"For me, no Federer, no tennis,"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/tennis/33418784

As much as I understand being a fan....those doing the round-the-world travelling are crazy..

Most of those fans are on his official website forum that I frequent. They are the ones who started the "shh, genius at work banner" that is at every match. It's amazing how far their love for him goes. He has a pretty decent one on one relationship with most of them too.   One is chosen to give him the "red envelope" which contains well wishes from all the fans on his website.  So every tournament, they have a little private meeting with him.    He makes it a point to visit with the uber fans after practice and matches too....

truffin1 wrote:  He makes it a point to visit with the uber fans after practice and matches too....

...wow...For £42 a year...not bad.

Will read the link later but will say this about fandom, or being passionate about tennis (different things).

The former is childish at worst but childlike at best.
The latter is...I suppose a refuge from ugliness and roughness of life.

I am so happy I love tennis...still finding new ways of enjoying it...it's a growing, living thing.

Fed fanatics...are unique in a way, unlike being mad about any other tennis player or anybody else in the history of sport, we are dealing with something or someone very special here.

I was in Harry Potter studio today, (never read a book or saw a film btw, just took the future French Olympic 100m butterfly champion 14 year old there )
and as I sat in that dimmed light listening to soothing music from the film, I remembered my childhood and the hundreds of books I read...my soul was fed on fairy tales, stories of magic, invisible hats, lands behind seven seas and seven hills....and I realised the human need for escape from limitations life chains us with.

And doesn't Federer provide us with temporary release from laws of gravity?

noleisthebest wrote:And doesn't Federer provide us with temporary release from laws of gravity?

Very true...just a shame he has been failing recently versus mere mortals with a boring game recently.