Two months after opening Chicago’s first public outdoor squash court in Union Park, the verdict is in: squash outdoors works – and it inspires. As squash fanatic Raghav Rao, also a put it after a dozen sessions:
This is not an instant reaction. I’m writing this Field Report after having played roughly a dozen times in the last two months at the publicly accessible outdoor squash court in Union Park in Chicago. I’ve played when it’s been hot and humid; I’ve played when it’s been cool and breezy. I’ve played matches. I’ve drilled. I’ve played 3s, round-robins, social squash, serious squash, and here’s what I have to say so far:
Vision
The court plays like an absolute dream. For those of us who are used to indoor squash, there is certainly an adjustment period. But once that adjustment is made, you will be rewarded. The biggest adjustment is ocular. When you play indoors, with a black ball against a white background, a lot of the workload of tracking is made easier by the high contrast. At Beacon, the ball is visible but since the court is glass, there is more peripheral information that the brain needs to filter out. At first, a lazy observer may remark, “It’s hard to see the ball.” This isn’t wholly true. It would be more accurate to say — “In order to see the ball, I must pay greater attention.” After several sessions, I realized that I was no longer losing sight of the ball mid-flight. It’s actually improved my indoor ball-tracking; I’m paying much closer attention to the ball now. So don’t write off the court with lazy preliminary analysis. You can see the ball. But you have to try.
Bounce / Floor / Walls
First, let’s discuss bounce off the front wall. It’s glass and if the ball is struck with pace, it pops off with pace. It’s a front wall that hard hitters will love but, at the same time, it’s a front wall where, unless you hit through the ball, it won’t go all the way to the back, which is to say, it rewards good technique. If you hit through the ball, you get a good length. If you poke at it, it falls in the middle. In this respect, too, it’s improved my indoor game. The floor is a remarkable, perforated material to allow for drainage; this actually allows us to play even when it’s drizzling, which is super cool and atmospheric. Someone will have to ask court manufacturer, Amsterdam-based startup Access Courts, what the material is but the bounce is largely true, except in a couple of instances where the panels are joined together. I would say that in the course of about 10 points, you might get one odd bounce, which is easy enough to live with. When the ball lands short, there is quite a bit of bounce so don’t give up when you think you’ve lost the point; it can sit up an extra fraction of a second, allowing points to last longer.
The glass side walls can often ‘catch’ a ball and spit it out into the middle; again, the effect of this is to force players to play better squash, ensuring they don’t catch side wall when they’re trying to hit straight. In fact, if I had to summarize the playability of Beacon, it would be that — it’s a court that doesn’t let you get away with lazy squash. You are best served hitting straight, hitting clean, dropping with authority instead of tentatively poking. If you want to get better at this game and you’re currently getting bailed out by favorable court conditions, this court will help you. Oh, and because it’s outdoors, you can lob to your heart’s content!
Unlike wood, the floor doesn’t quite have the same absorption so certain hard compound movements can feel harder. It’s therefore imperative to be light on one’s feet and to not over-sink into the court because, unlike wood, it won’t release you with the same springiness. The floor does allow for quick speedy movement and I haven’t seen a single slip or injury in the many hours of squash that I’ve played BUT, if you are coming from indoor squash, I would advise you take five or ten minutes to drill and get a feel of the floor before you dive into a match. It isn’t exactly the same and you want to give your body time to feel through the difference.
Weather Conditions
When it’s in the 60s and 70s, temperature-wise, there’s nowhere you want to be except Beacon. The ball pings off the glass; a breeze flows through the netting. The trees sway above. There may even be a few people sitting at the picnic table, watching, wondering what this sport is called. But when it goes over 80 and it’s humid, a long point can make a poorly developed aerobic system (guilty!) suffer! Thankfully, the court is shaded by several large trees so we don’t have to contend with direct overhead sunlight. Please let us never cut down that copse of trees for any reason. Like I mentioned before, the excellent drainage allows for play through light rain which is super fun. After a storm, you may need to take a few minutes to remove debris from the court floor. But minor leaf litter and twigs don’t hold up play to a significant degree.
Social Atmosphere
The court is located by the Union Park clubhouse and is near its two basketball courts and its tennis and pickleball courts and close to a water fountain. It’s at a real crossroads of the park and, during any given session, you’re likely to get a few friendly onlookers watching. Encouragingly, I’ve noticed more people who I don’t already know from Chicago’s small squash community, gravitating to the courts, bringing their own equipment, and trying it out. In the last two weeks, I met two Med Students at Rush who decided to try it out. I met two MBA students (one at Booth and one at Kellogg, trying it out). I also met a recent transplant from Boston who played in college who came to the courts by themselves hoping for a hit. And I’ve met several people who live in West Loop and said they’d never played the game but, having seen the court, took it upon themselves to try it out. If you build it, they will come, it’s said. Here’s proof.
Beacon is located in the West Loop which has tons of bars, breweries, and restaurants. After several of our hits, some of us have gone to the back patio of Kaiser Tiger, just across the street, for beers. Being a patio, sweaty squash players are not turned away, thankfully. There’s also a number of breweries in the area with patios. In time, I can see a lot of people opting for combination squash + drinks/bites on a nearby patio as a good way to spend an evening or a weekend.
Also, if you hang around Beacon much, you will eventually run into Donte Givan who is the Park Supervisor at Union Park. Donte is laid-back and warm and you’d never know that it was his ‘say-yes’ attitude that helped bring Beacon to Union Park. Where others might have seen hassle, he saw opportunity. Make sure you thank him and his team!
Equipment
To those who ask what ball is most suitable: I would say the standard double-yellow black ball is best. I say this as someone who believes that most squash players who play indoors would be better served playing with the bouncier single-dot ball. But Beacon is lively and the ball flies around and it doesn’t take much to warm it up to speed. Do NOT opt for a pro-style white ball. The black ball is much more visible. Rackets, are, of course, the same but I put a bit of electrical tape around the frame to protect it from getting scratched up. Because the court is very lively and the ball flies around and because there’s quite a social element and a lot of people are playing 3s and 4s on court, I would recommend eyewear at all times. No one is too good to not catch one in the eye. Ask Daryl Selby. Are you better than Daryl Selby? Didn’t think so.
Access
The court is very close to the corner of Union Park nearest to the Ashland Green/Pink line station. This allows an almost perfect conduit to 63rd and Cottage Grove where Metrosquash is located. Also, both the Pink/Green lines run downtown. Furthermore, the Ashland bus line is one of the most reliable N/S bus lines in the city.
I bike to the courts as do many of my opponents. Right now, we’ve been locking our bikes to a fence. It might be helpful, in time, to have some attractive bike racks installed. I’m particularly drawn to the ones that look like bicycles. There are also several Divvy’s in the area. There’s public parking around Union Park however, the side closest to Beacon has a bike lane. The squash community should endeavor to not emulate the drivers illegally parked in that bike lane.
What’s Next For Beacon:
It’s only been two months and there’s no going back for me; squash outdoors is addictive. Yes, it’s true that you have more external stimuli to filter out but you’re also playing in a living, breathing city park. You’re using a public amenity. You’re part of the civic life of the city and the ball bounces clean and flies true and there’s beers nearby and no dress code or need to take a shower and there’s clean, cold water from the water fountain. If you want to get that feeling of losing yourself in a play on a summer’s day in the park, take yourself down to Beacon.
And finally, a massive thank you to Arnie Dratt, the PSA Foundation, the Chicago Parks District, and all the other people who helped bring Beacon to our city. Every city deserves a Beacon, or rather, many beacons. Chicago is lucky to be first.