Wednesday, June 10, 2020

Return to the Court



It was not pretty and the weather was not conducive, but yesterday marked my return to the racquetball court for the first time since mid-March, fully three months ago. 

Outdoors Racquetball Court
Columbia, MD
June 9, 2020
The return to racquetball came on an outdoors court in Columbia, MD. I had never played on an outdoors court before and I have to say it was better than I expected--it was a four-wall court made of poured concrete and cinderblock. Being back on the court was fantastic, even in the 90 degree temperatures with soaring humidity. It showed how out of shape I had become while sheltering in place. I had thought it would not be so bad since I have been walking regularly, but there is a big difference between walking a golf course or with a dog around the neighborhood and chasing a 100 mph blue ball around an 800 square foot concrete enclosure on a 90 degree day. 

My game was understandably ragged. I had to get used to playing in a mask and I also added a hat to help keep the sun off my head. And then there were the shadows on the court--which you can see in the picture. I have to admit, it was a different experience tracking the ball from sun to shadow and back to sun. I felt the concrete walls made the ball play faster--which further highlighted how much work I need to do to get back into some semblance of racquetball shape.

But despite the weather and the raggedness of my game, it was a great return to the court and the next step in finding the new normal living with coronavirus! And we are going to play again next week--during the morning hours to avoid the heat!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD


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