By Blake Grimsley, USTA.com
The 8.0 Texas women’s team goes to great lengths to prepare for Super Senior National Championships
SURPRISE, Ariz. – Before heading to the USTA League 8.0 Super Senior National Championships, the Texas women’s team felt the need to get in some extra practice sessions so that they be at the top of their respective games.
Seeking additional practice time, team captain Judy Ryman gathered up her teammates and headed to their local public courts in Houston.
“I got our team together on a Sunday when we all were free,” said Ryman.
The ladies, who usually play indoors at the Texas Christian University club in Fort Worth, Texas, took to the outdoor public courts in an effort to grow better accustomed to playing outside for the upcoming championships.
After a long practice session dealing with “gale force winds”, the ladies were feeling good about facing some of the top 8.0 teams in the country.
“It was a windy day, but we wanted to be outdoors because we felt it’d better prepare us for the different elements we could encounter at nationals,” said Ryman.
As the team proceeded to leave the courts however, they discovered that they were locked in the facility without an official or staffer in sight! The ladies didn’t fret however as they knew they could just dial up their cell phones for help.
“When we used our phones to call for help, no one picked up,” said Ryman laughing. “We knew then that our escape could get interesting!”
After searching the facility for any type of exit, the women from Houston finally came upon a gate with a very low, but accessible clearance.
“The underneath clearance had to be only about 12 inches in height,” said Ryman.
So the women, many of whom are in their sixties, carried on to shimmy under the low gate as their only means of escape!
“Well there are a lot of us who grew up on farms and used to do all types of stuff like that, but that was years ago,” said Ryman.
Thankfully all the team members successfully escaped from the courts in Houston and are here in Surprise, Ariz. competing.