Pickleball Friday Morning 5-29-09

Well finally no rain this morning. We had a terrible storm last night that really messed up our courts. Bob T., Jan, Ken and I set to work on the courts this morning with our push brooms and squeeges and it didn't take too long before we had them playable. Ron and Sharon arrived with their push broom but we decided we didn't need them to bring it down.

We had 10 pickleball players this morning including Peter who straggled over about 11:00. The players today were Bob T., Jan, Ron, Sharon, Bob H., Johnny, Carol, Peter, Ken and I.

At first we didn't have a problem with the wind but later on the wind started picking up. The breeze felt good but didn't do much for our game.

We missed Lynne S. this morning. She is out of town for a while. Also Anne. I hope she'll be back to play next week. John, Bob S. and Dan need to come back too. And what happened to Ralph and Joanie?

I hope we have a better week next week weather wise and don't have to do so much work on the courts to play. Hope everyone has a good weekend and I look forward to more pickleball next week. Lynn

Pickleball Tuesday Morning 5-26-09

Wow did we get lucky today! We've had so much rain and more predicted to come but we took a chance and decided to go ahead and plan pickleball this morning. We got in at least 2 and 1/2 hours of really good pickleball before the drops started falling.
This morning when we got to the courts we had a mess to clean up with puddles everywhere on the courts. Ken and I brought our squeege and push broom and started to work. Shortly after we got there Bob T. arrived with his tools and Ralph came along with his. With the 4 of us working we got the courts in pretty good order and Carol, Johnny and Lynne finished up.
Amazingly we ended up with 12 players today. They were Bob T., Ralph, Lynne, Carol, Johnny, Jan, Ron, Sharon, Bob H., Joanie, Ken and I.
Ron and I took some pictures this morning.
We hope our luck holds out for Friday and we can all get together to play again.
Lynn

Pickleball Friday Morning 5-22-09

It was a great morning for pickleball. The sun wasn't out too bright and the wind was pretty calm. We met at 9:00 to play. The final tally of players was 12. Present were Bob T., Ralph, Lynne, Mike, Ron, Sharon, Jan, Johnny, Bob H., Bob S., Ken and I. We had some good competitive games and lots of fun. Mike took time out from Lowes to come and play. It was nice to see him out on the court. This was the first time that Ken and I met Bob S. He started coming while we were in Florida. It is nice to have him join the group. Ken and I took a few pictures today so you can see them below.
Hope everyone has a nice Memorial Day Weekend and hopefully we'll get in some more pickleball next week. Sure had fun playing today. Lynn
P.S. Carol, we sure miss you and hope you'll be able to come next week. We are missing our other players that didn't come today too.

Jan & Johnny playing against Bob T. & Lynne

Pickleball Tuesday 5-19-09

We had a pretty but breezy morning for pickleball. We met at 9:00 AM with folks dropping in thereafter. The first game consisted of Bob T., Ralph, Ken and I. We ended up with 11 players today.....Bob T., Ralph, John, Ron, Sharon, Johnny, Lynne, Bob H., Jan, Ken and I. Bob T. brought his new Apike paddle which has been banned by the USAPA. Several people have tried it but are not that impressed. I took some pictures of Ken playing with it but for some reason they did not come out so I'll try again next time we play. It really makes a funny sound when you hit the ball with it. I think I like the sound our other paddles make better.
It was really nice being back playing with the group today. Lynn

Lynne and Bob T.

Pickleball Thursday 5-14-09

Bob T. organized the Pickleball session today as Ron, Sharon, and Lynn and I were all out of town. I talked to Bob T. on the phone and he said they had 6 picklers: Ralph, Joanie, Lynne, Bob H., Bob S., and Bob T. He said they were surprised to find the courts wet when they got there but fortunately one court was dry enough to play on. Lynn and I are looking forward to getting back and playing next week.
Ken

Pickleball Tuesday 5-12-09

We had everything going for us today. Bright skies with puffy, white clouds, low 70s, minimal wind and a large crew of hard-hitting, deadly accurate, speedy and sometimes joyously loud P'ballers.
Present and accounted for: Carol, Johnny, 3 Bobs (Bob T, Bob H and Bob S) John, Anne, Joanie, Jan, Ralph, Sharon and this scribe.
Bob T's wife and granddaughter were in attendance as well. They took advantage of the playground equipment and watched some of our masterful games.
We played many matches. Some turned into lengthy battles with the balls coming up the worst losers. Two were destroyed (balls, that is). They will go into the recycle bin after a short, but touching memorial service.
"Bob" created some minor distractions - the 3 of them. Every time someone remarked "nice shot, Bob" - all three would acknowledge the compliment and Bob H would take a bow, even if he was on a break.
It was a beautiful day all around and it was great to have such a turnout.
The next match will be scheduled for Thursday, May 14th @ 9:30AM. Hope to see another good turnout.
Ron & Sharon

Pickleball Friday 5-8-09

The courts were dry when we arrived at 9:30 AM. Some wind, but not a problem. We managed to get our session under way, even though the sky was overcast and afternoon T-storms were predicted (Pretty much an every-day occurrence). We had a good turnout as follows: Bob T, Johnny & Carol, Sharon, Anne, Lynne, Jan, Bob H, Ralph & this chronicler. We played several well-fought matches, always switching players and teams. By 10:30 we knew we were running on borrowed time due to a drop in temperature and darker skies. Then, we heard some thunder that I tried, without success, to blame on a jet plane. At 11:15, thunder was all around us and we felt a few sprinkles. At this point, the more astute P'ballers packed up and headed for their cars. But, there was a hotly contested game going on - and why should a few raindrops and the threat of lightning bolts interfere with a good match? It didn't and no one got wet. We high-tailed it off the court and within 10 minutes we had a good old fashioned gullywasher. Lucky us.
Hoping to play again on Tuesday May 12th.
Ron and Sharon

Pickleball in Seminole, Fl 5-8-09

This was Ken's and my last day to play pickleball with the group here in Seminole. There were 10 players today and we had 2 courts. They are a very nice group here and we had a lot of fun playing with them this week. Ken also played yesterday with them while my mom and I spent time together. We hated to tell them all good by today.
Ken also played 20 holes of disc golf yesterday and found someone to play with at Taylor Park.
We have had a very nice week here in the Clearwater area and staying at Indian Rocks Beach.
Tomorrow we head back to Leesburg, Fl. More pickleball up there next week.
Lynn

Pickleball in Seminole, Fl 5-6-09

Ken and I played pickleball again with the group here in Seminole again this morning. Ken also played with them yesterday. We had 12 players and 3 courts going. Some really rousing games.
It's definitely a different game playing inside on a glossy wooden floor with the Singapore balls.
Very fast. We got a good workout and played for about 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Lynn

Pickleball Tuesday 5-5-09

P'ball report:
OK. Here goes. We are now, and have been, in the midst of messy weather and Tuesday AM (5/5/09) was no exception. I headed to the courts with my push broom and with my wipers on intermittent/low. Sharon had the good sense to stay at home. Feeling very much like an idiot upon arriving Timmons Park @ 9:00 AM sharp, I was not surprised to see Bob T already there fully armed with a push broom and a squeegee. We complimented each other on our eternal optimism and started pushing water off the court. In the mean time Lynne showed up looking forward to a game after a long hiatus from the courts. She pitched in and we managed to make some of the puddles shallower and almost stayed ahead of the mist.
We decided not to play any actual games, because we didn't want anyone to take a digger while lunging for a shot. So we batted the ball back and forth always trying, and sometimes succeeding, in hitting the ball within range of the opposing player.
Lynne played a few rounds, but was concerned about slipping because she didn't have much tread on her treads. So, she left after a spell.
Bob T and I played for somewhat longer than a spell. About an hour, if you count the time we attempted to de-water the court.
So, officially we had 3 players for this memorable event: Bob T, Lynne and this recorder of notable athletic feats.
Marginal weather is in the forecast, but we'll probably schedule the next session for Friday May 8th (Harry S. Truman's and my Birthday).
Ron

Happy Birthday Ron!!!

Pickleball in Seminole, Fl 5-4-09

My mom and Ken and I are in Indian Rocks Beach, Fl staying at a timeshare. Last year when we were here Ken and I found a pickleball group in Seminole, Fl....near by and we played with them. So this year we're back in the same place and we played pickleball with the Seminole group again this morning. We had 3 courts going with 14 players this morning. We played from 8:00 to 10:00. Had lots of fun and a great workout. They have some really good players.
Even though we are getting to play lots of pickleball during this vacation we still miss our Greenville group. They're the best. And we really appreciate everything that Ron and Sharon are doing to keep pickleball going in Greenville.
Anne, It's great to see you are back on the court. Keep it up.
Take care everybody and I hope to C U on D Courts.
Ron....you are doing a great job on the pickleball messages. Maybe we'll keep you!
Lynn

Pickleball Friday 5-1-09

We had a very good turnout for Pickleball today, even though the weather looked marginal. Overcast, a little breeze. We even had a few sprinkles to keep us on our toes.
Present: Bob H, Bob T, Dan, Anne, Carol, Johnny, Jan, Sharon and this messenger.
Dan tried to butter us up by bringing home-made Toll House cookies and a little canvas folding table so the cookies could be properly displayed and served. We pounded down the cookies, but kept Dan busy on the court in spite of his generosity.
We utilized both courts and switched players around after each game. When our numbers started to decline, near the end of the session, we played Canada Doubles on one court and doubles on the other. Everyone played hard and many fine shots were made.
Anne, as strong as ever, mangled one of the balls (See picture). It may have been a back-hand shot, or perhaps an overhand kill shot. No one is saying.
Looking forward to more matches next week. Will check the weather and plan accordingly.
We are also hoping Steve, Lynne and some of our other long-lost players start showing up again and we are looking forward to the return of Ken & Lynn.
Ron