Indian Wells Tennis Tournament
March 5-18 2018
Indian Wells is gearing up for the BNP Paribas Open Tennis Tournament, when all eyes are on our little town of 5,000 people. We have started seeing tennis players running around town and at the gym. It’s exciting to have such a major event in our own backyard and the tennis garden that Larry Ellison has built is just magnificent. Every year he builds it larger and larger and makes the wonderful gardens and grounds even more lush and beautiful.
With the huge lawn and grounds it almost has the air of a college campus on a sunny day, with people just lounging and watching the game on huge screens. Bands play in the evening, I stumbled upon Bryan Brothers performance last year and I was just blown away by how good they were and how seriously gifted musicians they are in addition to being tennis champions.
Tennis aside, it’s just a fun place to hang out during the event and the mood is always buzzing. For people that live nearby, it’s actually cheaper to take a car service to and from the tennis garden than pay the parking fee and they manage the Ubers and Lyfts very well for such a big event. So I’m excited to get out my glad-rags for the evening matches and hunker down for some world class tennis.
Here are my 5 Tips for enjoying Tennis this year:
1: Bring a serious wide-brimmed sun hat and sunglasses – prepare to be exposed to the unyielding desert sun for hours on end. As the sun moves across the valley during the day your seats may be in direct sun for hours on end. Wear a wide-brimmed hat with a high spf factor. Don’t just rely on a straw hat no matter how attractive, because of the gaps in most straw hats. Also, wide-brimmed sun hats with a flap to cover your neck can be a lifesaver if the sun is on your back.
2: Bring plenty of high spf mineral sunscreen. Protect your skin often throughout the day and avoid toxic sunscreens by choosing a natural mineral sunscreen. Health food stores typically have the best selection of these products.
3: Prepare for unpredictable weather: Spring in the desert is wind storm season and the most unpredictable weather of the entire year. It can go from 100 degrees and scorching sun to dark and stormy and 60 degrees with dirt devils full of trash and debris flying at you in a mere 30 minute time frame when one of our spring wind-storms blows in. On top of that the temperature differential between day and night is much wider in the desert than it is on the coast. After being warmed by the sun all day you will freeze right down to the bone when the sun goes down. You will be so grateful if you pack long pants, a jacket, and a warm hat when everyone else is shivering and freezing away in their adorable tennis outfits. I wear wool trousers and a sweater to the night games under an insulated jacket, typically you always need 2 different outfits for day and night in the desert.
4: Bring a refillable water bottle so you don’t have to buy all of your water for the day. Food and drink is not allowed in the Tennis garden so you’ll want to be able at least to provide yourself with all the water you’ll need throughout the day.
5: Don’t drive yourself there: if you can help it. If you are staying within a few miles or so of the tennis garden, I suggest taking a car service to the stadium instead of paying the parking fee and parking your car in the dusty fields. There are long lines in and out, and your car will be filthy by the time you leave. The parking fee is already at least $20 so if you take an Uber or Lyft there you could actually be ahead by a couple of dollars and just be dropped off front and center.
Enjoy the tennis this year, but be mindful of the hot desert sun and stay protected and well hydrated. The BNP Paribas Open is rated as the most enjoyable by the players themselves and it's easy to see why. It's an event I look forward to every year.
The photos of this blog are of the women's and men's single's final match where two nationals of each country battled it out. Elena Vesnina triumphed over Svetlana Kuznetsova and both Russians played a rollicking match that kept you on the edge of your seat until the very final point. After that Roger Federer beat Stan Wawrinka in another engrossing match where two Swiss citizens faced off.
