Initial observations
If you're familiar with Bounce, you're probably aware of the current dilemma facing tennis clubs when it comes to balls. In recent years, their quality has deteriorated, they are losing their pressure more quickly and their price has risen by 50% since 2021, according to Prosper Amar.
Prosper Amar, director of the Passing Club, realised the importance of this issue and decided to take action. During our interview in 2022, he immediately grasped the ecological impact of tennis and the importance of this issue, as well as the way in which the Bounce Pro could help his club to reduce its waste, save money on one of its major items of expenditure (balls) and guarantee consistent ball quality for its members. With the help of his team, including Sébastien Guarino, the sports director, the club located to the east of Paris has become one of the first in France to adopt ball repressurization.
The Passing Club in figures:
- Number of courts: 3
- Number of members: 1700
- Number of teachers: 14
- Number of teaching hours per week: 300
The aims of Bounce's mission to the Passing Club
- Reduce ball consumption at the Passing Club
- Support the Sporting Director in setting up a ball management system suited to his club
- Ensuring excellent bale quality throughout their life cycle
What is Bounce Pro?
The Bounce Pro is a cutting-edge innovation capable of repressurising up to 400 balls of any type by recreating a pressurised environment similar to that of new bales.
This innovation was enthusiastically adopted by the Passing Club at the beginning of 2023, kicking off a three-month test phase. This period was crucial for the Passing Club to confirm three points:
- Repressurization is effective and improves bale quality for members
- Bounce offers its expertise to optimise ball organisation in tennis clubs
- Bounce Pro is easy to use and takes no time at all for teachers, making the task of the Sports Director much easier.
Setting up Bounce Pro in practice
As well as significantly extending the life of the balls, the Bounce Pro has led to an internal reorganisation of ball management, orchestrated by the sports director.
Two methods have been tried out at the Passing Club:
- Initially, during the test period, the club maintained its usual organisation, with each teacher having a bucket of balls, changed every 4 to 6 weeks. The Bounce Pro was used at the end of the cycle, with the balls with intact felt being repressurised for a fortnight. These balls were then used for a further three weeks in recreational lessons. This method, although practical, was not optimal as the Bounce Pro was not used continuously and the balls lost pressure over the weeks.
- At present, the Bounce Pro is used by 5 teachers, mainly focusing on adult and leisure courses. Each teacher has two personal sets of balls: one set used for lessons during a week and placed in repressurization at the end of that week, and one set being repressurised in the Bounce Pro. The balls are stored in labelled nets to avoid any confusion. At the end of the week, the Sports Director depressurizes the Bounce Pro, exchanges the sets of balls, repressurizes the machine and redistributes the buckets of balls to the teachers. This operation, which only takes a few minutes a week and therefore has no impact on the rest of the teachers, is also supported by two other teachers trained in the use of the Bounce Pro.
The result: a fruitful partnership!
With the first method, the Passing Club increased the life of the repressurized balls by 50%. However, the quality was not consistent because not all the balls were treated regularly.
Now, by regularly re-testing the balls of 5 teachers, the results are much more convincing. This method has not only improved the quality of balls for training, reduced the club's annual ball budget, but also increased the teachers' responsibility towards their equipment, while reducing the club's ecological footprint.
Prosper Amar highlights the satisfaction of members and teachers with this solution, and their eagerness to see this initiative extended to all teachers. With 14 buckets of balls in constant rotation, the Passing plans to adopt a second Bounce Pro in the near future.
Discover the full interview with Prosper Amar