For tennis' Bobby Reynolds, road trips build friendships

— -- Bobby Reynolds has played in tennis tournaments, including Grand Slam events, that have taken him from Canada to Australia. But one of his most enduring travel memories came on a trip to Asia, when he first saw the Great Wall of China.

"There was one day we had off between matches," Reynolds, 29, recalls of the 2008 visit. "We spent two or three hours walking it. It was amazing to see."

Reynolds first took to the professional tennis circuit in the summer of 2003, leaving Vanderbilt University after his junior year. Since then, he has received an education of a different sort, forging bonds with strangers who have become like family, seeing new places and learning to live out of a suitcase 28 weeks or more a year.

"I've been able to see so many sights around the world that I don't think I would have ever gotten the chance to see without playing tennis," he says.

"Also (there are) so many people either you met at tournaments or who have taken you in," he says of the families who offer their homes to players as an alternative to hotels. "I've been back to tournaments so many times, and you look forward to staying with them again.

"There's only so many hotels you can stay in without going crazy, so it's nice to have a home away from home at times."

When players aren't staying with a local family, the tournament's staff usually pinpoints hotels for them, and ground transportation is sometimes provided, too. But Reynolds finds his flights himself.

"I feel like it's easier just getting on the Internet with all the different sites they have nowadays," says Reynolds, who often clicks onto Travelocity or the Kayak website to find cheap and convenient flights. He often flies Delta, which counts Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, near Reynolds' home in Marietta, Ga., as a hub.

Well before the flight takes off, you're likely to find Reynolds sitting near the gate, waiting. He gives himself plenty of time to get to the airport and advises other fliers to do the same.

"I hate stressing out an hour before my flight, showing up, trying to get my bags in and rushing to the gate," he says. "If you just give yourself an extra 15 minutes, I feel the whole travel experience goes smoother. I'd rather lose that sleep and know that I'll be sitting at the gate, ready when the flight's about to leave."

Reynolds doesn't pack much. Besides what he needs for his matches, he brings a pair of jeans, maybe a pair of shoes or flip-flops and an outfit for going out in the evenings. But there's always room for his iPad.

"I feel like I need the gadgets," he says. He uses his tablet to watch movies in flight. "When you have that downtime or boredom, (it's good) just being able to fill that time or keep yourself busy. I can only sit in the plane seat so long before I get agitated and want to get up and do something, especially on flights to Europe or Australia. You're talking about flights that are 16 or 17 hours."

Sometimes being on the road so much can be taxing, he says.

"It just becomes kind of a grind," Reynolds says. "It was a lot easier when you were younger. You didn't think about it. You grabbed your stuff, threw it in a bag and went away for three weeks. Then came back and did it again."

But constant travel has only become tougher now that he has to leave Josie, his wife of three years, behind.