Angel Narvaez, a senior executive at Maspeth Welding, called me one late afternoon in the summer of 2020, “There are some kids here asking about ‘squash’.” I asked Angel to have them call me to arrange a time to play. The outdoor squash court in our industrial backyard had recently opened for play. Jeff Anschlowar, President of Maspeth Welding, and I were reaching out to top pros, friends, and staff to come out and ‘test drive’ the first-ever court made with steel panel walls. At the same time, some pros started to call us, and students from StreetSquash and CitySquash were contacting us directly.

In 2020, most courts and programs were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, ‘the crazy ones’ were finding us, coming out to play squash, taking off their masks, and trying outdoor squash for the first time. Emotions rocketed from squash denial to a squash Disneyworld. Naheem Allen and Matthew Aldana from StreetSquash were the first students to play, followed by Seth Canales from CitySquash…

Thinking back about the first time I saw squash being played at Davenport Courts, I remember the smell of rubber, the sounds of hard black rubber balls ricocheting against white wood walls, the racquets quite similar to but smaller than tennis racquets, the players in grey Amherst College sweat suits, the temperature colder than outside in winter, and steam rising from hot bodies. The sport seemed so aggressive and orderly at the same time. I wanted to try it.

At Maspeth Squash, we are proud of creating an outdoor squash culture where top-ranked touring squash pros, coaches, and club pros can come out and compete, in competitive situations for money, and enjoy the playing more than the arguing. 

I've played in a few beautiful places, on some pretty decent squash courts. There has been nothing like this one in Maspeth at Maspeth Welding, until now.