Head Pro Report

The second season with the new bubble has gotten off to the busiest start in the history of indoor tennis in Barrie. Courts are jammed, lessons are packed, and the parking lot is constantly full. The junior program is busier than ever with all our teams now competing in the NSL (North South League) and our own Houseleague every Sunday afternoon giving matches to over 40 players each week. The adult round robins are all well attended as well as the Stroke Clinic and Cardio Tennis, and I am noticing new members joining every season. It is great to have so many wonderful chats in the clubhouse as we all wait for the phone chime to tell us it's time to go out and play.

This year we have a great mix on our staff. Led by myself and Michele May our team consists of coaches like Peter Simko and Paula Bourne who combine experience with an amazing passion for the game of tennis, sports in general and how much fun it is to learn and improve. We also have former and current Skyhawk players Hannah Alimajstorovic, Julia Sergi and Max Gillespie-Hewitt on our team who bring a youthful energy to the courts and act as amazing role models for our junior players. We were really fortunate to have a few more months of Caitlyn Lawrence who has been a stable member of our team for almost 10 years, before she continues a career in coaching south of the border. She will only be with us until Christmas so hopefully you get a chance to wish her luck in 2019. Steve Benson may not be around much, but he's still known at OLD SCHOOL to those who know him well and is happy to take on any lesson requests.

We are also happy to have coaches like Genevieve Quenville (FORDHAM UNIVERSITY at NYC) and Bryson Tye (UNIVERSITY OF WEST VIRGINIA at CHARLESTOWN) who are both current NCAA college players, contributing to the program when they are home. It's been a pleasure to have Ralph May working with our juniors and bringing all his coaching experience from several sports; specifically basketball, to our players. Rob Cooper is our Strength and Conditioning coach, who most of you have hopefully gotten to know. Also behind the desk is Dylan Mackenzie and Kevin Wellar making our management team one of the best in the business. Behind the scenes the father-daughter duo of John and Vicki Wellar continue to work tirelessly to make the members tennis experience here in Barrie the best it can possibly be. And this year we were lucky to welcome Nicolas Laverde from Colombia and Dale Avery from South Africa. These two new coaches bring with them international experience at some of the absolute highest levels in the game. If you see Nicolas around, be sure to ask him about the time he played Roger Federer as a junior. These two new coaches have sparked our Skyhawks teams massively and are extremely popular with the juniors. They are available as are all our coaches to book private lessons with all members. Be sure to grab some business cards and contact a coach today to tune your game up and improve.

With a staff like this, wonderful facilities, and excellent service, its no wonder the parking lot is full each day. Thanks for your support and let me know if I can help you improve your game or just get more out of your tennis here in Barrie.

Johnny Glanville