Bishop Sutton Tennis Club Newsletter – February 2019
Doesn’t time fly, our last note was October 18, and here we are soon to welcome in spring for 2019. Hopefully some have you have got to the Federation Cup tennis over in Bath and have been inspired to get out on court. I have just purchased a new racket and am enjoying the extra power (but not control!) that it provides.
Chew Valley School Courts (CVS) Update
A tale of frustration but there is light at the end of the tunnel and it isn’t a train! Keith after much perseverance has, we think, achieved a breakthrough with the planners and we are expecting a planning offer early next week. This will require us to do some lighting modifications on the CVS site which are relatively low cost but appear to satisfy the musing of the BANES Ecologists. I can confirm that no bats have been harmed in this process, far from it, as very soon they will have their very own flyby takeaway! We are now aiming to get all the rest of the other arrangements in place for an Easter build.
Membership of the tennis club has continued to slowly increase and now that we have access to the CVS courts we have removed the restriction on the coaches only coaching members of BSTC. To ensure that we balance the usage at the main BSTC site we have worked with the coaches to set out the total hours at BSTC that they can book the courts for coaching. Those rules can be accessed on the ‘Members Info’ part of our website. These have been in place since November last year and appear to have managed the court usage effectively. Let me know if you feel those hours are appropriate or not, as they are being reviewed shortly.
As we move into the better weather months we will progressively utilise the CVS courts for a number of general club uses as well as an overflow for the coaching team.
Any queries or questions in the meantime on the CVS development and the impact on BSTC please feel free to drop me a line at tonkin.dj@gmail.com or 01275 332885.
Club Tennis Opportunities for Adults
Just a quick reminder for those that want more than just your own organised tennis the following opportunities are available:
Monday night 8 - 10pm – Men’s Tennis Night. David Tonkin is the contact (tonkin.dj@gmail.com)
Tuesday night 8 - 9.30pm - General Club Night, all welcome.
Wednesday mornings 10.30am - 12 noon – Adult Session – this is a free coaching session. Fleur Wilcox is the contact if you want to know more.
Wednesday nights 6.30pm to 8pm – Ladies Team Practice. Lyn Jones (florincottage@gmail.com) is the contact if you wish to join in.
Thursday nights – 7pm to 8.00pm – Adult coaching session (paid) Mike Kopacki mikekopacki@hotmail.com is the contact.
Sunday mornings – 8.30am – 10am – Men’s Social Tennis. Geoff Wembridge (xlntgf@gmail.com) is the contact
Sunday Evenings – 5pm – 6.30pm – Ladies Social Tennis. Jo Haywood ( johaywood1@gmail.com) is the contact.
Starting this Monday (11th February) we will have a Men’s Tennis night from 8.00pm – 10.00pm. This is to get some competitive tennis organised with one eye on the summer league teams but you do not have to be keen to play league to be able to join in.
Wimbledon Draw – please register!
This will be held at the club on the 28th April. Our allocation of tickets is driven by the number of our members who have a British Tennis Membership (which is free) and have opted in. Even if you do not want to enter into the club draw for tickets please register via the LTA website as it will mean more tickets for those of your fellow members who do want to enter the draw. Go on, it only takes 5 minutes. Remember for those who already have British Tennis Memberships you have to opt in every year – closes for opt in on February 22nd 2019
Lost property
We have a large selection of garments and water bottles at the Club again, these are all on display outside the clubhouse, please can you check to see if any belongs to you or your children, otherwise it will all be donated to charity at the end of this week.
Tidiness at the Club
Please can we ask all members to tidy up the clubhouse when they have visited - clear away and wash up mugs and glasses, put rubbish in the bins (or even better take it home with you), put away toys, games and the blankets and leave the chairs and tables tidy ready for the next members to use. Please can parents also keep the children under control and respect other members of the club when they are visiting.
Social and other dates for the Diary
Formal Opening of CVS Courts and lights – TBA
BSTC Road to Wimbledon Junior U14’s Tournament – 7th April (Mark Taber organiser)
AGM – Sunday 28th April 4pm
Wimbledon Draw – Sunday April 28th at 5pm
Great British Tennis Weekend – 19th May am at CVS, then pm at BSTC with BBQ.
Fish & Chip/Curry Tennis evening - TBA
LTA Grade 5 U14 girls open tournament – Sunday 14th July (Mark Taber organiser)
Barn Dance for all ages at Bishop Sutton Tennis Club on Saturday 29th June 2019
Annual Club Tournament – Sunday September 8th 12 noon.
Membership Renewals
Shortly we will be sending out the membership renewals. The membership year starts on the 1st March 2019 and as usual we will be giving a discount for those paying before the end of March, so renew early and save yourself some money. The overall increase is circa 4% and provides great value for money; in comparison with other rural clubs of a similar size we are 35% cheaper for family, couple and adult memberships. We also now have access to 4 more floodlit (eventually!) tennis courts.
League Teams
Winter league tennis is in its final quarter now with the 1st and 2nd team struggling a little and generally short of players – so if you are keen to play then please let Lyn (florincottage@gmail.com or 07967 597408) know. The Vets team is doing well despite a range of injuries (guess it goes with the Vets title!) and currently lie 2nd in their division.
For the summer league we are entering three ladies and three men’s teams. Please let Lyn or David know if you are keen to play and are not currently in touch with us.
On the junior winter leagues, we are running 8 teams and they are doing well. For the summer league we will have 9 junior teams. If your child is not already involved and you would like your child to play in these leagues covering red, orange and yellow ball then please let Mike Kopacki know (mikekopacki@hotmail.com or 07772 617384)
Finally, if you want to get the body into shape for the tennis season Chew Valley Leisure Centre is offering gym membership with no joining fee for applicants during February, contact 01275 333375.
Best
David Tonkin
Chairman BSTC
February 10th 2019