These days, I walk down the steps leading toward the south end of the All England Club in Wimbledon, and still look for the Crow's Nest, a small green observation tower with an outer ladder that I used to climb on for a wide view of the grounds, but which has since been knocked down.
The Crow's Nest was a particularly useful point, because it allowed a tennis writer to keep track of the action on as many as 10 outside courts at a time. At days end, reporters from different nations would share notes on what they had observed all over the grounds.
Twenty-seven years later, the press room has touch screens that allow us to watch live videos from any court, and even go back to watch key moments in key matches long after they have finished. You could cover Wimbledon without leaving your seat. But that is a bit like spending all your time ordering room service and looking up fun facts on Wikipedia.
More than at any other tennis tournament, there is also an appetite for stories that deal with the setting, the history and the traditions.
If they change the price of the fish tacos (鱼肉卷饼) at the United States Open, it's not a story. If they change the price of the strawberries and cream, the signature treat at Wimbledon. It's time to email your editor using capital letters.
The new retractable (可伸缩的) roof was put in place in 2009. Until then, you always had to have a rainy-day story in your notebook because there were no guarantees any matches would be played. Now tennis is a sure thing on Centre Court, which has made tennis reporters a bit less creative. But at least it guarantees us daily access to the most atmospheric place in the sport.
So much has changed, but Centre Court remains true to its original spirit: more a theater than a stadium. Catching that feeling is part of covering Wimbledon, too.
