Daily Racquet

Timex Fitness Tracker Gets Your Feet Moving

For all those tennis buffs who are into cardio tennis or want to track your steps and calories — Timex has made it a little easier with the sleek Timex Fitness Tracker, which combines a comfortable sports digital watch with a wireless digital transmitter that can help you track your daily activity.

Designed with the runner/walker in mind, this watch works great on the tennis court as well — the Wireless Fitness Tracker’s digital transmitter easily clips to the waist and wirelessly relays information to a fashionable, highly functional Timex Ironman Sleek wristwatch that lets you track your time, steps and calories.

In addition to the Fitness Tracker, the watch features a 50-lap memory recall chronograph with lap, split, speed, pace, distance and total stoppage time; an Indiglo night-light with a Night Mode feature; 3 alarms with daily, weekday, weekend and day-of-week options; two time zones and is water resistant to 50 meters.

This little gadget actually keeps those feet moving and it lets you know when you're not.

For more information go to Timex.com. Available online at Amazon.com.

Prince EXO3 Graphite 93 Mid Racquet Offers An Impressive Update To Popular Classic

When you take an old and very popular classic racquet and add update with some new technology, what do you get? The new Prince EXO3 Graphite tennis racquet.

While the traditional 19mm box beam construction of the original Prince Classic Graphite remains, the new EXO3 technology offers improved aerodynamics and a larger sweetspot. EXO3 construction places string contact at the outside edge of the frame offering greater string travel for increased power and added comfort. Unlike the Classic Graphite Mid, this one features a tighter 16/18 string pattern, but like the Classic the response is all about control. Despite the different string pattern, spin production is equal to the classic -- very impressive on both slice and topspin shots.

If you're one of those players who wants to stick to your tried and true racquet but have also been thinking of upgrading to something a bit newer, here's your answer.

A little bit of the old, a little bit of the new — overall an impressive update on a old classic that will keep you in the game.

Available online at Tennis Warehouse.

New Monica Seles Book Scheduled To Hit The Bookstores This Week

Monica Seles' new book Getting a Grip: On My Body, My Mind, My Self is scheduled to hit the   bookstores this week.

 The book chronicles Monica Seles’s success on the tennis circuit where, at age sixteen, she became the youngest winner in French Open history. For three years she dominated the tour, racking up eight Grand Slam titles, and charming the media at post-match conferences with her trademark giggle. She seemed unstoppable until a deranged Steffi Graf fan plunged a knife into her back during a match in Hamburg and turned her life upside down. Her injuries healed but the emotional trauma was deep. With no support from the WTA and her number-one ranking falling, Monica sunk into a depression. Hiding from the media and disappearing from the tennis world, she turned to food for comfort. She spent more than two years in seclusion, trying to fight off the fog of despair.

Seles’s determination, amazing talent, and touching vulnerability make her story both incredibly human and inspiring. By sharing her own narrative, she hopes to motivate other people to take control of their lives and their own happiness.

Available at Amazon.com.

Take Advantage of Prince's Love-All Instant $20 Instant Discount

Spread the good news everybody — recent findings from the TIA (Tennis Industry Association) and SGMA (Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association) have shown that on-court participation levels in the United States are the highest they have been in more than fifteen years. 

To show their excitement and appreciation, Prince is offering an instant $20 off any of its new EXO3 performance frames — right at the point of purchase — no questions, no coupons, no fine print — from now through June 15th.

Now, that's what I call "sharing the love."

For more information regarding the Prince EXO3 $20 off instant offer and a list of dealers nationwide, go to princetennis.com or  Tennis Warehouse.

Add A Little Weight To Your Game With A Pro Trainer WinSock

 Here's a great new tennis gadget that will help you warm up your game quickly, build strength in your hitting arm and help you learn to accelerate the racquet through your shots —the ProTrainer WinSock.

How does it work? Simply slide the weighted trainer on your racquet and start hitting. Yes, you heard that right — unlike other racquet weights, the WinSock stays on your racquet while you hit. 

After hitting for five minutes or so, slide it off and you're ready to play. You'll be loose, warmed up and accelerating the racquet head right through the sweet spot for added power and control on all your shots. 

This patent pending weighted trainer easily slides on and off your racquet, weighs less than 7 ounces and is positioned on your racquet at the center of the balance point. Because you can actually hit with WinSock  trainer on your racquet, you are able to use it during warm-ups and training to both loosen up your arm and build strength which helps you reach maximum performance levels quicker, and hopefully, get that quick edge on your opponent by winning the earlier games of your match.

The WinSock is also the perfect training tool to help you develop faster racquet speed on your shots to put more spin on the ball, quicker reflexes, endurance, strength and control by building strength in the tennis muscles.

There is no doubt about it, this little weighted trainer helps deliver a powerful and reliable swing movement and dramatically improves swing speed and swing mechanics.

The WinSock is a must for any tennis player.

Available online at ptwinsock.com.

Nike LunarLite Speed Tennis Shoes Will Lighten Your Load

NIke is introducing a brand new technology that has never been used in tennis footwear — LunarLite foam. LunarLite foam is 30 percent lighter than standard Phylon and provides ultra-lightweight cushioning.

How does this help your game? The LunarLite cushioning provides a low-to-the-ground feel that translates into speed on the court. For support, the thin nylon fibers of Flywire in the upper of the shoe hold your feet in place. Weight is reduced because these nylon supports are used only where they're needed, helping to reduce painful pressure points on your feet. Nike uses a herringbone tread pattern on its XDR outsole for good traction on a variety of court surfaces. For added durability, Nike offers a new generation of DragOn — DragOnX.

Oh, and did we mention the colors that are available? White with Vivid Pink, Neo Turquoise and Volt; Black and Pink; White with Bright Coral Orange and Metaliic Silver and White.

No matter which way you move, Nike LunarLites will lighten and brighten your feet on the tennis court.

Available online at Tennis Warehouse.

Serena Williams: Color Me Bright, Color Me Orange

Bight Coral Orange it is for Serena Williams as she heads into the women's singles finals at the 2009 Sony Ericsson Open.

To really brighten up your game, try the Nike Women's Summer Athlete Tank and Athlete Skort in vivid pink with bright coral orange and soft pearl.

The body contouring Summer Athlete Tank offers mesh-lined tank straps with a built-in support bra. The mesh back is designed to keep you comfortable on the court. The top also features contrast trim around neckline and contrast stripe on back. And of course, the famous Nike tennis court logo on front left  hem and an embroidered Swoosh on left chest.

The 13" Skort is designed for maximum mobility and comfort, yet unrivaled performance and style. The dramatic pleats look great in motion. The skort also features an elastic waistband with contrast trim and built-in compression shorts. The tonal tennis court logo on right hip and a tonal embroidered Swoosh on front left hem add the Nike signature.

This outfit will add a little brightness to any game.

Available online at Tennis Warehouse.  

Fila debuts Heritage Collection in Miami!

The Sony Ericsson Open has a long history around the world for its great tennis, but the excitement and  innovation that the tournament brings to fans is not limited to the court. For the fifth consecutive year, the Sony Ericsson Open will bring fashion to the tennis fans — today, it was all about Fila.

Grabbing attention was the return of Fila's Heritage line of performance tennis apparel to its Spring ‘09 Collection. Fila’s design team dipped into the archives for inspiration to create this all new line that combines signature Italian styling with state of the art performance fabrications for both men and women.

The line’s simple melding of new and old tastefully integrate cutting edge performance elements into classic polos, crews, shorts, jacket and warm-ups. Adorned with the embroidered F-box Heritage patch logo to clearly define the special line, the fabrication of the line offer unsurpassed performance attributes to insure optimal comfort, ventilation and moisture wicking. Colored in classic Fila navy, red and white, each piece in the line integrates a uniquely Fila vintage design that Hall of Famer Bjorn Borg popularized in the 1970s.

Throughout the week Fila players Agnes Szavay, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Anna  Chakvetadze, Janko Tipsarevic and Marin Cilic were seen all seen sporting outfits from new line.

The men’s heritage stripe polo with engineered yarn dye stripe design, features a self fabric collar, 4-button placket and side vents. The classic polo, that is straight from Fila’s design archives in Italy, features a snap contrast placket and contrast piping. The collection also includes shorts, jacket and warm-up pants.

Women’s Heritage speaks clearly to an old school appeal combining a clean, classic Fila true navy, red and white color palette in a definitive integrated collection cut from Fila’s performance Flat Poly Spandex Jersey.  The centerpiece of the collection, the Heritage dress includes a feminine mesh ruffle at the cap sleeve and bottom hem. The draw-cord at the bottom hem allows the wearer to "customize" the look by either cinching the skirt or keeping an a-line shape. Fully utilizing the excellent draping qualities of the fabrication, the line melds old with new with a feminine twist. The collection’s cami-tank is a favorite of Anna Chakvetadze. The ruching on the center front and contrast twist back straps add to the overall look.

Balancing the line for all conditions are the jacket and pants in French Terry. The Heritage jacket features ruching on the top of sleeve and gathering at the back seam, striped rib collar, cuff and bottom. The jacket is not just for the court and is a great transitional piece. The Heritage polo includes gathering at top sleeve and textured stripe insert snap placket and rounded collar. The collection is complimented by versatile cami and razorback tanks, cap sleeve tops and skort with front overlapping panel.

Get in line with history when you wear the Fila Heritage Collection!

Available online at fila.com. Tickets to the Sony Ericsson Open are on sale now and can be purchased at sonyericssonopen.com.

Novak Djokovic Genius Goes Blue In Miami

Novak Djokovic is sporting a new blue version of his first signature Adidas CC Genius shoe — a perfect match for his aggressive all court game.

The shoes feature a new SPEEDCUT technology used in lateral strips on the upper to give added forefoot support. The sole provides excellent grip on hard courts but also enough give and ankle support to facilitate Novak’s breathtaking slides. Cushioning is key to making this a truly comfortable shoe with ClimaCool aeration technology, which allows Novak’s feet to remain at an optimum performance temperature despite the sometimes-sweltering heat in Miami — aka Miami Heat.

A Falcon emblem on the lateral side of the heel emphasizes Novak's killer on-court instinct. Watch out for this court genius in blue as he tries to knockout his prey on his way to the finals.

Available online at Tennis Warehouse.