Bakersfield, CA
After having such a great experience in Redding and feeling confident in our games, we last minutely decided to try to play the W35k in Bakersfield, CA the following week. With this decision, we had to switch all of our flights and make new housing arrangements for the next couple of days. Since we made the decision to stay longer on Friday October 4th and the tournament didn’t start until Tuesday October 8th, we had time to explore the area. We spent the weekend driving through Mount Shasta and Redwood National Park. These were some of the most beautiful places we have ever seen and we were so grateful we had the opportunity to explore these beautiful areas.
The tournament in Bakersfield was the first women’s tournament they have ever hosted, making it a huge deal for the community. On Monday night, we participated in a Pro-Am event. We were paid and provided dinner and drinks in exchange for playing tennis with the local community. This was truly an amazing experience. We were treated as celebrities, signing autographs and taking photos all night long. We were excited to have a large crowd for our match the following day.
On Tuesday, we faced a tough first round matchup. We were playing the former 140 in the world American and her Indian partner ranked 200 in the world. Our match did not start until 9pm, since the club wanted us to have a large crowd. We played on stadium court and had at least 100 people watching while they drank and ate. We had an amazing match playing some of the best tennis we have ever played. Unfortunately it wasn’t quite good enough to win. We fell short 4-6, 4-6. Despite loosing, we were beyond happy with how we played and were grateful for the amazing experience.
After this match, we had numerous people coming up to compliment us explaining how this was one of the best matches they have ever seen. We were signing autographs and taking photos despite loosing. This experience makes everything that we’re doing worth it. It truly felt like we made it. This feeling was something that little Madi and Anastasia always dreamed of. We can’t wait to have more moments like this!
Total Points Earned: 1
Price Breakdown (Total for Redding, CA and Bakersfield, CA):
Flight: 2 x $150
Bags: 4 x $35
Car: $150
Gas: $132
Groceries: $150
Tournament Entry: 4 x $20
Total Cost: $952
Total Earnings: $328
