Normal 0 false false false EN-AU X-NONE X-NONE
US Open Monday 28th Aug 2011
490 racquets in one day!!! That is the most racquets strung in a single day at a Grand Slam event. It was fun and painful all at the same time. We knew it was going to be a busy day with the previous day cancelled due to the hurricane. We were all on the 7am shuttle bus out to the centre. We get there by 7.30 and then the fun starts. At 7.45 I am given 5 Head Prestiges due by 11.30. Easy. An hour later I am handed 4 racquets due for 10.30. The Prestiges are done quickly and I get started on the next 4 racquets. The player’s coach wants to check after the first one is done. This guy is notorious for never being happy with his restrings. He was happy with 31kg the on Saturday so I am doing it at the same tension. I hand it to him and he taps the strings. Far too loose.Far too loose. His player will not be happy. I reassure him that it is exactly the same as the racquet I did for him on Saturday that he was happy with. I know it is exactly the same because I have not missed a beat all week. I have been stringing multiple frames for players and they have all been done perfectly. Every multiple set of racquets pings exactly the same. We have a guy here checking every set to make sure they are all exactly the same. There has not been a problem with my restrings once. The machine has been checked and calibrated, the clamps have been cleaned and are not slipping and to cap it off I am the most pedantic person I know. I know this racquet is exactly the same as the other. This guy is mental. Nevertheless he wants it tighter. Without hitting a ball he decides it has to be tighter. The strings are cut and I now still have 4 racquets to string by 10.30. We up the tension to 32kg.
Another 2 racquets come in for me as I am doing these. I quickly get through the 4 Diablos and start on the next set. Just as I am finishing them we get an on-court call. Guess who wants his strings looser? Too funny.We drop the tension to 30kg for the on-court. He loses in straight sets.
By 1pm I have done 17 racquets and I have another 5 lined up all due at 30 minute intervals. We have 16 machines in the room and every one of them has been going flat out since we started this morning. I am really enjoying this.
I finally get a chance for a quick break around 4pm. 10 minutes for food then straight back to the machine. The racquets don’t stop all day. It is just frantic. I have lost count of how many racquets I have done. It doesn’t matter. The matches are finishing up early tonight so most of us get on the 11.30pm shuttle. The end of the day can’t come soon enough. By this stage I am ready for bed. The head cold is still messing with me.
In Melbourne this year we did 378 racquets in a day which was our record up to that point. We have just blown that out of the water. If only we were getting paid by the racquet.
Shane Mikic is the pro-shop manager for the Tennis Gear stores and their online store www.tennisgear.com.au in Brisbane. He has over 16 years racquet stringing experience and is currently part of the Wilson Global Stringing Team at the 2011 US Open. The following blog shares his experiences during his time in the Wilson Stringing room.
