R.J. Reilly, Inc. Platform Tennis Courts

Reilly is dedicated to platform tennis, and to the players who enjoy the sport. The original standard for innovative design and quality craftsmanship remains the motivating principle behind the company's leadership position.

Virtually every APTA National Championship since 1970 has been determined on a REILLY court.

THE COMPANY

INNOVATIONS
SERVICES
NEWS: Publicity/News Releases
HISTORY
COURT MAINTENANCE

R.J. Reilly Jr. Inc. is the platform tennis company of choice for National Championships. Almost every APTA (American Platform Tennis Association) National Championship since 1970 has been determined on a REILLY court. R.J. Reilly Jr. Inc. also provided courts for the World Championship at the famed Center Court at Forest Hills.

... Our club's platform tennis committee has chosen Reilly because that outfit has had by far the most experience in constructing platform tennis courts both in this area and nationwide. We have found their bids to be competitive, are are impressed by their willingness to service what they sell ...

George C. McFarland, Merion Cricket Club, Merion PA

INNOVATIONS

A cornerstone of the company is its innovative spirit, a spirit that motivates the company to find improvements that benefit both the players and the sport.

R.J. Reilly Jr. Inc. invented the aluminum court, which revolutionized the game. Additionally, the company invented an innovative traction surface for all weather play, a heating system for year round play, spring-loaded shock-absorbing screen systems, and swinging snowboards. All of these improvements enabled platform tennis to be played year round, even in the coldest of climates! To see the innovations in court design and engineering that make Reilly the choice of champions, visit the REILLY Court.

The RJR Lawn Level Court is the newest breakthrough, placing the court more attractively at ground level, while allowing a fully functional heating system to operate below deck.

SERVICES

REILLY assists clubs and commercial centers on all aspects of running a successful platform tennis program. With experience accumulated over four decades, REILLY is able to share valuable knowledge of what works when starting or continuing a program. If you would like some pointers or guidance on starting or invigorating a program at your club, please e-mail us.

REILLY has also developed various services and tools to help the sport and increase awareness of the game. These include the first and only instructional platform tennis video, symposiums (see Game-Improving Tips for details), a platform tennis camp (visit the RJR Ranch), newsletters, and of course, this web site.

COMPANY HISTORY

In 1928, Fessenden Blanchard and James Cogswell built a wooden platform the size of a volleyball court. They wanted to play their own version of tennis on a homemade backyard court, which was raised above the mud and snow on a wooden platform surrounded by chicken wire. In the middle of a point, the ball got lodged in the fencing and Fess Blanchard ran around to the outside of the court and hit the ball back, calling it fair play. It was inside that chicken wire enclosure, in Scarsdale, NY, that platform tennis was born.

Many years later, neighbor Dick Reilly decided that the few courts in existence at that time needed major improvements and he began to work in earnest on court construction.

In 1959, Mr. Reilly started Richard J. Reilly Jr. Inc., a company that built platform tennis courts. His efforts were quite successful. In 1974, the APTA selected Dick Reilly its Man of the Year for "...making significant contributions to the sport of platform tennis."

Founding father Dick Reilly conducted extensive research and made many design innovations as his company grew. Today, R.J. Reilly Jr. Inc. has built over 2,600 courts in 40 U.S. states and 15 foreign countries.

What happened to the Blanchards and Cogswells? Well, now that's an interesting story, too...

Seems that Mr. Blanchard married into a family who had a summer home in Nova Scotia. (That family had a summer home built in 1908 by his wife's grandmother for her nine children and their families.) Mr. Blanchard and his family spent summers at that Nova Scotia retreat called the Ardnamurchan Club.

Mr. Blanchard built a platform tennis court in Nova Scotia, same as the one he'd built in Scarsdale. The court was wooden, and for decades (yes, decades!) the folks from Nova Scotia used that court. In 1981, the family decided they needed a new court, as the wood from the original court was completely rotten.

By this time, Mr. Reilly had a flourishing company building aluminum courts, but the Blanchards wanted a traditional court (they said) and built another court of wood. Well, in short order the new wooden court was built and in short order, the new wooden court began to rot.

Some descendants of Mr. Blanchard began a writing campaign to move to an aluminum court.

In 1996 (yes, 1996!) , the decision was made by the descendants of Fessenden Blanchard of the Ardnamurchan Club in Nova Scotia to allow Mr. Reilly to build an aluminum platform tennis court. And as one descendant of Mr. Blanchard remarked, "Everyone who has tried it is thrilled!"

For more information, please send us a message or phone toll-free at 1-800-950-5049.