Sunday, May 12, 2019 (Court Day #266)

Day 27 playing left-handed. Tennis elbow.

Yesterday morning, I rode my bike trainer for about 20 minutes. My right knee doesn’t really like jogging or biking . . . fortunately, it’s ok with pickleball!

Last night, Binh texted me asking about details for the tournament. “3.0 or 3.5?” Since I was in the car using my phone for directions to a birthday party, I asked him if I could call him in a couple of hours when I was back home. He opted to go ahead and register for 3.5. It’s a tough call. It’s hard to say how large the tournament will be…

It’s unsanctioned so that typically results in a weaker field. That’s a vote for 3.5.
I’m going to be playing left-handed. That’s a vote for 3.0.
It’s going to be three months from now, I’m going to be better playing left-handed and/or back to playing right-handed. That’s a vote for 3.5.
We’re going to be playing in the Open (under 50) bracket. That’s a vote for 3.0.
If we play in a lower bracket and we lose, I take a much bigger hit on my USAPA rating. That’s a vote for 3.5. (Hey, if we’re going to lose, it’s better to lose against stronger players.)
A weaker bracket could result in a medal. That’s a vote for 3.0. 

As you can see, there’s no clear-cut answer.

Derby Park

I got to Derby at 8:50 a.m. to set up. Mark G. (Maree’s husband) beat me there.

Binh and I played against Eric S. and Alan K. (Eric is my former tournament partner. After he turned 60, he knew he wanted to play in higher age brackets. He won a bronze medal with John P. in Paso Robles recently in Men’s 60+.) Eric started the game playing lefty but said he’d switch back to his natural right if they got down by four points. Eric didn’t have to wait long since we went up 4-0! Even with Eric going to righty, Binh and I went on to win 11-4. Walking from the court, Eric commented, “Andrew! You have some strength now with that left hand!”

Binh and I got clobbered in another game that we should have won. I’ve put that one out of my mind!

I could feel my right ankle. A few times. Painfully, this time. I hope this doesn’t flare back up. It’s the same ankle that I rolled over a year ago.

Binh and I got to play against Greg J. and his partner Dee. There was little hope of winning. But we went up 3-1, a surprising development. I actually had hope that we could make a good game of it. But then they went on a 10 point run and closed out the game 11-3! Ha! We did make them work a bit with the service switching back and forth between the teams. I think I returned all of Greg’s rocket servers, but for whatever reason, I was having trouble returning Dee’s serves a bit too long and they sailed past the baseline. There were probably three of those.

Binh and I had one last game against Stuart and Dave D. Dave was playing really well. His shots were coming low and fast over the net. It’s good to play against strong players. We were down 10-3 or something and they started to extend the game, making it more about instruction. Stuart pointed out something very important.
“If you are going to stack, you should do high slow serves to allow yourself time to get into your positions.”
Duh! That makes total sense! Dave had been taking full advantage of that, sometimes catching Binh out of position after he served from the even court. (I stack on the right, so our forehands are in the middle.)

Binh said he had been talking to Mark G. Mark told him that if I’m going to be playing left-handed, that we should play in 3.0. Maybe he’s right. Hearing that was depressing. It runs directly against my hopes that I was doing at least somewhat better than that.

Fun Stuff

So, young Tom and his girlfriend Ileana were back today. I noticed that he’d written his name as “Tom L.” and I asked his last name. He gave his last name as the same as Robin’s last name! Robin is Tom’s mom! Another surprise! I really like Robin and I really like Tom, so it goes in the family!

Tom also said he was a massage therapist for 12 years and . . . wait. I figured him to be about 24. Did he start when he was 12? Maybe he’s older than 24. Anyway, when I told him about my tennis elbow, he did about five minutes of work on my arm and shoulder. I knew there was a reason that I liked Tom!

Subterfuge!

We had a bunch of players waiting at one point, so I announced that we’d all be playing to 9 and win by 1. When things started to thin out later, I announced we were back to 11. Dave Witte told me that someone had already announced we were back to 11. What the hell? I was irritated. It is the responsibility for determining that falls on the site coordinator. That was me. Someone very much overstepped their bounds. As it was, we ended up with some games going to 9 and some going to 11. Messy and unfair.

So? The plan.

Today was a mixed bag. Was I happy with my play? No. It was a subpar day for serving. Even the ones I got in were often short. While I didn’t hit too many balls out, I hit too many balls high. Drop shots landing in the net. Inconsistency. As you might expect, playing left-handed can be very frustrating at times. Mark’s recommendation of 3.0 is worrisome. Yes, we’d likely be cannon fodder in 3.5 . . . but we do have just under three months yet until our event on Sunday, August 11. I’m an eternal optimist! I need to drill. I need more control off my paddle. Even bouncing the ball up and down on the face. Hitting the ball off a wall in my garage. More control. Agggggh! Frustrating!

Evening

I wrote to Mike Moxie, the TD for the Cabrillo tournament, to see when the last day would be for Binh and me to change our skill bracket. We’ll see what he says. As it stands right now, I’m still not registered—I should just go ahead—but there is plenty of room in the tournament. My name appears on the player list with a disclaimer of NR and $$, that is, Not Registered and Not Paid!

Monday, May 13, 2019 (No Play)

At  lunchtime, at home, I spent 5-10 hitting a ball against a cabinet door in my garage and also simply bouncing a ball up and down on a paddle. I’m far batter at that bouncing with my right hand.

This evening, I was doing some walking and my right ankle was painful with each step. Not incapacitating, but certainly uncomfortable.

Wednesday, May 15, 2019 (No Play)

Derby Park rained out. Rain in May? Yes. Disappointing, but it is what it is. At lunch time, I did a few minutes of bouncing the ball on my paddle. It’s still interesting to me just how much better at this my right hand is compared to my left.

Thursday, May 16, 2019 (No Play)

I had my third PT meeting this morning with Ruby. She said I really should do the one exercise that she originally deemed not as important. That is, with my back to the wall—feet about a foot or two from the wall—with my arms out straight to either side, hold a rubber ball to the wall using the thumb side of my balled up fist. The other arm is the same, but contacting the wall, also with a straight arm. Holding this pose, rotate my hips toward the ball. Hold. Then repeat moving the ball for the opposite arm. Repeat.

She worked on my shoulder more and also my arm. Ow. I think I’ll have bruises from her fingers. She says it’s improving though. It’s hard to tell.

More rain. Scotts Valley opted to move play inside. I would be going from a board meeting starting at 6 p.m. then racing out to Scotts Valley to try and catch the end of a $5 session that might already be maxed out with people. Maybe tomorrow morning.

Number of days on a court: 266
Number of total hours: 730.5

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Friday, May 10, 2019 (Court Day #265)

Day 26 playing left-handed. Tennis elbow.

I got to Brommer Park about 9:05 a.m. under cloudy skies. I probably could have switched to clear safety glasses, but I wore my sunglasses all morning.

My serving took a turn for the worst today. I missed probably a dozen serves. I even dropped one into the kitchen on the other side of the net . . . that’s supremely rare! Once, when I apologized to Grita, my partner, for missing the serve she chuckled and said that if she was playing left-handed she couldn’t probably even get it over the net. It’s nice to have an understanding partner!

I was able to play a couple games with Jane as my partner and one game against. Rich was my partner for that one. He can have a wicked serve when he wants. When we were behind, he called on that and had at least one ace and forced a few failed returns. We ended up winning.

It was a mixed morning of a handful of highlight shots and frustrating moments.

I had a first today. I played my first game of singles left-handed. I played against Joe, a guy I’d never met before. I believe he’s new, but is a solid 3.0 player already. I lost 11-9, but heck, I was playing left-handed!

The last game was Adrian (a true lefty) and me against Rob and Joe. It was funny. I hit a ball wide to the left. On the next point, Adrian hit one wide right. I said something about the lefties hitting the balls wide. He laughed and said something to the effect of, “But I have no excuse!”

Oleg and his partner getting in a bonus game while his wife Olga and Adrian watch.

It was about 12:40. As I was about get to my car when Greg Jiles (from Monterey) offered, “I’ve been watching. You’re getting pretty good with that left hand.” Now, everything is relative. Greg is a 4.5/5.0 player and has been playing for 40 years. I’ve been playing for less than 28 months—and the last four have been left-handed. (And as I mentioned in my last post, today marked the milestone of me playing 10% of all of my outings as a lefty.) Greg said he was amazed how well I was doing lefty. “Are you ambidextrous?” “No, just really coordinated.” Greg, of course, could take me apart regardless. “Some of the pros use both hands.” We chatted another minute about it and then said our goodbyes. I like Greg. He’s an easy-going positive guy.

Today, I wasn’t happy with my play. I probably won’t be happy until I can play as well lefty as righty. Ok. I still wouldn’t be content. I always want to play better than I do, regardless. If I never made any errors, instead forced errors, and was a 6.0 world champion year after year, I might be satisfied. In onegame as my partner, Jane commented on a great shot I made in a rally. There was no caveat that it was made left-handed. It was a great shot, that happened to be made by a guy using his off hand. I just need a lot more of those.

Number of days on a court: 265
Number of total hours: 726.5

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Thursday, May 9, 2019 (Court Day #264)

Day 25 playing left-handed. Tennis elbow.

So, I get home from work for a pitstop on my way to pickleball in Scotts Valley. I was sporting a headache so I had a good excuse to leave work right at 6 p.m. and have my (subordinate) manager close instead of me staying late like I often do. I had visited the hardware store at lunchtime and picked up a replacement rubber seal for our home’s toilet tank’s filler valve. It was running, so I turned off the valve when I left for work that morning and told my wife about it.

I cut open the rubber seal package, popping out the seal. I took the lid off the tank and placed it on the toilet lid. I popped off the valve top to get to the seal…

BOOM!

There was water shooting EVERYWHERE! I jammed the valve back down as best I could with my right hand and urgently reached down with my left to turn off the valve. Yep. It needed to be closed. My wife had turned the water back on!!!! There was water sprayed on the wall, on the shower door, on the floor, on the bottom of the medicine cabinet, all over my face and jacket—everywhere! “Oh, I had to use it.” (Um, there’s a second bathroom outside our bedroom door, 10 feet over.) *sigh* Yes, I should have checked first, but still… oy.

Skypark

I arrived at about 6:40 p.m. It was still light and just over 60 degrees. It’s been getting dark after 8 p.m. these days. There were four or five courts set up. The game right by the entry gate just happened to need a fourth player! Nice! I teamed up with a regular named Susan. I had seen her on numerous occasions but never learned her name. We played against Melody and a woman I’d never seen before. Susan and I beat Melody and her partner. Susan and I had taken a solid lead, let them almost catch up, then finished them off. Even lefty, I was playing quite well. I’m getting to the point now where sometimes I don’t even bother to explain I’m right-handed. In harder games, I will usually tell my partner at the outset and. sooner or later, my opponents.

I’d decided yesterday that I am going to play the Cabrillo Tournament. To hell with my official USAPA rating. If it goes down because I’m playing lefty, it goes down! It’s all about fun, right? That’s the bottom line. It’ll be Binh and me, though I hadn’t told him so yet. I told him tonight and he is ready to go. “How do I sign up?” I explained the process.

Binh and I played against two women, April and another one, I think she said her name was Diane. Binh and I split up, I took April. It became apparent that both were weak players. Binh and I were hitting lollipop shots to keep the ball in play. Afterward, I found out that it’s was April’s first time out! And probably the other woman too. Good thing we took it easier on them! I felt bad for a few of the shots I made! Had I known, I would have played easier earlier in the game! Oops.

Binh and I played against Melody and Greg. We should have clobbered them, but lost 13-11. Midway though the game, Binh suggested stacking. (Mel accidentally called it “poaching” twice though corrected herself each time.) We did mess it up a couple of times, with the wrong person receiving/serving—deadly in a tournament—but once we did stacked, we started scoring points at a rapid clip. We played much better with our two forehands in the middle.

Binh and I played another game against Oleg and a woman I didn’t know. Oleg was the far stronger player. There were some shots that I should have let go that Oleg powered as drives that would have sailed out. But there were some strong drives that I managed with my left hand just fine. I played ok. Not ideal, but for a lefty, pretty darn good. I’m making progress for sure.

Binh and I had our last game against Mark G. (Maree’s husband) and firefighter Rob—my tournament partner from the Golden State Championship last year. Even with me playing lefty against two solid players, Binh and I were neck and neck against them, eventually losing 11-7, but it as a battle. I had this amazing backhand drop shot just over the net from the baseline corner off a lob from Mark. It was a thing of absolute beauty. I couldn’t have hit it better with my right hand. Binh and I were stacking in that game and did a far better job of it. If I got confused, Binh was right there to get me in the right place. If Binh got confused, then I was right there to point to the correct spot for him. It worked well.

I do need to figure out something. Rob made a couple of shots toward my left armpit and I tried to hit the ball with my paddle pointed toward the net. This is crazy. That’s the least possible surface area for the ball to possibly hit! I ended up getting whacked in the index finger knuckle—it felt like a bee sting! (Yes, I’ve been stung by a bee, though it’s been almost 40 years . . . one never forgets though!) Granted, it’s a “chicken wing” shot that’s hard even from one’s dominant hand, but the angle of my paddle has to be better. And some of my drop shots are still falling short of the net. I have to dial that in.

My serves continue to get stronger. Yes, I missed three of them tonight, but they are getting deeper and are continuing to be more consistent. There were also a few high shots were instead of successfully slamming them, they sailed long out the back of the court—paddle angle!

My right ankle bothered me a couple instances tonight. Not particularly painful, but I noticed it briefly, other than that it was fine. It’s been acting funny the last week or two. And my back is doing better. It wasn’t as fatigued tonight.

With the next outing, I will have played 10% of all of my pickleball days playing left-handed instead of right-handed. A quirky milestone that I never dreamed I’d have. Four months of varying frustration as I start over using my left arm.

Holding out my right arm fully straight still hurts. Then bending my hand up at the wrist and flexing it back toward my elbow causes more pain. I think I’m getting noticeably better, but then that test dramatically indicates just how far I have yet to go before I’m back to normal. I think I might be better by August, but after that test . . . I don’t know. Another six months? God knows. Maybe it’s better if I don’t know now long it is. I’ve pretty much settled into the notion of making the best of it as it is. Playing left-handed. I’ll just get as good as I can get. When the time comes, I’ll switch back. And there’s plenty yet to do to get as good using my left as my right. Plenty.

Postscript

At 11 p.m., after writing the above, I got a call from our business’s alarm monitoring company. Fire alarm. From the same sensor that had a false alarm while I was in Spain. I immediately drove to work. Yep. False alarm.

SCFD Engine 3113 calling it a night.

I apologized to the very nice and understanding firefighters. So much for them—or me—getting to sleep in a timely fashion. Oh, well.

Number of days on a court: 264
Number of total hours: 723

To start at the beginning of this blog click on “1st Post” in the menu above.