We opened with the mixed doubles benefit on Friday night, with 26 teams scheduled for this four hour kick-off. We broke into the mixed action at 8:00 for a special fundraiser, featuring Wilson Sports' Chris Evon, of Chicago (a three-year supporter of this event) and Ektelon's Linda Moore of Lincoln, Nebraska. The two paired up to accept all challengers, and each taker paid $50 to get on the court with them for a 9-point doubles match. For every point scored by the challengers, $5 was earned back from the initial $50 donation. And as much as we wanted to raise money for the cause, we couldn’t help but cheer for the "home teams"! [Photo L-R: Moore & Evon]

Top-ranked IRT pro Derek Robinson also graced us with his presence to challenge players to a singles match. The donation was the same, as well as the rules, but we did have a trick up our sleeve. Derek was presented with a 20-year-old racquet (a Wilson frame, of course) ... and asked to defend his reputation with it. Did this stop him? No. Even though the ball seemed larger than the racquet, he still managed to pull off some wins. We were even surprised he still used it to play Woody Clouse! Overall, the special event was a big success, raising $425 in a single hour of play.

The following day the women squared off in the traditional team format, and sparred all day in a grueling effort to reach first in their division. Each division had 10-12 players with double drop-downs. For example, there were B’s, Wanna B’s, and the B-Stings; each division a drop-down from the one prior. All levels of play had back-to-back tough competition, but that didn’t stop the ladies from attending Derek’s clinic, and later taking notes while Chris and Linda challenged each other in an exhibition singles match. It’s nice to know that no matter what your birthdate is, the competition still is out there.

Later that evening, the banquet also set a record for attendance, with 110 players, guests and speakers. The silent auction added another $810, and individual donations helped us reach our goal. We had two wonderful speakers from the Denver affiliates of the Susan G. Komen Foundation and the Rose Medical Hospital. Both organizations raise money to help those needing diagnosis and treatment, and after hearing their remarks there wasn't a dry eye in the room. Emotionally and physically exhausted, we closed out the awards by 10:00, allowing everyone to head home toward a welcome soak in Epsom salts.

With the combined help from a tournament that Linda Moore had held in Nebraska, in memory of a player from her club, we were able to surpass our total from last year and raise $6500 for this year's donation.

As I look forward and begin to plan for the 2005 tournament, there are two things I've noticed the most. The first is the willingness of local and national merchants to donate our prizes, silent auctions and t-shirts for the players. Without their support, we could not accomplish our goals. The second is all the different racquet companies that come together -- like Wilson, Ektelon, Harrow, Pro- Kennex, E-force and Head -- and put all thoughts about sales aside and donate what they can to help offset the costs associated with a special event like this. It seems that everyone understands that this is about breast cancer first, racquetball second. Thank you to everyone who helped make this tournament a continued success.