By Judith Klontz
Whenever you get 80 ladies together to play Doubles Pickleball, it can be nothing but a success. On Saturday, June 15, 80 women arrived at Riverside Park in Kamloops to spend a day forgetting about anything but Pickleball. Most of the players were from Kamloops and Vernon, but participants also hailed from Cranbrook, Salmon Arm, Merritt, Trail, as well as Barriere (Mary McLellan and Linda Ransome), and Little Fort (Judi Klontz).
With eight players in each skill group (2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5 and 5.0), everyone managed to play seven – 15-minute games throughout the day; each game with a different partner. This was a great way to meet many players and new friendships were formed. This large facility at Riverside permitted all levels to be played at once, and 10 courts were full of action throughout the day. North Kamloops also has outdoor courts, so those not entered in the tournament were able to feed their obsession whilst the tournament ladies enjoyed their day.
Playing on outdoor courts was a big challenge for the Lower North Thompson players as they found the hard surface and outdoor ball was much different to indoor courts and the softer ball conditions usually played within Barriere. I was amazed at how hard I could hit that ball as my returns were often ‘out’. Probably nothing to do with nerves having played in my first tournament!
In addition, most games were played on a combination of Tennis and Pickleball lined courts, with very light blue lines for Pickleball and white lines for Tennis marking. This caused many errors for me as my old eyes were often confused as to whether the ball was in or out. No experience ever goes to waste if one learns something new and can learn to adapt.
With temperatures soaring to 29°C (in the shade – I’m sure it was much WARMER on the courts with the full sun pounding down on us), everyone was grateful for the shade of the trees and the drinks supplied by one of the major sponsors- Runners Sole. Energy was boosted by many muffins and fruit brought by members of the Kamloops Pickleball Club, and Starbucks supplied our caffeine boost. Lunch was very welcome at midday as participants feasted on Subway sandwiches.
A raffle to raise money for the Kamloops Pickleball Club Court Development Fund raised $900 and many participants walked away with some great prizes; a homemade quilt, Asic court shoes, t-shirts and two paddles from Runners Sole, Kamloops Wildlife Park passes, water-bottles, punch cards to play Pickleball on Kamloops courts, socks, a Sally’s gift bag, and much more. A random draw in each division was also made for additional prizes (wine).
The Kamloops Pickleball Club certainly knows how to get people to attend events when they offer the potential of winning a prize.
A great time was had by the three players from Barriere/Little Fort and we have all registered (along with Catherine McNeil) for the next local tournament which is the Put your Paddle to the Metal in Vernon, on Aug. 23, 2019. We anticipate that we will be car pooling to Kamloops once a week to practice on outdoor courts as this is a ‘serious’ Sanctioned Tournament and will count toward placing us in our skill category.
Pickleball will continue throughout the summer at The Ridge in Barriere – Monday 2 p.m. - 4 p.m., Tuesday and Friday 1 p.m. - 3 p.m. New players are always welcome, and more experienced players will take the time to help those new to the game.