In this issue:

AGM Elections	Wrapping up 2023
Call  for Captains	Training and Mentoring
DUPR Play and Ratings Sessions	St. Albert Rotary Club
Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

2024 Tournaments

League Play - 4.0+

We are presently working on getting league play organized and will be sending a separate note to all 4.0 and higher players with details on how to register.  We hope to start play on May 8th.  If you plan to register for this League play, please make sure that your membership details are in order and that you are an active, paid up member including Pickleball Canada, Alberta and SAPC; any members who register without meeting these criteria will be rejected.

Call for Volunteers

Please note that our Club needs volunteers in many areas in order to operate effectively - that includes having captains for ALL Club play sessions, rating coordinators for DUPR rating play sessions, tournament volunteers, administrative and scheduling functions, etc., etc.  Thanks to all those who have volunteered in the past and who are currently or have plans to volunteer this year.  Keep an eye out for e-mails from our membership team for e-mails on this topic shortly and as the summer season progresses.   Please consider volunteering your skills and time to support our Club and your fellow members.

Updated Code of Conduct

Often the volunteer will not report because the offender may well create more unpleasantness for them in the next session. When the board approaches the offending party, they will have checked with a couple of persons present as to what happened, and the name(s) of who sent the report will not be divulged.

This takes courage but it is worth doing.  If we do nothing, then the bullies will win and they will not magically change their ways. Past experience is that a little bit of support and proper enforcement will take care of the problem.

4. Members will treat all people that volunteer to help run the club with courtesy and respect, complying with all reasonable requests in a courteous manner.

14. Members are expected to help create an environment that supports the dignity of, and equity for all members and which is free of discrimination, bullying, harassment or rudeness.

15. To maintain a welcoming and friendly atmosphere, members will report to the board any incidents that diminished the enjoyment of club activities for themselves, other members or volunteers. The Board will then decide on appropriate follow up.

Alpine Outdoor Play (from Eileen)

Alpine sessions are opening Monday 22nd.  Please note that all members should have their current, valid membership cards ready to show to captains at ALL times.  Captains will only accept active membership cards as evidence of a member's rating level.  Captains will not review nor accept "evidence" of a rating that has not been approved by the rating coordinators.  If you have requested a change in your rating level, please note that our captains cannot accept your new, higher rating level until that rating has been approved by our rating coordinators and updated on the SAPC website; once that occurs, the member can access and/or print their membership card reflecting their new rating level.  

Please watch the Outdoor Play Calendar, Facebook updates and WhatsApp group chat for possible changes due to weather and cancellations.  Any such cancellations will come through social media due to time constraints.

If you haven’t joined these groups please consider doing so.  The  WhatsApp groups that are set up for each rating level are a great for  organizing social play with other members as well as other pickleball related communication.  Go to the SAPC website and under the members tab you will find links to join these social media groups.

Please note that during May and June many St. Albert schools will have many times assigned to them on the courts; it is impossible to note all of these changes in the Outdoor Play Calendars because of the variety of times.  A communication explaining all of this will be sent out during the last week of April.

All sessions are drop in except for:

• Partner play 
• DUPR play sessions - the 3.0 on Monday evening and 3.5 on Wednesday evening 

Note: All members with 3.0 or 3.5 ratings will receive notification about when the play opens for the DUPR registration.

• League play on Thursday evenings for 4.0+ (see Article above for further details)

Partner Play

Members need to register for Partner Play sessions.  The sessions open on the Friday at 12:01 am.  Only ONE  member of the team only needs to register.

It is so important that if you register for partner play and you cannot attend, please cancel as there are always people on the waitlist.

If you are a no show for Partner Play this will be noted and if this happens a second time, you will not be allowed to register as this causes so much extra work for the captains and there are always too many members on the waiting list.   

PLEASE NOTE:

• Be on time for Round Robin sessions
• Only water allowed on the courts
• The City will have a port-a-potty in place May 1st

Have fun and enjoy another wonderful outdoor pickleball season!

Eileen McClean

Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

823 members have already renewed their memberships for 2024.  As is typically the case, many of our members - particularly snowbirds - do not renew their Club membership until spring or early summer.  To that point, we currently have well over a hundred members with a "renewal overdue status".  If the majority of those members were to renew later this year, as we expect, we will have over 1,000 active members!

In terms of those members who have already renewed for 2024, the breakdown of those members as of mid-April (with comparative figures for March) are as follows:

                                  March          April  (Current)      Inc/(Dec)

No Rating                  237                      264                           27

2.5 Rating                    28                        28                             0

3.0 Rating                  124                     135                            11

3.5 Rating                  213                     219                              6        

4.0 Rating                  153                     158                              5

4.5+ Rating                  18                       19                               1          

Total Members       773                    823                            50

All members should note that memberships purchased prior to October 1, 2022 expired on December 31, 2023, so we request that if you haven't done so already, you should consider renewing your membership as soon as possible.  For instructions on how to renew your membership, please click on this link (Note: Ensure you are logged in before going past the first screen).

Until next time keep your paddle up!   

In this issue:

AGM Elections	Wrapping up 2023
Call  for Captains	Training and Mentoring
DUPR Play and Ratings Sessions	St. Albert Rotary Club
Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

AGM Elections

Treasurer - Laura Spencer 

Director of Communications - Roger Hutlet

Director of Information and Membership - Art Au

Directors at Large - Ken Dentzien and Jeanine Au

Wrapping up 2023

We had another great year in 2023! 

Our members enjoyed thousands of hours of play last year, our programs expanded, and our club grew even larger. This all means that even more connections were made, friendships were expanded and lives were enriched.  Thanks for being one of our friends! 

Key Stats for 2023

• 976  members  at peak (24% growth over 2022)

• 11,263 member plays at organized outdoor sessions

• 8,000 estimated member plays at organized indoor sessions

• 160 school kids trained in 8 beginner lessons

• 348 participants in 59 adult beginner training sessions

• 291 participants in 19 mentoring sessions

• 637 participants in 3 tournaments

• 16 certified referees

• 15 newsletters

• $47.25 adult membership fee

• $136,700 total income

• $65,700 surplus (= contribution to capital reserve for future facilities)

• $173,100 net assets

• Untold amounts of laughter and squeals of joy

All thanks to our many teams of volunteers:

• Play captains

• Venue coordinators and binder administration

• Tournaments (organization, officiating, sponsorship and prizes, etc.)

• Skill rating coordination and development

• Training and mentoring

• Reserved play coordination and play calendar management

• Equipment and facility maintenance

• Facility task force

• Membership and volunteer management

• Communications and social media

• Health

• Social

• Finance and play sticker sales

• Technology

• Nominating, auditing, ombudsperson

• Board 

Further details and facts can be found in the club's Annual Report. 

Call for Captains

Preparations are under way for  the Alpine outdoor season.  

Captains for all levels are needed. 

Captains meetings will take place at Red Willow Church on April 16th from 9:00 to 10:30am in the morning and from 6:30 to 8:00pm in the evening.  If you have not captained before, you should come to one of these two meetings and find out what it involves. 

Anyone interested in volunteering to be a captain should send an email to venuemanager@pickleballstalbert.ca stating what session(s) you would like to captain and which meeting you plan to attend.

Please respond even if you are already one of our many faithful captains.  We thank all members who volunteer in advance, as we anticipate an overwhelming response - remember, we cannot have organized play without captains.  We appreciate all those members who generously donate their time in this capacity!!

Training and Mentoring

We are always looking for people wanting to help train and mentor our members and guests.

We have again been asked to help train students usually grades 5:00 to 8:00 pm - that starts in May (read more on this below).So that is a lot of training/coaching. If you are interested in joining the training team please message Nicole Currie (nicolecurrie@live.com) and let her know and she will add you to the list.

Every two months an email goes out asking the trainers to sign up for days they are able to help with.  So we try to have a schedule made for two months at a time. 

Student Training

When it comes to the student training, please consider volunteering even if it is just for the students. Usually there are about 29 students so it takes up the courts and it is great if we have 2 trainers per court, as most students are beginners.  The locations and dates for student training are:

Alpine:

Monday, May 13th:   1:00 to 2:30 pm

Tuesday, May 14th:   9:30 to 11:00 am

Friday, May 24th:   1:00 to 2:30 pm 

Friday, May 31st:   1:00 to 2:30 pm

Larose:

Thursday, May 23th:   1:30 to 3:00 pm

Thursday, May 30th:   1:30 to 3:00 pm

Any time you can give would be most appreciated.  Again, if you do have interest, please message Nicole Currie by clicking here. 

Are you interested in taking some member mentoring sessions?   

If so, you should watch the "Introductory Lessons and Training Calendar" for training events coming this outdoor season.  Open any particular training event to read details on the registration opening times.  If the event details say the registration opens at noon, please adhere to that time. Don't sign up even a minute early, even if the system allows this.  We need to be considerate and respect fellow members.  Thanks for making it fair to all (and for allowing us to manually get around the dreaded "midnight opening" for these particular event registrations.)

DUPR Play and Ratings Sessions

We are itching to get outdoors and play in St. Albert -- are you? 

SAPC is pleased to offer even more this season than last.  In particular: 

• The 3.0's have asked for some DUPR play this season and captains have stepped forward to lead this -- so it is a GO!

• We will continue to have 3.5 DUPR play this season too -- and thanks to the captains, new and old, who have stepped forward to lead this too!

• There will again be league play for 4.0's and above.

• There will be some "Aspiring to 3.0" DUPR rating sessions, organized by our busy rating coordinators, for those who do not yet have a club rating (these will be at Bertha Kennedy when most other indoor play moves outdoors).

• All the rest of our organized play will continue.

• We will again put on some special olympics play (watch for an article on this in the next newsletter).

• Our tournament scheduling is also underway and we will keep you posted with details as they are confirmed.

Our play is still limited by court availability and allocations by the City of St. Albert, but we are grateful for what we have!

We don't have a date for the start of outdoor play yet.  That depends on when the City puts up the nets, as usual. And that depends, in turn, on the anticipated weather.  We are, however, now looking for our sunscreen and outdoor runners! 

Questions about DUPR? 

• If you don't yet know about our DUPR play - the best place to start learning is our three web pages at "Skill Levels and Ratings".  See especially the SAPC DUPR Play FAQ page.

• The 3.0 DUPR play dates and times are already posted on the Monday evenings of the Alpine Calendar.  The Thursday before each of these play times (at random times on the Thursday), an invitation will go to all 3.0 club rated players inviting them to register.

• The 3.5 DUPR play will again take place on Wednesday evenings.  These sessions will soon be posted to the Alpine calendar. Invitations for these sessions will also be sent out to all 3.5 rated members on the preceding Thursday.

• Spots are limited in these sessions -- so register early.

• Registered players are placed on a court based on their specific rating. You play 3 or 4 games with the other similarly rated players on that court. After this initial round, the top scoring player on each court moves up a court, the lowest scoring player moves down a court, and you play another round of 4 games.

• Scores are tracked, verified by all players on the court, and entered into DUPR by the lead captains.

• See the event invitations and descriptions for more details.

• To prepare, if you haven't already done so: (i) set up a DUPR account, and (ii) join SAPC on DUPR. There is no cost for this. The specific steps to do this are described on the SAPC DUPR Play FAQ web page.

• By the way -- if you know of any past SAPC members who have not renewed -- tell them to do so right away -- especially if they want to play in any DUPR play or rating session. Those who have joined SAPC on DUPR last year, but have not renewed their SAPC membership, will soon be deleted from SAPC on DUPR. This means they will then have to re-apply via DUPR to join SAPC on DUPR.

Thanks again to our rating coordinators and 2024 DUPR lead captains: Karen C, Jeanine A, Roger B, Kim S, Gord T, Carol A and Daniela I.  And thanks as always to our lead play scheduler and venue manager Eileen M!

The St. Albert Rotary Club

The Rotary Club is holding a fund raising tournament on June 22nd and June 23rd.  This event is a fundraising effort for St Albert community projects. 

Registrations open April 15, 2024 - more details will follow via e-mail and other sources of communication.

They will need referees for the medal games and volunteers for other roles as well. If you are interested, please contact Daniela at ionitescudaniela@gmail.com .

The Rotary Club will arrange for a meeting to organize the volunteers and to assign work that needs to be done.  Again, we will forward details once these are available.

We look for forward to seeing you there!

Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

773 members have already renewed their memberships for 2024.  As is typically the case, many of our members - particularly snowbirds - do not renew their Club membership until spring or early summer.  To that point, we currently have hundreds of members with a "renewal overdue status".  If all of those members were to renew later this year, we would have over 1,000 active members!

In terms of those members who have already renewed for 2024, the breakdown of those members as of February (with comparative figures for January) are as follows:

                                February          Mar (Current)       Inc/(Dec)

No Rating                  220                     237                         17

2.5 Rating                    20                       28                            8

3.0 Rating                  123                    124                            1

3.5 Rating                  208                    213                            5        

4.0 Rating                  145                    153                            8

4.5+ Rating                  18                      18                            0          

Total Members       734                   773                         39

All members should note that memberships purchased prior to October 1, 2022 expired on December 31, 2023, so we request that if you haven't done so already, you should consider renewing your membership as soon as possible.  For instructions on how to renew your membership, please click on this link (Note: Ensure you are logged in before going past the first screen).

Until next time keep your paddle up!     

In this issue:

Upcoming Board Meeting / Nominations	Indoor Play - Red Willow
Preparations for Outdoor Season at Alpine	Changes to DUPR
Membership Breakdown by Rating

Upcoming Board Meeting / Nominations

Treasurer - Laura Spencer 

Director at Large - Douwe Spriesma

A number of the Board positions are up for re-election so members were able to apply for these positions which are as follows:

President - Eileen McClean, will stand

Vice President - currently held by James Porter, will not stand for re-election)

Director at Large (Tournaments) - Ken Dentzien, will stand 

Director of Information and Membership - Art Au, will stand

Director of Communications - Roger Hutlet, will stand 

A Nominating Committee report covering candidates who are interested in the positions will be sent out to all members with the notice of the AGM in the next few days - on or before February 28, 2024.

Indoor Play

Red Willow Play Registration

In respect of other members trying to register, please ensure you wait until NOON on Saturday before registering for additional Red Willow sessions.  Nicole and the Club are very impressed with how many members do watch the time and don’t register early, but we just need to see that everyone honors this time frame. As you can appreciate, once one person registers early, it then it encourages others to want to follow suit; this is frustrating for those who are patiently waiting and, potentially, see that the last spot available is taken prematurely. 

Thanks to Ken Anderson

Thank you Ken for fixing the net at Bertha Kennedy.  We really appreciate the efforts of all indoor players who assist our captains in properly setting up and taking down the nets at our indoor venues - not doing so correctly can be costly and time consuming.

Preparations for Outdoor Season at Alpine

Preparations are under way for  the Alpine outdoor season.  Anyone interested in volunteering to be a captain should send an email to venuemanager@pickleballstalbert.ca .

Captains meetings will take place at Red Willow Church on April 16th from 9:00 to 10:30am in the morning and from 6:30 to 8:00pm in the evening.

Please respond even if you are already one of our many faithful captains.  We thank all members who volunteer in advance, as we anticipate an overwhelming response - remember, we cannot have the outdoor sessions without captains.  We appreciate all those members who generously donate their time in this capacity!!

Changes to DUPR

As our members will know, for approximately a year now, our Club has adopted DUPR as our predominant player rating system.   Details about DUPR can be accessed from our website by clicking here.  

You should be aware that DUPR is making changes as outlined by their communication to registrants as inserted below:

------------------

January 30, 2024

Dear Player,

Today, we released significant updates to our rating, which will ensure more accuracy, connectivity, consistency, and reliability — and an even better pickleball experience for you.  

Your rating will now take into account: 

1. Points Matter.  Was this a tight match or a blowout? DUPR now evaluates the closeness of the match, so a score of 11-0 will have a bigger impact on your rating than a close match of 11-9 against that same opponent.
2. Recency Matters.  A match you played today will impact your rating more than a match you played six months ago.
   
3. Total Match Count Matters.  If you've played in a lot of matches, your rating will fluctuate less compared to a player with a lower match count.
   
4. Every Match Matters (even against unrated players).  Every match counts towards your rating, even if you are playing against someone who is unrated or new to DUPR.

These updates will be applied across all your match results in our platform, as well as to all future results you submit. Due to this, your rating has gone up!  For a deeper look into the new rating updates, check out our new blog written by DUPR’s Head of Analytics, Scott Mendelssohn.

We are thrilled to bring these improvements to DUPR to support you with a more accurate and more reliable rating. We can’t wait to hear what you think.

DUPR thanks you for your continued support! 

Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

734 members have already renewed their memberships for 2024.  As is typically the case, many of our members - particularly snowbirds - do not renew their Club membership until spring or early summer.  To that point, we currently have hundreds of members with a "renewal overdue status".  If all of those members were to renew later this year, we would have over 1,000 active members!

In terms of those members who have already renewed for 2024, the breakdown of those members as of February (with comparative figures for January) are as follows:

                                January          Feb (Current)       Inc/(Dec)

No Rating                  190                     220                     30

2.5 Rating                    16                       20                        4

3.0 Rating                  115                    123                        8

3.5 Rating                  195                    208                      13       

4.0 Rating                  129                    145                      16   

4.5+ Rating                  13                      18                         5            

Total Members        658                   734                      76

All members should note that memberships purchased prior to October 1, 2022 expired on December 31, 2023, so we request that if you haven't done so already, you should consider renewing your membership as soon as possible.  For instructions on how to renew your membership, please click on this link (Note: Ensure you are logged in before going past the first screen).

Until next time keep your paddle up!     

In this issue:

Election of Board Members	Indoor Play
Membership Breakdown by Rating

Election of Board Members

Treasurer - Laura Spencer 

Director at Large - Douwe Spriesma

A number of the Board positions are up for re-election so interested individuals may apply for these positions as follows:

President - Eileen McClean, will stand

Vice President -  It is recommended that this position be held by a St. Albert resident (currently held by James Porter, will not stand for re-election)

Director at Large (Tournaments) - Ken Dentzien, will stand 

Director of Information and Membership - Art Au, will stand

Director of Communications - Roger Hutlet, will stand 

If a member is interested in any of these positions, they should first read the Job Descriptions available on the SAPC website which can be accessed from this link.  

Candidates seeking to put their names forward for one of these positions may contact any member of the nominating committee (see contact details below) with a short bio stating why they would like to be nominated for the position.  If more than one candidate applies for a position, a ballot will be held at the AGM.

Nominating Committee members currently include:
Kevin McClean at kmcclean@telus.net 
Cassey Campbell  at cassey7@icloud.com
Brenda Regehr  at brendaregehr54@gmail.com

A Nominating Committee report covering the candidates will be sent out to all members with the notice of the AGM in February, 2024.

Indoor Play

Membership Cards

Just a reminder to members who have renewed their memberships for 2024 that they should have their membership information ready to show to the play captain at every venue of play. 

One Possession Academy

Please be advised that we are still waiting to hear from OPA about the dim lighting at this venue and, once the lighting issue is satisfactorily resolved, more play sessions will be scheduled.

Bertha Kennedy

At Bertha Kennedy we recently had one of the nets put together incorrectly - we are hoping we can get the poles unstuck (a net costs $300.00 so let's  be careful!).

While we appreciate players being willing to assist in the net setup process - in fact we encourage this - please be very careful.  Unless you are completely familiar with the process, please take direction from our play captains who will be overseeing the process of putting the nets together and taking them down. If you are unsure of the appropriate process for net set up and/or take down, please ask the play captain for direction.

Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

658 members have already renewed their memberships for 2024.  As is typically the case, many of our members - particularly snowbirds - do not renew their Club membership until spring or early summer.  To that point, we currently have 341 members with a "renewal overdue status".  If all of those members were to renew later this year, we would have almost exactly 1,000 active members!!

In terms of those members who have already renewed for 2024, the breakdown of those members as of January (with comparative figures for December) are as follows:

                               December        Jan (Current)      Inc/(Dec)

No Rating                  341                         190                   (151)

2.5 Rating                    18                            16                       (2)

3.0 Rating                  155                         115                     (40)

3.5 Rating                  247                         195                     (52)

4.0 Rating                  170                         129                     (41)

4.5+ Rating                  24                           13                     (11)

Total Members       955                        658                 (297)         

All members should note that memberships purchased prior to October 1, 2022 expired on December 31, 2023, so we request that if you haven't done so already, you should consider renewing your membership as soon as possible.   For instructions on how to renew your membership, please click on this link (Note: Ensure you are logged in before going past the first screen).

Until next time keep your paddle up!    

In this issue:

Membership Cards	Rating System Update
Election of Board Members	Member Training
Membership Breakdown by Rating	Broken Balls

Membership Cards

In order to play at Club play sessions, members must be prepared to show their current, active Membership Cards to the session play captain.  This is particularly important at the beginning of a new calendar year given that memberships purchased prior to October 17th of this year expire on December 31, 2023.  For instructions on how to:

1.  Add a photo to your membership card

2.  Print a membership card, or

3.  Display your membership card on your smartphone

please click here as these questions and more are answered under the heading of "Member Help FAQ".

Rating System Update

As most members will appreciate and remember, the Club adopted a new ratings process back in the spring of 2023.  At the time, the Board advised members that the Ratings Committee that was established to implement and oversee the new process would report back to members regarding learnings associated with the rollout including feedback provided by members and, finally, to make changes if necessary.

Thank you

First of all - thanks must go out to Karen and Jeanine, our Rating Coordinators, for the many of hours of work they volunteered in order to plan, set up, oversee and administer our DUPR rating sessions - you did an incredible job especially considering that this was brand new to all of us!

The Numbers

Jeanine advised the Board that 168 members have received a rating and 18 members have 10 games towards their DUPR rating.  That is a big number and a great accomplishment in such a short period of time.

Feedback

Most of the feedback has been of the operational variety as our Rating Coordinators made changes to the paperwork, processes and administration of the DUPR play sessions throughout the year in order to facilitate and streamline those processes.

The other main point of feedback is that the Club is not offering enough DUPR rating sessions particular for those members aspiring to higher level ratings like 3.5 and 4.0.  As you can probably appreciate based upon the high concentration of members who are unrated and/or at the 2.5 rating level, most of our Club-run DUPR ratings sessions have been and will continue to be offered to those members in these groups.

Recent and Future DUPR Rating Sessions

As you will have noted, the Club recently held "Aspiring to 3.0" DUPR sessions at Bertha Kennedy on December 2nd.  Further rating sessions will be held on one Sunday each month at Red Willow from January through March.

Given the constraint of limited indoor venue space, the opportunities for members to achieve higher rating levels at Club rating sessions will be limited until the next outdoor season.  As many members are aware, members do have access to DUPR play through other organizations in the area and can also arrange their own DUPR play sessions if they are able to book courts on their own (please note that these self arranged and recorded games to do not carry as much weight as Club organized sessions within the DUPR algorithm).  That being said, non-Club DUPR play sessions, if reflected in the DUPR software system, may be used to modify a member's Club Rating as detailed on the SAPC website.

Registering for DUPR Rating Sessions

When the club is putting on a DUPR rating session members eligible for the rating session will receive an invitation.

We have noted that members are registering through the calendar even when they are not eligible (they do not appear to be reading the information on the registration page); this causes more work for our Rating Coordinators.

We ask that members not register through the calendar - only those who received an invite.  If you do not receive an invite for a specific DUPR session, you may not register for it.

If there are any questions the rating coordinators can be contacted.  Thank you for your anticipated cooperation.

Election of Board Members

Treasurer - Laura Spencer 

Director at Large - Douwe Spriesma

A number of the Board positions are up for re-election so interested individuals may apply for these positions as follows:

President - Eileen McClean, will stand

Vice President -  Must be a St. Albert Resident (currently held by James Porter, will not stand for re-election)

Director at Large (Tournaments) - Ken Dentzien, will stand 

Director of Information and Membership - Art Au, will stand

Director of Communications - Roger Hutlet, will stand 

If a member is interested in any of these positions, they should first read the Job Descriptions available on the SAPC website which can be accessed from this link.  

Candidates seeking to put their names forward for one of these positions may contact any member of the nominating committee (see contact details below) with a short bio stating why they would like to be nominated for the position.  If more than one candidate applies for a position, a ballot will be held at the AGM.

Nominating Committee members currently include:
Kevin McClean at kmcclean@telus.net 
Cassey Campbell  at cassey7@icloud.com
Brenda Regehr  at brendaregehr54@gmail.com

A Nominating Committee report covering the candidates will be sent out to all members with the notice of the AGM in February, 2024.

Member Training

2023 Statistics

We are very happy to report that we have had another extremely successful year in player training.  Thank you Nicki and our amazing team of training volunteers for the many hours of work you have contributed to train our members this past year.  In total, over the course of 2023, the Club can report the following in terms of training sessions and member participation:

Type                       No. of Sessions              No. of Participants

Beginner                         59                                            348

Mentoring                      19                                            281

School Kids                       8                                            160 (approx)

Our members are extremely grateful for your dedication, patience and hard work!

Upcoming Mentoring Sessions

Speaking of training, there are four mentoring sessions coming up between January and April as follows: 

• January 20th for 2.5 (Note: the calendar will be changed so the 3.0 will play at 2:15 while ALL is cancelled)
• February 10th for 3.0 (there is no change to the February calendar)
• March 9th for 2.5  (Note: the calendar will be changed so the 3.0 will play at 2:15 while ALL is cancelled)
• April 20th for 3.0 (there is no change to the April calendar)
  

Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

Our Club continues to grow - we have welcomed an additional 26 members in just the last month!  We thought you might be interested in a breakdown of our ever-growing Club membership by Club Rating Level.  If you are, please see that breakdown below:

                               November           Dec (Current)      Inc/(Dec)

No Rating                  323                           341                      18

2.5 Rating                    16                              18                        2

3.0 Rating                  151                           155                        4

3.5 Rating                  245                           247                        2

4.0 Rating                  171                           170                      (1)

4.5+ Rating                  23                             24                        1

Total Members       929                          955                    26          

Please note that Club memberships purchased prior to October 17, 2023 will expire on December 31, 2023, so please renew your membership as soon as possible.  2024 memberships are now on sale and will expire on December 31, 2024.  For instructions on how to renew your membership, please click on this link.  Ensure you are logged in before going past the first screen.

Please note that if a member allows their membership in SAPC to lapse (e.g. doesn't renew until the spring), then the Club and the member will incur extra work to both delete and then re-add members to our other systems (Pickleball Brackets and DUPR).

Broken Balls

Do you ever wonder what happens to all those broken pickleballs?  You may be surprised and impressed to learn that these are donated for use in art projects!  For example, over 200 pickle balls are on display in art pieces in front of the payment office at Servus Place - pop by and check them out.  Thanks to Wally and Rachel Peltonen and Don Hamaliuk for making this happen!

Until next time keep your paddle up!   

In this issue:

New Daytime Indoor Venue Secured!	New Process for Red Willow Play
Volunteer Needed	Pickleball Improves Your Health
Membership Breakdown by Rating

New Daytime Indoor Venue Secured 

The Club has been fortunate to have access to another venue in St Albert.  The venue is called “One Possession Academy" and is located in Unit 50, 320 Circle Drive, St. Albert (in Campbell Park).  Way to go Eileen - our members appreciate all of the work you have done to research and negotiate for this space!

There will be several sessions offered for different levels of play at this new venue.  All of the play will be pre-registered as series play.  Very shortly you will be able to check the Reserved Play Calendar for the sessions that will be offered. In addition, please monitor your inbox for the registration opening and registration e-mails; this is likely to happen over the next couple of days. If registered play is successful, we will continue with pre-registered play at this venue for the months of January through March, 2024.

There are 2 beautiful courts, so 8 out of a maximum 10 pre-registered players will play each round - maximizing play time, while assuring at least 8 players are present for each session.  All play sessions will be for two hours and will include round robin play with other players at your level for five sessions.

Additional Details:

• Price $50 for the series ($10/session), plus GST (total $52.50), paid online at time of reservation.
  

• We must fill this series event play.  If the series does not fill, it will be cancelled and payments will be refunded.

• Member cancellations are not allowed after payment, but members may sell or transfer sessions to another qualifying member.  To be clear refunds will be made if the club cancels, but not for a requested member cancellation.

• One of the 10 successful registrants will be asked to captain and can lead the organization of the round robin play.

• If you are registered but unable to attend one session, please find a substitute member at your play level to take your place for that one session. Substitutions are allowed as we must keep the courts filled to ensure continual play for all.

See the Reserved Play page under the Play menu for instructions on making a reservation.

New Process for Reserved Play (Red Willow)

A new limitation is being implemented for Reserved play such that members may book one session time only for the following week; as you may know, registration opens at 12:01 am on Friday mornings.  If there are still open spots after 48 hours (Sundays at 12:01 am), you may book as many additional open spots as you like.  So for clarity, anyone registering between 12:01 Friday and 12:01 on Sunday may only reserve one spot during that time frame.

Please note that the Club will be monitoring adherence to this new procedure and will be in contact with any members who are not in compliance.  This change is being made to afford more opportunity for all eligible members to register for these limited number of reserved play sessions.

Volunteer Opportunity

The Club is offering an exciting new opportunity to any of our near 1,000 Club members to assist Laura Spencer, our esteemed Treasurer, with some of her administrative functions. 

The work that Laura would like to delegate to this volunteer role involves recording the number of stickers found on each sticker sheet (per venue per time slot).  This work is done once monthly once the completed "sticker sheets" are dropped off or e-mailed to the person responsible for this function (this is done by the play session captains within a few days of each month end).  Once all sheets are received, the numbers are entered into an Excel spreadsheet which forms the basis for the accounting of play revenue by venue.   You don't need any clerical nor accounting experience and Laura will train you and answer any questions you may have.

If you have interest in this role as a way of giving back to your Club in a very small way, please contact Laura immediately and directly by clicking here - Laura and the Club would really appreciate it!

Pickleball Contributes to Physical and Mental Health

Art Au suggested an excellent article from Kelly Campbell that speaks to the mental health benefits of playing pickleball.  Please see excerpts below and click on this link to see the full article.

From Kelly Campbell published online by TrackItHub:

As picklers, we all know that pickleball obviously makes us happier and healthier, but whether that’s mostly from our personal love for the game or from the act of playing pickleball itself can be hard to say. While we know that any type of physical exercise is known to improve mental health, there hasn’t been much concrete information about pickleball’s effects on mental health specifically––until now. Need another reason to justify your pickleball obsession to family or friends?  Here it is. 

In October a study came out that detailed pickleball health benefits using data from Apple Watch users. The study confirmed that not only did pickleball players experience better metabolic and cardiovascular health from its impressive workout, but they also reported less depression across the board.  

We agree that the pickleball phenomenon is worth taking a closer look at. It’s safe to say that no sport in recent years has had even close to the same amount of buzz and growth as pickleball. The numbers speak for themselves - according to the SFIA, pickleball participation has grown an average of 158.6% over the last 3 years. Today, about 37 million people play, and it continues to be the fastest-growing sport in the United States.

The Apple Heart and Movement Study (AHMS) compared pickleball and tennis using data from Apple Watch users who elected to be included in the study. The participants reported workouts, done for at least 10 minutes, labeled either pickleball or tennis between January 1st, 2021, and August 31st, 2023. Throughout the study, participant physical fitness was studied and compared. All participants were also invited to complete a quarterly health survey. As the study progressed, so did pickleball growth.  While tennis participants stayed stable year to year and season to season, pickleball growth among users continued to increase, regardless of the season.  By July 2023, the number of pickleball players surpassed tennis.

• Aerobic activity (like pickleball) releases endorphins, which boosts mood and reduces stress.

• Inclusivity - pickleball is safe for all ages and skill levels. This makes it easy to find someone to play with 

• Social connection - pickleball encourages community building and social interaction, which is good for mental health 

• Pickleball provides a sense of purpose and fulfillment, which is also shown to have positive effects on mental health.  Playing a sport and wanting to get better at it encourages goal-setting and practice. Winning and improving fosters a sense of pride, accomplishment, and positive self-esteem

• Pickleball is also linked to better brain health and cognitive function because it requires players to think quickly and strategically. Pickleball is a mind exercise in addition to a physical exercise because it uses problem-solving. Research suggests that playing pickleball will decrease the likelihood of cognitive decline, boost memory and processing speed, and decrease anxiety 

It’s obvious that we’re not going to stop dinking any time soon either way, but it’s always good to hear that the sport we love so much loves us back. Keep this study handy for your next pickleball elevator pitch at the dinner table. 

Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

Wow is this Club ever growing - we have welcome an additional 52 members in just the last month!  We thought you might be interested in a breakdown of our ever-growing Club membership by Club Rating Level.  If you are, please see that breakdown below:

                               October             Nov (Current)       Inc/(Dec)

No Rating                 300                           323                      23

2.5 Rating                    12                             16                        4

3.0 Rating                  136                          151                      15

3.5 Rating                  241                           245                       4

4.0 Rating                  168                           171                       3

4.5+ Rating                  20                             23                        3

Total Members       877                          929                    52          

Please note that Club memberships purchased prior to October 1, 2022 will expire on December 31, 2023, so please renew your membership as soon as possible.  2024 memberships are now on sale and will expire on December 31, 2024.  For instructions on how to renew your membership, please click on this link.  Ensure you are logged in before going past the first screen.

Please note that if a member allows their membership in SAPC to lapse (e.g. doesn't renew until the spring), then the Club and the member will incur extra work to both delete and then re-add members to our other systems (Pickleball Brackets and DUPR).

Until next time keep your paddle up!   

In this issue:

Membership Renewals/Pricing	Transition to Indoor Play
DUPR Update	Membership Breakdown by Rating

Membership Renewals/Pricing 

2024 memberships are now on sale (as of October 17, 2023) and will expire on December 31, 2024.

Fee Summary for 2024:

You will first pay $25 and a small processing fee to join Pickleball Canada and Pickleball Alberta, then adults will pay $52.38 ($55 with GST) to join SAPC for the 2024 membership year.  Youth members have a reduced SAPC fee of $12.38 ($13 with GST).

Please note that our annual fee is non-refundable.  

Transition to Indoor Play

As you have been previously been advised by e-mail, we are transitioning to indoor play and our school venues are now open.  As such, It is important to reiterate some recent messaging in order to refresh your memory and to avoid the questions that inevitably arise at this time of year as we transition from outdoor to indoor play.  

Alpine Nets Coming Down

The Alpine nets will be coming down next week.  Our equipment will be placed in storage on Monday, October 23rd at 10:00am.  While the nets remain up members are welcome to play outside while the weather permits. 

Please contact Wally Peltonen if you can help on Monday - just text Wally at (780) 381-8286;  the more hands to help the easier the work!  

Membership Cards, Etc.

A reminder to everyone to bring their SAPC membership card to all our sessions and events.  The card can be printed or displayed on a member's smartphone and will indicate the member's date of membership and current rating level.  This is particularly important for new members and members who have recently achieved a new SAPC rating level.  This becomes important for all members come January or February at which time everyone needs to provide proof of their 2023 membership renewal.  As noted in previous Newsletters, don't forget to bring your stickers (see more about stickers below).  You will also need a pair of clean, indoor athletic shoes for your indoor play.  Finally, keep yourself refreshed by bringing a water bottle or two (no other beverages are permitted at our indoor venues).

Calendars

Did you know that there are calendars which show all play sessions that pertain to each level of play?  You will find all of our Calendars on the SAPC website.  For example if you are at the 3.5 level, just click on that Calendar (Rated 3.5 Calendar under the heading "Calendar by Rating and Training"), and you will only see the sessions that you are eligible to play in.  For new members especially, please note that the school venues are drop in sessions requiring 1 sticker and the Red Willow sessions are for pre-registered play requiring 2 stickers.  If you don't have stickers, they can be ordered from the online "Store" on the website by clicking on this link after signing in.  

Please note that these Calendars do change from time to time, so it is best practice to verify the date, time and venue of your session before attending by quickly going to the appropriate website Calendar.

Arrive on Time

It is important for members to be at the school venues on time as we are not to disturb the school caretakers by ringing the school bell.  Instead, the captain will assign someone to "man the door" at the start of the session.  No one will be allowed to enter the school once ten minutes has passed beyond the scheduled start time for each session.

Play Type

Depending on the numbers of members playing at the school venues, the play type may be paddle play or round robin as determined by the play session captain.

School Venues

Entry to the schools is by the main door.  Members will place outdoor shoes just inside the foyer.  All other belongings are to brought inside the gym.  There is no leaving the school gyms to wander through the schools at any time.  Washrooms are accessible within all of the gyms except for Holy Family.

Reserved Play at Red Willow

Red Willow registered events will generally open the Friday before at 12:00:01 am (in case you're wondering, this is just after midnight at the end of Thursday).  

Please note that registration play and attendance is capped at 12 members - 11 members who register and 1 spot for the session captain.  Registered play at Red Willow costs 2 stickers.  Members should not hesitate to go on the waitlist if the session is full; there are often cancellations.  If there is a cancellation, the first person on the waiting list will receive an email - please respond quickly so that the open position can be filled if you are no longer interested or available.

You will note that there are a few days where there is All Play as well as play for various rating levels.  Please only register for one session per day.  If you see that a session is not full the night before the event, then you may feel free to register for another session on that same day - it is only under these circumstances that you would be able to participate in 2 play sessions on the same day.

Please help out the captains who are starting the first and last sessions of the day.  Kindly, assist in the set up and taking down the nets, putting away the chairs, etc.

You may now enter the Red Willow foyer a few minutes early and wait for your session to begin.  This will allow you to remove your shoes and otherwise prepare for your session.   However, please stay to the side in the foyer allowing the group that is leaving space to collect their coats/shoes and to easily leave the venue.  Do not enter the church gym until everyone in the previous session has left.   Members should not leave any valuables in the foyer as the Church and Club will not be responsible for loss nor theft.

No one is permitted to enter Red Willow for the first session until 8:45am.  - this is a strict start time.  As such, we ask that if you are registered for the first session of the day that you please be on time in order to help get the session started on time.  We will plan on each session having cleared the gym a few minutes before the end time of the session; that will allow the gym to be cleared of players before the next group goes in.

Visitors

There will be no visitors accepted for indoor play as space is limited and with over 850+ members we need the space for the members.

DUPR rating sessions

DUPR rating clinics will be held through out the winter months.

Level One Sports Venue - more information will be coming about this venue so stay tuned.

DUPR Update

The Rating Committee established by the SAPC Board met on October 12, 2023 to consider our recent recent learnings with DUPR and to consider changes in our ratings protocols and DUPR play.  Outlined below are the key learnings/outcomes from that meeting.

General Comments

First of all, it is important to recognize that DUPR is not perfect; nor is any other rating mechanism.  Recent changes to DUPR rating algorithms are not helpful in terms of creating confidence in the DUPR system.  That being said, however, it is the Club's determination that DUPR remains the most cost effective and viable basis for our Club ratings at least for now.  We are also hopeful that the expertise DUPR has, and the efforts DUPR staff are making will result in an even better rating system solution over time.

We also recognize some members' interests in skills-based improvement and feedback which is not available under the DUPR system as compared to an independent certified rating evaluation.  To this end, the Club will continue to offer some mentoring sessions and acknowledges that the Edmonton region continues to have multiple alternatives for those wanting more intensive mentoring and coaching.  We wish we could do more now, within our club, but we think we're doing well in this area given the resources (volunteers and venues) we currently have available to us.

Future DUPR Sessions and Ratings Related Decisions/Changes:

1.    Our Club may periodically offer two types of DUPR events this indoor season, depending on: (i) demand, (ii) sufficient volunteers to run sessions and enter scores into DUPR, and (iii) venue availability. The two types of DUPR events are:

•  "Aspiring To" events (have "Aspiring to" in the event title)
•   Other DUPR play events

Demand for some of this play may be initially gauged by means of a survey. We also expect the frequency of these events will be low as we learn of member's interest (demand) and our volunteer capacity. Check our Calendars frequently to stay abreast of opportunities, and please volunteer as a captain if you want to see more of these events. 

2.  Effective November 1, we are removing one restriction to  our "Aspiring To" events; specifically, members may now register for such events even if they already have 20 or more DUPR scored games.  Please also note the following:

• These events will still be restricted to those with a particular rating. E.g., "Aspiring to 3.0" events will only be offered to those with no club rating or with a 2.5 club rating
• These events will be available on a "first registered basis"
• See each event description for more detail; event descriptions can be seen by clicking on an event in one of our play Calendars

3.   We have simplified the process for having a DUPR or tournament rating recognized as a club rating:

• You can now apply anytime (not just on certain months and dates), and
• Effective October 14, 2023, you will now automatically get a rating under the following conditions - you play your 20th DUPR-rated game in a club-organized "Aspiring To" DUPR play rating session AND you did not previously have an SAPC Club Rating.

4.   All existing club ratings continue to be grandfathered. There is no imminent change to this policy.  This means that even if your current DUPR rating is above or below your current club rating, your Club rating will not be changed until and unless you ask for it to be changed.

5.    To be clear, clause 3 and 4 above specifically means:

• If you play your 20th DUPR rated game in a Club organized "Aspiring to" session and you previously had a 2.5, 3.0, 3.5 or other Club Rating, we will not change your Club Rating until and unless you ask for it to be changed.
• If you play your 20th DUPR rated game in a Club organized "Aspiring to" session and you currently have NO Club Rating, you will automatically be given one based on your most recent DUPR rating, within a few days of playing that 20th game;  there will be no exceptions in this regard.
• If you play your 20th DUPR rated game in another SAPC DUPR session (not an "Aspiring to" session) you will not have your rating adjusted until you ask for it to be changed.
• If you play your 20th DUPR rated game with other DUPR players, either on your own or at a non-SAPC event, you will not have your rating adjusted until you ask for it to be changed.
• To have your DUPR rating recognized as your Club Rating, at any time after your 20th DUPR game, you must ask for it to be changed.

For more info, see our updated content on these pages:

•  Skill Levels and Ratings
•  DUPR
•  SAPC DUPR Play FAQ

Membership Breakdown by Rating Level

We thought you might be interested in a breakdown of our ever-growing Club membership by Club Rating Level.  If you are, please see that breakdown below:

                               September          Oct (Current)       Inc/(Dec)

No Rating                  290                           300                      10

2.5 Rating                    12                             12               No Change

3.0 Rating                  132                          136                         4

3.5 Rating                  245                           241                       (4)

4.0 Rating                  160                           168                         8

4.5+ Rating                  19                              20                         1

Total Members       858                          877                      19                           

Until next time keep your paddle up!   

In this issue:

September Windup Tournament	Guidance for Social Media
Call for Indoor Captains	Club Statistics
A Message from Alex Martin

September Windup Tournament 

Just a reminder that we will be holding our fall windup tournament on Sept 16/17. This tournament is on Pickleballbrackets.com and registration closes at 8 pm this Sunday.  If you haven't already registered you should consider doing so as these events are always a lot of fun and a great way to meet and socialize with other Club members.

Guidance regarding Social Media Posts

As you may have noticed, some of our social media postings, especially in our WhatsApp groups are getting a little unruly and beyond the scope of Club operations.  As such, the Club has updated its electronic communications policy which can be access by clicking on this link.

While you must read the entire policy for complete guidance, we would like to highlight a couple of key extracts from our policy as follows:

All electronic communications must:

• be timely, appropriate and related to club business; 

• not be used to endorse people, products, services or organizations, unless approved by the board 

These two points are particularly relevant given the many recent ads that have been posted or been requested to be posted to our Facebook group page and our Club WhatsApp group chats.  What is important to note is that no service, entertainment or other event, or product may be advertised or offered for sale on Club Social Media.  The only exception as noted in the policy is the sale of used pickleball equipment by members (for example offering your used paddle for sale).   If pickleball related vendors or suppliers wish to advertise their products or services to Club members on these sites, they must have entered into official, signed sponsorship agreements with the Club as noted in our policy regard same.

After having read the full policy you are still unsure about an item you wish to post, please contact the Communications Manager.

Call for Indoor Captains

It is that time of year folks!

We need Captains for the following indoor venues for our upcoming fall and wither play.

Here is the tentative schedule planned starting this fall:

Monday  7:00 to 9:00 pm at Joseph Demko, Rating - 3.5

Monday  6:00 to 8:00 pm at Bertha Kennedy, Rating - ALL

Tuesday 6:00 to 8:00 pm at Bertha Kennedy, Rating - 2.5

Thursday 6:30 to 9:30 pm at JJ Nearing, Rating - 2.5

Friday 6:00-9:00 pm at Bertha Kennedy, Rating - 3.0

Friday 6:15 to 9:30 pm at Lois E Hole, Rating - ALL

Friday 6:00 to 9:00 pm at Holy family, Rating - 3.5+

Saturday  2:15 to 4:45 pm at Bertha Kennedy, Rating -  ALL

Wednesday 6:00 to 8:00 pm at Bertha Kennedy, Rating 4.0+

Wednesday 6:30 to 9:30 pm at Sister Alphonse, Rating - 3.5

Saturday 9:15 am to 12:00 pm at Bertha Kennedy, Rating -  4.0+

Saturday  12:00 to 2:15 pm at Bertha Kennedy, Rating - 2.5

Saturday 10:30 am to 1:30 pm at Joseph Demko, Rating - 3.5

There will be a Captains meeting on Tuesday. September 26th from 9:00 to 10:30 am and Tuesday September 26th in the evening from 6:00 to 7:30 pm.

If interested in joining the Captains team, please confirm your attendance by responding to the venuemanager@pickleballstalbert.ca stating which meeting you will be attending. 

Please note that you do not have been a past Captain in order to volunteer - training and all of the information you need to know will be provided to you.  The Club is very appreciative for the volunteer efforts of our past and current Captains and strongly encourages new members to give back to the Club by volunteering in this important role.

Club Statistics

Membership Breakdown

We thought you might be interested in a breakdown of our ever-growing Club membership by Club Rating Level.  If you are, please see that breakdown below:

No Rating - 290 

2.5 Rating - 12 

3.0 Rating - 132

3.5 Rating - 245

4.0 Rating - 160

4.5 Rating - 17

5.0 Rating - 2

Total current Club members = 858

Alpine Courts Play Breakdown

May Data:

2.5                 79 members played 

3.0               179 members played 

3.0+.              72 members played

3.5               519 members played 

3.5W             58 members played 

4.0+             297 members played

ALL  Play    213 members played 

Partner       310 members played 

70+                 71 members played 

Evening play

2.5 RR            47 members played 

3.0+ RR          68 members played 

3.5+ RR          72 members played 

June Data:

2.5                   68 members played 

3.0                 217 members played

3.0+              104 members played

3.5                 549  members played 

3.5W                41  members played 

4.0+               354 members played

ALL Play       138 members played 

Partner         244 members played 

70+                   65 members played 

Evening play

2.5 RR              49 members played 

3.0+ RR            67 members played

3.5+ RR          114 members played 

July Data:

2.5                   141 members played 

3.0                   155 members played 

3.0+                   79 members played

3.5                   480 members played 

3.5W                  40  members played 

4.0+                  233 members played

ALL Play          143 members played 

Partner            136 members played 

70+                      63 members played 

Evening play

2.5 RR                 17 members played 

3.0+ RR             106 members played 

3.5+ RR               79 members played 

(NOTE: More 2.5 sessions were added)

Other Summer Play at Alpine:

League ladies play - Mondays an average of 30 ladies played

DUPR 3.5 sessions - 47 members on average (10 sessions)

League Mixed Play - An average of 70 members played each session 

Total Number of Individual Plays in each month not including DUPR/League:

1985 in May

2051 in June

1655 in July

In Addition:

474 DUPR participants in these three months

360 Ladies League participants in the three months

840 Players participated in 4.0+ Mixed League Play in these three months 

Total members plays at Alpine was 7365 from May through July!  Yup, we're making good use of those courts!!

A Message from Alex Martin

A message to all members of the St. Albert Pickleball Club from Alex Martin:

A year ago I went into cardiac arrest while playing pickleball at the Hub. Fortunately, I was with a group of guys who reacted quickly and performed first aid on me; there was a AED machine there which the guys used to revive me, and they worked on me until the ambulance personnel got to the site to take over.  Because of the actions of these men, including access to the AED machine, as well as the fantastic medical care that I received at the Mazankowski Alberta Heart Institute, I’m fortunate to be alive today  and very much enjoying life.  The people in the St. Albert Pickleball Club have been fantastic with all the support, care and friendship that they have shown to me - my family and I will always be grateful to all of you!

Until next time keep your paddle up!   

In this issue:

September Windup Tournament	Thanks to Sean McCartan
Passing of John Sandmoen	Westridge Community League Tourney
Drinking / Dehydration

September Windup Tournament 

We will be holding our fall windup tournament on Sept 16/17.  The format will be a blind round robin, with men's and women's doubles on Sep 16th and mixed doubles on Sept 17th.  This tournament will be on Pickleballbrackets.com starting August 23rd for registration. 

Please note that we would like to use this tournament to train some people to learn pickleball brackets and other positions for our sanctioned tournament next season. 

Please email Ken Dentzien at kendentzien@gmail.com if you would like help out with any of the following:

• Pickleballbrackets - entering game scores and sending out new games (not as complicated nor technical as it may sound)
• Registration desk
• Court runners 
• Announcing
• Court maintenance and setup the morning of the tournament

If you are playing, but still want to help out we will coordinate with your play schedule.

Training Paddles

A special thanks to Sean McCartan who regripped all of the Club's training paddles.  Thank you Sean for the generous donation of your time to make this happen - your hard work is truly appreciated!

Passing of John Sandomen

It is with great sadness (and with his family's blessing) that we announce the passing of John Sandmoen on August 12, 2023. 

John loved many sports including pickleball; he was a joy to play with, always encouraging and a great ambassador for the sport!  We will miss him on the courts.  John was 76 years old and is survived by his wife Lynda and 4 children.  Rest in peace John.

A public memorial service will be held at 11:00 AM on August 25th, 2023 at the St. Albert Inn Guardian room.

Westridge Community League Tournament

In case you are interested, you may join the Westridge Community Leage for a pub night and doubles pickleball tournament (all levels welcome) on September 8/9th.  The proceeds from these events are in support of resurfacing their courts. For donation and sponsorship opportunities, please contact Gaby Sonego.

Event Details:

Pub Night Event - Friday, September 8, 2023 (7pm -11pm)

PB Event - Saturday, September 9, 2023 (Start Time: 9am)

Event Address: 505 Wolf Willow Road (Westridge Community League)

Entry fee is $40 for PB tournament.  Entry deadline is Friday, September 1, 2023

Format:

Register individually for the tournament

Each player will be guaranteed 5 games in a round robin format

Players will have a new partner each game (either female or male)

Each game score first to 11 points

Payments:

• Payment via E-transfer to: payments@wwwcccl.com

• Please include the following in the message section in your e-transfer: PB fee, player name, age, email, phone #, play level (beginner, intermediate, advanced or open), pub night (yes/no & other guest names)

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Don Mah  at 780.984.3223 or dmah617@gmail.com

Drinking / Dehydration

Please be reminded to drink plenty of liquids, particularly if you are 50 years or older in age. Bring plenty of water when playing pickleball, particularly when playing outdoors on hot summer days - like many we have had this summer.  I have included extracts of an article from a physician, Arnaldo Liechentstein on this topic below (thanks to Scott McDonald for suggesting and providing this information).  While this information applies particularly to those over 50, it is useful advice for everyone.

People over 50 generally stop feeling thirsty and, consequently, stop drinking fluids.  When no one is around to remind them to drink fluids, they quickly dehydrate.  Dehydration is severe and affects the entire body; it may cause abrupt mental confusion, a drop in blood pressure, increased heart palpitations, angina (chest pain), coma and even death.

People over 50 have a lower water reserve.  This is part of the natural aging process.  But there are more complications.  Although they are dehydrated, they don't feel like drinking water, because their internal balance mechanisms don't work very well.  

People over 50 years old dehydrate easily, not only because they have a smaller water supply, but also, because they do not feel the lack of water in the body.   So here are two alerts:

1) *Get into the habit of drinking liquids*.  Liquids include water, juices, teas, coconut water, milk, soups, and water-rich fruits, such as watermelon, melon, peaches and pineapple, orange and tangerine also work. The important thing is that, every two hours, you must drink some liquid. Remember this.  (Note: We recommend that you drink water after every game of pickleball that you play).

2)  Alert for family members: constantly offer fluids to people over age 60.  At the same time, observe them.  If you realize that they are rejecting liquids and, from one day to the next, they are irritable, breathless or display a lack of attention, these are almost certainly recurrent symptoms of dehydration. 

Inspired to drink more water now? 

Here is the link to his blog:

https://www.justwater.co.nz/our-blog/hydration-over-50-vital-for-good-health

Until next time keep your paddle up!  

In this issue:

Court Etiquette	Be on Time - RR/Ladder Play
Be Safe - Consider Eyeware	WhatsApp Etiquette Guidelines
New Rec Center/High Demand for PB

Court Etiquette

Given some recent incidents and behaviours noted in Club Play, we would like our members to read our Member Handbook and our Code of Conduct policy on our website by clicking here.  In addition, we ask that you thoughtfully consider and adopt the following appropriate behaviours:

1.  Follow the instructions of your play Captain and be courteous to the Captain and other players throughout the session 

2.  Be courteous, respectful, and HAVE FUN - for example,

   • Welcome newcomers
   • At the beginning of the game introduce yourself, if not familiar with your partner or players
   • Be patient with and encouraging of less skilled players
   • Compliment other players on the court including opponents
   • Always thank your opponents and your playing partner when the game is over
3.  Call the fault yourself if you or your partner land in the NVZ (kitchen)  on a volley.  Be cautious about calling kitchen or foot faults on your  opponents – let them call their own faults and don't question their line calls 
4.  When a ball is out of bounds, call “OUT” loudly, as well as using a hand signal with your hand/arm pointing up
5.  If playing a stronger opponent playing with a weaker opponent during casual play, hit to the stronger opponent often.  Don’t just play to the weaker opponent.  It will make you a better player plus keep the game interesting for all who are playing.  For the weaker opponent, work on shots that they can return and learn from.  (It’s not always about winning)
6.  Do not intentionally slam balls directly at beginner or intermediate level opponents; if one of your balls accidentally strikes an opponent, apologize immediately and try to better your control your balls returns
7.  Unsolicited coaching on the court is not recommended.  If someone is new or asks for your input, do so briefly being mindful of the flow of the game.  It is best to instruct on a specified court after being invited.

Be on Time for Scheduled Club Sessions

We request that all members understand the play parameters set out by the Club and Play Session Captains including, most importantly, showing up early and before the registration cutoff for each session.

Showing up late causes:

1.  Frustration and extra work for the Captain for both round robin and ladder play sessions including last minute/multiple adjustments 

2.  Frustration for those players who showed up on time by virtue of the extra work/delays noted in point #1

3.  Anger on the part of players who showed up late/after the designated cutoff time because they are told they cannot play

Specifically, in light of a recent sign-in issue at a 3.5 DUPR play session, we are hereby informing future participants in these sessions as follows:

If you register to play in 3.5 DUPR Ladder Play on Wednesday evening, it is imperative that you sign in with 1 sticker at the Club table by the Alpine storage area by  NO LATER  THAN 5:40 PM.

Here's why....

Many hours of volunteer time and effort go into DUPR sessions, before, during and after each session.

After sign-in, there's a flurry of activity in the 15 minutes just before the games begin, including assigning courts to all 50 players, preparing baskets, writing all score sheet for each court, and announcements.

Because of these required tasks, if you are late for sign-in, you will NOT be able to play that evening – SORRY.

Note:  Please think of the other players that showed up on time and are eagerly waiting to start play on time as well as your Captain(s) who volunteered their time to coordinate these sessions and don't deserve extra work nor to be verbally abused (see Court Etiquette points in the Article above - no profanity, insults, harassment, etc. will be tolerated and abuses will be documented potentially resulting in sanctions to members involved).

Safety

Just a reminder to play safe and to seriously consider playing with protective eyewear.

As noted in the aforementioned Member Code of Conduct under Safety:

Pickleball is a fast sport played at close range with your opponents.  The Club has had incidents where players have been hit in the eye and injured because they were not wearing protective eyewear.  To avoid retinal injury, we strongly recommend that players wear protective eyewear (eyeglass/frames at the very least) when playing to minimize occurrences of this all to common pickleball injury.

WhatsApp Communication

The Club and most members are very pleased with the WhatsApp groups that the Club has created and maintains to facilitate Club communication within various rating levels.  WhatsApp allows our members to stay in the loop with information tailored to their rating level even when they are out of the country (as it needs wi-fi only and does not lead to data usage under your mobile device plan).

If you would like to join a WhatsApp group that you are eligible for, please click this SAPC website link and scroll down to WHATSAPP to learn how to make your request to join.

While these groups have been very popular, the Club believes and has received feedback that some communication advice may be in order.  As such, the Club has created etiquette guidelines which have been posted to the website under Social Media and the topic "WhatsApp Group Etiquette" (same link as noted earlier in this article).

Please take time to review these points of etiquette and contact SAPC if you have any questions.  The Club will be monitoring communications within the WhatsApp groups and contacting members who "violate" the etiquette guidelines as warranted.

New Rec Centre  / High Demand for PB Courts

Great news!   A majority of St. Albert survey respondents support a tax hike for a new recreation centre as per a St. Albert Gazette story which can by accessed by clicking on the link below:

https://www.stalbertgazette.com/local-news/majority-of-survey-respondents-support-tax-hike-for-new-rec-centre-7050577

You will note that the Gazette article states that outdoor pickle ball courts were in high demand and a top priority amongst respondents based upon the survey recently conducted by the City.

We would like to thank all those members who heeded our suggestion and responded to this survey and expressed a need for more outdoor pickle ball courts - it appears that our voices are being heard!

Until next time keep your paddle up!