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| Wednesday, April 11 |
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| Racking up the miles just part of the job By Greg Garber ESPN.com | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The flight from Knoxville to Memphis that bisects Tennessee lasts only a blink of an eye for a seasoned traveler like Chris Woodruff. But last year the prospect of that 40-minute, 342-mile flight left the tennis professional completely unstrung.
"That seems like a long time ago," Woodruff said last month at an ATP tournament in San Jose, Calif. "Flying was something I had done enough of. In the end, it wasn't that big a deal -- because I drove."
Two days after Stewart died, European golf star Ian Woosnam had an eerily similar experience -- with a happier ending. Flying from his home in Britain's Channel Islands to a tournament in Jerez, Spain, Woosnam's twin-engine plane began depressurizing. Pilot Robin Richards alertly threw the plane into a dive from its elevation of 15,000 feet to equalize the outer and inner pressure. "We had just been talking about what happened to Payne," Woosnam said. "It was a bit scary. I don't want to make a big thing about it, especially after the tragedy of Payne, but it was a strange coincidence." After the plane was landed safely, a fault in a compression seal was discovered. Woosnam flew to the tournament in a second plane. The week after Stewart died, John Daly passed on the one-hour flight from Dallas to Mississippi and drove the six hours instead. "I know [planes] are safer, and it's the best way to travel," Daly said. "But I've always said I like my chances in a car wreck before I do a plane crash, because nobody is going to live." Brad Gilbert, Andre Agassi's coach, remembers the 1992 flight from Sydney when the rear emergency door of a United 747 detached and passengers scrambled to the front of the plane. "We had to get in the crash position," Gilbert said. "It was pretty intense." After dumping most of its fuel in Sydney Harbor, the plane landed safely. Last year, Brazil's Gustavo Kuerten missed his scheduled flight from Miami to Toronto. Four hours later, a thunderstorm in Toronto forced the next flight to divert to Ottawa, but someone accidentally opened the emergency door and the passengers were kept on board for four hours while it was reattached. The Air Canada flight ran out of food and water but eventually landed 11 hours after Kuerten was scheduled to arrive. Russian Yevgeny Kafelnikov sold his jet after last season, but according to agent Bill Ryan it was "strictly financial." Sometimes, even the stars have to slum and take a commercial flight. Sampras and Agassi were surprised to find themselves sitting next to each other in first class on a Quantas flight from Los Angeles to Melbourne before this year's Australian Open. A necessary evil Woodruff, 27, knows the drill. This year, he again made the annual trip to Australia for two tournaments. By advancing to the third round of the Australian Open, he won $18,086, making it a cost-effective trip. Last year he won $311,129, and a significant (but tax deductible) proportion went to airfare. "It was huge," Woodruff said, declining to offer exact numbers. "You have to make a lot of money to come out ahead." And you have to fly a lot to make that money, something that leaves Woodruff queasy when the weather is bad. In 1990, the high school senior was headed to Indiana University with his father on a recruiting visit when a thunderstorm hit the Charlotte area. "We were in a puddle-jumper with a propeller, and we really got caught," Woodruff said. "I remember looking at my dad and asking, 'Are we going to go down?' He said, 'I don't know.' "People were passing out all over the place, but we got down OK. It was one of the most horrifying experiences I've ever been associated with. I still have a phobia when it comes to turbulence." Woodruff's airline of choice is Delta, which has its hub in nearby Atlanta. "Chris loves Delta," said Kathy Nashif, the ATP's manager of travel services. "He upgrades to first class whenever he can -- and I don't blame him." Nashif has been coordinating players' travel schedules for the ATP for more than a decade. She handles between 40 and 50 players each year. While hotels and meals are often provided by the tournaments, most players are on their own for airfare. "It's exhausting," Nashif said. "I feel sorry for these guys. Sometimes they'll call you and say, 'I just lost in Rome and I don't want to play in Hamburg. I want to come home. What's it going to cost to change my ticket?' " Nashif said most players have no qualms traveling on established carriers, but that "they might cringe and refuse" when she mentions flights on certain South American and Asian airlines. "Sure, it's tough flying all over the place," Woodruff said, "but it could be worse. I feel sorry for the people who are platinum frequent fliers." Greg Garber is a senior staff writer for ESPN.com  Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories | |
ALSO SEE Gary Player: Sports' original globetrotter In the lap of luxury accommodations If disaster strikes, pros have a plan Celebrating in a cornfield Major-league frequent fliers At what cost safety? Just plane scary Title IX debate goes airborne | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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