may have otherwise gone out of style. The menu will be another of Col's famous Chicken and Prawn feasts. There will be plenty of Elvis Presley music and other selections from Col's extensive library of 1960/70 music.

Tickets cost $30 (adults) and $15 (children)... anything left over after buying the food will be used as a birthday present for Col. Many of you will want to give Col your own birthday present. It is suggested that a gift in cash would be most appropriate. Tickets can be purchased at the Bar... or go to the Social Events page on our Web Site (at: http://tennisvalley.com.au/social.php) and select 'Col’s Prawn & Chicken Night'.

All NSTA Player, previous Tennis Valley members and parents of Juniors are all welcome. Lets make this a night that Col will remember! 

North Shore Times Supports Eastern Lounge

Handicap Club Tournament - See Entry Form at End of Message

Tennis Valley

Presents the

45th Annual

Handicap Tennis Tournament

2010

Handicap events start & finish the same day

Combined grades must add up to 7 points or more. E.g. A2 and A5 = 7 points

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Event:                   Men’s Doubles Handicap

Tournament Date:   Sunday 1PM – 31 October

Entries Close:         Wednesday 27 October

Event:                   Women’s Doubles Handicap

Tournament Date:   Sunday 1PM – 31 October

Entries Close:         Wednesday 27 October

Event:                   Mixed Doubles Handicap

Tournament Date:   Sunday 1PM – 7 November

Entries Close:         Wednesday 3 November

Please read the conditions of entry (refer next page) and the entry form very carefully and fill in the required information. This will assist in making processing quick and accurate.

GENERAL INFORMATION

1.    ALL MENS AND WOMENS DOUBLES HANDICAP MATCHES WILL BE PLAYED ON SUNDAY 31 OCTOBER. It is a one afternoon event starting at 1pm and played until finished.

2.    ALL MIXED DOUBLES HANDICAP MATCHES WILL BE PLAYED ON SUNDAY 7 NOVEMBER. It is a one afternoon event starting at 1pm and played until finished.

3.    Entry fee is required to be paid on the day of the event.

4.    There is no draw to check as you will be advised of your match on the day of the event.

5.    Entries by entry form (paper format) or online are required to enter the event.

We hope you enjoy the Club Championships in 2010.

Tennis Valley 45th Annual Handicap Tennis Tournament 2010

Conditions Of Entry – (Read Carefully)

HANDICAP – Combined grades must add up to 7 points or more. E.g. A2 and A5 = 7 points, A4 and A4 = 8 points

TIMES OF PLAY – Play will commence at 1pm on Sunday and continue until finished. Please note that depending on the size of the draws, some matches may continue late. In the case of bad weather, please phone Col Ritchie on 0425 292 639.

WHO CAN ENTER - All financial members of Tennis Valley (Willoughby District Tennis Club) can enter the events. Payment for the tournament is on the day.

HOW TO ENTER – Entry can be by entry form (paper format) at the Cove Sports Club bar or fax to 9484 5148 or email (enter your details by updating the word document) to kit@tennisvalley.com.au or enter online via the tennis valley website http://tennisvalley.com.au/comp-registration.php.

Your doubles partner does not have to fill in their own form. Their name on your entry is sufficient. If your doubles partner is entering more than one event, they may need to fill in their own form.

NUMBER OF EVENTS - Players may enter doubles and mixed as they are on different days.

MATCH ATTENDANCE - Players must play their match at the time, place, and date notified or they will forfeit the match. Illness and injury are unfortunate. If you entered an event and you can no longer attend, please phone Col Ritchie on 0425 292 639.

MATCH FORMAT – To be determined depending on the number of entries. (Probably round robin)

PARTNER ALLOCATION - All players entering doubles events requesting a partner shall accept the partner allocated by the Tournament Committee. This condition imposes no obligation on the Committee to find a partner.

SUBSTITUTE DOUBLES PLAYERS - Prior to their first doubles match, a player may obtain a substitute partner.  This combination must be retained in any subsequent matches.

TENNIS ATTIRE - Correct tennis attire must be worn at all times.

 TENNIS VALLEY

Presents the

45^th ANNUAL

HANDICAP

TENNIS TOURNAMENT

2010

MENS DOUBLES: Sunday 31 October 1pm ENTRIES CLOSE: Wednesday 27 October WOMENS DOUBLES: Sunday 31 October 1pm ENTRIES CLOSE: Wednesday 27 October MIXED DOUBLES: Sunday 7 November 1pm ENTRIES CLOSE: Wednesday 3 November

Combined grades must add up to 7 points or more.

E.g. A2 and A5 = 7 points

PLAYER DETAILS

Name:
Gender:
Phone (H):
Phone (M):
Email:
Grade:

EVENT DETAILS - HANDICAP:

MENS DOUBLES        WOMENS DOUBLES      MIXED DOUBLES

Combined grades must add up to 7 points or more.

E.g. A2 and A5 = 7 points

IMPORTANT: Please read the conditions of entry.

1st Event:
Partner:
2nd Event:
Partner:

Entry Fee: $10 per person per event. Juniors $5 per person per event.

PAYMENT DETAILS

All payments are to be made on the day. Do not forward any payment.

HOW TO ENTER

SUBMIT this entry form at the COVE SPORTS CLUB bar

OR FAX to 9484 5148

OR email to kit@tennisvalley.com.au

OR enter online via the tennis valley website

http://tennisvalley.com.au/comp-registration.php

Opportunity to Help with our Lease Renewal

As part of the process to renew the lease at Tennis Valley, Willoughby City Council is preparing a "Condition Report" that will be provided to competing parties who have provided an expression of interest in taking over the lease. A thorough site inspection by Council staff will take place on Thursday of this week (two days time). Club Management feel proud of the general appearance of the Site and the good standard of maintenance that has been achieved. We want to show the Club at its best!

With all the good rain that has been enjoyed this spring, all the plants in our gardens have had a spurt of growth... all the plants including the weeds.

Kerry Rymer who leads the environment efforts at the Club has volunteered to spent Thursday afternoon (tomorrow) dressing up our main garden beds. She believes that a solid weeding effort will help Council see the large effort that has been invested into building and maintaining our gardens.

Can you join in with this last step in presenting a polished face to our landlord (Willoughby City Council)? Book your diary now... just turn up with your gardening gear and dress up our fabulous club. Your efforts will be greatly appreciated!

Proof is in the Hearing

No... Dave Keogh is not warberlling... (fortunately). But he did a great job as a MC during Opening Night at Eastern Lounge, Tennis Valley  (Photo by John Walker)

No... Dave Keogh is not warberlling... (fortunately). But he did a great job as a MC during Opening Night at Eastern Lounge, Tennis Valley  (Photo by John Walker)

When Dave Keogh came up with the thought of staging monthly music evenings at Tennis Valley, there were lots of questions to be answered... Would the acoustics be of sufficient quality? Could staging and lighting meet the required industry standard? Was there a demand for live music in the local community? Would people be happy to bring their own food, buy drinks from the bar and enjoy quality music for a few hours. Importantly, would music lovers come to a tennis club to listen to music?

Well, we now have answers ... Eastern Lounge celebrated its Opening Night on Friday October 8. The sound quality was excellent (thanks to Astrid Holtz of B!G Music). We had generous sponsors like B!G who provided professional sound, lighting and stage equipment that made the clubhouse feel just like a 'real live music venue'. Over 150 people turned up to enjoy an evening of brilliant performances from some outstanding young musicians ... almost a full house from the start. And everyone who attended - the punters, the performers, Council and industry representatives, etc. - were really impressed with the room and the quality delivered at this brand new venue.

The performance of Mimesis in particular was hugely popular. The band performed a selection of rock classics set to a backing of violin and two cellos. Lead singer Ben has a strong voice with remarkable range... even extending to falsetto to deliver some Bee Gees classics. The audience responded with a standing ovation.

In two words, Mimesis was Great Fun!  (Photo by John Walker)

In two words, Mimesis was Great Fun!

(Photo by John Walker)

 (Photo by John Walker)

Aleyce Simmonds showed why she has such a dedicated following. Her singing had an angelic quality that matched her appearance, yet she also had the rockers in the room hanging off every note. The crowd was drawn onto the dance floor as if with a giant magnet as Aleyce belted out both renditions of well known standards and original compositions from her debut album to be launched in January.

Aleyce Simmons enchanted her audience (photo by John Walker)

Little Fury delivered folk-rock-like renditions of their meaningful original songs, recalling an early 'West Coast sound' circa 1965. The performance was near poetic and was beautifully enhanced by lead singer Jane who has one of those rare voices that makes the hair at the back of your neck stand on end. The audience was simply captivated.

The Fury delivered a poetic and captivating experience (Photo by John Walker)

We eagerly look forward to the next night at Eastern Lounge (hopefully in November), rumoured to be presenting even more stunning young talent - including a remarkable 16 year old, Bella Hemming. (Check her out now at: www.YouTube.com/user/bellahemming). It seems Eastern Lounge is a welcome addition to a fast growing live music scene on the lower North Shore.

Andy Roddick, Novak Djokovic Perform Impersonations, Play Street Tennis in Seoul [Video]

by Tom Gainey

As part of a “Hyundai Card Super Match” promo, Grand Slam champions Andy Roddick and Novak Djokovic hit the streets of Seoul, South Korea Friday to play in a lighthearted tennis exhibition.
The two then played a real match today which Djokovic won 64, 62. But forget the result, the contest was full of hilarious impersonations courtesy of the two biggest jokesters in the game.
Roddick now heads to Tokyo while Djokovic will play in Beijing starting Monday.
Here’s video of the Roddick-Djokovic street Exo:

Now video of Djokovic imitating Roddick’s serve during today’s match. (pretty funny!)

In this next clip, Djokovic does his Rafael Nadal impersonation (it looked like Roddick tried it, then passed it off to Novak). Then Roddick does an impersonation of Novak. Again, funny stuff.

I thought Novak had stopped doing his impersonations? Glad he didn’t.

Tennis Players' Grunts May Slow Opponents' Reactions

A recent study shows the negative impact that noise can have when one is attempting to predict where a tennis ball will land. Christie Nicholson reports.

October 2, 2010 4

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[audio clip] That’s Rafael Nadal, one of the loudest grunters in tennis  But the real screamers are the women. [audio clip] Ah yes, Maria Sharapova, belting at 101 decibels, is the scream queen. Yet curiously, she doesn’t utter a peep during practice.

But does grunting distract an opponent?  Ivan Lendl complained that Andre Agassi’s howls in the 1988 US Open threw off his concentration and timing. And last year the International Tennis Federation began considering banning grunts. Well, maybe a  study in the journal Public Library of Science ONE bolsters the case for a ban.

Thirty-three undergrads watched videos of a tennis player hitting a ball, sometimes with a grunt, sometimes in silence.  The subjects had to predict, as fast as possible, the direction of the ball and where it would land, by hitting a keyboard key. And when they heard grunts, the subjects were slower and less accurate.

The researchers say that this is the first study on the impact of grunting in tennis. Now they’re examining how pro players deal with the negative effects of a loud player. But until the ITF rules, it’s up to the umpire to decide if a grunt goes too far.

—Christie Nicholson