CORONAVIRUS SURVIVAL Day 5

Sorry, the Index Tribune sports editor wanted me to write a coaches perspective on the Tennis season so I spent the day worrying about it and doing nothing productive until giving blood at 2:45 which is the real story of day 5. Man,” am I terrible with deadlines.

“We knew it was going to be a rebuilding year going in. That’s what coaches call the years when they lose great players and know that other teams have not. Vintage High was the team to beat last year and they only lost one of their top four singles players. Sonoma lost three. We’re not supposed to scout out the opposition too much but of course we do.

Then Vintage soundly beat us in our first outing and I knew-rebuilding year. However the great thing about all sports and high school sports in particular is that you never really know. Players have bad days, players have great days, seasons can turn around, losers become winners, people get sick, teams lower themselves to the level of their opponents or play out of their heads and win over better teams. That’s the magic that keeps coaches coaching and players playing.

But not this year. Our last match against American Canyon was full of precautions, no shaking hands, social distancing, only a couple of people watching and a final nervous trip to In N Out in Napa after a lopsided win. Two hours after the match all competition was cancelled until April 15, a day later school was cancelled until April 8, now; a week later these are looking like best-case-scenario dates

Of course, the virus is bigger than sports, bigger than school, bigger than all the other stuff we worry about so I get it, but I hope it does not deter my players from continuing their practice.  The tennis courts are still open, as are many golf courses and all of nature provided you adhere to the basic shelter in place rules of social distancing. Plus you should never go out if you are feeling any symptoms (cough, sore throat, fever, you know the list by now).

Legally you can still go anywhere within Sonoma county during a shelter in place order which means beaches and hills and state parks and tennis courts.

You need your endorphins. If you have spent the last week glued to your screens, unable to pull away from the news and feeling progressively worse and worse then stop reading this right now, close your laptops put on your shoes and go for a walk.

Experts estimate that the virus can exist for 34 minutes in aerosol form like from that guy who just sneezed as you were walking by. If you do not come within 6 feet of that guy you will not be exposed. Moving to the other side of the street is no longer rude but respectful. If you do not put yourself in close contact (plane, car, movie theatre) with that guy you will not be exposed. That is why the plaza looks like a ghost town and will remain that way until situations change.

But you can be across the net from that guy hitting tennis balls. Or hiking or surfing or golfing or whatever you do to keep your endorphins flowing.

You have to maintain your Homeostasis. As I tell my players and students, retain the behaviors that enable you to be your best self and drop the ones that do not. Are you tired all the time? There’s a reason for that and you can fix it-try diet, sleep and exercise. Anxious? Angry? Lazy? All have solutions, you just have to be honest and dig a little deeper into your choices.

Tennis will return, golf will return, sports will return, and normal life will return but for now we all have to make the best of an ugly situation.”

As you can see, I suck as a journalist, but I press send anyway and hope that the newspaper can do something with it.