Well the "good enough" part comes into play then.BB is easier to play than tennis when fat, no?
True, but with baseball I was only good at pitching, and I think my arm maxes out at a point where I couldn't still be pitching today had I pursued baseball further. I may have not even made my high school team. Every other position requires you to be good at fielding, which I was miserable at. I wasn't good at hitting either because I became scared of the ball hitting me (I was really bad at getting out of the way). So for me, my ability really keeps me from playing some of the other sports of which I am a fan.I always thought that BB on that level requires much less skill than tennis, and accommodates wider array of styles as far as participation goes, but I get that some people just prefer tennis (me included).
Oh, then you have a point there. It's a little lopsided around here because everyone plays basketball while not too many play tennis, so the talent disparity I witness is huge. That said, perhaps I should have kept basketball off the list, since it's probably pretty easy to get into a pick-up game of basketball.Ahhh, talking to me about Baseball or American football is a hopeless endeavour.
P.S. I was talking about Basketball.
Recreational doubles can be played when fat and well into your 80 y.o.BB is easier to play than tennis when fat, no?
Correct: almost every person I know who tried to play football (i.e., the sport that Americans call soccer) after turning 40 years old, had some kind of issue that ended involving surgery.
Someone saw you playing the other day and thought you were swatting flies.
Our balleigh expert alone skews the percentidge of peepul who play tenace against those who just poast.
This is probably the reason Tennis is the only spot activity I know of where different genders, skill levels, age groups and almost all cultures can all share the same court at a recreational level
No doubt
Steep learning curve in tennis compared to recreational badminton When I mentioned culture in my original post I think it would apply to badminton, America doesn’t really know or care about it as far as I understand it’s seen mainly as a girl’s sport in the America’s, or something maybe done on a family picnic or barbecue
True they are activities that can be shared across genders, ages, skill levels but for one reason or another these too just are not as wide spread as tennis over the planet. Maybe golf, but socio-economically I think perhaps it stays exclusive only for certain classesCycling, pétanque, board games, dancing, golf are all such sports.
No doubt
I play badminton as a kid and past a certain level it is every bit as challenging as tennis, not sure why they look down on it in USA
Yeah, I remember suggesting badminton to my family living in Houston, there was a park right across the street and my nephews there refused to even try it, like it would give them some disease or something
Though they were horrible at tennis they preferred that True they are activities that can be shared across genders, ages, skill levels but for one reason or another these too just are not as wide spread as tennis over the planet. Maybe golf, but socio-economically I think perhaps it stays exclusive only for certain classes
You can add to those skiing, mountaineering, swimming etc.
The list is pretty long, and tennis is one of the most inaccessible sports compared to most of those, as it requires specially constructed facilities, and pretty expensive equipment too.
Next thing you will tell me is that digging a river or an ocean is even more expensive.
Lucky that apparently some people can afford that, seeing how many people can afford to swim in those.
Googled pétanque, and it’s somewhat similar to “bochas”, which is played in Argentina mostly by elder people.Cycling, pétanque, board games, dancing, golf are all such sports.
Agree, what a strange comment
How can you even compare tennis to skiing What about people in Miami? Or New York? Or Nairobi ???????? Or Caribbean? South America? China? India? You can add to those skiing, mountaineering, swimming etc.
The list is pretty long, and tennis is one of the most inaccessible sports compared to most of those, as it requires specially constructed facilities, and pretty expensive equipment too.
Tennis is one of the least expensive sports, go to any public court and see the equipment needed Sure many people want those fancy country clubs or wear branded ND, RN, RF clothing, but doesn’t need to be like that at all You don’t even need much coaching to get there, just put in repetition.They surely live at least by the roadside. Or the trail. In which case there is walking, running, cycling right in front of them.
Even in the wildest outback.
There are no "natural" tennis courts, so the argument you are trying to make is pretty much cooked.
What I find is rec players imagine copying the pros which is hugely complicated. All that stuff about pat the dog, wrist flips and extreme pronating not for the casual tennis player. If you just want to put in 2-3 hours per week to learn tennis then better to learn simple style consistent rallying. And that’s what people can play well into their 70’s
If the ambition of the student is no more than 4.0 level, they just need to learn how to read the ball - it virtually costs nothing to both the student and coach to give them enough repetition to develop that. And actually also, many parents expecting that also, the ones that don’t know anything about tennis and haven’t played it Agree, what a strange comment
You got it wrong
The first thing I tell rec students is forget all that stuff you see at pro level. Rec tennis 3.5~4.0 level, which is the biggest category of players, can be played with a sub $100 racquet and very affordable synthetic gut. That racquet will last for years
Cycling, skis and mountain equipment cheaper than tennis
Nothing to say here. If it’s cheaper and easier for you and your friends to ski and climb mountains go for itIf you looked past the particular sport, you will see that the argument addresses this statement:
Now I don't know where you live, but I can tell you that tennis is probably one of the most difficult sports to gather people from different genders, skill levels, and age groups (can't tell about cultural matches, but I can imagine that that is not particularly correct too).
Almost all (if not all) sports I mentioned are better suited for that.
You need the court, first, so you need to have a public court, which in itself puts it in disadvantage compared to a number of other sports that I mentioned. The priority of building public courts is not very high in most places on Earth, so that is one problem.
Next problem would be the cost of equipment, and that is pretty much in the top 10 percentile of expensive sports out of the ones I mentioned: To go running you need good shoes, just like in tennis. That is it. To go swimming you need something on your *** and at most a rubber cap and swimming glasses. Most of the others are also pretty cheap compared to tennis.
If we get into the whole coaching thing the costs for tennis skyrocket.
I can make a pretty good analysis on the cost of all the sports you mentioned while laughing. I am not sure whether you will be laughing when I finish with it. BTW, you make the mistake to associate skiing only with ski resorts with downhill slopes, when the vast majority of skiing is done as either touring, ski running or free ride, for which you don't need resorts.
Nothing to say here. If it’s cheaper and easier for you and your friends to ski and climb mountains go for it
To be honest I’ve seen these boards since I been here and don’t really like to get into arguments on the internet, so maybe that why I don’t follow conversations too farI don't ski anymore, because my knees are not in safe enough state for it ...... from tennis.
As for the rest, I do almost all of the above, so, I think I know what I am talking about. I don't mind that you have your opinion, but I haven't seen anything with which you defended your statement that you made in post #28 to which I responded. I saw the smileys, but not many arguments.
BTW, you said that you teach. How much do you charge per hour, and how many hours on average does a student need to take to take it say to a very decent level, where something resembling a normal game (not only getting the ball over the net 4 times) can be played?
Also, yes, it’s true, maybe everyone just has a different local dynamic and what’s true in yours is different to mine, I can’t disagree with that notion I got tired and frustrated of hearing tennis coaching is expensive and it’s an difficult sport. So mini tennis For kids that’s possible in as little as 2 weeks with red beginner ball. For adults mini tennis more challenging, generally are tighter and want to whack it, maybe 3/4 court tennis - again about 2 weeks to get to consistent controlled rallies with orange novice ball Go to Decathlon and get a €50 racquet and just wear sensible court shoes. To be honest I’ve seen these boards since I been here and don’t really like to get into arguments on the internet, so maybe that why I don’t follow conversations too far
Let’s see
It’s expensive if want to play it well, the same as football and basketball and others. But most kids if spending only 2-3 hours per week fall into the category of 3.5~4.0 level and I consider it my privilege and joy to be part of that journey.
To get to a stage they can rally consistently 5+ times the player needs to first learn control, and that means spin. No ball bashing
Now to the cost. On my own I can maybe handle at most about 4 people at once. But really it’s not that effective. And I need to make a living so my charge is about $20-50/hour depending on group size.
With the ball machine however, 3 line feeding, I’m able to handle 10-12 and give everyone enough repetition without everyone collecting balls.
So I now charge $5-10/hour, make more return, they pay less, and getting to 5+ rallies in the same 2 weeks.
I first ask all students what are their expectations and what kind of commitment they want to make to tennis.
If only want 1-2 hours per week above is easy. No need to buy some fancy racquet or strings from Wilson or Babolat
With this basic foundation can enjoy tennis for a lifetime.
Most important is to enjoy tennis
English my fourth language, please be patient$20-50 is a huge difference, and I can't form an opinion on what the costs might be (if I was presented with a financial plan like that from a coach that will teach my granddaughter ..... he will not get the job).
How many hours do you have to work with an average student (not too gifted, but also not too bad) to get him to a 4.0 level. Say it is a woman that is 25. Average intensity per week (so less than 5 times, but more than 1-2 hours per week). In a group of 4 students.
$50 for private, $20 for group each person, this without the ball machine I can only say after seeing the person the time it takes, some especially need more attention but almost everyone in my experience can get to 3.5-4.0 match level in 6-12 months, with moderate commitment
