2010 Seminar Leaders
GSS has an impressive lineup of seminar leaders and many of them have participated in every symposium to date. Below is a list of the 2010 GSS Racquet Stringers Symposium seminar leaders.
JOHN GUGEL is a MRT (Master Racquet Technician) and certification tester with the United States Racquet Stringers Association (USRSA), veteran tour stringer, and is the former owner of e-Tennis in Winter Park Florida. John is the winner of the “Top Design” award from Industrial Design Magazine for innovative racquet design and the winner of the “New Top 100 Products” award from Popular Mechanics Magazine for designing a series of six racquets, one of which was named to the top 100 list. John is highly regarded as one of the most experienced and knowledgeable racquet technicians in the world and has been involved in the GSS symposium from the very beginning.
BOB PATTERSON is a MRT (Master Racquet Technician) and certification tester with the USRSA. Bob has more than 25 years experience in the tennis industry. He founded and operated a successful tennis retail store for over 15 years and has worked as a District Sales Manager for a leading racquet manufacturer. Bob owns and operates RACQUETMAXX, a professional racquet service company that specializes in racquet customization and stringing. Bob has worked with many of the top professional players both past and present. He was recognized by RSi Magazine as the Stringer of the Year in 2005 and has served as a Contributing Editor with the magazine since 2006.
TIM STRAWN is the owner of www.grandslamstringers.com, an interactive web site dedicated to serving the worldwide stringing community. Tim is the founder of the GSS Racquet Stringers Symposium, a MRT (Master Racquet Technician) with the United States Racquet Stringers Association (USRSA), an original member of the Wilson Tour Services Stringing Team, and has strung for the ATP/WTA tours for 10 years. He was recognized by RSI Magazine as Stringer of the Year in 2007 and continues his role in developing and promoting the stringers symposium!
Ron Rocchi
RON ROCCHI, Wilson Sporting Goods Principle Designer for Racquet Sports, has been creating and developing the best selling Wilson racquets for the last 10 years. As Global Tour Equipment Manager, he is responsible for servicing all Wilson touring professionals with their racquet customization needs. Ron serves as the Director of the Wilson Stringing team, the official stringers of the U.S. Open, the Austalian Open, and the Sony Ericsson in Miami, Florida. Ron was He was recognized by RSI Magazine as Stringer of the Year in 2009.
Dave Bone
DAVE BONE, Master Racquet Technician (MRT), is the Executive Director and Owner of the USRSA (United States Racquet Stringers Association). He is a graduate of the Professional Tennis Management (PTM) program at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan. He has been a speaker at National Conventions for the USPTA, USPTR, and USTA. David’s mission is to bring the wealth of information the USRSA has to offer to as many tennis industry professionals as possible.
John Elliot
JOHN ELLIOT has more than 20 years experience in creating and manufacturing top quality mono filament co-polymer and polyester tennis strings and has helped to develop some of the most successful racquet strings in the market today. His 15 years of work on specific stringing methods to minimize tension loss and optimize the playing characteristics has enabled him to lower machine tension settings by 4 to 6 lbs, yet obtain the usual tension and SBS readings. His passion and professionalism for strings, stringing methods and stringing machines has led him to become one of the more interesting personalities in the world of tennis today.
Grant Morgan
GRANT MORGAN is a MRT (Master Racquet Technician) with the United States Racquet Stringers Association (USRSA) and a veteran tour stringer of 7 years and over 75 tournaments worldwide including all four Grand slams and all Master series tournaments. Grant has served as the official stringer for the U.S. Men’s Davis Cup team, was recognized by RSI Magazine as Stringer of the Year in 2006, and also worked as the personal stringer to Andy Roddick during the 2003- 2004 ATP seasons.
Mark Gonzalez
MARK GONZALEZ of Alpha Racquet Sports is one of the most respected names in the industry when it comes to stringing machines and strings. Mark is a MRT (Master Racquet Technician) and a certification tester with the United States Racquet Stringers Association (USRSA) and has many years of experience in the retail business as well as experience stringing at the pro tour level. Mark is without a doubt the number one reason behind Alpha’s renowned reputation for outstanding customer care and service after the sale.
Dave Malinowski
DAVE MALINOWSKI is the Global Product Director for Prince Sports and is responsible for the development of strings, grips, accessories, and stringing machines. Dave was a territory manager for the Mid Atlantic section for Wilson Sporting Goods for 11 years, and was the winner of the Jack Kramer award and several regional manager of the year awards during his tenure at Wilson. He has over 20 years experience in stringing and managing tennis specialty and pro shops. Dave is the newest member of the GSS seminar leader line-up and will be presenting for the first time in 2010.
J.C. Carpentier
J.C. Carpentier joined the GSS symposium as a seminar leader in 2009 as a co-presenter in the Machine Repair & Maintenance seminar with Mark Gonzalez. J.C. is a partner at Tennis Machines located in Valley Park Missouri. They sell Alpha, Babolat, Ektelon, Gamma, Prince, and Winn stringing machines and they are the official service center for Prince. J.C. is widely recognized as a leading expert in the field of stringing machine repair and maintenance and his business, Tennis Machines is known as the very best in the United States when it comes to machine repair of any make or model.
