The Pickle Jar
April 1-5
I made my heart happy to type in the word April for this week's Pickle Jar. For me, April is a signal that bike riding weather will be more abundant, outdoor pickleball becomes a regular option, and on rides and hikes, I love photographing the new flowers and growth of Spring. Looking at forecasts for the coming week, March weather seems to want to hold on just a bit longer but I am seeing temps in the 60s for the second week. Of course, all of that is subject to change in central Pennsylvania. Let's travel to the Pickleverse and see what's happening.
The Centre: There will be no pickleball at The Centre on Friday, April 5th due to a regional gymnastics meet that weekend. As a heads up, there will be a state gymnastics meet the following week and that will result in no pickleball on that Thursday or Friday. The SignUpGenius will be adjusted to reflect that.
Bernel Road Park: Signage and a paddle sorter are coming! With Bernel getting crazy busy at times Patton Township is stepping up to help create some order out of chaos. It will outline the expected rules for sharing the courts when people are waiting to play and how to use the paddle sorter, AKA the Paddle Saddle. One final edit was submitted and when I hear it has been approved, I will post copies of the signs.
State College and Moshannon Valley YMCA: State College YMCA has organized a few events called paddle battles. This would be a series of dates where players (based on skill level) get together and play mix-and-match games. It is a great way to meet other players, sort of like pickleball speed dating perhaps. Moshannon YMCA also has its session hours posted on the website if you are looking to expand your pickleball footprint. Here is the website: https://www.ymcaofcentrecounty.org/?s=pickleball
Tyrone Pickleball: Tyrone Pickleball has formally created a club and they are working on doing further promotion and advancement of the game in the Tyrone area. If you are interested in learning more, contact me and I will put you in touch with Donna or one of their other officers.
Just an FYI regarding special events, socials, and clubs. If anyone is interested in anything similar to those events please feel free to step forward and lead the charge. I am maxed out on time commitment with the two facilities, the Pickle Jar, Pickleball 101 and Pickleball 201.
Speaking of PB 101 and 201, due to travel for an out-of-state wedding and some other commitments, I won't be holding a PB 101 until mid or late April. For PB 201 I have become a believer that the best format I can present to people is the 3 + me format. The format gives me a chance to hit with and give better feedback to the participants so I don't foresee larger group sessions anytime soon. If you want to give PB 201 a try, get 2 friends to join you and we will work to see if I find a date that works for all of us and the facility. In the meantime, some folks have been through it, even a couple that have gone through twice and they may know some of the drills. Work with them and learn how to Dinkle, Slinky (a great one to do in pre-game warm-ups), Defend The Tower, 7-11, or 5 Alive.
Tip Of The Week: Let's talk about the return of serve. Don't broadcast to your opponent that you really, really don't want to hit a backhand by burying yourself in the corner of the service box. Get a better backhand, but for now, wait until the serving player has started their motion and then discreetly slide over. If you are consistently having to take a step back to hit the serve, you are standing too close or inside the baseline. Stepping backward robs you of the forward momentum you are hoping to generate by being the more aggressive player. It is better to be moving forward than rocking back. Don't get hung up on players that hit the short ball, especially at sharp angles. As you see enough of them, you will become more able to get a quicker start and move forward to knock back some of those. Some they will hit into the net and others they will toast you on. IMHO the overall benefit gained by positioning yourself so you are stepping into and playing the ball and not letting the ball play you is a net gain in the long run.
Have a great weekend and I hope to see you on the court soon. The SignUpGenius links are below.
C3 Sports: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-48822303-c3pickleball
The Centre: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-48822311-nvsc
Randy Hoffman
Holbrook Pickleball Ambassador
https://holbrookpickleball.com/
Discount Code = RANDYHOFFMAN20