Tennis Technology Tuesday
One of my more rewarding projects in 2020 was making my own custom cargo bay organizer. I carry a lot of tennis gear in my car. This includes my tournament style racquet bag as well as additional gear that I like to have handy. I frequently refer to my vehicle as a rolling tennis locker.
Earlier this year I purchased a new SUV. It theoretically should have provided more vehicular storage capacity over the roller skate I used to drive. Unfortunately, I was not experiencing the expected benefit. A couple of months ago, in a fit of frustration, I removed absolutely everything from the back of my car. There had to be a more efficient way to arrange my gear.
As the largest item in the cargo bay, I first needed to find the optimum location for my racquet bag. This turned out to be in a position that nestled the handle end flush against the back seat. That arrangement leaves a lot of unused space in an inconvenient spot above the narrow end of the bag. I tried to reverse the position to discover that it would not fit at all when the larger end of the bag contacts the angled seatbacks.
The solution to this problem was to build a riser over part of the bag to create a shelf above the racquet bag next to the seats. Before fully committing to this arrangement — and in a fit of weekend 12 ounce curls — I decided to build a prototype to evaluate the viability. The photo of the prototype was popular on my personal Facebook page. It proved that the concept would work. Additionally… that a cardboard box breaks down fairly rapidly under that usage.
The permanent solution was constructed out of some scrap lumber I had lying around. The riser is not permanently attached to the vehicle and can be easily removed by simply lifting it out. It is designed it to sit within an existing groove in the hatch liner and matches the contour of the seat for a flush fit.
To work around a rise where the top of the tire well pokes into the cargo space, I had to build a “bridge” with legs to keep every thing level. I covered the entire structure with black felt using rubber cement. It blends in nicely with the rest of the car interior.
I left a slight gap between the side of the organizer and the side of the car which accommodates my windshield scraper and a wrench. The wrench, of course, is a relatively recent addition necessitated by those dastardly pickleball players constantly lowering the net tension to non-standard height for tennis.
As a bonus, when the racquet bag is tucked under the riser, it leaves a water jug sized gap. When the racquet bag is in the cargo space, it pins the jug into position preventing any possibility of spillage. The ledge is the perfect size for two pairs of tennis shoes — which is the minimum number I carry at all times — and a spare can of balls.
I feel like every player that carries a twelve-pack sized racquet bag should have a cargo riser. That being said, no I will not build one for you. It was a lot of work. It is, however, another textbook example of Fiend At Court level obsession.
