THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 7, 1995 TAG: 9505050240
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JOHN HARPER
CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 98 lines
TENNIS, anyone?
A vacation on the Outer Banks is a good time to hone your tennis skills. But the barrier islands, home to 19 public outdoor tennis courts and one public indoor facility, also pose a unique challenge for tennis enthusiasts.
I've played tennis on the Outer Banks for 10 years, and here's what I've learned: When playing outside, the toughest opponent is the wind, and on the Outer Banks, there is always wind.
The summer southwest wind wreaks havoc with ground strokes, lobs and volleys. Tufts of wind turn topspin lobs into out-balls. Delicate drop-shots die or float wide. Hitting an overhead in the summer wind is not for the faint of heart.
The best advice for playing in the wind: Be prepared to ad-lib shots.
For some unknown reason, only the courts behind the Kill Devil Hills police station have a windscreen, and that only protects the court from a west wind. The trees on the north end offer some protection, but if the wind is blowing east or south, forget about it. You'll play a game with which you may not be familiar.
The Baum Center courts in Kill Devil Hills are the newest on the Outer Banks, but there is virtually no protection from the wind. However, the courts were built to drain quickly, and the playing surface still has the gritty new feel to it. The nets are in mint condition.
Things are a little better in Manteo. Several houses and trees, plus the school building, block some of the wind on the Manteo High School courts.
The courts behind Kelly's Restaurant in Nags Head are good for a day with northeast winds. The building at least protects the court that is closest to the restaurant.
One place where you won't have to worry about the wind is the Pine Island Racquet Club in Currituck County.
The facility, built in 1989, has three indoor hard courts. Indirect lighting gives the courts an outdoor feeling, but without shadows. And the building is climate-controlled.
Rick Ostlund is the head pro, and Betty Wright is the assistant pro.
On the day I visit, Ostlund offers to demonstrate his newest toy: Match Mate. This ball machine is capable of hitting serves up to 115 mph. It can also hit with underspin and topspin. The Match Mate can place the ball in six different positions in each service court in a programmed delivery or in a random selection. The ball machine will also throw up lobs.
Ostlund loads the machine, which, by the way, is the same model that Andre Agassi uses for practice sessions. I stand in the ready position as the machine fires the first ball. My return is tentative, but I keep it in play. The next serve is to my backhand and again the return is weak, but in play. I've never faced a 115 mph serve. Ostlund tells me where the ball is going, and I am able to hit a crosscourt forehand that hits the sideline.
``Not bad,'' Ostlund says. ``This is how Agassi learned to return serves.'' Agassi is generally considered the best returner of serve in the game.
Ostlund adjusts the machine to mimic a second serve, with a high kick. I handle it, but the return floats like a butterfly without the sting of a bee. After an adjustment to my stance, my returns improve. (I wonder if Barbra Streisand would consider me a zen master?)
I hit with the machine for about 30 minutes, practicing overheads, forehands, backhands and volleys. It's a good workout.
Later, the team of John Harper and Brad Tornquist defeats Buzz Bessette and Whitney Brodeur in a close three-setter. Must have been the machine.
Pine Island offers beginner and advanced drills, plus weekly round-robin tournaments. Both Ostlund and Wright teach tennis in private or semi-private sessions.
There are also three clay courts at the Pine Island Racquet Club, which are protected by full-length windscreens.
Enjoy your tennis on the Outer Banks. There are plenty of opportunities both indoors and outdoors. And even if the wind is howling and your shots are going long, remember the words of the great tennis philosopher, Bud Collins:
``It's better to have lobbed and lost, than never to have lobbed at all.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by DREW C. WILSON
Rick Ostlund, left, and Mike Piland of the Pine Island Racquet Club
work on their return volleys using a ball machine at the Currituck
County facility.
WHERE TO PLAY
The Baum Center in Kill Devil Hills: Four courts with lights that
can be turned on and off by the players.
Behind the Kill Devil Hills fire and police station, adjacent to
the softball fields: A pair of hard courts.
Behind Kelly's Restaurant in Nags Head: Four courts, no lights.
Manteo Junior High School: Two concrete courts.
Manteo High School: Five hard courts.
Hatteras Island: Two public courts at the high school
For information and rates at Pine Island Racquet Club, call
441-5888.
Racket Stringers: Ostlund and Wright, 441-5888; Whitney Brodeur,
480-2438.
by CNB