January - February
2000 -- Vol. 11, No. 1

CHANGING TIMES
by Luke St. Onge

I am most happy to inform you that through the efforts of the USRA “Bring a Friend to Racquetball” promotion, we now have 440 new members signed up. Over 900 cans of balls were sent out along with 500 prizes of gloves, eyeguards, racquets, and racquetball clothing. To cap off the membership drive, a drawing was held at the Promus U.S. Open in Memphis, where Adam Kane of Michigan was selected as the grand prize winner of two United Airline tickets anywhere United flies in the continental U.S. The final drawing was made during the semi-finals in front of a crowd of 1,200 spectators.

We’re already working on a follow-up promotion for 2000 [see page 30] which will run through May and end with another airline ticket drawing at “The Finals” in Houston. It is the goal of the USRA to grow its membership by 15% by May. Can we do it? We think so, but only with your help and participation. Racquetball is your sport — help it grow by spreading the word and signing up new members!

This issue is filled with glowing reports on the Promus U.S. Open . . . deservedly so! Doug Ganim and his staff are to be congratulated on taking this event to another new level. The Open has brought back a unity and enthusiasm for racquetball that has been missing for many years. The energy from the Open has been passed on to all of the USRA’s marquee events.

In Memphis I had the chance to observe not only the pro matches, but many of the amateur events, as well. Once again I noticed — as did many of our current sitting Board members — that many players opt to use cross-over products from major manufacturers that contribute nothing to the sport of racquetball. Look at the pages of this publication to see exactly which manufacturers are committed to putting something back into the sport. If the “Nikes,” and “Reeboks” can maintain a fair market share — without promoting their product lines through sponsorship and advertising directly via racquetball’s major events and media— why should they put anything into the sport? They can let all the other, racquetball-specific equipment makers carry the burden, while they benefit from those competitors’ efforts.

If you were a business under siege by a competitor trying to undermine you or take your floor space (like spinning or kick-boxing) would you support that industry? Of course not! Yet every time a player selects a non-racquetball-specific product from a company that does not support racquetball directly, that’s exactly what happens. Your dollars go toward spinning, kick-boxing, or the next fad that threatens your court floor space. It’s like shooting yourself in the foot.

So let’s start this year out right and support those who are dedicated to the racquetball industry. We can — and should — send the message that we are loyal consumers. If we can succeed in making that simple statement, those “other” equipment makers may even begin to take notice of racquetball as the viable market that it easily can be — and they’ll follow suit by supporting events and perhaps even sponsoring a player or two. Maybe you?