Marshredder
Semi-Pro
I've played in heavy snowstorms twice, its fine, but after you get into warmth again, areas that were subject to the cold winds and snow feel like theyre burning intensely, thats not good.
When is it too cold to play outside?
- Thread starter tennytive
- Start date
Slazenger07
Banned
Well when you cant feel your hands, Id say its too cold.
Loco4Tennis
Hall of Fame
when the balls refuse to bounce!! happens at arround 35 degrees, they feel like bouncing rocks when hitting, maybe its the strings too, but ive seen it when it literaly does not bounce back up,,, good times trying to get thoes
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Just volley those rocks. Never, ever let your balls bounce or lay on the court too long.
Around 42*F is my cut off point. Anything below that and the low bouncing balls, jarring hits on the racquet, joints that never seem to warm up...the fun starts to go away. From 50-70 is my ideal temp, above that I start having to bring gallons of water to the courts because I sweat so much.
The bigger issue here on LI during months like March and November is wind. It may be 45 degrees, but that 20MPH gusting wind also takes the fun out of playing.
The bigger issue here on LI during months like March and November is wind. It may be 45 degrees, but that 20MPH gusting wind also takes the fun out of playing.
precision2b
Semi-Pro
That is to cold for me... To hard on the body...
Loco4Tennis
Hall of Fame
worrrrd...
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Word is right, I wrap those balls in a warm towel then stuff them into an insulated lunchbag.
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charliefedererer
Legend
I've found the Tretorn micro X tennis balls to be the best in the cold. They have more bounce than pressurized balls and are softer than other pressureless balls.
Natural gut strings are best for cold weather. Even the micro X balls are going to create a bigger impact in the cold than a regular tennis ball in the summer. THe gut will help protenct your arm from the shodk. Plus in the cold, you can use the extra power that allows your gut to play more like a normal hybrid setup in the warm weather. I've found poly brittle and prone to breaking in the cold.
Natural gut strings are best for cold weather. Even the micro X balls are going to create a bigger impact in the cold than a regular tennis ball in the summer. THe gut will help protenct your arm from the shodk. Plus in the cold, you can use the extra power that allows your gut to play more like a normal hybrid setup in the warm weather. I've found poly brittle and prone to breaking in the cold.
hyperwarrior
Professional
I'm not feeling that weird at all...
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
I played when there was snow on the ground back when I was in my 20s. I have played indoors when it was very cold outside - say around 5 degrees outside and about 30 degrees inside. I used to play with a group of four at 6:00 AM and it was pretty cold and dark here at that time in the winter. That was when I was in my 30s. At my current age, I prefer warmer temperatures. I go indoors below about 60 degrees and I play at times indoors when there is heat.
floridatennisdude
Hall of Fame
Yep, below 55 is a hassle in fl. Why bother?
CHillTennis
Hall of Fame
The coldest that I've ever practiced in was low 30s.
It's pretty hard to play in that type of cold.
40 degrees is generally where I draw the line.
It's pretty hard to play in that type of cold.
40 degrees is generally where I draw the line.
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Our line was crossed when it began to snow. Just remember to keep your balls in your pocket, never leave them on the ground to freeze. Tried pressureless balls, felt like stones.
Harry_Wild
G.O.A.T.
When tennis balls are rock hard and they fly around at accelerated velocity. Probably around 32 degree fahrenheit or 0 celsius!
SystemicAnomaly
Bionic Poster
I never play when it get down below 3 degrees Kelvin. Many of my atoms/molecules tend to get kinda lazy that close to absolute zero.
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Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Never let the ball touch the ground. Or use that wiffleball
AndreDaGamer
Rookie
I want to hear what you can say about Cyrus the Virus in the fall/wintertime.
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Will play for the last time this year outdoors this morning. Will not play indoor by choice
woohoo, i second paddlein ny, evening temps are getting into the 40's so i'm getting into paddle mode.
40 is about my limit for tennis, below that:
1) i'll lose feel in my fingers (even with racquet ball type gloves)
2) warming up takes forever
3) even warmed up, temps in the 30's requires enough layers of clothing (even tech gear), that it constricts my natural stroke
4) it's hard enough to find folks at my level to play tennis, forget about finding other folks to play in the 40's or lower
5) i think the feel of the ball off the strings is very different than when playing in 50+ temps
Here is a match I played with another forum member in the 30s last week. The ball was bouncing low but playable, but stroke can be off. Our tennis bag was coved with layers of frost/ice in the end. For me, as long as wind is under 10mph, playing at 30s is fine.
dak95_00
Hall of Fame
I agree. Wind is the number 1 factor for me. I'll go down to about 25* F at the lowest including wind chill. I'm definitely not playing at higher winds than 10 mph either unless there's great wind blockers. I'm not wearing pants though. I found that a t-shirt, long sleeve t-shirt, and hooded sweatshirt work fine. My legs never get cold but I hate when my neck gets cold. I wear a winter hat too.
I sometimes used facemask scarf when winds start bothering my ears and face and works well.
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Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
The courts were packed!
Fintft
G.O.A.T.
Agree, 6C or 42F. Maybe a bit lower if sunny...
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
Why? May agree after playing/ feeding basketballs outside at 35F. Had to pack it in after 15-20 minutes.
chrischris
G.O.A.T.
Its too cold to play outside when skates are needed.
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
Played indoors today for the second time this season. I looked at bookings for the day. There was one for 6:00 AM and another for 2:45 PM. I booked 1:30 PM. They have two courts and slots throughout the day and so they have three bookings for today. We also played a week ago and we were the only booking for the whole day. This has me less worried about catching COVID.
If there's that few bookings I'd be less worried about COVID and more worried about rats or peeping Tom's in the locker room or something like that.
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
I don't think that anyone is using the locker rooms either.
I'm looking forward to when everyone is vaccinated.
Born_to_slice
Legend
Played many times below 0°C this season. Coldest I played this season was -5°C (23°F) in the bubble without heater. Actually loved it and played in shorts and t-shirt once I warmed up. This photo is from one of snowy days. Bubble is in the background.
Curious what’s the bubble you play in? Indoors but no heat?Played many times below 0°C this season. Coldest I played this season was -5°C (23°F) in the bubble without heater. Actually loved it and played in shorts and t-shirt once I warmed up. This photo is from one of snowy days. Bubble is in the background.
Born_to_slice
Legend
There's option to turn on the heat but you have to pay 3 times as much for an hour. Also, bubbles tend to get wet on the edges because of condensation and it just gets worse with the heat and big temperature changes. Then the balls get wet and full of clay which makes them borderline unplayable.
That sounds kinda awesome actually. Whereabouts are you located if you don’t mind me asking?
Born_to_slice
Legend
Belgrade, Serbia.
Inspiring man although be careful with your balls. I have a higher threshold for hitting against the wall than being on the court so hitting against the wall in 21 degree weather is rather impressive.
Ronaldo
Bionic Poster
May need to wait a bit. Neighbors had a fit from the noise early in the morning.
Stratotanker
Semi-Pro
Some gutsy weather bravery in this thread, but I’d suggest caution like some other posters. There are very few indoor courts where I’m living this year so I’ve played winter tennis more than I’m used to, and developed some wrist tendinitis. Switched to a gut hybrid and things are much better, but never had trouble with it before. Only after using my normal poly setup at or below 7C did I develop some problems! Still not sure if the cold affecting the strings or balls caused the pain, but either way, not fun.
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