From the Mt.
Tam Web Site
In the Café,
on the tennis courts, around the pools, or in your favorite aerobics
class, your friends are here. Mt. Tam is known for it's hospitable
& friendly atmosphere. |
Rod Heckelman
General
Manager + Head Pro
Rod's career started in 1966
the summer after his junior year in high school when he began
his 5-year role as a teacher at John Gardiner's Tennis Ranch
in Carmel Valley. Later he opened as the resident pro for Gardiner's
Tennis Ranch on Camelback in Scottsdale, Arizona. At twenty years
of age, he was one of the youngest pros in the world to be the
Head Pro at what some considered one of the top tennis resorts
in the world. |
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In 1976 he made his way back
to his home state of California where he took over as Head Pro/Tennis
Director at the Mt. Tam Racquet Club in Larkspur. At that time
he developed a great junior program. Some of his students include
Tatyana Schrobsdorff, Melissa Guerney, Elly Hakami and Pam Nelson,
all of which won national titles. At one point he had over 60
juniors members ranked in NorCal and nearly 20 with national
rankings. Rod also has through the years continued to compete
at various levels. Starting as a junior player, then college
and eventually into the seniors. He was ranked #4 in NorCal in
the 40s and over and has obtained several national rankings in
other age groups.
In 1982 he became the General
Manager and worked in the capacity as General Manager and Head
Pro.
In 1992 he published an instructional
manual for tennis teachers to use with their students called,
"Down Your Alley," and recently has just written another
publication, "The Facilities Managers Manual" for managers
of clubs and facilities that is currently being published by
RSI magazine chapter by chapter. In addition, TIA has adopted
the manual and is providing it to the entire industry for managers
and clubs to use as a model for operating clubs. His installation
of one of the country's largest solar photovoltaic systems, the
use of ozone in the swimming pools and capitalizing on a co-generation
heating system earned one of the first Green Power awards ever
given to a tennis club. Today he resides in San Rafael and continues
to play the game and teach a selected few students. With his
wife, Margie, of 19 years and his two children, Kyla and R.J.
he visits Europe every other year to compete in senior events
and enjoy the sites. |
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5 indoor and 8 outdoor tennis courts
with Cushion Plexipave |
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Questions
for Rod Heckelman
When was MTRC
founded and is it privately owned?
MTRC was founded in 1974. It is privately owned by the same group
of people from day one. We often refer to us as being a club,
not a business.
How many memberships
do you approximately have?
We have 1,750 memberships or about 5,000 members.
How many teaching
pro's do you have?
I currently have six pros, I do not call them assistants as they
have their own set of skills for various departments. Carl Morgenstern,
Steve Summers, Shibu Lal, David Sylesh, Diane DiMartini, Tarren
Douherty.
How many non-tennis
coaches/trainers does the club employ?
We have seven fitness trainers and five swim coaches…we
also have a part-time basketball coach. The size of our staff
is different from most…we have a unique situation where
I serve as the GM/ Tennis Director but also the Secretary on
the Board of Directors and Head of the Café/Chef, as well
as the Maintenance Director. Our bookkeeper also is the Fitness
Class Director and one of our trainers oversees the activity
and needs of all the other trainers as well as the maintenance
of all the equipment. The results, no need to hire and pay a
Café or Restaurant Manager, Tennis Director, Maintenance
Director, Aerobics Director, so we pay more to those who are
on the ground and get the best in the industry. After all, it's
those on the ground, the ones that interact with the members
that are the most important people in the club industry, I don't
think a lot of clubs get that idea that we are about service
first, and more important, intuitive service which comes from
a staff that feels that have autonomy and are not over managed.
What are your
programs?
We offer everything, but the most unique are the four free clinics
per month, men's and women's day, Friday Learn and Burn, (exhibition
of top players at 7 pm after 1.5 hours of lessons), Working Women's
Group on Sunday's, Team Tennis and Wed. night, on-going monitored
challenge courts, BBQ Challenge on holidays, tons of league play,
Open Men's Tourney, Adult/Junior Challenge, Mixed-Up Levels Night
and an occasional Strategy and Mental Toughness clinic with guest-pro
Jeff Greenwald. |
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How do you
incorporate fitness into your overall programming?
We have Cardio on a seasonal basis, but the key has been having
several of our fitness instructors involved in the tennis program,
i.e. Mandy Aquero who plays leagues and does aerobic classes
and Kelly Busby who is a top female player and does a special
yoga class for tennis players.
How important
is fitness for the club?
Fitness fills the number both for membership and income, but
the key here is the 80 plus classes per week that we have.
How do swimming,
fitness and the café contribute to the bottom line?
Swimming is a sport in itself and helps round out a club that
focuses on health. We have the 25-meter indoor pool which operates
107 hours a week, (whew) opens earlier for Masters program. The
outside pool is more recreational for families. The Café
has fantastic food but is healthy, the social center of the club,
that's where people hang out, watch the big screen tv and enjoy
the company of other fellow members. We see ourselves as being
successful by financially breaking even in that department. We
also have member artist show their work on a three-month basis
making for a constant change in the venue. (I also am the head
of that department and oversee the food and menu).
Is there Pickleball
at MTRC? How big is Pickleball overall for you?
We do not have Pickleball, came and went for the preference of
Tech Tennis or Pop Tennis, more challenging and easier to go
back and forth with tennis.
What does
MTRC do when it comes to the "Greening" of tennis?
We are the only club in the country with the Green Power award.
We put in a 240 Photovoltaic system on the roof, a satellite
irrigation system, top end recycle program, solar-powered parking
lights and pools, saline water system for the pools, are recycling
paper and products for the bathrooms and café, court washer
that uses just gallons for cleaning the courts, a special laundry
system that uses less water and energy, …and finally, we
recycle balls and ball containers for insulation.
Read also: Rod's article "Sustaining Sustainability" in this issue
of TENNIS CLUB BUSINESS. |
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What are the
challenges for you at MTRC?
Maintenance and getting a very demanding group of people to share
a space without any issues, especially in Marin.
Where do you
want to take MTRC in the coming years? Do you have plans for
the future?
We are just about done with building a state-of-the-art spin
room, we have spin classes already but this new one will be very
high end and different from the current small boutique locations.
We have started special classes for addressing both Parkinsons
and soon Cancer, these are free to members and we do not charge
the instructors for space. I started the Safe and Sober Grad
Night back in 1988 because of losing one of my students and have
hosted it at several schools every year since. We also donate
the facility for the entire night. We also have donated almost
$300,000 to local schools since I started, as education is my
pet project. For the future, more of the same. |
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Did you play
high school and/or college tennis?
I played high school at Merced High my first two years and at
Arroyo Grande High my last two years. In college, I played at
both Cal Poly SLO and Arizona State.
How often
do you still play tennis?
My lessons are aggressive with strong players, so I consider
that play at least 6 days a week.
What brand/model
racquet do you use? What type strings? What tension do you string
your racquet at?
I have been with Babalot
Pure Drive with Origin strings at 42 lbs. |
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