by Will Gens
Thanks for the stats on those glory years of squash in New York…you saved me an afternoon going through my archives to ferret out draws before 2000… Boodles g&t’sJ
However, I did go through the US-Squash site search facility on tournaments in NYC area for both junior and adult tournaments and what I found was a decline in both the number of junior and adult tournaments since 2009 (for combined junior and adult 18 in 2009 to 10 in 2012). The is for NYC, Brooklyn and Long Island City; in both Adult and Junior categories a majority of the Tournaments take place at City View. This did not account for a break down of draws, how many draws were combined or cancelled or how many juniors participated in the adult tournaments. If you look outside the New York City area, junior squash is huge, mainly in the suburbs.
So the point of the original discussion was Squash in the NYC area. I don’t have access to all the data and demographics and the historical data; going back 15 years in this regard would be more telling, I am not interested in bashing NY Squash either, but it’s easy to present one view of the whole picture and categorically state that squash is growing. If Mr. Modeste is stating based on his figures that the state of squash in NYC is growing and experiencing ihealthy growth – well you can advertise anything you want about your product, but I’m not buying it. If he were to tell me that no, Lincoln courts are not closing, that there are plans for 5 to 10 additional new courts opening somewhere in NYC, then I would feel a lot better than some numbers in some nicely presented graphics. This is a complex issue, no one that I spoke to voiced concern over whether or not NY Squash was doing its job, but anytime courts close, just as anytime there are layoffs, or businesses go under, it is cause for concern, and warrants scrutiny by all.
I don't know the numbers of tournaments and I don't know the number of people who have played in those tournaments, but personally I think it is wrong to extrapolate tournament data and make the broader statement that the sport of squash is troubled. It is not, at least not by my estimation. I see plenty of activity across many clubs in the city, and my gut feeling is the sport has advanced in recent years.
ReplyDeleteI also remember that for years and years I never ever played in a US Squash tournament because I was busy playing 5 or 6 times a week at the University Club, which boasts 600 active players. I didn't feel the need to go out and play in a tournament when I had a smorgasbord of players right at my home club.
NY Squash is doing an excellent job across the board, and has been especially inventive in attracting and keeping women players. I can't think of anything they are doing poorly, given their financial constraints.
The one aspect of this discussion I do agree with is the problem of the decline of courts in the area. This has little to do with interest in the sport and everything to do with the myopia of sports club owners, who simply see a court and think of all the great spinning classes they could put in that little chunk of real estate. This same misguided calculus, by the way, is made in many big cities with high real estate costs. What these owners don't get, sadly, is that a squash member is often totally dedicated, and will be at the club paying its fees for years and years, whereas the spinners come and then go as their enthusiasm wanes. I think the city could use a squash-centered club with 10+ courts; it would quickly become a major hub of activity for the sport. I'd do it myself but I lack the few million dollars it would take to do. All I can say is that it is too bad Bloomberg doesn't play....
Like I said no one is bashing NY Squash...so I don't think you have to go that route. However when you present numbers as "facts" and show an increase in the 4 tournament participation when there has been a reduction in overall tournamets by 60% it's not rocket science to figure out why the increase. Again, the issue is Adult squash in NYC and the rumored closing of another major club within a year or so (Printing House being the other one). Yes the sport may have advanced in recent years, but most of us have compared it to more than recent years...A large street squash facility was recently put up in the city but it caters to juniors, again the argument has centered around the original concern that Adults are still part of the future of squash, they are the ones who attract and maintain a healthy squash community and foster a demand for more courts. Juniors in the suburbs who go off to college are not the future of squash in the NYC area. And you might ask how many college graduates who played squash in college play after college in the NYC area and for how long? These are the figures we should be looking at and fostering an attitude to promote squash and not an organization. I would gladly particpate in a forum that is independent of any governing body to work with that organization to seriously look at what can be done to bring squash back to the way it was, as Mr. Cipriano reminded us so aptly.
DeleteLadies and gentlemen of New York, I have followed this debate closely and would like to offer some views from London, England, where all of the big clubs in the central part of the city have disappeared. From a thriving squash scene 20 years ago we are left struggling to find any courts to play on. Most of the major clubs were sold off in real estate deals that saw office blocks or apartment buildings taking their place. Other clubs were taken over by predatory health and fitness chains who filled the courts with gym machines, an act I call The Rape of Squash.
ReplyDeleteThe situation has been repeated in my home county of Kent, to the south-east of London. All of the big clubs have long gone, and with them the coaches who organized the programs that attracted so many juniors to the game.
Striking a balance between competitive, recreational, social and junior squash is difficult to achieve with declining numbers.
In Kent alone we have lost more than 100 courts in the past 10-15 years, and women have almost completely stopped playing. To counter this, we have produced a Development Program to help clubs keep busy, to fight court closures, to ward off predators and help the sport to grow again.
If anyone would like a copy of the Powerpoint presentation, please email me.
I have always enjoyed playing squash in New York and have always considered it one of the most vibrant squash cities in the world. Long may that continue, and good luck to all those who are working so hard to keep it that way.
PS: I hope you will all get involved in World Squash Day this year as we aim to support the Olympic 2020 bid with 20-a-side team challenges at every club on the planet.
Please check out the website for all the details and free downloads
Public squash clubs in NYC have been in decline since the mid 80's. Broad Street, Fifth Ave, Park Ave, Park Place, Lincoln, Manhattan SC, all now kaput. I think there are two factors driving this process. First, the highest and best use of the space economically is not squash- it's exercise which crams more bodies into the area and generates more money. Second, as the baby boomers age, playing the softball game becomes increasingly less attractive because the fitness ante to compete is much higher. In 1989 at Princeton University I saw a 47 year old Jay Nelson beat Princeton's no. 3 in 4 games. That could never happen today with the softball. So today in NY we are left with private clubs providing squash to a great extent the same constituency , with the same profile , as in 1963. The good news is that junior and collegiate squash is growing fast, and doubles squash is robust and growing. But I don't think there is any chance we'll be seeing the level of adult participation which we saw in 1980. I've been to the mountain, and It's Over.
ReplyDeleteIt would be interesting to know how many of those courts that have disappeared were part of a single chain of clubs. I suspect they are and illustrate another problem, relying too much on a single source for anything. Don't know how to fix that either though.
ReplyDeleteBut what is also clear is that courts are being built at a rapid clip in the suburbs outside of NYC. NYSC has in recent years put courts in in White Plains and Stamford. There is of course Chelsea Piers in Stamford as well as two other squash clubs, Squash Alley and Sportsplex. Mamaroneck has Westchester Squash. Tuckahoe has Pyramid Squash. Schools are also building courts, some of which have some programs for locals - Fordham, St. Lukes, Greenwich Academy, Brunswick, Hackley and perhaps a few others as well. I know these last few will reinforce the idea/fact that it remains a game that only elites have access to. But the others do provide the same kind of access that the now lost courts in Manhattan provided. Perhaps it is becoming more of a suburban game (for any number of business and social reasons) despite its obvious appeal in an urban environment.