MEET A MEMBER - 15

Not too many members have improved quite at the rate as this young man. Just about 12 months into his playing career and already he is knocking on the door of the 3.5 level, which he may just barge through instead. He won every match he played in the first half of the boasters league 3-0 and jumped up 3 spots for the second half and still hasn’t lost.. Few members are on court as often – in fact, outside of myself, no one has made more court reservations. Clearly, that dedication is paying off.

 

MEET… ELLIOT SHAFER

The Squash Joint (TSJ): You know you have improved rapidly. Did you think you would do so at such a speed, and how far do you believe you can go? Don’t be modest now…

Squash is an awesome sport that I would recommend to anyone of all athletic abilities.  Frustrating for sure but lord is it addictive. Getting better at anything in life takes practice and I have really committed myself to improving so yes, I did and still do think I can improve as much as I want to with constant effort. As for how much I could improve, honestly I would like to compete with the best of the best at club level. Hopefully someday I will take a club championship or two.  You know though, after witnessing the onslaught that BAC dished out to us in the Farris Cup, I really walked away offended.  Goals for my second year of playing are to win the club championship at whichever level I compete, so that next year I can have the opportunity to take on a sandbagger over at Bushwood.

TSJ: This clearly isn’t your first athletic endeavor. What other sport or sports did you participate in before squash? How does squash compare?

Squash really doesn’t compare to any other sport that I have played before. I have always been a good athlete and love to compete but growing up I was always playing team sports. In high school I played hockey, lacrosse and football and now have taken on distance running.  With lacrosse and hockey it takes a tremendous amount of hand eye coordination to excel and obviously endurance is the key to running so those are really the only similarities to squash that I see.  I would say squash has been most challenging to me though.  To be able to combine endurance, fines, coordination, speed, strength and stamina all at such a fast pace is really hard to say the least.  

TSJ: You have been given the ability to speak to the entire population of the planet at the same time. Every single person is listening. What do you say?

Calm down…

TSJ: The population of the world was so impressed with what you said; they made you President for a day. Name one law you would add / change / remove. Why?

Voter registration should be screened by a US history exam and Guns limited to those willing to take a mental health screening. 

TSJ: Without choosing your current occupation, what would be your dream job? 

 Professional athlete more specifically to play for the wings  

TSJ: What one event in the history of the world would you have liked to witness? (Past or present)

Wow that’s a tough question.  Probably the American Revolution or be able to witness the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. 

TSJ: If Hollywood made a movie of your life, who would you want to play you? Which actress would be the love interest?

Patrick Swayze.  “Nobody puts baby in corner.”

Too many to actresses to choose from but Jennifer Anniston sure would look good next to me.

TSJ: What was the last…

a)                  Book you read…  Arguing with idiots by Glen Beck

b)                  Movie you saw that wasn’t your choice… Not sure probably the notebook

c)                  Words you said to your ex-girlfriend… Leave me alone, please. Well please might not be exactly true but along those lines.

d)                  Item of clothing you bought … A pair of jeans

e)                  New Year’s resolution you made but couldn’t even come close to keeping… Well I lost to Dane in squash before the New Year and told myself I would never lose to him again.  So far it has held up.

f)                   Time you tried something you haven’t tried before…Using my friends mac to work something out in excel, never again.  

TSJ: You can use one word answers or elaborate…

a)      Star Trek or Star Wars?  Star Wars, these two don’t compare.

b)      Beer or hard liquor? I don’t drink, hah.

c)      Football or baseball? Squash

d)      Michael Jordan or LeBron James MJ all day

e)      Adventure holiday or relaxing beach vacation? Depends on my mood but after this cold spell I’ll take the beach

f)       Sea food or steak? Steak, 125°

g)      Xbox or Wii? Xbox

h)      Ferrari or Lamborghini? Ferrari

i)        Bungy jump or sky-dive? I hate heights so ill watch from below.

j)        For 24 hours straight, be forced to listen to Justin Bieber or be forced to listen to the Wiggles? No questions asked, Bieber fever baby.

TSJ: Now to see if you are willing to embarrass yourself a little. Just one final question(s) aimed to reveal something about you a bit more personal. Ready? What is the worst Christmas gift that you have ever knowingly given somebody? Why did you do that? What was the worst gift you have ever received and what did you do with it?

Well in college my buddies and I all had a gift exchange and well never mind these things are better left unsaid.  Worst gift I have ever received came from the same exchange a year later so again, let’s move on.

   

I appreciate Elliot taking the time to answer these in-depth, probing questions! With the amount of time he spends on court, it will be interesting to see just how far up the ranks (and how quickly) he will rise. I am sure many players are looking over their shoulders worried they could be his next victim. He is one of the first members to take on the job of organizing an event himself (along with Anil Kathuria) when they ran a tournament the day before Thanksgiving… should I be looking over my shoulder too…?