Nothing like a slight cold and then topping it off with an allergy season kick-off.  Missed a ride and some pickleball earlier in the week but I think I'm getting into a better management position.  It is odd, I used to be a sneezer, but now burning eyes are my chief complaint.  Aging is a funny thing but it beats the alternative.  Let's blast off to the Pickleverse and perhaps we can see some of the Aurora that we will miss due to cloud cover.

1. Gorilla House Gym Tournament (Altoona):  There are a couple days left to register for this tournament.  I just checked and so far it only has 51 players spread over 21 events.  There are a number of brackets with only 1 or 2 teams entered and the old men (55+) in the 3.0 to 3.5 group have no entries.  Unless there is a slew of last minute entries they will probably have to merge some brackets.  To enter, follow this link:  https://gorillahousegym.com/pickleball-tournament/

2. C3 Sports:  No pickleball of Friday at C3 Sports

3. Pickleball 101:  I have  up to 10 spots remaining in Pickleball 101 on Tuesday, May 14 from 1:00 to 3:00 PM.  Please feel free to share the link below for the session if you know of anyone interested.  The session would also be open to players that have been away from the game for some time or recent grads looking to work on the skills again.

4. Normally I get bored with talk about pro pickleball but this episode of the PicklePod has some interesting segments.  In this podcast, guest Travis 'The Rattlesnake' Rettenmaier, provided some interesting and candid opinions on the paddle power wars that some companies are waging and their effect on player safety and the amount of cheating taking place in pro pickleball.  If you don't want to listen to the entire segment, you can open specific sessions by expanding the information button below the video.   Here is the link to the podcast:  https://youtu.be/PEZzOq7nGM4?si=cyE-bA_yt12bxbbc

5. I want to thank the folks that donated to my Great Cycle Challenge effort over the last week.  Thanks to their generous efforts I have hit 34% of my target fundraising goal.  These rainy days are killing my training rides.  With a goal of riding 400 miles in September I need to toughen up ..... ummmm that part I sit on to handle longer rides often on back to back days.  If you would like to follow along with my efforts and perhaps donate the link is:  https://greatcyclechallenge.com/Riders/RandyHoffman

6. Tip Of The Week:  One of the drills we do in Pickleball 201 is how to defend the overhead smash.  Part 1 is to recognize it might be coming at you.  This is tricky for the non-hitting player on a team.  Often the striking partner knows pretty quickly if they sent a ball too high and they can adjust.  As a courtesy you might want to advise your partner you may have set them up to become a target.  Something like "back up", "retreat" or "oh, crap" might work.  The second clue is when you see the opponent looking up and you see the paddle going back up over (and sometimes behind the head if they intend to really crank on) in preparation to hit the ball.  Unless you have lightning quick responses you want to shuffle back a few steps into the transition zone (no man's land is passe) and drop your paddle down below the waist.  Your goal is to try and position your paddle to block the ball back at your opponent.  Any shot that allows you to have another chance is a good shot. Sometimes it is just a matter of getting a paddle on the ball.  If you and a friend are waiting to rotate in, you  can drill this by the defending player standing about ½ between the baseline and NVZ line and the other player hitting some hot shots down AT THEIR FEET.  So you need a drill partner you can trust not to bounce one off your noggin.
   
   

That's all for now.  Let's hope for some better weather soon.  See you on the court (or bike trail) some time soon.

Pickleball 101:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-49550436-pickleball#/

The Centre:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-49631574-nvsc

C3 Sports:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-49631603-c3pickleball#/

Randy Hoffman

Holbrook PIckleball Ambassador

https://holbrookpickleball.com/

Discount Code = RANDYHOFFMAN20