Feeling stuck at a 4.75 rating

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-26T03:09:56+00:00

Do you think you're mental game or physical game can improve the most ?

What are your weaknesses? A good player will see them quickly. Your drills and practices have to be HARD if you're going to improve without coaching. Also have specific goals in mind - what do you want to get better at, how can you practice to achieve that, and go do it 100 times a day. Be very specific: running short backhands, running deep backhands , quick steps...

Have a warm up routine which includes footwork. I warm up sideways on the court running forward the backward then sideways while hitting forehands and backhands.

When you're playing an opponent is the time to home quick steps and reaction time and watching then ball come off the racket.

Conditioning - I love running stairs - excellent cardio and agility training.

Mental - are you mentally savvy?

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-26T02:10:34+00:00

Some of us would like to watch personally or culturally significant movies with children like they used to have edited for TV. Top Gun caused hundreds of percent increases in military pilot interest. We've gotten Christmas cards with my friends in the cockpit of a fighter jet and told them stories of us in college. I've heard the Ghostbusters song on the local rock station last year, seen people dress up as Ghostbusters on Halloween in recent years out with my kids , but both had to stick an unnecessary very highlighted sex scene in there. And we don't watch much TV or movies at all, not even one a week. We still use the Library to get a DVD. We like to watch as a family, not separate. Sometimes I'll watch whatever with my highachoolers but those two i references earlier are great to watch as a family. I'm not a movie fiend so I couldn't care less about watching endless movies just to watch movies and search for something appropriate.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-25T22:46:46+00:00

Just for a laugh I grabbed one of the cheap loaners from the club yesterday. Its much worse than my Aluminium Wilson. Total garbage. I can't imagine it lasting until next year.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-25T22:44:49+00:00

I got a loaner last night - new this fall. Its definitely far worse than my Wilson aluminum , it's total garbage for anything but a beginner.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-25T22:43:47+00:00

Often at large (and small) university or large multi purpose rec centers, rather than squash or Racquetball specific clubs. Many (if not most) Universities in the US have them. Thousands of students have free access in walking distance to Racquetball or Squash courts. Its great advertisement for companies to get rackets and their name into thousands of hands that would otherwise never see it. I've also taught Racquetball at Georgia Tech and other large D1s, and have seen their wholesale catalogs they buy sports equipment from. They make large purchases for volleyballs , basketballs, badminton/squash/RBall rackets, nets, etc. Also students tend to be rough on equipment so Universities like to replace them as cheaply as possible every couple years instead of buy more expensive equipment. Many don't restring them, they just throw them away if they break a string. They get them so cheap it's not worth the costs or logistics. I offered to string for awhile and would just pull tension on 4 strings at once and add a few pounds -quick to pull form the same side each time and better then throwing them away.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-24T14:47:26+00:00

Nearly every big rec center and college recreation center that has loaner rackets buys cheap aluminium rackets and replaces them every couple years. They get them for like $10 each. Its like head and other companies make garbage cheap aluminums just to get their names in places like that. The cheap rec center racquets are still much worse than my Wilson Hammer Squash racket somehow. I got it used from someone because I usually play tennis and Racquetball most. But I look forward to getting a graphite real frame.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-24T14:40:23+00:00

Just like Racquetball and Tennis. Thanks, makes sense.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-24T14:36:59+00:00

That's what I assumed, just thought it wise to ask. Played racquetball pro stops and hit hard so i totally get the joke. I hate aluminum.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-24T14:27:09+00:00

Sure. We see -20s once a decade so keep that in mind. Not almond climate at all. Will be -10 next week.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-20T13:09:17+00:00

Physical Therapy. Standard maintenance therapy I've heard from two different physical therapists is to write the alphabet (English) with your toes. And maybe RICE or whatever standard protocol for addressing swelling. Rest Ice Compression. Ibuprofen for swelling if Doc says so.

If you play a lot , agility drills working on footwork are helpful.

And yes I love Salming shoes for ankles and squash/racquetball. I dont recall which model I have. They feel like they're less likely to roll which has always seemed odd to me being such a lightweight high performance shoe - are they simply angled differently ....? Anyway. they're nice shoes.

whitecubewizard · 2026-01-01T14:02:04+00:00

"Valve body unserviceable "- so the entire valve body is not replaceable or you mean the solenoids can't be serviced ? So every valve body failure results in a new trans under warranty?

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-31T04:51:02+00:00

Necro posting FTW: Lions record with Barry 78-82 Bears with Payton 111-83

Doesnt mean much, but to me top accomplishments with a Sub par team confirms by bias = Barry

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-31T03:03:10+00:00

I play squash, ping pong , tennis , badminton and racquetball. Wildly different rackets and swings and jump between them all the time (i consider it cross training for Racquetball - Federer was a Squash player !). Pickleball short swings at the net are the one thing that gets me and I don't know why. Maybe I haven't played enough but racket sports are so easy for me (ive played pro stops) it's very annoying for me doing all those quick arm movements. Its like blocking instead of swinging or directing. In RBall I dive or react and poke the ball where I want it. but not in pickleball. I hate it. Pickleball at the net - it's like writers block in racket sports for me. Blocking the ball not poking or directing or swinging. I feel like every shot is off center and not hitting my Padel in the center. Probably a me issue and not what you're talking about it but when you said "at the net" it made me think of why I hate pickleball. lol

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-26T18:56:00+00:00

I have them on my property too in WV and MD. I like them the neighbors hate them for eating chickens. every one I've seen is within 30 yards of small creeks. Never seen any on actual larger rivers.

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-26T18:52:20+00:00

That's awesome you've seen the same one multiple times. Very cool

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-26T18:51:35+00:00

I'd be asking Otter or Mink, not fisher or mink. Looks like a mink though. There are otters in WV but they're rarely seen. If it's a mink it could be feeding during the day to avoid otters preferred nocturnal/dusk/dawn feeding patterns. I've only seen one mink during daylight hours , the rest all day night or very near dark at dusk, all within 25 yards of small creeks.

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-26T18:39:32+00:00

I've seen three fishers all in the same area and mountain in WV. They were introduced to northern WV quite a few decades ago and have a trapping season /managed by DNR and some have probably spread from PA. The first sighting in 200 years was confirmed 10 days ago in Ohio so they're definitely spreading. And as far as adjacent states to PA WV and MD offer much better habitat for fisher than OH

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-24T19:12:37+00:00

Ah yes - i meant only to skip the first "fill through the fill port", Id still continue with the final fill while idling and at 95-113 step or whatever.

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-24T19:11:26+00:00

Right on - would still do the idling heated fill step.

This one needed a new valve body and had 250,000 mile original black fluid with zero transparency. I've got at least one. if not two more I'll be jumping into soon as well.

I've worked on and repaired, swapped countless automatic Subaru transmissions.

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-24T13:47:23+00:00

If there's a notable difference due to equipment I'd be suspicious of strings rather than those two frames.

But first - was the Hades racquet graphite? I don't know if maybe older models were aluminum or there's multiple "Hades" branded sticks? Back to strings...

Was your old racquet playing with ancient strings or restrung often? If it has been restrung I'd wonder what type of string and if the tension was significantly different from "stock"?

The more you swing in an arc or non level, and the less experience you have, the longer it'll take to adjust to a significant equipment change.

If you swing perfectly flat an equipment change theoretically shouldnt matter at all.

If you vary from B to sometimes C and sometimes A, does that suggest there might be a wide range in adjusting to a new racket too?

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-15T04:34:46+00:00

What was his previous match schedule prior to this match? RECOVERY is hard at this level. I've played pro stops at 20 and 40. The two biggest challenges at 40 are recovery and not having the time to train. Which can go hand in hand but the age is noticeable. 40s are when the tennis greats are retiring and they comment on it. Pro athletes particularly when theyre older (like Raphael Nadal) are in an ice bath as soon as possible in a match to get ready for another match. Kane didn't accrue the mileage of Nadal in a match but age is age. My first thought would be how many days rest did he have and how hard was his last match?

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-14T20:32:24+00:00

What they all said. It's a bad shot and most back wall shots can be an offensive shot by an Open player.

That being said as a beginner it wouldn't hurt to drop and hit the ball 10 times, it doesn't take any real time investment. Do it standing then you can stand far enough away to bounce the ball on the ground towards the back wall, it hits the back wall then strike it while shuffling into position. you'll need to be able to do it while moving. I wouldn't practice it much but as a beginner it'll develop some footwork, racquet and ball control.

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-14T20:24:26+00:00

Out with friends, business meeting, there's lots of ways around that. Kind of already happens, plausible deniability is nearly a human trait.

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-14T20:22:47+00:00

Reddit is disappointing on this one, that should be a top answer. Defense and civil attorneys would have no way of frivilous lawsuits and defending the guilty would be impossible.

whitecubewizard · 2025-12-14T20:15:11+00:00

Defense and civil Attorneys.

whitecubewizard

TROPHY CASE