Part of me is really glad to be home, yet, I'm already missing being on the road. I have tons of thoughts about what I experienced racquetball-wise last week. Mexican racquetball is a trip with cartels and cultural stuff. Add to that what Gearbox is doing grass-roots style and the WRT. I'll definitely be watching and looking to see when I can use this experience to properly describe what is going on in an overall, looking from the sport as a whole context. I'm pretty sure that will come soon, when something breaks in my view. Right now, I'm just interested in keeping all my lines of communication open and my ear to the ground. (And looking forward to just playing this weekend, my first time playing indoor One Wall this season, getting ready for the loud venue in the Bronx.)
Back to the big boys. The Red Swain Shootout is back in Davison, Michigan. named for Cliff Swain's father, it's a popular Tier 1 IRT stop. I continue to have this one in my sites as a "gotta check it out one year" thing. Don Shopieray and his people run a hospitable event, in a what I hear, is a cool venue.
The draw for the event looks interesting. Kane Wasalenchuk won't be at this one, leaving the door open for those hungry for a Tier 1 win. That provides for a ton of energy at this one. Making the New Jersey stop more interesting to see. Croft plays into the De Larosa, Carson side, while Cliff will have to get by both Rojas brothers to get deep on the other side, which includes Beltran and Crowther (both of whom are top vets looking for the elusive T1 win.) You can watch this on the IRT Network, starting today...8pm est. The full round of 16's is stated to be streamed, which promises some good match-ups. You'll need a subscription this weekend.
The stop got some local press coverage, good stuff. (More mainstream national stuff is desirable. Man, we need that glass court out there way more...if the video doesn't appear...you can direct link to the page here.)
I also got a chance to go over the results of the Junior World's in Bolivia. Looks like it was a strong showing for Mexico and Bolivia, and it speaks tons on what they are going with the game. (You can download the final results here and read more about what happened with Team USA by going to the USA Racquetball site.) I know it's not all about wins with this one, so I won't read too much into it...