Maggard Passing

USRA Board of Directors-member Ronald James Maggard, 65, of Blue Springs, Mo., passed away on March 27 at his home after a courageous battle with cancer.

Ron was a born December 13, 1934, in Kansas City, Missouri. Ron was the co-owner of All-American Fitness Center, and was on the both the USRA and National Masters Racquetball Association Board of Directors.

As a competitor, he captured six national doubles titles in 55+ and 60+ mixed doubles since 1993, in addition to several silver and bronze medals. Besides racquetball, he enjoyed golfing, flying and wintering in Texas. Ron is survived by his wife, Joyce; two sons, Rusty and Richard; three daughters, Carolyn Ogran, Ronda Brew and Nola Presnell; nine grandchildren; and one great-grandson.

Inspirational Racquetball

by Fran Katcek
(a.k.a. Rudy)
Annapolis, Maryland

I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy Racquetball magazine. Thanks for all your efforts. I am a club C level player, and I’m extremely passionate about the game. I play at Merritt Athletic Club in Annapolis, and didn’t start the sport until the age of 37 (I’m 41 now). I played tennis in high school and college, but comparing the two sports — racquetball is so much more for fun and high spirited to me! I love it! I will never go back to tennis.

Anyway, I’ve played in several tournaments locally — mostly in singles, but I’ve dabbled a bit with mixed doubles. I have yet to win a Women’s C event, but I truly feel it’s within my grasp. It’s only a matter of time, my husband keeps telling me.

But I’ve had to put my game on hold for a while. In August, the results of my annual mammogram showed an early stage cancer in my right breast. I did not feel a lump, so I am grateful to American Radiology Associates for the accuracy of their testing. Every woman must get regular mammograms after age 35!

After the biopsy in August, I played in one last tournament at the Merritt in Security. Knowing I would be facing some type of surgery in the coming months, this tournament held extra special significance for me. I played my heart out. I think it was the best tournament I had to date — even though I wasn’t even first, second or third in Women’s C — but because I was really in every game and every point. I scored more points against opponents that normally pummel me. It was absolutely awesome! I felt so strong and confident, and I had an added bonus. My two best friends, Susan and Val, paid me a surprise visiting during the tournament. They came to cheer me on and offer their support. It overwhelmed me! It made me dig down deeper than I ever had, and the shots were there! I’ll never forget how proud I felt. Winning would have been great, but I felt highs I’d never felt before! It was extraordinary, as you can imagine.

Well, after extensive research and a lot of praying, I decided to have a bilateral mastectomy. My decision was based on family history and some other factors. I am very confident I made the right decision.

On October 22, I had the surgery. After five weeks, I was at the gym doing light treadmill. Weeks six and seven, I increased it to medium, with lots of stretching. The doctor said racquetball is out for now, but eventually he sees no reason why I wouldn’t be able to play again someday.

Because I had temporary implants put in at the time of my mastectomy, I needed to have them removed and permanent ones put into place. This was just done in January, and I was allowed to exercise in two weeks. Other than a few minor cosmetic touch-ups, I’m basically done with the plastic surgery.

I am planning to work with a physical trainer at the hospital to help increase my range of motion. I still have stiffness in both shoulders, and unfortunately my right side is not quite as flexible as my left, YET! Being that this is my weapon arm (and a deadly one it is, of course!) I still have some work to do on it. But, I’m determined to play again, and I plan to play better than I did back in August! Anything is possible, right?

My current goal is to start back sometime in mid-March. I’m really looking forward to it, and I feel very fortunate. I just wanted you to know that I am very grateful to the sport of racquetball, and all those that support it. Thank you for listening, and keep writing. I plan to keep playing till I can’t walk.

Racquet For
The Cure

By Cindy Tilbury
Denver, Colorado

On February 12 the Colorado Athletic Club at Inverness hosted the first-ever (that we’ve heard about) Racquet For The Cure tournament in Denver. What was so special about this one-day tournament? Aside from being for women only, it was also designed to increase awareness of women’s health issues. Organizers Melissa Zantop and Cindy Middlekauf had several goals for the day: get ladies together for a full day of racquetball, share great food, give away fun prizes, provide education on women’s health issues, and raise some money for breast cancer charities.

Metro area Denver news stations dropped by to cover this unusual fundraiser, where fifty women turned out to participate in the individual and team competition, including six novice players! At a banquet that ended the day, guest speaker Dr. Susan Ryan opened the evening by talking about women’s health risks and myths. Then, to spotlight the all-important “letter” divisions, prizes were awarded, beginning with the novice playoffs (a Wilson racquet for first prize) and working back to Open. And as you’d expect with this type of program, the sponsors really made all the difference in making the event special. Wilson, IRT Commissioner Hank Marcus, AmeriSuites, the Inverness Club, Williams Restaurant and the USRA were only some of the contributors.

Since this was the first year for this event, Missy and Cindy got some great ideas from surveys filled out by the participants. They also have some ideas for future “Racquets For The Cure” events, like bringing in the WIRTs top women pros to play, get more and more women to participate, and eventually have many cities across the country all host a “Racquet For The Cure” tournament on the same day.

If you are interested in getting a Racquet For The Cure tournament started in your city, feel free to give Melissa Zantop a call at 303-730-8316 to get some answers or talk over your ideas with her.