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Coach Buse
On April 10th, 2008, I was able to interview Coach Buse - the coach of the Raymondville High
School Tennis team. He brought over some of his regional qualifiers, as well as up and coming
members of his team for clinicals at the Harlingen HEB Tennis Center. I took some pictures
of his team as they were hitting drills with Don and noticed how excited they were. They all seemed
to be in tennis Heaven. After one of his students nailed me in the back of the head with a ball (Rule
number one: Protect the camera!), I took coach Buse to an adjacent court and began our interview.
During the course of the interview, he always kept an eye on his students, nodding his approval
whenever one would look to him for support. With recorder in one hand and the other rubbing the
back of my sore melon, we began our interview.

RGVT: Alright, Coach Buse. You have a couple of students that are going to regionals?
CB: Yes, they are Daisy Montes, Carlos Flores and Ashley Arce. Daisy is going in for singles and the other two
are going in for mixed doubles.

RGVT: Regionals is coming up when?
CB: We're going up there on the 21st and it will be played on the 22nd and 23rd. It will be at
Flour Bluff, TX up around Corpus Christi.

RGVT: How long have your regional qualifiers been playing tennis?
CB: All of these have been playing with me for about three years now. They all got second last year at district,
and we're pretty excited about getting first this year....and hopefully taking it to another level hopefully this year
up at regionals.

RGVT: Coach, what did you do different this year than you did last year that allowed you better results?
CB: Uh...we did more of what we were doing last year, I think. I think once they got to go to regionals
last year, they got a taste for what it was like up there. They saw what the competition was like and what
they would have to do to be competitive and get to the next level. They came in with a really good attitude
this year to accomplish everything that they want to. And, if we can do well at regionals, they will have
accomplished another one of those goals they set for themselves.

RGVT: And, you've only been coaching them for the past couple of years?
CB: Yeah, I think so. Daisy has been with us for the four years of high school only. I think Carlos just this
last year since January. Daisy was a soccer girl and it was really tough there for a while, but her sister had
played for us back in the day. That was the thing, but if you were to ask her now, she would proudly say that
tennis is her sport.

RGVT: Fantastic! Having coached her for only three years and gotten so far, that is a pretty phenomenal
accomplishment. I talk to a lot of coaches from a lot of different schools and they usually start working
with these kids when they are 4 or 5 years old so that by the time they reach high school, they are true
tennis players. We see them hitting here at the Harlingen HEB Tennis Center.
CB: We have a Junior High program, but a lot of times those kids choose other sports in the spring. We get
a lot of the softball kids that go that route...a lot of baseball kids...a lot of track kids that go that route.

RGVT: Why do you think that is? Why do you think some kids choose to leave tennis and go to another sport?
CB: I think they haven't had it long enough. If they would have had it when they were little kids they probably
would have had more of a taste for it and stuck with it, I think. If we would have gotten them when they were
younger, it would have made more of a difference. Given, at Junior High, they do it for fun...and that's what it's
all about. I mean, it's supposed to be a sport for life. But, we really need to get kids involved at much younger
ages. I mean, soccer, baseball and everything else starts when they are 4 and 5 years old.

RGVT: Well, it's tough to expect, in any sport, someone to start playing it when they are already in High School.
You don't expect someone to pick up football when they are a Junior in High School and expect them to be
competitive. They are going to get killed, because they don't have the necessary motor skills or endurance
in that particular sport. But, your kids have done great in spite of having started so late.
CB: Right. I think that says a lot about their character and the kind of kids that we've got. If they can pick up
the sport and in three or four years, qualify for regionals.

RGVT: What kind of work did you do with your kids? Such as mechanics for someone, say like Daisy, who
started playing so late?
CB: When she first started with us, as with all of them, we started out with basic grips, basic strokes. We put them
on the ball machine quite a bit. We had some kids that were regional qualifiers back when she was a freshman so she
got to see some of the kids that we had worked with and she imitated what she saw. I think that made up a lot of
the difference. We just work on the fundamentals over and over and over again. It's been really good to be here tonight,
because Don can explain it in a way that they've never heard it before. We do drills all the time, but sometimes hearing
it from a different perspective is all it takes.

RGVT: You have a good turn out here tonight. Carlos seems to be hitting the ball really well.
CB: Right. What we have here tonight. We have a few seniors and quite a few younger ones which helps us a lot.
We've got quite a few that will be coming up and being really good down the line. It may take us a while to replace
all these seniors, but...

RGVT: Do you think if Raymondville had an 18 court tennis center like this one it would make a difference?
CB: Yeah, that would be nice. It would be nice to see tennis in Raymondville really take off and improve.

RGVT: Anything specific you would like to see improve in the Raymondville program?
CB: It would be really nice to have some kind of summer program...a summer league kind of a thing. I'd really
love to have some kind of a deal where...um...like what the baseball and soccer teams do. Even with only six
courts we could do little mini camps and little mini clinics.

RGVT: Coach, what would it take to make that happen?
CB: Well, if Don or some of you other guys would come and maybe do some clinicals for us...I think there are a lot
of people that would want to participate in something like that. I know for a fact, that one of our programs at the school,
the 21st Century group, they want to do something during the summer. I get the feeling it's mainly for athletic experience,
and physical fitness kind of stuff; but it might be a way to reach some kids early.

RGVT: When I was playing tennis in Raymondville, there was a general bad attitude towards tennis. People thought we
weren't athletes until the football coach got his team to come and try and hit with us. Has the general attitude in Raymondville
changed any or what's it like for the students today?
CB: Well, it's been cool and you know what? The pictures that you all have put on the internet and on the web pages...I've been running them in my class room and letting the other kids see what we do. And, they see the kids hitting and they see the violence of it and see that it's not the kiddy sport that they think that it is. They don't realize the time and dedication that the kids put into it. A typical tournament, they're playing for maybe 8 hours in a day. In just two or three matches they will go a couple of hours a piece. I constantly tell my kids that we're good at what we do and you should be proud of what the Bearkats have done...and we're excited about the kids that are going up to regionals and hope to do well up there.

RGVT: So, most people aren't aware of the toll that competitive tennis takes on your body, the changing directions 5 or 6 times per point and hitting out as hard as you can for 8 hours. It's hard for non tennis people to understand how grueling and hard it is unless they really try it.
CB: We have a deal that we do at the end of the year for fun where our kids can get with a teacher or an adult for fun for a mixed doubles just to go out there and have fun. That's what I want. And we get a lot of kids from other sports that come out and, even if they are athletic, they immediately realize it's not an easy sport. It opens their eyes to what we do and that's another thing. I really want the kids to be recognized for what they put themselves through and the hard work they put into it.

RGVT: Well, Coach, it looks like you have a great bunch. Congratulations. Is there anything you would like to say to everyone
that will be reading your interview or hearing the pod cast?
CB: Um, just keep watching Raymondville. You know, we've got a strong team even though we're going to be losing some good players this year because they are graduating, but we've got some really good young players coming up that we will be working with.

RGVT: Well, Coach, you are always welcome here at the Harlingen HEB Tennis center and always welcome at RGVTENNIS.COM.
CB: Oh, we really do appreciate that...the web page. Like I said, a lot of the students at the school as well as my team are looking at it in and out of classes. Other kids and teams and other sports are looking at it, and it's really drumming up a lot of support now for us.

RGVT: Well, good. That's our goal. Thanks, Coach and Go Bearkats!
CB: Go Bearkats!

Contact Information:
Harlingen Tennis Center: (956) 428 - 2092
Ask for Don


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Coach Buse On April 10th, 2008, I was able to interview Coach Buse - the coach of the Raymondville High School Tennis team. He brought over some of his regional qualifiers, as well as up and coming members of his team for clinicals at the Harlingen HEB Tennis Center. I took some pictures of his team as they were hitting drills with Don and noticed how excited they were. They all seemed to be in tennis Heaven. After one of his students nailed me in the back of the head with a ball (Rule number one: Protect the camera!), I took coach Buse to an adjacent court and began our interview. During the course of the interview, he always kept an eye on his students, nodding his approval whenever one would look to him for support. With recorder in one hand and the other rubbing the back of my sore melon, we began our interview. RGVT: Alright, Coach Buse. You have a couple of students that are going to regionals? CB: Yes, they are Daisy Montes, Carlos Flores and Ashley Arce. Daisy is going in for singles and the other two are going in for mixed doubles. RGVT: Regionals is coming up when? CB: We're going up there on the 21st and it will be played on the 22nd and 23rd. It will be at Flour Bluff, TX up around Corpus Christi. RGVT: How long have your regional qualifiers been playing tennis? CB: All of these have been playing with me for about three years now. They all got second last year at district, and we're pretty excited about getting first this year....and hopefully taking it to another level hopefully this year up at regionals. RGVT: Coach, what did you do different this year than you did last year that allowed you better results? CB: Uh...we did more of what we were doing last year, I think. I think once they got to go to regionals last year, they got a taste for what it was like up there. They saw what the competition was like and what they would have to do to be competitive and get to the next level. They came in with a really good attitude this year to accomplish everything that they want to. And, if we can do well at regionals, they will have accomplished another one of those goals they set for themselves. RGVT: And, you've only been coaching them for the past couple of years? CB: Yeah, I think so. Daisy has been with us for the four years of high school only. I think Carlos just this last year since January. Daisy was a soccer girl and it was really tough there for a while, but her sister had played for us back in the day. That was the thing, but if you were to ask her now, she would proudly say that tennis is her sport. RGVT: Fantastic! Having coached her for only three years and gotten so far, that is a pretty phenomenal accomplishment. I talk to a lot of coaches from a lot of different schools and they usually start working with these kids when they are 4 or 5 years old so that by the time they reach high school, they are true tennis players. We see them hitting here at the Harlingen HEB Tennis Center. CB: We have a Junior High program, but a lot of times those kids choose other sports in the spring. We get a lot of the softball kids that go that route...a lot of baseball kids...a lot of track kids that go that route. RGVT: Why do you think that is? Why do you think some kids choose to leave tennis and go to another sport? CB: I think they haven't had it long enough. If they would have had it when they were little kids they probably would have had more of a taste for it and stuck with it, I think. If we would have gotten them when they were younger, it would have made more of a difference. Given, at Junior High, they do it for fun...and that's what it's all about. I mean, it's supposed to be a sport for life. But, we really need to get kids involved at much younger ages. I mean, soccer, baseball and everything else starts when they are 4 and 5 years old. RGVT: Well, it's tough to expect, in any sport, someone to start playing it when they are already in High School. You don't expect someone to pick up football when they are a Junior in High School and expect them to be competitive. They are going to get killed, because they don't have the necessary motor skills or endurance in that particular sport. But, your kids have done great in spite of having started so late. CB: Right. I think that says a lot about their character and the kind of kids that we've got. If they can pick up the sport and in three or four years, qualify for regionals. RGVT: What kind of work did you do with your kids? Such as mechanics for someone, say like Daisy, who started playing so late? CB: When she first started with us, as with all of them, we started out with basic grips, basic strokes. We put them on the ball machine quite a bit. We had some kids that were regional qualifiers back when she was a freshman so she got to see some of the kids that we had worked with and she imitated what she saw. I think that made up a lot of the difference. We just work on the fundamentals over and over and over again. It's been really good to be here tonight, because Don can explain it in a way that they've never heard it before. We do drills all the time, but sometimes hearing it from a different perspective is all it takes. RGVT: You have a good turn out here tonight. Carlos seems to be hitting the ball really well. CB: Right. What we have here tonight. We have a few seniors and quite a few younger ones which helps us a lot. We've got quite a few that will be coming up and being really good down the line. It may take us a while to replace all these seniors, but... RGVT: Do you think if Raymondville had an 18 court tennis center like this one it would make a difference? CB: Yeah, that would be nice. It would be nice to see tennis in Raymondville really take off and improve. RGVT: Anything specific you would like to see improve in the Raymondville program? CB: It would be really nice to have some kind of summer program...a summer league kind of a thing. I'd really love to have some kind of a deal where...um...like what the baseball and soccer teams do. Even with only six courts we could do little mini camps and little mini clinics. RGVT: Coach, what would it take to make that happen? CB: Well, if Don or some of you other guys would come and maybe do some clinicals for us...I think there are a lot of people that would want to participate in something like that. I know for a fact, that one of our programs at the school, the 21st Century group, they want to do something during the summer. I get the feeling it's mainly for athletic experience, and physical fitness kind of stuff; but it might be a way to reach some kids early. RGVT: When I was playing tennis in Raymondville, there was a general bad attitude towards tennis. People thought we weren't athletes until the football coach got his team to come and try and hit with us. Has the general attitude in Raymondville changed any or what's it like for the students today? CB: Well, it's been cool and you know what? The pictures that you all have put on the internet and on the web pages...I've been running them in my class room and letting the other kids see what we do. And, they see the kids hitting and they see the violence of it and see that it's not the kiddy sport that they think that it is. They don't realize the time and dedication that the kids put into it. A typical tournament, they're playing for maybe 8 hours in a day. In just two or three matches they will go a couple of hours a piece. I constantly tell my kids that we're good at what we do and you should be proud of what the Bearkats have done...and we're excited about the kids that are going up to regionals and hope to do well up there. RGVT: So, most people aren't aware of the toll that competitive tennis takes on your body, the changing directions 5 or 6 times per point and hitting out as hard as you can for 8 hours. It's hard for non tennis people to understand how grueling and hard it is unless they really try it. CB: We have a deal that we do at the end of the year for fun where our kids can get with a teacher or an adult for fun for a mixed doubles just to go out there and have fun. That's what I want. And we get a lot of kids from other sports that come out and, even if they are athletic, they immediately realize it's not an easy sport. It opens their eyes to what we do and that's another thing. I really want the kids to be recognized for what they put themselves through and the hard work they put into it. RGVT: Well, Coach, it looks like you have a great bunch. Congratulations. Is there anything you would like to say to everyone that will be reading your interview or hearing the pod cast? CB: Um, just keep watching Raymondville. You know, we've got a strong team even though we're going to be losing some good players this year because they are graduating, but we've got some really good young players coming up that we will be working with. RGVT: Well, Coach, you are always welcome here at the Harlingen HEB Tennis center and always welcome at RGVTENNIS.COM. CB: Oh, we really do appreciate that...the web page. Like I said, a lot of the students at the school as well as my team are looking at it in and out of classes. Other kids and teams and other sports are looking at it, and it's really drumming up a lot of support now for us. RGVT: Well, good. That's our goal. Thanks, Coach and Go Bearkats! CB: Go Bearkats! Contact Information: Harlingen Tennis Center: (956) 428 - 2092 Ask for Don