Racquetball bounces back

• Ex-aficionado rediscovers love of the game

By Paula Rath
Advertiser Staff Writer

Racquetball professional Jo Shattuck of Denver, Colo., shares 37 secrets from the pro tour with racquetball enthusiasts and teacher certification candidates at The Honolulu Club. Such clinics increasingly draw Island women. Photos by Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser Sweetheart Shootout 10 a.m. Saturday Honolulu Club, 932 Ward Ave., seventh floor $20 includes lunch and drinks No reservations required Information: Jodi Melton, 543-3974.

This year, there are 57.

Women's racquetball in Hawai'i, nearly replaced by aerobics, yoga and Pilates classes in recent years, is experiencing a resurgence on the Island.

Why the rebound? Plenty of reasons. For starters, racquetball keeps women out of the sun, offers a tough total body workout and — the best reason — reduces stress by inviting women to hit the ball as hard as they can. (Pro women's shots have been clocked at 130 mph.)

All of which contributes to weight loss.

"It's an all-encompassing workout on the court. It offers speed, danger, agility and balance," said Janet Scheffer of Waikele, who said she fell in love with the sport the first time she struck a little blue ball eight years ago.

An avid athlete all her life, Scheffer was a competitive swimmer and diver from age 8 through high school and college, and a receiver and tight end for Hawai'i's professional football team, the Hawaiian Wave, in the late 1990s.

"I've tried everything: aerobics classes, Pilates, weight training," she said. "None of it is action-oriented enough for my Type-A personality."

Scheffer is not alone.

In January, a $34,000 purse — the largest in any tournament in the history of U.S. women's racquetball — was offered at the 1st annual Ladies Pro/Am Racquetball tournament held at the Central and Nu'uanu YMCAs, Schofield Barracks and the Honolulu Club.

The world's top-ranked woman player, Cheryl Gudinas of Chicago, won it. Nine other highly ranked women professionals came to Honolulu to compete.

Moreover, 11 Island players, eight of them women, turned out at a recent racquetball clinic sponsored by the

racquetball association, seeking to improve their strokes and strategies, as well as seek certification to become racquetball teachers.

Mangual said she started the association last year to honor the late Sam Koanui, often referred to as the "father of Island racquetball."

Koanui taught many players at the Central YMCA, always refusing compensation.

"This is for Sam," Mangual said. "I promised him I'm not gonna let it (Hawai'i racquetball) die."

The game, which hit its stride in the 1980s and early 1990s, had seen a decline in players and available courts. But as more people look for exercise outside of classes, racquetball has been rediscovered through ambassadors to the game such as Mangual.

Mixed games

There are other reasons, Scheffer points out, to step into the court. She enjoys the camaraderie the game offers. It's one of the few sports in which it's common to see men and women playing singles or doubles on the same court.

Another benefit is that she doesn't have to cross-train a great deal. "Of course I drill, but if I'm short on time I can just play," she said. "You don't have to drill constantly and do other workouts to get good at racquetball. You just play as much as you can and you learn the game and its strategies in the process of playing.

"The best way to get in the zone for racquetball is to play and play and play. It's just always so much fun."

Shirl Newell of Kane'ohe, a former tennis player and coach, switched to racquetball after four knee operations. The senior citizen finds the floors more forgiving. She also enjoys the workout: "It's a lot of exercise in a short amount of time," she said, perspiration pouring down her flushed face.

Gudinas, who has been playing for 20 years, is at the top of her game at age 36. Most of her fellow pros are in their mid-30s. Unlike most sports, racquetball is not a game where performance peaks in the teens or early 20s, then quickly tanks.

"It takes a while to learn the game and its strategies. Men rely on strength and shots, women rely on smarts," Gudinas said after beating Jackie Paraiso-Rice of San Diego, age 37.

A downside to playing on the pro racquetball tour, said 9-year-old Danielle Paraiso-Rice, Jackie's daughter, is the travel. Danielle will turn 10 on Easter, the first birthday celebration her mother has been able to attend in seven years.

"There always seems to be a tournament somewhere on my birthday, but this year Mommy is skipping the tournament," said Danielle, her blue eyes shining.

At the pro level, women such as Gudinas work with trainers on sport-specific weight routines, balance and core training. She cycles, sprints and does on-court training a minimum of five hours a day.

Better-looking duds

As for attire, the game is becoming far more fashionable than in previous decades. At the tournament, the pros wore tennis-like skirts made of high-tech fibers, with matching hooded jackets taken off after warmup to reveal body-hugging sleeveless tops in bright primary colors, emblazoned with sponsors' logos.

Chris Wachtel, director of operations for the Ladies Pro Racquetball Association, seconds Gudinas' belief that the Hawai'i tournament was the best-run women's racquetball tournament in the nation. It is hoped the tournament will return to Honolulu next year, bringing with it another crop of the world's best women players — and a big purse.

Perhaps by then, the crowd of fans will include many more local women players.

Ex-aficionado rediscovers love of the game

Racquetball pro Jo Shattuck demonstrates the ready position for returning a serve at a Honolulu Club racquetball clinic. Free classes HARA offers free classes for women at 6 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays at the Nu'uanu YMCA. For information, call Mangual, 949-0177, or e-mail prbigedhara@verizon.net.

Sam Koanui, a legend in local racquetball circles, made me one of his projects and patiently reminded me to "take care da ball" several times a week as he taught me shots and strategy.

Racquetball became increasingly central to my life. I met my three closest friends on the racquetball court. To this day, we hold "doubles" birthday parties, although one has moved to Maui and one to Kaua'i.

Although I didn't meet my husband on the courts, we courted there. Racquetball offers insight into a person's character, making it an ideal incubator for a future relationship.

For a year, we played racquetball every Wednesday, then went back to my place for a beer while he called his girlfriend to make dinner plans, until his knee surgery put a halt to our games. One night, he called to say, "Gee, I kinda miss you. Wanna have dinner?" Six years and many games of singles and doubles later, we married.

Racquetball attire in the '80s and '90s was decidedly anti-fashion. It was all about looking your least feminine and most intimidating, often in hand-me-down puka shirts and baggy shorts.

As we aged, one by one my partners quit the game. In the late '90s, women turned to Pilates, yoga and circuit training.

I began playing with men, and injuries ensued. I got smashed in the eye as my goggles flew across the court. I rammed the wall with my shoulder, got my collarbone cracked with a backhand and trashed my knees. But I just couldn't quit until I had shoulder surgery, ending my racquetball career.

The shoulder is now functioning fully, and as I see the resurgence in women's racquetball, I hope to find a woman player at just my level. In anticipation, I think I'll shop for one of those giant racquets with the huge sweet spot, and maybe one of those cute short skirts, like the pros wear.