The Pickle Jar
March 4-8
In case you were wondering what this edition's music genre is motivating and inspiring me, it is the Irish Rover Radio channel on Pandora. It's the second day of March, what else could I choose? I may have to put in a request to the desk attendant at The Centre for Irish drinking songs and such over the next couple of weeks. There are several items to cover so let's blast off and explore the Pickleverse. BTW - how the heck could we put two men on the moon and bring them back in 1969 but now we put a small craft down and .... it falls over? This leads me to my next question, if a lunar lander falls over and there is no one there to hear it, does it make a sound? OK, getting off track here, back to pickleball stuff.
1. The Centre: There will be no pickleball at The Centre on Thursday, March 7th. Options are C3 Sports, YMCA and pray for sunshine. Sessions will resume on Friday. I think we may only have 4 courts on Friday. I am not sure when the Home Show will start its set-up.
The Centre: Evening court rentals are back online and available. Evening rentals are not every night, but only when there is space in our building. You can find those times by searching here: https://thecentrepa.com/pickleball/. It is $40 per court for a session from either 6:30-8:00 pm or 8:00-9:30 pm and rentals are available online at least 1 day and no more than 30 days out. I believe there are courts available on Tuesday night this week.
It's Hard Being A Fashion Icon: I was amused that on a couple of days this past week, a couple of people chided me for not being as ... colourful as I usually am. I will see what I can do to improve. I know the animal print socks are popular, especially the flamingos and sock monkeys. On the dark side though, I got some Holbrook clothing merch and their main palette is black with white logo or white with black logo. Since black is slimming I ordered shorts, a hoodie and a hat in black with white logos. I will try not to go all Johnny Cash on you. Youngsters ask an older friend about that reference.
The Centre: Many thanks to Ray and Michael for obtaining 3 dozen Penn 26 Lava pickleballs. With 5 courts in use becoming more common, it helps to have multiple balls to keep the games going. One request for my pouch players, try not to accumulate more than 3 balls at a time and to empty your pouch when you rotate off the court.
Speaking of rotating out of play: With up to 7 courts running at The Centre, you may be up for rotating back in very quickly. Remember, if you need more rest, you can say "pass" and let someone else rotate in (if 3 waiting) or one of the rotating court players can stay. A few of us discussed this and decided that if nothing else, go the restroom. I don't believe anyone will drag you out of there to rotate in.
TeamReach App: With spring just around the corner and hopes for better weather a lot of players choose to play outside. For newbies, a lot of us (234 as of today) use the TeamReach app for communicating and scheduling group play, usually at Bernel Road Park. There are 17 leaders in the app that can create events similar to drop-ins or you can message specific players to organize a small group. If you don't have this app and want it, download it on your phone. Find the BERNEL BRINERS. The join code is UP4145. If that doesn't work, email me and I will send you a direct invitation to join. FYI, one of the leaders has set up a drop-in for March 3, 4, and 5. One thing to keep in mind, Bernel is a public park and TeamReach members do not have any special standing in terms of court usage.
Pickleball 101: March 12th, from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at The Centre. The sign-up link can be found below if you have anyone you want to share it with. Seven (7) spaces are remaining.
Pickleball 201: I am scheduled for 3 small group sessions in March. The format I like is 3 players plus myself. This allows me to rotate around and hit with everyone on the drills and I think everyone gets a more positive experience. More as I tinker with this.
Training Tip: Patience! I know I have harped on this before but as I play with and watch players, especially newer ones I see so many players lose points trying to hit a highlight reel shot too soon. Like a good chess player, try to think beyond the shot you are hitting right now. For example, I am receiving a serve on the odd (left) side of the court. As I wait for the service I am planning to take my shot deep to the corner of the server's court. I am specifically trying to force them into using their backhand. As long as I stay in the neighbourhood of my intent, I anticipate one of two responses. If my plan is working, my partner at the NVZ (kitchen) may get a good opportunity to crush a weak 3rd shot or the server might elect to go cross-court back to me. Guess what I am going to give them back, another shot at their backhand and I am working my way up through the transition zone. If I press them enough eventually my partner will likely end up with some juicy fruit to pick. I love to hit drop-dead gorgeous dinks and screaming down the line passing shots but the ones that make me the happiest is when I see my partner finish off a point that we constructed by being patient and working with placement until we could unload the power. IMHO, this is the quickest route to improving your game. Just like the mechanics of footwork and swings you need to drill or play. Give it a try.
Great Cycle Challenge: For the past 6 years I have participated in the Great Cycle Challenge where I pledge to ride "x" miles on my bike in September and raise "y" dollars to combat pediatric cancer. This year the targets are 400 miles and $1258.00, or more. The odd money amount is what I need to reach a 7-year total of $10,000.00. The Pickle Jar community have been wonderful sponsors for which I am grateful. While the official mileage count does not begin until September, fundraising has opened. If you are interested in learning more about this endeavor and would like to donate, just follow this link: https://greatcyclechallenge.com/Riders/RandyHoffman.
Here are your links for the week.
Sláinte
The Centre: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-48317209-nvsc
C3 Sports: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-48317217-c3pickleball
Pickleball 101: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-48273355-pickleball#/
Randy Hoffman
Holbrook Pickleball Ambassador
https://holbrookpickleball.com/
Discount Code = RANDY20