KIDS DAY CHAOS – Craig Cignarelli

Written by: Staff on 26th July 2012

KIDS DAY CHAOS - Craig Cignarelli |

Every year, the Farmers Classic tennis tournament hosts Kids Day, an opportunity for SoCal’s youngsters to grab a racket and embrace the game. Today, on stadium court, hundreds of young athletes, with a Disney-ish sense of joy, swung away at red, orange, green and yellow felt. For many, it was their first time ever striking a tennis ball. Here is a review of the event:

Nine buses unload a multi-cultural blend of adolescents whose excited screams and smiles brought an energy un-approached by your average SoCal tennis crowd. Beneath blueberry skies and a seventy-degree sun, nearly one thousand players jammed themselves into folding plastic seats and listened to UCLA coach Billy Martin and his assistant Grant Chen wax poetic about the sport. Shortly thereafter, the kids entered the court and hit balls against UCLA stars Marcos Giron and tournament qualifier Nick Meister. As they chased down balls, the fierce-faced youth jumped, shrieked and expressed enough enthusiasm to make school playgrounds jealous. Although many of the strokes resembled unfolding lawn chairs, knowledgeable coaches would have recognized the athletic potential on display. I even got to hit a few balls today and lost a tough battle to a six year-old girl with a mean drop volley. I have several theories about the pre-game Gatorade she was drinking but I’ll let it go for now.

Today’s comments from the mouths of babes:

“Can I hit one more before I go pee?”

“Does it count if it hits my head and goes over the net?”

“I’m wanna win Wimbledumb.”

“Can you therve a thousand hundred mileth in an hour?” This last from a four-year old with jack-o’-lantern teeth and the sort of coordination one would expect from someone more heavily medicated.

After ninety minutes, SCTA volunteers launched tennis balls into the crowd and gaping-mouthed kids Babinski-reflexed skyward and, with a Darwinian nod, battled their way toward the prize. Staff members and coaches passed out t-shirts, plastic tennis balls, and, in a brilliant, pre-meditated stab at building a garrulous audience, ice cream for everyone.

At the moment, a hyper-insulined battalion of vibrating children is pulsing above a second round doubles match. About an hour from now, the day’s counselors will start breathing again as eyes will droop and the stadium will regain its tranquility. A few hours later, a well-lubricated evening crowd will re-invigorate the place. And on we go…

Topics: Billy Martin, Farmers Classic, Grant Chen, Kids Day tennis news, Nick Meister, SoCal tennis news, Sports, Tennis News