A New Year's Serve

[bottle]

At Swim-Two-Birds

This is a great book (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/At_Swi...s#Plot_summary)
but could be interesting prescription for an experiment in forehand.

In that case one bird would be your left hand and the other your right hand.

All of unit turn would be accomplished at once with both elbows rising with hands
still forming a hoop including the volleyball distance between the two of them on
the handle and throat.

Next the hands separate. Hitting hand falls at the natural rate of gravity blending
into shoulder lowering as part of the formation of a power pocket.

But let's back up to pick up the action. As both hands separate the two palms roll
slightly open.

As racket softly approaches the oncoming ball (as if to catch it) the two palms roll
inward to square for the huge burst of short power about to occur.

[bottle]

Flat vs. Topspin One Hand Backhands

My model for flat version remains Petr Korda as seen in the following
video (http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=...A4DD&FORM=VIRE).

I see these flat backhands (which still carry topspin) as an example of
slow racket travel in which straightening body does most of the work.

This shot, if even a bit like Petr's, might be all a recreational player
needs other than his slice.

It is a great challenge however to learn more topspin as in the following
model where the two arms fly faster and farther but most of all MUCH HIGHER (https://tennisone.tennisplayer.net/m...e.outline.html).

Under "Backhand Training click on
1) One Hand Backhand Dance Kata
2) One Hand Backhand Racquet Kata
3) One Hand Backhand Racquet & Live Ball Training.

I know I use Latinate words sometimes but why not if they're going to help?
The key word here, as far as the shoulders are concerned, is "abduction."
Both shoulders, for this particular administration of topspin, lift up, which
is not the same as scapular clench. SC may happen while the shoulders
become part of the body lift but it doesn't take over. In fact, it may only be
1/2 SC, i.e., scapular clench divided by two.

[hockeyscout]

Flat Backhand

My model for this shot remains Petr Korda as seen in the following
video ().

I see these backhands as an example of slow racket travel in which straightening body does most of the work.

This shot, if even a bit like Petr's, might be all a recreational player
needs other than his slice.

It is a great challenge however to learn more topspin as in the following
model where the two arms fly faster and farther ().

Petr Korda - interesting - my oldest daughter went and hit at his club when we were vacationing in Prague. His assistant was superb - when we left she gave us this big huge book on the history of Czech tennis that was autographed by Petr. Nice gift. What a great club he runs - VISTA Tennis. The guy who handles all the stringing there is an ex-Swedish pro hockey player and we chatted about a lot of guys we knew from back in the day. First time we ever played on real clay - what great courts. Petr was not around, as I guess he spends half his time in Florida.

http://www.vistatenis.cz -- great facility.

[bottle]

Thanks. Greatly interesting guy and family.

[bottle]

Forehand to Backhand to Forehand

Repeatability.

Moving wall.

Click on Lock and Key, Part 2 .

(https://tennisone.tennisplayer.net/m...e.outline.html).

[bottle]

Awareness of Wrong End of Racket

That would be the tip. You want to be more aware of the other end.
Or of both ends together, no?

Locking into the shot is one concept. Staying locked with racket kept
square is another.

[bottle]

Petr Korda - interesting - my oldest daughter went and hit at his club when we were vacationing in Prague. His assistant was superb - when we left she gave us this big huge book on the history of Czech tennis that was autographed by Petr. Nice gift. What a great club he runs - VISTA Tennis. The guy who handles all the stringing there is an ex-Swedish pro hockey player and we chatted about a lot of guys we knew from back in the day. First time we ever played on real clay - what great courts. Petr was not around, as I guess he spends half his time in Florida.

http://www.vistatenis.cz -- great facility.

By now I've clicked on all the items in this website. This does seem like a wonderful
place. Wouldn't mind visiting there some day.

[bottle]

Excitement as Prerequisite to Instilling Good Stroke Design

Coming at 8 p.m.: One of the Friday night tennis socials where I put my new ideas
to full test.

I'm so excited this time-- which can prove the most awful place to be. One can
step out on the court and immediately get swung around by one's racket as every
one of one's too many ideas suddenly flees, old habits flare, the evening
becomes no fun.

This evening feels different. I just love my new word, new at least to me
(http://www.bing.com/search?q=katas+d...R&pc=EUPP_DCTE).
Wow, 1,520,000 hits. A few other tennis players have looked it up.

Before this, "Kata" was a woman on a poster on every pillar in Budapest.

I can't wait to insert my "Two Birds-At-Swim" kata into the very first stroke of warmup.

I've modified it a little. Only one hand-- the hitting hand-- need turn out, opening the
racket through mondo and faux catch.

Left hand can be relaxed and still, doesn't need to spin unless one is a professional
dancer.

But what a neat and succinct new loop the hitting hand is going to perform.

Everything will depend on height of the initially raised elbows with hand and throat
nestled in between.

No extra turn. What a waste of time that's been for decades. You listen to me, tennis
player. I've done the experiments, which you needn't repeat unless you want to. Either
turn your shoulders completely with both hands on the racket or turn them completely
while separating your hands. But don't first keep both hands on racket while turning
shoulders and then separate hands while turning shoulders more because THAT
WASTES TIME. You ought to listen to me even if you won't.

The symmetrical raising of the two elbows drains tip momentum right out of the racket
which is what one wants.

The height of the elbows is such that the racket can go down with natural fall and without
one thinking about it. (One does not want racket hand to have to go up again before it falls.)

Thinking about the succinct loop would probably be all right through installation mode.

Opening racket loops up right under the ball. Whole arm rolls strings up and square as big bod
takes over with both ends of racket locked to travel at same speed melding into final wipe.

[bottle]

The Score

Any time you have three new strokes to show, or even old
shots with slight modification, something unexpected is apt
to occur.

Especially in Detroit. As I drove up to the tennis facility I
noticed that the place was pitch black. And there were no
cars in the parking lot. And the gates were locked. With
a small sign on one declaring a power blackout in that
part of Detroit.

So there was no Friday night tennis social, and I hope that
I now don't over-intellectualize the strokes.

[bottle]

Doing Your Own Counting

By that I mean that while there are many capable teaching pros and
tennis writers who can recommend two or three counts for a ground
stroke and three or two counts for a serve, they seldom tell you, at
least not with convincing force, exactly which part of the action should
correspond to which count.

I realize that this discussion should pertain only to learning phase, but
since I believe in learning phase all the time, I find myself chanting
numbers a lot.

In this forehand description or rather what it might inspire
(https://tennisone.tennisplayer.net/m...e.outline.html), I am thinking
of two counts but with demarcation in a place I have almost never thought
of. Click on Racket & Live Ball Stroking under "Forehand Training."

Perhaps I can explain by replacing the 1-2 of 1-2 rhythm with the words
catch and throw or catch-throw.

Further, I'm sure that playing Christine, Doug King's assistant pro in the
video, would be a huge challenge, probably like taking on Simona Halep
in my case.

Still, I think Christine uses up too much hips rotation in coming to the ball. I
would rather come to the ball pretty much with arm only before the
major muscle groups take over. I'm not a great player and never will
be so I've got to play smart and think this is the way.

So, in the 1 or "catch" of 1-2 rhythm, I perform all the functions of
preparation and getting hand out to the side (and just slightly
forward) with strings open to bottom inner quadrant of ball in
a single count that includes all necessary footwork.

The last key micro-element-- rolling strings square to back of ball- can
then function somewhere between finesse and power move.

Your cranking hard from the shoulder blends into that part of the
hit where both ends of the racket accelerate at the same time
and the big body elements blend in. You add to racket head
speed in other words but a racket head speed that largely
is provided by the bod followed by the almost extraneous windshield
wiper, extraneous in that the ball already is gone but a good indicator
of whether the ball was hit well.

Couldn't play and didn't have time to line up a hit or a match so did
self-feed.

[bottle]

Infielder Catches Grounder and Throws to First

Can't see why this is a bad rhythmic model. How you catch,
how you throw of course is very important. I seek a throw in
which racket opens as part of a small loop then closes which
closing adds to upward body force.

[bottle]

Fashion Statement

All the men wore orange with stegosaurian stripe
down the spine. All the women wore black ice
picks. Except for a few whose skirts were declared
to be in confessional mode.

Confessional screen at church inspired one of the Nike
designers to put a sieve full of small holes in every
skirt so that voices could travel through.

Ted Tingling meanwhile tingled in his grave.

[bottle]

Topspin Forehand Imagery for Coming to Ball with
Open Strings (continued)

Make as if to catch lower inner quadrant of ball with the
open strings. Then square racket as if against back of
ball. Then use image of a rising square bucket on a
water wheel to contact the ball with both ends of racket
rising equally. Do it right and the roll blends into the lift.

[bottle]

Two Questions

How much should people discuss stroke technique?

Answer: A lot. In fact, with no limit. In other arcane
subjects, say horse-riding, the kind of saddle soap
one uses may not interest any outsider but nevertheless
remains one of a thousand obsessive details all part
of somebody's overwhelming passion. Without which
there never is significant expansion of one's consciousness.

2) Are the power cord of Doug King and the aeronautical
banking of Welby Van Horn the same thing?

Answer: I don't have the full answer-- yet. There are similarities
in body rise. Is the advocacy of Van Horn more toward flat forehands,
that of King more toward topspin forehands? This area requires
further thought but at least I have posed the question.

[bottle]

More than One Way to Skin a Tennis Ball

A design feature of the new forehand model that
intrigues me so much is the chance of "gel" between
arm roll and part of the tract where the two ends of
the racket travel together.

A way to help along this future fantasy of realistic
neurological improvement may be to delay mondo
after twin elbow rise.

The succinct loop coming up so much from under the
ball rather than from behind it can actualize the poetic
image of an old fashioned water wheel turning up.

Backward arm rotation and late mondo form a loop that
seems part of the subsequent water wheel.

To summarize, arm pattern starts with double elbow rise
to drain momentum out of racket tip to help make racket
"disappear."

The idea for what comes next then is racket opening to one
part of the ball, closing to another part of the ball, and then
ripping over a third part of the ball-- which is very good method.

What I propose as alternative though is simplification of transition
from faux catch to push of both racket ends. This seems
good way to implement the water wheel image. But one
now catches back of the ball rather than the bottom of
it (none of this of course actually happens). One will initially
have lifted hitting elbow higher than other elbow to achieve the
difference.

Have no idea as yet of whether this scheme is workable but
am curious to find out.

Can a great forehand possess the following racket work similar
to a shortstop in baseball barehanding a ball and slinging it to
first?: 1) backward rotation of arm plus mondo, 2) pushing with
both ends of the racket which is water wheel or Ferris wheel,
3) wiping the racket home.