Week 240 - March Pickleball Madness - 03-20-2011

March Pickleball Madness,

It's great to have passions in life. Our greatest passion is knowing Jesus and sharing his plan for salvation with our family and friends. However, to occupy our time we enjoy RVing and playing pickleball. We have played pickleball since 2006 when we learned in Arkansas and played 2 games. In 2008 we were tutored by the 70+ year olds at Jojoba Hills RV Resort in Aguanga, California. We played everyday for two weeks and learned some of the game strategies. Since then it was over a year from learning until we played again, when we are asked how long we have played, we answer in the number of games. In 2008, the answer was 72 games. In 2009 we had played 162 games, but by March 2011 we have played over 1,200 games. So what happened?

We got addicted! Nearly 100% of those who try pickleball, can't stop. First, it is just plain fun to whack the ball.

And the court is small enough that four pickleball courts fit into a tennis court. So, you don't have to run far. The rules of the games (underhand serves and the "double bounce" rule) insure that you can have plenty of long rallies. We have seen one rally with over 30 volleys back and forth over the net.

So being addicted, this year was our time to enter a tournament. Tournaments are rated by size with a Tier 1 being the largest and a Tier 4 the smallest. Players are grouped by ages and by skill level. Tournaments typically have skill levels 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5 and 5.0 with 5.0 being the highest. Age groups are usually every five years 50-54, 55-59, 60-64 and so on up to 100+! We decided last October to enter the Huntsman World Senior Games in St. George, Utah. So we paid our $200 entry fee and drove 700 miles from Durham, CA to St. George.

We entered 5 events: Pete and Ellen played 55-59 age group mixed doubles. We both picked up partners for the men's and women's age and skill events. The Huntsman games are tier 2 with 381 pickleball players in 2010. We didn't know our skill level, so we read the rating chart and picked 3.5. In each event you play to win 2 out of 3 games to 11 points. You only score when you serve and a game can last from 10 to 30 minutes. So a 2/3 match might last an hour. Events are double elimination. If you stay in the winner's bracket you keep playing 2 out of 3 games. If you lose, you drop to the consolation bracket and play only one game to 15 points. Lose again and you're out. But if you keep winning you get a chance to win a Bronze (3rd) or a Silver (2nd) or even a Gold Medal (1st). If you do come back to play the winners, you must beat them 2 out of 3 games. Then, winning that, you each have one loss. So you must play one more game to 15 to get the Gold.

This was not a problem for us. We went Bang, Bang, Out! Pretty much, we lost every match or as we call it, Bang, Bang, Out. But the experience was great and the people were wonderful. When they beat you, they say please and thank you. We have learned from many ex-tennis players that pickleball players are a very fun and social group. So, 700 miles, $200 dollars and the only medals we saw we hanging around someone else's neck.

But we didn't give up. In fact, we moved from tournament to tournament from October 2010 to March 2011. We played 11 tournaments, 38 events, 261 games and we have had some success.

Good job everyone. Now, put down the pickleball and nobody gets hurt!

Love, Pete and Ellen

Photos from Mar 2011