Tennis Technology Tuesday
Tennis can leave long lasting scars on the psyche. It can also cause physical scars. My hands bear the evidence of that fact from failed attempts to open tennis ball cans through the ages. It is a reflection of my inability to open a can of tennis balls without nicking a finger. Somewhere along the way I learned to use my non-dominant hand when opening the can. Thus, if I sliced a finger, the racquet hand remained unscathed.
Occasionally the pull tab on the tennis ball can fails to work correctly. This leaves a jagged edge of metal between the player and the tennis balls. Up until the very recent past, I would look around for a suitable object to use to pry the lid off the can. Sometimes I would just chuck the can into the trash and open another. It takes a long time to heal at my age.
My friend Scott recently taught me a fairly easy trick for defeating a broken pull tab on plastic cans. The technique is to simply step on it. The distortion of the mouth of the can is usually enough to get the top to release.
I have had a pull tab fail a couple of times since my friend taught me this trick. When it happened a couple of weeks ago, I had the presence of mind to shoot a rough video illustrating the technique.
It is a simple way to efficiently and safely deal with those broken pull tabs. You’re welcome, tennis world.
