November 2, 2023 Chris_1

Members area

Pickleball Drills/Coaching Sessions

Following the success of the drills sessions last year we are, depending upon interest, considering offering a slightly different format of drills sessions for the forthcoming winter season.

We are proposing a course comprising three 2 hourly sessions. We will attempt to have one 2 hourly session per month so the course will last for 3 months. Attendees will have to commit and pay for the whole course of three sessions as the development will progress from session 1 through to session 3. Each two hourly session will consist of one hour of drills followed by one hour of coached play. Due to the increased coaching element we will only be using two courts, i.e. sessions will be restricted to 8 players. However we are looking to run two separate courses, with the stronger players allocated to one course where possible. Sessions will be from 11am to 1pm on a Friday.

As last year the drills/coaching will be provided by Mike Varney with assistance from volunteers. 

The cost will continue to be subsidised by the Club and maintained at the same amount as last year, i.e. £8 per two hourly sessions; or £24 for the course of three two hourly sessions.

If you are interested in attending please respond to  Neil via his email neil.trantum@ntlworld.com or via last year’s Drills WhatsApp Group (if you were a member of that Group). Neil will be setting up a new WhatApps Group for those who express an interest in these sessions. 

* Please also note that All BaD Members are welcome to attend the Wednesday graded sessions (starting on the 20th November).  It is a trial and it is intended to be quite a fluid process, we don’t expect that we got the initial allocation to groups right the first time and players  will be able to move groups if  appropriate. 

New Wednesday graded sessions

The popularity of pickleball has grown exponentially over the last years and months and the AGM agreed that there’s now a sense that, as a club, we need to adapt and develop in accordance with the growing needs of our members and accommodate the wide range of playing styles and abilities. This included a trial ‘graded’ session at one of the Wodson social sessions. 

The Committee has accordingly agreed to trial a change to the regular Wednesday 1-3pm session implementing “graded” play targeted to start  November 20. Payment etc will remain the same except the session will be divided into 2 groups:

Group 1 – courts 1-3* players up to 3.5
Group 2 – courts 4-6* players over 3.5
(*number of courts as required by attendance)

Each group will run their own “bus” system.

The Committee appreciates this change may perhaps not be welcomed by everyone and the grading of all players will be a sensitive task. We are in no way intending to divide the club, spoil anyone’s enjoyment of playing or affect the good social spirit we all enjoy. It is proposed to trial this for one of the 4 social sessions only, to enable players of similar ability to remain engaged and enjoy better quality games.

Over the next couple of weeks Committee members (Christine, Nigel, Marianne, Neil & Terry) will be meeting to allocate each member to one of the playing groups. This will not be strictly related to DUPR ratings, it is not an exact science. We are expecting this will be a tricky and sometimes emotive task and certainly don’t expect to get it right the first time so please bear with us and give it your support. It is the intention that this should be quite a fluid process, and players will be able to move groups as skill levels change. We shall also be rating only those players that we have seen with any degree of regularity at Wodson over the last year – any new players will initially join Group 1. If any player believes they have been assigned to the incorrect Group, please let one of the Committee members named above know.

Thank you all for your support and understanding in trialling this change. We really hope it will provide a good solution for all playing levels but also please remember it does only affect one playing session in the week – there are still 3 others running exactly as before. We hope everyone enjoys this new approach and fully intend to review its success (or otherwise) on a regular basis.

Any queries about the above please don’t hesitate to let myself or another member of the committee know. 
Christine

Bits and bobs

  • The 2  outside Pickleball courts at Wodson have now been marked out and are available to hire from Thursday 19th September.  The weather is likely to be ok for a little while so try them out !!
  • The pickleball sessions on Sunday will remain at the Old School (Boys High) until further notice.  It is hoped we will be able to move to the new school at the beginning of January. 

 

You’re never too young…..

I thought I’d share this picture of Jessica, my six-year-old granddaughter with you. She had to give a two-minute talk to her school class on any subject and she choose Pickleball after coming to watch me play in the county match.

Hopefully she has inspired some youngsters to pay Pickleball one day!!

Colin Walker