FOX VALLEY, Ill. - If you're feeling a little insecure about how you're aging, I'd suggest you stay away from 85-year-old Warren Moulds of Geneva and 78-year-old Frank Asta of Batavia.

Either that, or try to emulate them.

The latter would take a lot more effort than most of us are willing to give, especially at a certain age in life, as both men are active members of the DuPage Winter Tennis Club.

And when I mean active, we are talking about playing competitive tennis more than a few times a week, throughout the year.

Did I mention Moulds is 85 and Asta is 78?

I probably did, but I have to keep reminding myself of that fact, especially as I watched the pair in action at the DuPage County Fairgrounds Expo Center, home to this club that, according to President Margie Pierce, dates back close to 60 years.

It would seem that aging gracefully is what the organization is all about.

According to Pierce, a Wheaton resident who turns 70 next month, these two men aren't even the oldest of the club's 150 members. There are a few women well into their 80s. And then there's Gordon VanderMolen who, at age 89, has no plans to hang up his racket any time soon.

"Oh, Gordon can scoot," declared Pierce. "But then, so can these two."

Keeping active is critical, of course. Moulds, who says his father made a nine-hole golf course on their Wheaton farm that's still being used, grew up with a club in his hand. And he was also a marathon runner until about a decade ago when he had to get a pacemaker. But the retired journalist still runs 5Ks and can be seen jogging around Geneva on a regular basis.

Did I mention he's 85 years old?

Did I also mention just how well tennis has served him?

According to a New York Times story, a study by a group of international scientists that was recently published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings ranked tennis as the top activity to add longevity to life. In addition to its obvious physical benefits, research showed there's a critical social component to this sport that can add another decade (9.7 years) to life, far more than solitary activities such as jogging, cycling and swimming.

"It's 6 o'clock on a Wednesday and it is snowing out and you don't want to go out because your head hurts. But you are committed and don't want to let people down so you go ahead and go," noted Pierce. "And by the second game you are laughing and running and glad you came."

"It's just a lot of fun. We meet a lot of great people and have a good time," agreed Asta, a retired math professor at College of DuPage.

"But," he quickly added, "we always want to win."

"We're very competitive," chimed in Moulds.

With those attitudes, it comes as no surprise birthdays mean little to these senior athletes.

"It's just another year," said Asta.

"I don't even pay attention to them," added Moulds, who admitted to questioning his wife when she threw an 80th birthday party for him and invited 200 friends.

"She arranged this thing and I asked her, 'What's this all about?' " he said. "As far as I'm concerned, it's just another day in your life as long as you get up in the morning and are breathing."

He and Asta - married with kids and grandkids - both love family and friends, of course, but put tennis right up there with beer and running when it comes to their favorite things.

"It keeps your competitive spirit alive," said Moulds. And that, in turn, "helps you survive."

Speaking of which ... because tennis - much like golf - has decreased in popularity from its golden era of the 1960s and '70s, "it's essential to our survival," noted Pierce, "that we continue to build a strong youth group."

Players of all ages and skill levels are welcome, she insisted, adding that, while there are other good clubs in DuPage and Kane counties, few are as cheap as the $225 annual fee of DuPage Winter Tennis that includes membership and court time.

"Here," noted Moulds, "you can play four hours in a day if you want."

And yes, sometimes that's what these old-timers want.

When he's not engaged in a match with younger athletes, "I'll just go hit balls off a wall," Moulds told me.

Once more, let me remind you: the man is 85.

"We just come to play," he said with a shrug. "That's the name of the game."

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