President’s Message: (Erica Reilly) Dear Members,
It has been a rollercoaster first half of the 2020. Starting with beautiful weather in January, it looked like it was going to be a fantastic year at PTC……. and then March hit and we had to shut everything down. It has taken a few months, but we are slowly getting back to somewhat normal operations, adapting to this new reality.
I want to thank everyone for being flexible and kind as we muddled our way through reopening and continue adjusting to make the club as warm and inviting as possible, while maintaining a safe environment and meeting the county health guidelines.
Instead of our July quarterly membership meeting, we are using this first Drop Shot since shut down to communicate the state of the club. All Board members are giving an in-depth status on their position for the first half of the year. We invite you to send any questions to Lona and will address them during our socially distanced Board meeting on July 21 and get back to you with responses.
Overall, this downtime has allowed us to do some much-needed club maintenance (read Brian’s column) and start planning on the new fitness room (read Gene’s column). And, despite not having our regular fun and social tournaments, we are in the middle of the singles fast4 round robin which has seen huge membership participation (read more in Reynold’s column).
It is wonderful to know our PTC community is strong and adaptable during this time and hopefully we will all be able to enjoy all the social aspects of the club as well as the tennis courts in the near future. Editor's Message: (Jeff Tateosian) Welcome back PTC! I'm glad to see a little more normalcy in our lives now that the club is open for tennis, limited swimming and fitness usage.
I trust everyone has had enough time to clean out their closets, garages and attics. Personally, I have three car-loads set to deliver once the Goodwill starts accepting donations again.
I would like to thank the Board for its diligent work on developing the club's compliance plan so we could safely open up a few weeks ago. We're not fully there yet, but hopefully if we all do the right things, we’ll see all the amenities and some activities slowly open back up for everyone’s use.
Along with the business of each of the Board submissions, PTC has always had a high social aspect within its members. As much as people miss tennis, I hear all the time that they miss the camaraderie as well. To that extent, I ask that you share member news, tennis achievements, fun photos, etc, so that we can keep everyone participating and involved with our fellow members. Please email any member news that you would be willing to share to jefftat@pacbell.net. PTC has always been the best kept secret on the Peninsula, and I would love to see everyone get involved again. Manager’s Message: (Lona Means) We are so happy to have the members back at the club enjoying our "new normal."
Looking forward to August, the USTA is waiting until July 20th to determine if league play will continue this summer.
Please add all full names to reservations for courts, swimming and fitness. This data will be used in the event that we need to contact trace.
Clorox bleach and towels are available to wipe down surfaces before and after use of the tables and common areas.
Please use hand sanitizer or wash your hands before and after playing tennis.
Children under 14 must be actively supervised by an adult when swimming.
Please contact Steve or me at peninsulatennisclub@gmail.com or 650-347-1439 Club News: (Jeff Tateosian) Club Anniversaries for April - June (5+ years)
Congratulations to the following members: David & Daisy Kwan 35 Years
Steve & Linda Benvenuto 25 Years
Marcus & Jamie Shen 10 Years
Evan & Shawna Krasts 5 Years Tennis News: (Reynold Harbin) While our tennis committee plans have been foiled, PTC members have come out strong to safely play on our beautiful courts! Since rolling out a court and swim lane reservation system on May 4th, over 2,400 reservations have been booked, representing over 2,800+ hours of tennis. As expected, courts #1 and #3 see the most use:
In addition, we introduced a new type of round robin, called the PTC Fast4 Singles Round Robin, which runs through July 18th. The goal is to have fun meeting and playing safely with fellow members who play at a similar level. We adopted the Fast4 format designed to be shorter, with sets that are first to 4 games, no ad-scoring, and Fast4 tiebreakers which are first to 5 points.
With 89 members playing in the round robin, we created several draws to make sure members were paired up with others at a similar level. Each draw is named after some of the current and former tennis greats. Check out some of the close results in The Andreescu Draw, The Osaka Draw, The Sampras Draw, The Roger Draw, and the other 7 draws. You can see match results and follow along at https://ptctennis.com/draws. Finance News: (David Bressie) The club is in great financial shape. Our expenses have been lower during the Coronavirus since we haven’t been able to have any social or tennis events, but hopefully we will be able to make up for that later in the year. Our normal operating expenses have been just slightly lower than budget during this time. Now that the club is back up and running, I would expect those to return to a normal level.
Our account balances are in great shape. Our loan servicing account has approximately $188k and our reserve account has approximately $385k. We are continuing to plan for some capital improvement items which we hope to work on this year. Brian Desler will discuss those in his column, but they are paid out of our reserve account with member approval. If you have any questions about our financial status, please make sure to reach out so that I can get your questions answered as soon as possible. Hope to see you all around the club. Membership News: (Jackie Sage)
Hello PTC. Our membership turnover has stayed remarkably low this year - surely a testament to the wonderful club that we all enjoy. We are sad to see these few members leave. The resignations are: Jack Corey, Jeff Cozad (Inactive), and Soraya Oliven.
We do warmly welcome three new member families. They are: Susan and Jason Cooper - Sponsors are Paz and Luceno
The Coopers live in Burlingame and have two young children Audrey, 10 years old and Henry, 7 years old. Both children take tennis lessons and all family members would like to become better tennis players. The Coopers are an enthusiastic couple with many local ties to our broader Burlingame community. Susan and Jason are well loved by their sponsors, have a fun attitude about life, want to get involved at PTC social activities, and have a lot of energy to give. They just recently opened the new bar in Burlingame called Velvet 48 so when downtown, stop in and introduce yourselves. We look forward to their enthusiasm and involvement at PTC.
James and Annie Kim - Sponsors are Clark and Cozad
James is an avid tennis player and plays 3-4 times a week at the 4.5 level. Annie is a beginner player but is possibly interested in lessons. The Kims have two young children, Connor and Parker, both of whom enjoy tennis and take lessons every week. Their sponsors say that James is a terrific guy with a calm personality and is a great family guy. James is sure to sign up for USTA play and is a tennis enthusiast who will be a wonderful addition to the club.
Chad and Bonnie Partridge - Sponsors are Bartus and Paz
The Partridges live in Burlingame with their two young boys aged 9 and 4. Chad played tennis very competitively in high school and is likely a 3.5/4.0 now. Bonnie has played tennis for 10 years. Their sponsors say Bonnie and Chad are classic PTC people. They are outgoing, nice, and fun people. They know many members socially and want their kids surrounded by tennis as they grow up. Chad would be a welcome addition to the men's and mixed teams. Bonnie is a go-getter and would likely get involved in PTC's social activities and is happy to volunteer. Bonnie can also see herself starting tennis lessons as the kids get older. House & Grounds News: (Brian Desler) House and Grounds activities around the club so far this year include:
Landscaping - There were many improvements to the landscaping around the club earlier in the year, such as replacing dead plants, repairing broken sprinklers, adding new drought tolerant/low maintenance plants, replanting three large pots by the pool and three other patio pots outside courts 4-6, trimming neighbor trees adjacent to court 3 and adding mulch to several areas.
Pool Camera - Added in May to our website.
Pool Equipment - Replaced 20-year-old chlorine controllers for both the pool and spa in May.
"Heavy" Maintenance - Items include painting in the locker rooms, office and some exterior doors, cleaning carpets and installing a new floor in the tennis office.
Still working on the following:
Replacement of flat roof and split roof beams - be on the lookout for a separate email update asking for membership approval of necessary roof work to be completed later this summer.
Cabinet Doors - Still obtaining bids to replace water-logged cabinet doors with longer lasting solution.
Dry Rot Repair - Also getting bids for dry rot repair on the outside green wall (BHS parking lot) that has dry rot in several places.
Longer Term Projects - See Gene Trainor's update on Fitness Room enhancements.
If you see any other issues or have suggestions, let us know. Social News: (Kate Belding)
These have been difficult times for many of us. We are all so happy to be able to play tennis now, but many of us are missing the social activities that make PTC such a special place. As we navigate these challenging times, please know that we on the Board are keeping close tabs on the County health guidelines and we are looking forward to being able to organize a social event as soon as it is deemed safe.
On a happier note, we have booked Brian Wachhorst and his band for our holiday party. Please make a note of the date for our 2020 holiday party, Saturday, December 5th. We will, of course, continue to monitor the health guidelines from the County and State to ensure that it is safe to hold an indoor event at that time.
In the meantime, stay safe and enjoy your time on the courts. Fitness Room Update: (Gene Trainor) As mentioned in recent Drop Shots, the membership prioritized the Fitness Room renovation as the #1 need in a survey conducted this past winter. A committee (thank you to: Joe Feeney, Linda Pene Nagare, Cindy Sibley, Lexi Slavet, Jim Sobel, and Steve Williams) was formed and met several times over the past few months to evaluate the size of the fitness room and the type of equipment that would best serve PTC and its tennis players. We also received great input from Pablo. Several committee members visited a nearby club to see some of the potential new equipment firsthand.
An architecture/construction firm is in the process of evaluating plans and will provide a cost estimate for construction drawings and the construction of an expanded and updated fitness room, a relocated teen/junior room and a new unisex bathroom/locker area for our youth that will include private bathrooms and a shower. Special thanks to Jim Sobel for his help with identifying a turnkey firm that can provide architecture and permit services as well as handle all construction.
We are also working with an equipment vendor to spec the proper type of equipment and the number of equipment pieces to meet the needs of our membership. We hope to have much of this initial work completed in the next 4-6 weeks and will plan to bring renderings of room configurations and equipment as well as a summary of all costs to membership for your consideration and vote.
Please feel free to reach out to me at (eatrainor3@gmail.com or 410-207-1157) if you have any questions. Tennis Pro News: (Pablo Alvarado)
Summer Camps 2020: We are really happy for being able to host summer camps this year. It gives the kids (and us as well) a vibe of "normality" and HOPE that we are all needing at this time. Of course, we had adjusted our programming to fulfill all the requirements of the CDC, San Mateo County and USTA. These are some of the guidelines we are following this year:
Longer Camps - Smaller Groups: Tennis Camps are 3 weeks long for a steady group of 12 kids or less.
More Coaches - Lower ratios: Our Player-Coaches ratio this year is 3:1 (wow!) so we can really control what is happening all the time.
Cleaning Protocols -Players and Coaches are sanitizing hands at entry, between drills and before leaving the camp. Shared equipment is sanitized on a daily basis as well.
Curbside Drop-Off & Pick Up: We are using the gate next to court #4 as access to the camp. This way parents are doing curbside drop-off and pick-up and we are avoiding crowds and people waiting for their kids in the club.
We've just finished our first 3-week session with two great groups of kids. We are looking forward for the next 2 sessions.
TENNIS LESSONS: SEMI-PRIVATES AND SMALL GROUPS: As the County and the club are loosening up some restrictions, we are doing the same with our lessons. During phase 1 of reopening, we had very good turnout of private and family group lessons. In this next phase we are opening classes to Semi-Privates with players from different households and small group clinics (3 players + Coach), and we are looking to get back to drop-in clinics hopefully by the end of summer.
For your convenience, you can check which times are available for lessons and book your class online at www.coachpabloalvarado.com. The website will allow you to register just for a private lesson, but if you are wanting to book a semi-private or small group, please send me or Stephanie an email with the name of the other players and we will make the adustment.
See you on the court!
New Members - Anthony & Nina Wang with family.
New Members - James & Annie Kim with family.
Participants of the first & only "Purell Open Tournament " at PTC in March.
Congrats to Shawna Krast for her success at the PTC Purell Open Tournament. She was presented with an almost empty bottle of hand sanitizer and the 2020 Indian Wells player towel.
Matt & Yana Maloney celebrating his 60th birthday with a few members.
Mark Strem shown after his meniscus surgery. He shared that "It may seem a bit of an extreme measure, but I'll do anything to get bumped down to a 4.5!." The good news is that his rehab is a month ahead of schedule.
Congrats to the 3.5 Ladies who's photo was selected for the front cover of the USTA website registration page.
