Aiken Pickleball News

The First Baptist Church (FBC) located at 120 Chesterfield St N, in downtown Aiken, is now offering drop-in pickleball play from 2 - 5 pm, Mondays and Fridays.  They have two courts located in their main gymnasium. The gym has a vinyl floor which gives a true bounce, and just takes a little while to get used to.    

There are usually 10-12 players just from FBC.  As almost everyone at FBC is new to pickleball, Jo Whitson has volunteered to introduce them the game, and is usually there when the gym is open for play.  Now that FBC is on our calendar, the word has gotten out, and last Friday was the first time others came to play. There is plenty of free parking available and donations are only $2.

 

Congratulate yourself for being smart enough to play a sport that encourages movement, strength, finesse, hand-to-eye coordination, strategy and sportsmanship (most of the time). What better way to stay fit and have fun with old friends and new friends from both sexes in a town that provides easy, cheap access to court time and opportunities for competitive play, as well as no-pressure recreational play.

You can always get a game someplace in Aiken.

Or - would you rather sweat bullets with boring, repetitive movements on a mechanical treadmill, longing for it to be over while you glue your eyes on a TV screen like a second grader watching cartoons. In an hour, you can play 3-4 pickleball games and have some fun.

Think of all the people you have met in the courts outdoors and indoors, and how friendly almost all of them have been.  Aiken, with great city co-operation, is a regional pickleball center.

Remarkable shots

Recently: Jack M- lunged to return a dink that trickled over the net- made the shot then fell on his back when he tried to return to his position. His shot was returned and Jack returned it successfully while still flat on his back. The other side made a great play to return that shot then Jack’s partner finally returned it for a winner.  

 

 

Thanks to all who particilapted in the USCA Round Robin!   

The most remarkable shot of the tournament that didn't count

by Richard Diemar

In the 3.5 Division - tournament play - Chuck B:  Other side hit top of the net, ball landed softly in right side of court. Partner on that side could not get to it - Chuck raced in from left side at Mach 1, lunged and returned it gently for winner. The crowd went crazy.  Only one problem - Chuck’s momentum carried him into the net, ever so slightly, while making the shot and he lost the point (other side apologized, but said they had to enforce rule).  Still a remarkable shot.

The results and pictures of the medal winners from each division are listed below. 

For more pictures, click here.

3.0 Division:

Gold - Nancy Cox, Joe Cox

Silver - Miriam James, Raymond James

Bronze - Monty Kitchings, Daniel Tucker

3.5 Division

Gold - Jim Corbett, Anne Rheins

Silver - Beverly Shaver, Keith Shaver

Bronze  - Diane Voss, Chuck Buchanan

4.0 Division

Gold - Sharlene Buggs, Mo Garcia

Silver - Yong Ko, Mark Carter

Bronze - Marian Garcia, Jim Kabel

 

 

 

 

 

There is a new tab under “Information” - check it out.  It’s called Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). It answers questions like “I am a new player.  What is the best way to get started?  What is “Silver Sneakers”? Where do I get the Access Code to Sign Up to reserve a court?".   If you have any questions you like answered send them to “Website Feedback” under Contact Us. We have the answers!

 

 

On Saturday, March 30th, a group of Aiken Department of Public Safety recruit officers attended a clinic that was arranged by Mo Garcia (district ambassador) and Karl Odenthal (ADPS).  To kick off the event, some of our top local players (Josh Booth, Jim Hughes, Wojcieck Adamek, and Mo Garcia) played an exhibition game.  This was followed by the presentation of paddles to the ADPS recruits.  The recruits were given a demonstration of how to set up a net, then were joined on the court by various Aiken players for some lively games of pickleball.

Thanks to all involved for putting on this clinic, and to our local players for coming out to give their support.  Some picutres are included below.  To see more, click here.

 

 

We are looking for a volunteer (or possibly two or three) to help with the Aiken Pickleball website. This would involve writing articles for the website, updating the “Tournaments” page, and helping with the calendar. If you are interested, please e-mail info@aikenpickleball.com.

 

The city of Aiken has issued a proclamation to recognize the month of April as National Pickleball Month in the City of Aiken. This was included on the March 25th City Council agenda. We would like to ithank everyone who attend the meeting to show the city that pickleball is here to stay and GROW! 

 

Steve and Lisa Miner, who will soon be moving to Florida, were honored at the quarterly social on March 19th.  We will miss their leadership, friendship, and support of the Aiken pickleball group. 

Fun was had by the nearly 60 people at the social last night.  Thanks again to Barb Burns and Pat Smith for the lovely spring deocrations and for organizing the event.

 

 

 

Mo Garcia has been working with Aiken Department of Public Safety's Karl Odenthal to arrange a series of pickleball clinics for a dozen of their police recruit officers.  The young police recruits have embraced pickleball as part of their PE activity most mornings before heading to the police academy.

As USAPA district ambassador and a member of the Aiken Pickledillys, Mo has invited a group of these recruit officers, along with other members of  Aiken Department of Public Safety, their families and friends, and PRT to a special pickleball clinic in support of this event. The event will be commemorated with the presentation of limited edition graphite pickleball paddles displaying  the "Thin Blue Line with ADPS Shield" donated by Mo Power Sport, LLC. 

The first of such clinics will be held on Saturday, March 30th from 09:00 am - 12:noon in Gym 1 at Odell Weeks and will be attended by 6-8 recruit officers.

To kick off the clinic we will have a brief demonstration of doubles and singles pickleball by some of Aiken's finest pickleball players. Immediately following the demonstrations, we will break out into mini-clinics, followed by  open play to include ADPS members and family with members of the Aiken pickleball community.  Everyone in our pickleball community is invited to attend this event and mix in to play with the guests of honor.  

 

By Mike Beckner

Just a gentle reminder to all Pickledillys (and others who play at Odell Weeks) that pickleball is fundamentally a game which encourages and nurtures good sportsmanship. Here in Aiken, we have been known from the very inception of the sport for making all players welcome, regardless of their individual skill level as all of us were beginners at some point and we remember how difficult it was for us early on. We also emphasize that fair play and friendship are integral to the enjoyment of the sport.

With the growth of pickleball here, there have necessarily been times when rules and guidelines needed to be developed, in partnership with the Parks, Recreation and Tourism Department of Aiken. These changes were designed to maximize the use of court time in a way that is fair to all players and also to protect beginners/weaker players from more advanced and/or more aggressive players. None of us want to be known as enforcers or the “pickleball police” but with our growth and subsequent organization, players have volunteered to be on the leadership team to help us with the sport as it continues to grow. We are indebted to those volunteers and their commitment to make pickleball in Aiken as good as it can be.

One of the products of our organization was the formation of player representatives for each skill level. These “player reps” are the ombudsmen for their respective skill levels and bring topics of interest from their players to the leadership team. They also serve as the eyes and ears of the leadership team and help explain the rules and guidelines during play. Please respect and listen to the player reps if they are sharing guidelines and rules with you on the court. They are simply carrying out their duties and do not deserve to be disrespected or insulted when simply trying to share information regarding a variety of issues. If there is a disagreement with any of the rules, ask the player rep to seek further guidance from the leadership team. In the meantime, please follow the guidance given by the player rep.

Players who become abusive, obnoxious or disrespectful run the risk of being sanctioned by the leadership team and/or by Parks, Recreation and Tourism. Unfortunately, there have been instances when PRT has had to ask offending players to leave the court and subsequently barred them from future play.

 

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