Tuesday, February 1, 2022 (Court Day #463)
We had a late customer at work so I didn’t get to Skypark until about 7 p.m.
As I walked in, Ann was on a court with a couple other players . . . Mary Beth—who is very new—and Jose, who I believe I’ve seen once or twice before. I played a game lefty with Ann, then a game with Mary Beth righty against Ann and Jose, then a game with a woman named Christy—whose husband Andrew was over on another court playing—against Ann and Jose. During my game with Mary Beth, I shared the strategy of staying closer to your partner and not leaving a gap down the middle. She said, “Just like in volleyball!” I replied, “Oh, I didn’t’ know that.” Who knew? A volleyball and pickleball strategy connection.
Sam and Murphy
I played one more lower skill game with Matt (of Matt and Paul) as my partner. I played lefty. This was against Sam, who has been around a few times now, and his girlfriend Murphy. Both are probably late 20s or early 30s. I’d say Sam is a solid 3.0 level player who regularly got it back over the net and sprinkled in some really excellent shots. Murphy has good hand-eye coordination but is very green yet. Sam was playing well enough that there was a passing thought of the game being in jeopardy, but Matt and I won as you’d expect.
Playing with the big boys
I moved into a game with firefighter Matt S. against Matt and Paul. It can be a challenge going from easy games to ones that can be intense. My play got better as the game went on, but Matt and I still lost. Paul and Matt are getting better and better and better. Both have quick hands . . . I think Paul has the quicker hands but Matt has power and has a bit more reliable shots.
Mark and I played a few games against Matt and Paul. Those were challenging and fun.
What did I learn?
While at the net, I hit two overheads into the net. That drives me crazy! Winners into losers. I have to figure out how to change that.
Arm
The inside of my elbow was sore when driving home, but seems to mostly go away overnight.
Wednesday, February 2, 2022 a.k.a. “2/2/22” or “02/02/2022” (No Play)
I made a trip to the doctor to get checked out. While there I got a Shingles shot, a tetanus shot, and a flu shot. It’s been seven hours and so far so good. My wife said the second of the two Shingles shots is the one that does people in. We shall see.
Tonight, I asked a question of the Pickleball Forums community about hitting overhead slams into the net. As always, you get replies that are snarky and unhelpful, but sometimes you get some with genuinely helpful information.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1340630926008388/permalink/7016379115100179
Number of days on a court: 463
Number of total hours: 2,221.5
To start at the beginning of this blog click on “1st Post” in the menu above.
Leave a Reply