Spin Effect Technology 2 Legit 2 Quit

Hello there,

Yes, I just made an MC Hammer reference to describe our Spin Effect Technology!

Everyone at Wilson takes pride in creating the best tennis rackets for players, so it’s always a great feeling when people love the rackets and they are a REAL HIT!!! (cheesiness is thick tonight! haha)

The Spin Effect Tour is going around the world and here is just what a few had to say…..

Gives us the motivation to keep going and keep pushing it to the next level!

Until later,

Tracy

12 Days of Tennis Giveaway

It’s official. The holidays are here and with them, all the egg nog, cocktail parties, and cookies we can handle. If you haven’t strung the lights and started  blaring your favorite holiday songs yet, now’s the time.

Here at Wilson, we’re  getting into the spirit of the season and showing our appreciation to YOU with a festive giveaway we’re calling the “12 Days of Tennis.” You know the “12 Days of Christmas” song, right? The concept is similar; Each day for 12 days starting 12/8, we’ll be giving away a prize via our Twitter (@WilsonTennis). And like the song, the prizes get sweeter by the day. Sadly, we weren’t able to get our hands on eleven pipers piping, but I think you’ll be just as excited for the tennis swag that’s up for grabs. To enter to win the prize each day, follow us on Twitter then watch for our tweet with the #12DaysofTennis  hashtag & ReTweet it. It’s that simple.

Good luck and happy holidays from your friends at Wilson!

Terms & Conditions

Official Rules for the [12 Days of Tennis Giveaway]

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY.  A PURCHASE WILL NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.

1. Eligibility: The [12 Days of Tennis Giveaway] (the “Promotion”) is open only to individuals who are legal residents of the United States, Canada (excluding Quebec), United Kingdom, Japan, & Australia and are at least thirteen (13) years of age or the age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence, whichever is older. Employees, officers, directors, and agents of Wilson Sporting Goods Co., its affiliates or subsidiaries or other companies associated with the Promotion, as well as the immediate family (spouse, parents, siblings, and children) and household members of each such employee, are not eligible to enter. Each prize winner is only eligible to win one prize during the Promotion.  Subsequent entries by a prize winner will be disqualified.

2. Sponsor: The Promotion is sponsored by Wilson Sporting Goods Co., 8750 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., Chicago, IL 60631(“Sponsor”). Twitter is not affiliated with this Promotion.

3. Agreement to Official Rules: By entering the Promotion, you indicate your full and unconditional agreement to, and acceptance of, (a) these Official Rules and (b) Sponsor’s decisions, which are final and binding. Winning a prize is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements set forth herein.

Rookie of the Year is Next Gen

So it’s Sunday night and I am watching 1993 movie Rookie of the Year as I type this blog… you know the movie, before Gary Busey became certifiably nuts, Home Alone star Daniel Stern directed & starred and Thomas Ian Nicholas as a super cute kid pre – American Pie status….

Guess it’s only fitting to watch this…… the movie is described as a Chicago boy who miraculously receives the gift of a powerful pitching arm to become a major league pitcher…. well,  every pro tennis player at one point was seen just as someone that had a special gift….. a big serve or great hands or tactician…. every athlete dreams of making it to the big time…. to have that breakthrough moment and have the admiration of all…

And almost every Grand Slam there seems to be someone who surprises us, elevates their game and captures our hearts… and perhaps becomes the ‘NEXT’ tennis superstar…. David Goffin was probably that great story at the French Open. Who will it be for Wimbledon?!

There is definitely some great potential out there and it is always fun to see who can take it to the next level and go from gifted to great.  We will be keeping a close eye on our Next Gen’rs in the first round, Laura Robson, Kristina Mladenovic, Arantxa Rus, Andrey Kuznetsov, Vasek Pospisil, Guillaume Rufin and many more…..

Would love to see these players reach their potential and become household names around the world!!!

GO WILSON NEXT GEN!!!

Until later,

Tracy

Guillaume Rufin swings his Wilson Blade tennis racket

Laura Robson plays with the Wilson Blade 98 Pink tennis racket

And so it seems…..

Paul Henri Mathieu swings his Wilson Steam tennis racket

Hey there,

Well, it’s 6:30am on a Saturday and yes, I am awake!!! Now I know I mentioned that I am not going to London for Wimby, but heeellllooo it doesn’t mean I am not working!!

So today, I was up early AM to prepare some questions/items and went over a few things with Robin, who is in London. We will have Paul Henri Mathieu do some video at his hotel on the new 2013 tennis shoe. Now I can’t tell you much about the shoe, but Paul Henri has been part of the development process the past 1-1 1/2 years and we are really excited about this shoe. The footwear team is killer and has created something that will make you super fast!

Besides that, after an awesome Friday night dinner at my favorite Italian restaurant in the Chicago, Piccolo Sogno (spaghetti neri fruitti de mare!),  I had a phone call at midnight with the westcoast crew who shot the video in Rome. Steve B is the lead on the project and he is definitely a character…he was making fun of me for taking a work call at midnight on a Friday, but last time I checked he was on the phone late night too!! haha We’re in the process of putting together footage of Roger, Vika, Serena, Milos, Mardy and more…. I’m definitely psyched to see what he brings to life!!

And so it seems like I am coming down with a heavy cold, which is weird since the weather is so good… maybe it’s cause I’ve had about 3 1/2 hrs of sleep?! Who knows?! lol So I am going back to bed for a couple of hours and then will try to enjoy the day BEFORE the insanity of the tournament REALLY begins…..

Happy Saturday!

Until later,

Tracy

PS Wimbledon draws came out yesterday, check them out here

 

Wilson Tennis Tour Players List

Check out what Wilson tennis gear your favorite ATP & WTA Tour players are using

Getting to know Wilson Next Gen’r David Goffin- 2012 Roland Garros

Wilson Next Gen’r David Goffin plays with the Blade 98 tennis racket

David Goffin is one of the brightest upcoming stars on the ATP World Tour. Reaching a career high #108 earlier this year, David is a player to watch and has his best tennis still ahead of him. Check out this short interview and see what he likes to listen to before a big match.

Favorite quote: Impossible is nothing

Craziest tennis moment: Win the final point for my country in Davis Cup for my first selection

Favorite chocolate (white, dark or milk):  Milk

One word to describe your personal style: Clean

One word to describe your Wilson racket:  Control

Nothing is perfect

Renaud Vallon and Mike Steck doing work

Buono notte!

So the past few days have been super productive and we were able to get some great shots of our 2013 apparel, shoot one of my favs Alexandr Dolgopolov and even got Mike  & Renaud to do some manual labor!! haha (Check photo)

It’s Monday night and it was a day of unexpected rest. Today we had a day off because of Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Vika Azarenka reaching the finals of Madrid. They are the final players we needed to shoot and today was a travel day, so now we will stay here in Rome to await their arrival.

What you may not think about is that it takes an incredible amount of planning from all sides to make photo shoots & video shoots happen. Even if we make the perfect plan, there are always many variables….match results, weather conditions, injuries, preparations to play, it often shifts and we must adjust. We have been extremely lucky to get the footage we have on site and to do this leading into the French Open is really intense.

I was never a great player and to me it is INCREDIBLE how players like Roger, Serena and Vika are able to keep their focus & level so high, with so many outside commitments to sponsors, to the tournament, to media, etc….. amazing. That makes them great in more ways than one.

So since we had a day off, I was able to play tourist for a few hours and visit the Trevi fountain. There were a crazy amount of people there, but I was able to get my photo and make a wish…. I wish to come back to Rome!

Let’s cross our fingers and hope we get some good stuff with our players tomorrow!

Until later,

Tracy

Alexandr Dolgopolov and coach Jack Reader discussing steps forward

Trevi Fountain praying for players and good weather tomorrow!

Wilson Juice & Steam Power Czech Republic Team to Fed Cup Finals

Petra Kvitova serves with the Wilson Steam tennis racket

Wilson Juice & Steam Power Czech Republic Team to Fed Cup Finals

Petra Kvitova Takes Wilson Steam 100, Lucie Safarova Takes Wilson Juice 100 to Team’s Second Consecutive Fed Cup Final

CHICAGO (April 23, 2012) – When the Czech Republic team clinched victory over Italy in last weekend’s Fed Cup semifinals, three of its four members held Wilson rackets, including singles wins for Petra Kvitova with her Steam 100 and Lucie Safarova using her Juice 100. Lucie Hradecka helped to secure the team’s doubles win with her Wilson Tour BLX. By reaching the finals, the Czech Republic becomes the world’s no. 1 ranked team and moves on to defend its 2011 Fed Cup title.

“Congratulations to the Czech Republic team, who continues to dominate the Fed Cup again this year,” said Renaud Vallon, global tour director of Wilson Racquet Sports. “Of course, Petra’s powerful play and undefeated run at Fed Cup creates exciting tennis, and we’re looking forward to cheering on the entire team in the finals.”

Kvitova and Safarova have been playing with their new Juice & Steam rackets, part of Wilson’s next generation racket technology for 2012, since the start the season.

“To win in front of the home crowd and reach the finals again is special,” said Kvitova. “It’s been a great year so far and my Steam racket is just perfect for my game.”

Wilson is proud to serve as the official ball of Fed Cup by BNP Paribas. For more information on the latest Wilson rackets, go to: www.wilsontennis.com

Lucie Safarova swings her Wilson Juice tennis racket

We’re baaaaaccckkkkk!!!! Indian Wells, here we go!

Sometimes you just need to get high!! lol Climbing the fence to get the shot of the Wilson Steam that we want on camera

Good morning everyone!

So it’s 1am here in Newport Beach, California and oddly enough I just woke up from going to bed at 11pm and I have to be up at 4:30am to head to Indian Wells…..I think it’s common when you know you have to get up early, that you really don’t sleep…. so thought I might as well takes this opportunity to write the 1st entry for IW!

The last couple of days have been spent shooting video with Vika Azarenka, some of our young upcoming American tennis players and some local junior players…. it has been a blast!!!

I don’t want too give too much away, so I am going to let some photos from the shoot do the talking….

Hopefully the video is as funny as it is in our heads and as much fun as we had shooting it!!!

It’s off to the desert in a couple of hrs to shoot some more ‘Evidence’ for the Juice and Steam ads….. my boss Mike gets in today and we will be shooting some legality stuff…. rumor has it the wind is supposed to be killer next couple of days… hope it doesn’t become an issue…..

Will write more when I am not completely delirious… it was a long couple of days and the next two days will also be EXTENDED!!

Let’s cross our fingers we get some good stuff that you will enjoy.

Until later,

Tracy

Gabby Andrews is ready for her close-up with Wilson Steam tennis racket

Shooting the Wilson Juice tennis racket

Bryce doing his best acting with the Wilson Juice!

Wilson players through to the Australian Open semis

Wilson owns more Grand Slam titles than any other brand and the Wilson team is finding success down under.
We are deep into the draw of the Australian Open and will continue to root these players on as they vie for a 2012 title.

Roger Federer plays with the Wilson Pro Staff 90 tennis racket

Roger Federer plays with the Wilson Pro Staff 90 tennis racket

Roger Federer used his Wilson Pro Staff 90 to grab a straight set win over Juan Martín del Potro and set up the match up everyone was anticipating…. Fed vs. Nadal – 2012 Australian Open semifinals.

Roger Federer carries the Pro Staff legacy. The Pro Staff has been cherished by the game’s greatest icons, including Federer, Sampras, Edberg and Courier. With it’s braided graphite construction, this racket provides the perfect blend of control and feel.

Roger’s gear:
Pro Staff 90 tennis racket
Federer 15 pack tennis bag
Pro Overgrip white
Champions Choice String

Inside Fed’s Head: http://www.youtube.com/user/WilsonRacquet?feature=mhee#p/c/CFFA70455A6713ED/0/Yn2mvu1HJWw>

Petra Kvitova plays with the Wilson Steam tennis racket

Petra Kvitova plays with the Wilson Steam tennis racket

Petra Kvitová swings her Wilson Steam BLX tennis racket into the semis of the Australian Open after defeating Errani 6-4 6-4.

Petra’s gear:
Steam tennis racket
Tour 15 pack tennis bag red
Pro Overgrip Perforated white
W vibration dampener
Luxilon Alu Power 125

Interview goes overboard with Petra video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04b0zPAhc5E

Victoria Azarenka plays with the Wilson Juice tennis racket

Victoria Azarenka plays with the Wilson Juice tennis racket

Armed with the new Wilson Juice 100, Vika Azarenka is through to the Australian Open semis after defeating Radwanska 6-7 6-0 6-2.

Vika’s gear:
Juice 100
Tour 15 pack tennis bag blue
Luxilon Alu Power 125
W vibration dampener yellow

Inside the Life of Victoria Azarenka: http://www.youtube.com/user/WilsonRacquet?feature=mhee#p/c/045B09A310E7C768

Kei Nishikori plays with the Wilson Steam tennis racket

Kei Nishikori plays with the Wilson Steam tennis racket

Wilson Juice and Steam
With the success of Kei Nishikori becoming the 1st Japanese player to reach the Australian Open quarterfinals in 80+ years and 2 of the 4 players in the Women’s Semifinals playing with the new Wilson Juice and Steam, the rackets legality now comes into question….
Can rackets THIS GOOD really be legal?!
See the evidence: http://www.wilson.com/en-us/tennis/juice-steam/the-evidence/