A Life on the Court: Meet TD’s Director of Tennis + Pickleball, Ian Mindell
Association News, Blog Featured, Featured, TennisBy Will Apotheker
You may not expect to find a guy who grew up in Canada playing hockey dedicating his life to the sport of tennis, but you never know where the journey will lead you. For Ian Mindell, Tahoe Donner Tennis + Pickleball Center’s Director of Tennis, he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Ian has spent the last 18 summers running the Tahoe Donner tennis program, but his love affair with the sport began in 1989 when he moved to Palm Springs. “I had played some squash in Canada, but it seemed that wasn’t a thing in the desert, and of course, neither was hockey, so I started working at a tennis club,” says Ian, whose first job was as a court washer. As he got more familiar with the game, Ian began teaching kids, and that’s where his love of the game flourished.
In those days, Ian would also compete in tournaments around the Western United States. He had a “few decent wins here and there,” but usually ran into somebody much better than he was (his words, not mine). That part of the journey, he reflects, was always about learning the game to help fuel his coaching. “That was my mindset,” says Ian, “to learn all the ins and outs and observe different types of players.”
From there, Ian had the chance to work with his dad, who was taking over as tennis director at a facility in Palm Springs. His dad owns and manages it to this day. “I spent 10 years there and learned a lot,” says Ian. I started stringing rackets and learning all of the racket technologies before becoming a technician stringing rackets for tournaments. I got a chance to meet all the pros, Sampras, Aggasi, Edberg—you name it.”
Ian was having a blast but knew he wanted to get back to teaching, so he took a job at La Quinta Resort and Club, a position he continues to hold 25 years later. Summers in Tahoe, winters in Palm Springs, tennis all year round—it doesn’t get much better than that.
Assembling His Team at Tahoe Donner
As you might imagine, Ian has met a lot of tennis folks over the years, and luckily, he’s been able to bring many of them to work at Tahoe Donner. “It’s a pretty easy sell, ‘hey, do you want to get out of the desert for the summer and come to Tahoe?’” says Ian. “But we’ve also attracted a lot of local players and coaches who are really great. Kids from the high school team, even a few players who grew up taking lessons here at Tahoe Donner.”
Many of his staff come back year after year, and together, they have fostered an amazing teaching program at the Tennis + Pickleball Center and a dedicated and faithful tennis community.
Developing the Junior Programming
When Ian first took over the Tennis + Pickleball Center, the junior program was fairly modest. Different age groups would each take the court for an hour and a half before making way for the next group. But Ian noticed this was a problem for parents with multiple kids interested in Tennis, who would have to make several trips throughout the day. It also posed a problem for kids who were craving more than just 90 minutes of tennis a week.
“We wanted to allow kids who really love the game to have up to a 3-hour window every day, or 15 hours a week,” says Ian. “For these kids, we know they are here every day, and we can stack lessons and work on specific skills development. But we also didn’t want to exclude the kids who could only come for an hour, either.”
The new system works for everyone — kids who want to spend all week playing tennis and those who can only squeeze in an hour a day after their other summer commitments. The staff purposely rotates the skills taught during different sections and days, so kids can drop in and still learn different things each time.
First and foremost, the goal of every camp, clinic and lesson is to make it fun. But the lessons learned go way beyond the tennis court. “Like any sport, the kids are also building some important skills to take through the rest of life,” says Ian. “Mental focus, commitment and dedication. These skills will serve them well on and off the court.” They need look no further than Ian to see proof of that.
NEW PROGRAMMING: Tennis + Pickleball 101
Pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports in America. Last year, Ian started offering Pickleball 101. It was so popular this year that he decided to offer a tennis version as well. These 90-minute clinics are offered every Saturday morning at 10:30AM and are designed for adults with little to no experience playing either sport.
“The idea is to get them comfortable out on the court and learn some skills in a non-threatening environment,” says Ian. “Then, they can move onto the 102 course, and from there, if they are still hungry for more, we have the group or private lessons.”
The cost is also entry-point-friendly, at just $30 for members and $35 for guests. Signups are available through the Tennis + Pickleball Center’s online reservation system at courtreserve.com.
Beginner’s Guide To Tennis Gear
Tennis is a sport that you can play for the rest of your life. It’s not only good for you physically but also mentally. While it may seem easy enough to pick up any racket and ball and hit the court, there’s much more to know than that. Here is a quick-reference guide to getting set up with tennis equipment to help you succeed in your beginner’s journey.