Category: Pickleball (Page 49 of 323)

Sunday, May 25, 2025 (Court Day #807)

As I changed and got ready to play, I slipped on my right knee brace. This coming week, I’m not going to be able to play Tuesday or Thursday night so that will give my knee a rest. I’ll be definitely putting it through its paces today and tomorrow, however.

I walked out my front door this morning and it was already slightly uncomfortably warm. I was grateful for it being partly cloudy.

Brommer

My car read a comfortable 59° when I pulled into Brommer Park at 9:20 a.m. Judging by the parking lot, I was not the only one taking my time getting out to play.

Games

I played with a woman named Candi against long-timer Richard (beard) and tall Nick. She and I won 11-9.

There was a pleasant hispanic woman named Jackie and also a guy named Pavel, both whom I’d never met. I played with a new guy named Nick. We lost first and won the second.

New Nick and I played against Mo and Dina. We won twice—the second time by a wide margin. Mo is coming along. She’s approaching a 4.0 level.

Dean and I played against new Nick and a newer woman who said she’d only been for about a year. Yeah, we clobbered them. Not the most fun game.

Next, Dean and I played Asian couple Sylvia and Terry. We were ahead but they came back and won. Dean apologize after, saying he didn’t play well. Sylvia had a really nice backhand attack.

Mo and I played against Larry and lefty Greg. We won 11-3. The loss was not on Larry.

I played some games, rotating partners with Chayton, Collin (Mike’s son), and lefty Dave. Those were stronger games. Collin lost each game he was in. I could tell that he was disappointed.

I checked the time, 1:44 p.m. While I really enjoy teaching, I also enjoy getting to play as long as I want on Sundays, but time to get home and do something productive!

Proton Bankruptcy

I was listening to The Dink podcast, and Zane Navratil had on an attorney who gave an update regarding the involuntary bankruptcy of Proton. The involuntary bankruptcy was filed by a former (disgruntled) employee and a couple of his associates. The case was dismissed as a groundless by a judge and the court document sealed was at the request of proton. Supposedly there were likely some nasty claims, and while they proved to be unfounded, Proton did not want them circulating to the public.

Tennis Pro and Adult Star TV

A number of pickleball news sources shared that OnlyFans, known for adult content, will be streaming a new reality pickleball-themed series with Nick Kyrgios, the pro tennis player known for his outbursts on the courts. I say “themed” because some of the pickleball games will be played with things like inflatable bats and… well, it sounds stupid. Nothing like playing with inflatable bats to make pickleball more respected in the sport scene. (Yes, that’s sarcasm.)

Here’s an article about it:
https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/a/complexstaff3/onlyfans-smash-city-nick-kyrgios-rachel-starr

Number of days on a court: 807
Number of total hours: 3,165
Number of paid coaching hours: 135.5

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

Thursday, May 22, 2025 (Court Day #806)

I had a board meeting this afternoon for a local nonprofit. (I’m on an assortment of local nonprofit boards!) I told my staff that I would not be returning to work afterwards. Surprisingly, the meeting was fairly quick and shortly before 5:30 p.m. I was already on my way to Skypark. It was a warm one today and it was still 81°F as I drove.

It was actually cooler in Scotts Valley at 75°F. Usually, it’s hotter in Scotts Valley, but that was not the case today.

Skypark

I pulled into the Skypark parking lot at 5:38 p.m.

I started at least half of the evening playing games where the skills were lopsided and the rallies were short.

Local Connection

I played a few games against the guy name is Zach and friend James. It turns out Zach’s wife is my dentist. Since she might be taking one of my classes this summer, I suddenly felt I need to focus more and try and make a good impression. I did play better. [Later note, my wife said that his wife—who is in a book group with my wife—said that Zach said I was a good player, so good impression made!]

Abhi 

The lights clicked off at 8:33 p.m., however, there was enough natural light for the newish guy Abhi and myself to continue playing against David and John. We played a few more rallies on the permanent courts and then we slid over to the rolling net next to the gate with the light and finish out our game. We won, I think it was 11–8 or it might’ve been 11–6. Regardless, it was a fun game with some long rallies.

Rallie

Eric from Rallie got back to me this morning and sent me a file of his ball machine manual, however, it was a PDF version which I already had. I asked him if he could track down the master document for me or if you just wanted me to do edits as best I could on the PDF and send it back to him for editing. 

USAP Quiet Products

There is a page on the USA Pickleball website, dedicated to quiet tech technologies, including balls, paddles, and accessories, including surfaces that you can apply to a paddle to reduce the sound:
https://equipment.usapickleball.org/acoustic-equipment/

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Friday, May 23, 2025 (No Play)

Zane Navratil shared some information on the Lifetime ball that the PPA has been using. The Vulcan ball is the official ball of the PPA but Lifetime told the PPA that unless the PPA uses the Lifetime ball at their Lifetime facilities, they can’t use their facilities. Given that some high profile PPA events are held at Lifetime venues, the PPA agreed. Zane talks about the qualities of this Lifetime ball in his reel:
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DJ4ocyKgCsa/

Apparently these things are called the “LT” ball. A unique thing about them is when they manufacture these balls, they chamfer the hole edges so they are less likely to crack… assuming their logic is correct. It does seem—well—logical, but maybe there’s more to it. Physics is an interesting animal.

Number of days on a court: 806
Number of total hours: 3,160.5
Number of paid coaching hours: 135.5

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

Tuesday, May 20, 2025 (Court Day #805)

It was almost tropical 72°F when I arrived at Skypark after work at about 6:50 p.m. There wasn’t a cloud to be seen in the sky, but it was breezy.

My right knee has been bothering me enough that I decided to slip on my brace before heading to the courts. Walking after sitting for a while at work resulted in temporary pain with an inclination to limp a little, but that would go away after moving around for a few minutes. Still, uncomfortable.

Games

I went right into a very strong first game with me teaming up with Marco against David and tall, Asian Aaron. (At some point, I need to ask Aaron his last name!) It was a closely-contested game. With the score 4-3, service went back-and-forth a number of times. Unfortunately, I then made a series of errors and it was something we could not recover from and we lost the game. Overall, I wasn’t playing poorly—subpar, sure, it was a first game after all, but not poorly—but certain errors you just can’t make playing with other good players. Nonetheless, I felt bad about my play, even if it was my first game. My first games are generally pretty rough as I gradually warm up.

I went through a series of games with a mishmash of skill levels. There were two games where I was playing with a partner against Gabi and a player stronger than her… one game was her friend John and myself against her and Asian Aaron. Even with me playing that game entirely left-handed, John and I won that one. There was a second game where I played it all left-handed and we won that one too.

Baby!

David shared some exciting news and that he and Minori are expecting their first child, a son. Their baby is due in September. Congratulations!

We wrapped up that last game at 8:30 p.m. sharp and the lights went out a few minutes later.

Number of days on a court: 805
Number of total hours: 3,157.5
Number of paid coaching hours: 135.5

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