Showtime!

From racquetball to state of the art home theater

Article from Food & Home Winter 2009

By Kevin McFadden
Photos by Bill Boyd

When Santa Barbara residents John and Virginia Markel decided to build their dream home in picturesque Hope Ranch over two decades ago, the site plan for the home was centered around a spacious 20-by-40-by-20 foot indoor hardwood racquetball court. Upon the home's completion, Markel, an avid racquetball enthusiast at the time, boasted one of the few private residential courts in the area, and his domestic utopia seemed to be complete.

However, as the years passed, and the racquetball fervor of the 1980's cooled off, Markel rediscovered a love of tennis, and his beautiful court began to suffer from disuse. Later, when photography was added to Markel's long list of hobbies, he decided it was time to give his beloved racquetball court a modern make-over.