Showing posts with label hot weather tennis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hot weather tennis. Show all posts
Friday, April 20, 2018
Should I do anything different with my strings in hot weather?
"Should I do anything different with my strings in hot weather?"
The answer to this question has two answers. On-court and off-court.
On the court, here in the Tampa Bay area, the answer for most players is no. It just isn't cold enough, long enough to have changed anything in your stringing due to the cold weather. Up north, players will often lower their tension to balance out the cold's effect on the ball and the strings. Around here, it is warm enough most of the year that once summer arrives, you really won't have to change anything. For some big hitters, they may notice a slight loss of depth control, so going up in tension will help. For the rest of us, unless you notice a drop in control (from strings less than 2-3 months old), you can keep them the same.
Off the court, there is something you need to do differently in really hot (mid-80's and higher) weather. Keep your rackets out of your car when possible. Living in Florida, we all know how hot our cars get in even a short time parked. This extreme heat can cause strings to lose tension far quicker than you'd think. The authors of "Technical Tennis" found in their research, “Ten minutes in a really hot car will drop the string tension by at least a few pounds, permanently."
Don't forget the racket itself. Heat can break down the frame and the grips. Over the years we have seen many rackets that broke prematurely due to being left in the car during the day.
Overall, here in the Tampa Bay area, if you are keeping your rackets out of the extreme heat of a car, there may not be any other changes you'll need to make to keep them playing great.
Saturday, July 8, 2017
Beating the Heat on the Court
Not sure about where you're at, but here in Tampa, it is HOT!
Playing tennis in Tampa this time of year creates several issues for those willing to take on the heat.
One of the biggest problems is worn out grips. When you are sweating buckets, your hands and grip are going to get wet. If you are using a worn out grip, it's even worse. Here at MP Tennis & Sports, we often see rackets that have broken after slipping out of someone's hand and sent slamming into the court. A new grip or overgrip will help this problem quite a bit. For those who sweat a lot, something like a tacky-towel or grip enhancement gel can increase your ability to keep the racket from slipping.
Another problem is what to do with your racket when not on the court. Just about the worse thing you can do is leave it in your car all day. I won't go into how hot it can get in a car, in Florida, in summer, but it is very hot.
The heat can damage your frame and cause your string to lose tension prematurely. Both things will reduce the performance and how well you play. Keep your racket inside whenever possible, or at the very least, have them in a bag with a thermal protective pocket for the rackets.
Doing these things will help increase your racket's life span and have you playing better tennis.
Come into MP Tennis & Sports and we can help you select the right grips and even put them on while you wait. Stop by our store at 14845 N. Dale Mabry Hwy in Tampa and we'd be happy to help.
Playing tennis in Tampa this time of year creates several issues for those willing to take on the heat.
One of the biggest problems is worn out grips. When you are sweating buckets, your hands and grip are going to get wet. If you are using a worn out grip, it's even worse. Here at MP Tennis & Sports, we often see rackets that have broken after slipping out of someone's hand and sent slamming into the court. A new grip or overgrip will help this problem quite a bit. For those who sweat a lot, something like a tacky-towel or grip enhancement gel can increase your ability to keep the racket from slipping.
Another problem is what to do with your racket when not on the court. Just about the worse thing you can do is leave it in your car all day. I won't go into how hot it can get in a car, in Florida, in summer, but it is very hot.
The heat can damage your frame and cause your string to lose tension prematurely. Both things will reduce the performance and how well you play. Keep your racket inside whenever possible, or at the very least, have them in a bag with a thermal protective pocket for the rackets.
Doing these things will help increase your racket's life span and have you playing better tennis.
Come into MP Tennis & Sports and we can help you select the right grips and even put them on while you wait. Stop by our store at 14845 N. Dale Mabry Hwy in Tampa and we'd be happy to help.
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