photo originally uploaded to flickr by basheertome
Thanks to the Sports on the Hill enterprise, aspiring youth soccer, softball and lacrosse players commandeer the Hill’s playing fields each weekend throughout the spring and fall. There’s even a wrestling league. The newest sport to hit the local kid craze is tennis, and a league for not only youth but also adults is in development.
Eric Legg started Tennis on the Hill under the auspices of SOTH last summer with two small classes for children. This fall the youth classes expanded to meet the swelling demand and he developed an adult beginner class.
Two weeks ago Legg sent out an email to the HillEast listserve to take the tennis temperature, midwinter and to start planning for court time after the thaw. “The early response to the new organization has been fantastic!” he said. “In less than 48 hours, I have over 70 people wanting to know more – and that does not include many of the people who participated this fall, who are already in the loop.”
The success in the fall inspired Legg to think big — but not quite Legg-Mason big…at least not yet! He has teamed with neighbor Becky Skinner to work out the details and community outreach initiatives. They’d like to help local players find partners and matches, host clinics, ladder play, social events and other activities. They’re hopeful others will have the same enthusiasm and lend a hand with the fledgling organization. Legg and Skinner are working out the details to determine if the organization can be fully volunteer-based with minimal fees, or will offer only paid instruction, or a combination of the two. He would like to keep the costs for participants low. The fall classes, all of which he taught personally with a friend’s assistance with the youth players, cost $60 for the six week session.
As for the specific details of what a league will look like, Legg said all options are on the table right now as they get feedback from the community. “I would not anticipate any formal inter-neighborhood league play, but that could be fun in the future. There is a program in connection with Shiloh Baptist Church (Tennis at Shiloh) that we could challenge!”
Legg admitted the current state of tennis courts on Capitol Hill is “sad” but notes in recent years there have been some improvements. “One of my ultimate goals for this organization is to not only have chances for people to learn to play tennis, to connect with others to play tennis, but also to be an advocate and fundraiser to improve the courts.”
To find out more about the tennis league, contact Eric Legg at wmericl@yahoo.com.