Does October weather get much better?  Well maybe it could be a bit warmer at 8:30 AM when your bracket is scheduled to begin play.  I accompanied my daughter to West Virginia University on Friday to check out their grad program for communication disorders and the drive was spectacular.  I knew I would be doing most of the driving so I went to Target on Thursday to buy some gum.  Chewing gum is one of the first things I do when I find I am getting a bit bored or tired.  I found my favorite flavor, wintergreen, and headed to check out.  As I approached the registers I noticed, and I have seen this at other stores in the past few years, there was a line for the self checkout registers.  At the same time, there were 4 staffed registers and 3 of them had no customers. The clerk almost seemed thankful that I came through with even my small purchase to bread the tedium of her shift. I wonder if we are losing our ability to engage with other human beings outside of our comfort circle and that has created or at least amplified some of our societal ills.  Deep thoughts brought to you by Randy The Pickleball Guy.  Three...Two...One...blast off to the Pickleverse.

1. Dink For Pink - congratulations to the State College YMCA, Drew and crew for hosting a wonderful event today.  I played in the intermediate group and it just so happened it was their rotation for the early start.  So with temps in the upper 30's we marched out there banged the little plastic ball around.  Your humble blogger finished with a 4-4 record (it was mixed doubles and you played with a different partner for each game) and finished out of the medal round.  Since I haven't received any calls, it would seem my raffle tickets had about the same kind of day.  I did come away with the experience of playing with many new (to me) players and tons of fun.  I look forward to playing again next year.  At the bottom of the page you should find a photo of the intermediate group.  By the way, the event raised $7000 to fund various cancer support initiatives at Mt. Nittany Medical Center.

2. Am I Famous? - as I have met new players, especially when playing at the Y and Bernel, after introducing myself, I have received a few "Oh, are the Randy that does the Pickle Jar" or some similar comment.  It's actually kind of humbling.  Thank you to everyone that follows along and for referring people to the blog.  BTW - we are 2 people short of 300 recipients.

3. Holbrook Paddles - I have two of the 6 new paddles being released by Holbrook on October 22nd.  If you just bought a new paddle, don't try one of these.  I thought my PowerPro-E was my forever love, but I guess I am fickle and fall for the hot new model in town. Actually the Aero series does have a really nice feel.  I will play a few games with one of the new Aero paddles and then pick up my usual paddle and feel like I am lifting a sledge hammer.  So be warned, if you try it you may just have to get one.

4. C3 Sports - the SignUpGenius dates/times have been reset to the previous Monday through Friday with sessions between 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM.  As other segments of their program are clarified and certified I will post that information.

5. Bernel Drop-In - This an awkward time of year with the weather and players personal preferences impacting when leaders take a stab at trying to set up show up sessions.  Me, I am a real feel of 50+ for outdoor play.  Others are comfortable in the low 40s.  If you are checking the TeamReach app for drop-in sessions keep in mind you can leave a comment indicating if you are arriving early or later than the posted time.  If you want to break from the normal ranges, you can post a message to find some others that may be interested.  So if you are an early bird, make sure there are at least 3 others like you before you show up.

6. 2025 Rule Change:  I have been reviewing some of the rule changes coming our way in 2025 and I thought I would share this one.  Spectators SHALL not be consulted on line calls.  The previous language was that spectators SHOULD not be consulted.  Back in the days when there was a vehicle code and crimes code in my day bag the words SHALL and SHOULD had a critical difference.  I could write you a citation for violations where the offense included the word SHALL.  I could only warn you if the wording was SHOULD.  Remember, ball on your side, your call.  Either partner can make the call. If the partners have differing opinions, the call goes to the one that benefits the opposition. If you just don't know, make the call to the benefit of the opposition.  You can make an appeal to the opposition. If you do, their word is law.  Try not to be the team that is always calling for the opposition to make the call, they are furthest from the ball often and the net blocks their view at times.

7. Tip Of The Week - So I am sitting here reviewing in my head the 8 games I played and thinking about what I did well and what I need to improve on.  My serve was pretty steady.  A couple players got my partner and I a few times on doing soft blocking shots that turned into drop shots we could not get to so I need work on recognizing that shot quicker.  I had a couple of good turns and run downs on lobs. The sun was vicious when playing on one side of the court so there was strategy after the coin flip as to whether to pick the side to start on (changed sides at the halfway point) or that the serve first.  My dinking game wasn't too bad.  I had too many 3rd/5th shot drops hitting the tape.  Going forward I have a laundry list of things to work on, especially if I am deciding to switch to the new paddle, at least until the next model comes out.  At the end of each session, think about what went well and what didn't.  Even on days you play like crud, there was most likely a segment of your game that was working, Celebrate that and then make an effort to improve on what was a weakness last time.
   
   

It looks like another good weather week, get out there and hit some. Finish those home projects.  Sit under a colorful tree and enjoy life.  SUG links are below, have a great week and see you on the court.

The Centre;  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-52523400-nvsc

C3 Sports:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A0B4BA5AA28AB9-52523451-c3pickleball

Randy Hoffman

Holbrook PIckleball Ambassado

https://holbrookpickleball.com/

Discount Code = RANDYHOFFMAN20