Friday P'ball - February 10, 2012

The day was a little chilly and raw, but 9 players were on hand and kept the courts smokin' for a good two hours. A little longer for the four who played on for a few more hotly contested matches. Players: Mike, Gary A, Bob H, Peter, Jan, Lynne, Sharon, Steve and Ron. That's Jan below - the star of this week's collage effort by the UPG Photography Division.

Watch for the P,ball schedule next week. Remember - the notice is only going to be posted once a week for our usual Tuesday and Friday events. Watch the weather and show yourself if you are inclined to play and the weather looks workable. Remember: We play in almost any weather, except during actual rain (as opposed to 'chances of rain'), hurricanes, blizzards and tornadoes.

See you on the quartz courts.

Rusty

Baker's Dozen - P'ball - February 3, 2012

Like silverfish, players came out of the woodwork today and we ended up with a baker's dozen. Present: Steve, Joanie, Anne, Lynne, Ron, Bob H., Mike, Peter, John*, Karen, Ray, and visitors Ken  and Susan.

Anne and John

*John returned to action after an almost 6 month hiatus after taking a fall the last time he played on August 12, 2011. The August 12 session marked John's 1st session w/ us in several months while recovering from a hip replacement. It was good to see John back in action.

Susan and Lynne 

Ken and Susan dropped in on us today shortly after arriving from Michigan to visit family in Greenville for a few weeks. They hadn't even taken up housekeeping yet and still had their dog in tow. But, they joined us in several matches and we enjoyed their visit. They've got their priorities in order! Susan was kind enough to leave a really nice windbreaker at the courts. Now, in safe hands.

So, with fine weather and a mob of players we occupied three courts and played on for almost 3 hours. As always the day ended with 4 players battling it out. Everyone was still standing at the end of the day. Thanks for that.

Spike

"Hardy or Foolhardy" - Tuesday 12/07/10 P'ball

"Hardy or Foolhardy". That quote of the day is graciously attributed to Spidy. We were milling around between matches commenting on the brisk weather. Someone said we were hardy and Spidy responded with this nugget: are we hardy or foolhardy? A fair question. The temperature was 36 degrees when we started and reached all the way up to a balmy 41 degrees when we quit 2-1/2 hours later. Above: Cupcake and Pit Bull fight the elements: Chilly-Weather and Sun-in-the Face. Present: Sharon (Cupcake), Anne (Pit Bull), Mike (Spidy), Mike B, Steve (Stevie Wonder), Peter, Joanie, Claude & Ron (Spike).

Above: Spidy and his shadow each send the ball for a ride.

Above: Everyone is bundled up, but no one packed it in because of the temp. We had to contend with some breezy moments as well. Bottom line: No problem. We came to have some fun and that's what we did.
We'll be at it again on Friday, December 10th. Check your email.

Spike

Humpday-P'ball. Nov. 17, 2010

We were rained out on Tuesday, so played on Wednesday and had a good turnout of eleven. Spidy was 1st on the scene - push broom in hand. By the time other troops showed up, the courts were almost as dry as a bone. Players: Mike, Johnny, Carol, Steve, Jan, Anne, Catherine, Mike B, Ray, Sharon and yon editor.

 As anyone can see from these photos (some taken by Catherines Courageous), we had a beautiful day and lots of action. Sun-in-the-face and cross-court breeze added a little interest and flair to the matches. The resident red-tailed hawk that happened by gave us pause for thought; we contemplated: who among us the hawk was most interested in.

There was one match that went into "overtime", a few near shutouts and a bunch of tight matches. We all had tons of fun including yon editor who had a grumpy spell - but, recovered.

One of our players is going to host a Christmas party. Details to follow.

Also: Does anyone have access to a digital video camera? I would like to replace the demo video on this BLOG because it doesn't even closely represent the way we UPGers play the game.

We will be playing again on Friday the 19th. Same time; same place. Check your email.

NOTE: All photos, including collages can be enlarged by double clicking on them.

Spike

P'ball Essentials - November 9, 2010

Tuesday Pickleball. Another exciting day on the courts. Beautiful day and a good turnout of 11 players: Johnny, Carol, Gary, Mike, Ralph, Jan, Joanie, Mike B, Steve, Sharon and Ron. If there were any valid complaints about the day - sun-in-your-eyes may have been one of them. Remember your hat!!! Also, there was a what-if-a-ball-falls-out-of-your-pocket during play issue? The question is still unresolved, but the UPG Rules Committee will meet to discuss the topic at its meeting on the 5th Thurdsay of this month. Will report.

With 11 players and several quick matches, there was little down time, but we still had a few players banging away 2-1/2 hours after we started. Lots of good games as usual and tons of fun too.

We'll be playing on Friday 11/12 at 1:00PM. There will be some yummies there as well - compliments of Cupcake. Watch for the email schedule notification.

Spike
Labels by Ken
Thanks Ken. I had put in the labels, but must have messed up somewhere. (11/12/10)

Tuesday P'ball w/ newbie - Oct 2, 2010

We had 11 players on this day including long-lost Anne and a new player - another Mike! This one: Mike B who never played P'ball before. We gave him about 10 minutes of practice and pointers, then he played his 1st match - which he won! He put on quite a few miles doing it.Welcome Mike B. Anne didn't take long to get back into her game - smoked more than a few balls - but, no one took a direct hit. Joanie - of the "lost jacket crowd" showed up with a batch of still-warm cookies which were a big hit. She also intended to retrieve a jacket that she had left behind - in a car during a recent hike. It was brought to p'ball but ended up being mistakenly taken by Jan who left a similar one in its place. The jacket my be destined just to travel about - and never be worn again by Joanie. Jan brought along her granddaughter Sophie - who liked the cookies quite a lot. She entertained herself while we entertained ourselves. Jan's daughter Kristin also stopped by for a short visit.

                                                           Above: Sophie and Jan.
Players: Jan, Joanie, Steve, Mike B, John, Gary, Sharon, Peter, Anne, Lynne and Ron.
Bright day with squirrelly winds, so no one was able to take advantage of it - except to use it as an occasional reason for flubbing the ball. The wind and sun-in-the-eyes made for some exciting matches, which -unfortunately - included a few shutouts; but they were later avenged. All in all, it was a swell p'ball day and we had barrels of fun and camaraderie. Calories, too.

Below: Joanie in action.

 Below: Clockwise from top L: Stevie Wonder, The Spinmaster, Peter and Mike B. 

Below: Clockwise from top L: Mr. Wonder and Pit Bull, Jan, yummies-by Joanie; Gary.

Note: You can enlarge any of these photos, including the collages, by left-clicking on the images.

Looks like we'll have good playing weather on Friday 11/05/10. The courts will be wet, but we'll take of that. Check your email for the Official UPG schedule announcement. Accept no substitutes.

Spike