#36 Aidan Harrison: Doubles Guru, Lululemon Ambassador & Head Pro at Onwentsia Club

Welcome back to another episode of Squash Radio! This week’s guest is Aidan Harrison. Known for developing the squash program at the Onwentsia Club in Illinois, Aidan built the program from the ground up. 20 years later, he’s still enhancing the program daily. He’s responsible for growing the league’s participation by 800% by creating one of the most competitive programs in the state. Aidan is also one of the members of past guest and current #3, Amanda Sobhy’s coaching team.

 

The episode starts off with Aidan discussing what brought him to the US from the UK, and what made him want to start coaching juniors. This leads into a conversation about the beginnings of the Onwentsia Club back in 2001, especially focusing on some of the unique and creative events and tournaments Aidan put together. Conor asks the question of how Aidan grew the women’s program at the club, and Aidan speaks more about how his creative group classes and events helped to draw in a diverse crowd. This leads to the question of how Aidan would come up with these events, and he talks about his brainstorming process.

 

Conor poses the question of how Aidan works with and coaches his elite players, and Aidan gives examples of some of his favorite coaching styles, and gives the listeners lots of advice and pointers. He tells some stories from his coaching career, and how he helps players deal with the stress of competing.

 

The conversation shifts when Conor asks Aidan about his experience being a Lulu Lemon ambassador. Aidan explains how his passion of deejaying and teaching spin classes got him involved with the brand, and the reasons why he’s so impressed with Lulu Lemon as a whole. This leads to a dialog about Aidan’s passion for spinning and teaching spin classes.

 

Towards the end of the episode, the two talk about Aidan’s work with the Love to Be foundation, which has helped to bring two of Aidan’s greatest passions together (deejaying and playing squash). Conor thanks Aidan for his support for Metro Squash, and how it’s changed the Chicago squash community. The conversation ends with the classic “quick fire” section. 

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SPONSOR: This episode of Squash Radio (SQR+) sponsored by ProSportLED – the most advanced lighting technology for your racquet sport needs.

ProSportLED and Squash Radio (SQR+) are both aligned about the importance of sharing the stories of people involved in our Sport.  Reach out to us at squashradio@gmail.com if you know of anyone interested in LED lighting.