In this issue:

New Board Members / Volunteers	Referee Training
New Equipment Coordinator	DUPR Player Volunteers Needed
Termination of Level 1 Sports

New Board Members / Volunteers

As you are aware, we held our Annual General Meeting last night.  We would like to thank all members who joined the Zoom meeting and contributed their time, questions and comments.

During our meeting a number of Board member changes and appointments to key volunteer positions were approved.   

First of all the new (current) Board of Directors is as follows:

President - Eileen McClean (incumbent)

Vice President - James Porter (incumbent)

Treasurer - Laura Spencer (formerly Ray Keroack)

Secretary - Jenna McCully (formerly Douwe Spriensma)

Communications Director - Roger Hutlet (incumbent)

Director of Membership and Volunteers - Carol Mah (incumbent)

Director at Large - Ken Dentzien (incumbent)

Director at Large - Douwe Spriensma (formerly Tamas Virag)

The Club would like to thank all the new incumbents for their willingness to stand for election and to volunteer their time and skills to the Club in these capacities.  As well, words cannot properly describe the gratitude of the Board for the contributions of Ray and Tamas in their Board of Director roles over the past many years.  Finally, we thank Ray for taking on the role of technology lead going forward, to Tamas for staying on the technology team and to Douwe for staying on as a Director at Large.

Other Key Positions Elections

Ombudsperson - Mike Bowen

Auditor - Lawrence Taylor

Nominating Committee Chair - Kevin McClean

Nominating Committee Members - Brenda Regehr, Cassey Campbell

The Board would like to thank Gerry Gartner and Jenna McCully for their past service and contributions to the Nominating Committee.

Referee Training

The Club would like members to be aware of the following referee training opportunities:

1.  Learning to Mark the Scoresheet

For those members who would like to learn how to mark a Pickleball scorecard properly, please attend the zoom meeting below (please note it is 5:00 pm Arizona time which is 6:00 pm our time).

The National Leader of Officiating is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting as follows:

Topic:  Referee Training Session 1 -  Marking the Scoresheet
Time:  Mar 13, 2023 5:00 PM (Arizona time)
Join Zoom Meeting:  https://us06web.zoom.us/j/7728339865
Meeting ID:  772 833 9865

2.   Referee Clinic

We will be hosting a referee clinic on May 13th.  If  you would like to become a referee or want to learn more about the rules, please email Ken Dentzien at kendentzien@gmail.com (as well as to register and get more information).  There is no cost to take the clinic.

New Equipment Coordinator

Mark Nadeau expressed interest in leaving the Equipment Coordinator role that he has held and performed admirably in for several years.   As such, the Club recruited Wally Peltonen to take on this role.  We would like to thank Wally for volunteering to take on this position and Mark for doing a great job in this capacity during his tenure (together with his may helpers).

DUPR Player Volunteers

In terms of the logistics for the upcoming DUPR Rating Clinics described in a recent e-mail to members, it makes sense to run the first clinic for those members who would like to achieve a 3.5 Club Rating (for clarity this would include unrated players and those who currently have 2.5 or 3.0 Club Ratings).  As noted in the DUPR implementation plan, this requires at least one and possibly two player volunteers who have a current DUPR (Non-Provisional) Rating between 3.25 and 3.75.  The Club is aware that several of our members fall into this category and would ask that they step forward and participate in some of the early DUPR Rating Clinics which are likely to take place indoors in early April.  If you meet the criteria and are willing to volunteer in this way, please e-mail our Rating Coordinator team (unless you have done so already).  

Level 1 Sports Termination

In case you have not heard, our contract with the Level 1 Sports venue has not been extended.  Unfortunately, our members did not sufficiently support this venue and without that support we can no longer offer this venue despite a variety of play options at this site.

Thanks to those who did attend the sessions at Level one and kept it open for over three months.

Until next time, keep your paddle up!    

New Ratings Framework - Recommendations

As noted in our last two Newsletters, the Club is making changes to the way member players are rated.  Specifically, the Club will be adopting a performance-based ratings system called the Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating (DUPR for short) to establish a Club rating for new members who want to be rated and existing members who wish to be re-rated.

As also noted previously, a Rating Committee was formed to learn more about DUPR and determine whether it may be a good fit for the Club.

Having conducted this research, the Rating Committee members unanimously recommended the adoption of the DUPR system in some form by virtue of the following resolution:

“The Rating Committee recommends that SAPC adopt a performance-based rating system called DUPR subject to the development of a suitable implementation plan and SAPC member feedback”

This resolution was approved by the SAPC Board on February 6^th.

The Board then tasked the Rating Committee with the development of a detailed implementation plan for a new ratings process regime.

First of all, we would like to provide some background and context based upon the research conducted by the Club and, more recently, the Rating Committee over the last few months:

Background

During our research the Rating Committee has learned the following with respect to DUPR:

1.      DUPR is a modified Elo algorithm that uses a player’s last 60 (doubles) eligible matches. While DUPR considers a player’s last 60 games (should they even have that many in the system), it takes considerably fewer matches for a DUPR Rating to be considered accurate and statistically meaningful.

2.      DUPR game scores are weighted differently based upon the nature of the game play that generated those scores.  Without getting too technical or detailed the game scores recorded are given progressively higher weight as follows:

a.      Casual, player-organized games (lowest)

b.      Club scheduled play sessions

c.       Tournaments/Competitive play (highest)

3.      If a player’s rating is not considered reliable (not enough match results) an asterisk will appear after the player’s score in DUPR and the Rating is considered “provisional”.

4.      For game scores to be meaningful, at least one of the players involved in a DUPR game must already have an established DUPR Rating (this creates a benchmark).

The Rating Committee is now prepared to make the following recommendations in terms of the implementation plan and seeks your feedback before ratification by the Board:

1.      Once the current freeze on ratings is lifted, the Club will modify its rating policy to accept the DUPR Rating of new members who have an established DUPR Rating that is based upon at least 20 matches of DUPR play.  Please see the DUPR ranges in point #4 below to understand how DUPR Ratings will translate to Club Ratings.

2.      Once the current freeze on ratings is lifted, the Club will modify its policy to accept the rating of new members who achieved a rating as evaluated by an IPTPA Certified Rating Specialist up to the 3.0 Rating Level (within the last 6 months).  Note: The Club will continue to accept Canadian Tournament Player Ratings (CTPR) provided the member has played at least 10 sanctioned games.

3.      The Club will offer DUPR Rating Clinics starting this spring to accommodate existing Club members who are unrated who want to be rated and members who want to be re-rated.  These clinics will involve round robin play for approximately two hours with all game scores being recorded after game completion (games will be timed to end after an established number of minutes).  Note: As long as one team has at least 6 points when the time period ends, the game score is considered valid for DUPR entry.

4.      Members will need to (a) download the DUPR application to their smart phone to create their profile and then, (b) register for these Rating Clinic sessions (same process as before), which will be monitored by Club volunteers; each play session must have at least one player volunteer with an established DUPR Rating that is within .25 of the rating participants are trying to achieve in the clinic.

For example, for a 3.0 DUPR Rating Clinic for unrated and 2.5 rated players, there would need to be at least one volunteer player participant with a non-provisional DUPR Rating between 2.75 and 3.25.

It is important to note that whatever DUPR Rating level is achieved by virtue of this process, that will become that member’s Club Rating Level (provided their profile shows a non-provisional rating based upon a minimum of 20 matches).  For further clarity, if by the end of a Rating Clinic (all results posted in DUPR) a member achieves a DUPR Rating

·       lower than 2.5 - their Club Rating will be 2.0

·       between 2.50 and 2.99 - their Club Rating will be 2.5

·       between 3.00 and 3.49 - their Club Rating will be 3.0

·       between 3.50 and 3.99 - their Club Rating will be 3.5

·       between 4.0 and 4.49 - their Club Rating will be 4.0

·       higher than 4.5 - their Club Rating will be 4.5+

5.     Depending upon member demand and court availability, it is likely that the first DUPR Rating Clinic will be for unrated and 2.5 players who wish to be rated/re-rated respectively (essentially a 3.0 Clinic).  It will likely take as many as 3 clinics for these players to establish a reliable DUPR Rating assuming they don’t already have DUPR recorded matches in their profile. 

6.     Another round of DUPR Rating Clinics will be for those members who wish to be re-rated to at least a 3.5 rating level and, finally, we will run Rating Clinics for those who wish to be re-rated to a 4.0 or 4.5+ level.

7.      In addition to achieving Club ratings by virtue of this process, on a      quarterly basis (dates to be established and published at a later date), the Club will move up members’ Club Rating Level under the following circumstances:

a.       The member requests that their Club Rating be increased based upon their current DUPR Rating (which is not “provisional”).

b.      The member has at least 20 matches recorded in their DUPR profile.

c.       The Club has or is provided with evidence that the member’s current DUPR Rating  is at least .50 higher than their current Club Rating.  For example, a member with a current Club Rating of 3.0 has a current DUPR Rating of 3.62 during one of the pre-established, quarterly review periods; in that scenario, the Club would raise the member’s Club Rating to 3.5 (if so requested by that member).

8.     If a member does not want to wait until one of the 4 quarterly time periods to be re-rated, they will need to participate in one of the aforementioned Club-scheduled DUPR Rating Clinics that is appropriate for the Rating Level they desire to achieve – their Club Rating will then depend on their DUPR Rating at the completion of that Clinic as noted above.

9.      Please note that for the foreseeable future, the Club will not unilaterally lower the Club Rating Level of a member under any circumstances.  Members may ask, however, that their Club Rating Level be lowered if they so desire for medical or other personal reasons. 

We do not anticipate that in 2023 there will be a lot of DUPR play sessions beyond the DUPR Rating Clinics that the Club will be offering as noted above.  That being said, if there is demand for additional DUPR sessions the Club may consider offering, for example, DUPR ladder sessions; as well, members may participate in tournaments which, eventually, will likely have their results reflected in DUPR (DUPR is currently working with Pickleball Brackets and developing their own tournament software capabilities to facilitate this process).

The Club appreciates your patience as we work through this process of integrating DUPR into our member ratings regime.  We would appreciate your feedback recognizing that circumstances may change over time, and we may learn things that cause us to alter the rating framework laid out in this correspondence.  Please send any questions, comments or concerns via e-mail to the Communications Director by February 28^th.  The feedback will be summarized, consolidated and put before the Rating Committee for consideration and potential changes before seeking approval for the implementation plan by the SAPC Board.

Until Next Time Keep Your Paddle up!    

In this issue:

Rating Process Changes	Annual General Meeting
Level 1 Sports - Play Options	Club Tournaments - Save the Dates
Lung Association Tournament

Changes to Player Rating Processes

As noted in our January 30^th Newsletter, the Club is considering changes to the way member players are rated.  Specifically, the Club is considering adopting a performance-based ratings system called the Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating (DUPR for short) to establish a Club rating for new members who want to be rated and existing members who wish to be re-rated.

As also noted in that Newsletter, a Rating Committee was formed to learn more about DUPR and determine whether it may be a good fit for the Club.

The Club has reached out to DUPR representatives, created a Club DUPR account and become familiar with how this software works.  In addition, the Club did a trial run using DUPR for 4.0 players playing at the Level 1 Sports venue earlier this winter.

Here are some of the findings based upon this research:

Advantages of DUPR and Performance-Based Ratings

• Performance based rating systems like DUPR determine a player’s score by assessing the actual, validated game scores entered by (or on behalf of) each player.  The accuracy of the score is enhanced as more games are entered, but the score is more objective than the scoring used by human performance evaluators.

• As it is more objective, a performance-based rating system is likely to result in fewer claims that the result is “unfair” or inappropriate.

• It can be more economical to run a performance-based rating system than a human-evaluated rating clinic. 

• The rating process may be less stressful given that you don’t have the feeling that “someone is watching you” – you simply need to play pickleball and the rating result flows from your play.

Disadvantages

• Members must register with another IT system and learn how to use it (it should be noted, however, that registration is easy and takes only minutes).

• The Club must manage and maintain another IT system.

• In a performance-based rating, players won’t get an assessment of    each of their skills, so they won’t receive specific guidance regarding  the skills they need to work on in order to achieve a higher rating.

• Players may alter their play during DUPR recorded sessions potentially resulting in less fun for those on court. 

Having conducted this research, the Rating Committee members unanimously  recommended the adoption of the DUPR system in some form, given the obvious benefits to the Club (which outweigh the disadvantages in their opinion), by virtue of the following resolution:

“The Rating Committee recommends that SAPC adopt a performance-based rating system called DUPR subject to the development of a suitable implementation plan and SAPC member feedback”

The SAPC Board accepted this Rating Committee recommendation at their regular monthly meeting on February 6^th.

The Board has now tasked the Rating Committee with the development of a detailed implementation plan for a new ratings process regime. Once completed, elements of this implementation plan outlining key changes to the current ratings process regime will be shared with SAPC members for their feedback before ratification by the Board (which, time permitting, is tentatively scheduled for March 6^th).

Annual General Meeting

As members may or may not be aware, the SAPC Annual General Meeting is scheduled to take place next month on March  8, 2023.  Some of what takes place at the AGM is the election of Board members and other key positions.  You will be receiving notifications of how to register for and participate in this very important meeting.  Stay tuned!

Level 1 Sports Venue - More Play Options

Would you like to "rent a court" for a small group of members, family or friends?  

Details of these sessions have been added to the Level 1 Sports Calendar on the SAPC Website.  Please note that event details may evolve as we adapt to our members' take up of these great play opportunities.

You can book your court for next week starting this morning (Friday).  Talk to your friends and book your court now - it's a great price and you play on a surface that is easy on your body!

As noted in previous Newsletters, details are as follows:

On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, we have "Group Reserved Play" for each of the six courts.  

GROUP RESERVED PLAY - How does it work?

• A group may be four or more people.

• Only one person reserves the court.  The reserver must be a member.  Other group members may be non-members.

• A member may book up to 2 courts each day.

• A separate reservation must be made for each court.

• Fee is 10 stickers per court, payable upon arrival (that works out to $33.50/court)

• Stickers must be purchased in advance.  The club does not sell stickers at the facility.

• Reservations can be made through the Level 1 Sports Calendar (click here)

This "Group Reserved Play" or "Book-a-court" play is perfect for many classes or types of players - casual players, recreational players, "70-plus" players or unrated players who wish to play amongst themselves.  Of course, it is also suited to groups wanting competitive play, tournament prep, or court drills.  

Drop-In Play

Tournaments for 2023 - Save the Date!

Please note the following dates for our 2023 Tournaments.  Please put these dates into your calendar and start to make your plans to attend as a participant or volunteer:

June 10 to 11 - Members Only, Fun Tournament

July 14 to 16 - Sanctioned Tournament

September 16 - Members Only, Fun Tournament

If you or someone you know would like to be a sponsor for one or all of these upcoming tournaments, please let Roger or Ken know.  You can find the opportunities available by clicking here.

Lung Association Tournament

Speaking of tournaments, the Lung Association is holding a charitable pickleball tournament in support of Breathing Space, Canada’s 1^st home away from home for lung transplant patients and families.  Families in remote communities must travel to Edmonton, AB for a life saving transplant and this home will significantly ease the financial burden for the out of pocket expenses they must incur.   

Tournament Details are as follows:

Location:  EVP Centre, 9455 45 Avenue, Edmonton, AB

Friday MAY 5, 2023 | 6-10 PM

• Cheer on local celebrities and pickle ball pros
• There will be music, food live and silent auctions

Saturday, MAY 6, 2023 - ALL DAY

• Price: $70 Per Player (Includes Snacks, Beverages, Medals and lots of fun!)
• Round Robin Format
• Levels 2.5 - 4.0+
• Find more info at Info@ablung.ca or call 1-888-774-5864

Until next time, keep your paddle up!    

Player Rating Freeze

The St. Albert Pickleball Club hereby announces an immediate freeze on the acceptance of ratings from any raters or any club pending the ratings process review that is currently underway and the receipt of the recommendations of the Rating Committee created for this purpose.

There is a growing risk, if we accept a multitude of other evaluations, each with different thresholds and different evaluators, that the value and stability of our past and recent ratings will be diluted, diminished and devalued.  While we know our rating system must change, we hope to guide this change in a way that sees us moving to another system that gives consistent, stable results and, ideally, is even more objective and verifiable than our former system.  Accepting ratings from a variety of different evaluators is not likely to provide this stable, verifiable ratings regime.  We ask our members for continued patience while we examine our options in this regard.

The SAPC Board

Until next time, keep your paddle up!    

In this issue:

Rating Process Changes

Level 1 Sports - New Play Offerings

Changes to Player Rating Processes

As many members may be aware, the Club is seriously considering changes to the player rating process for members.  The first question you may ask is why are changes being considered?  First a little history...

The historical approach for the last several years has been to employ outside, third party raters to evaluate players skills and assign members to the rating levels established by the Club for member play.  We were very fortunate to be able to employ the services of Sean and Leslie from "In a Pickle" to serve this purpose.  You may recall that several months ago the Club solicited interest by members and the community at large to recruit additional raters.  That process did not result in any new, qualified/experienced raters that the Club felt they could approve.  In fact, we learned that there are actually very few certified raters in the region including the City of St. Albert.

So why make a change now?

• Leslie and Sean have expressed that they are no longer interested in running the traditional form of rating sessions for our Club and others in the region

• As noted above, there are very few, if any, qualified and experienced pickleball raters in the region as confirmed by our unsuccessful recruiting drive

• The historical rating process is subject to interpretations by members that the process is subjective and, although never substantiated, claims of bias have even been made on rare occasions (such unfounded claims obviously make it difficult to recruit new raters so a vicious cycle is created)

So while we and many other Clubs in North America have struggled with the process of how to rate and thereby group members for both fun and competitive play, a new trend is developing - the use of performance based rating systems to assign members to play groups.

Many members will have heard of these systems and, in particular, one called DUPR (Dynamic Universal Pickleball Rating).  DUPR is advertised as the most accurate and only global rating system in Pickleball.  Under this system, players (regardless of their age, gender, etc.) are rated on the same scale between 2.00 - 8.00 based solely on their match results.

In order to consider how the Club may use DUPR as a player rating system and implement this system into our member rating process, the Club has formed a Rating Committee.  The members of this Committee are as follows:

Club President - Eileen McClean

Club Vice President - James Porter

Club Treasurer - Ray Keroack

Communications Director - Roger Hutlet

Director at Large - Tamas Virag

Rating Coordinator - Karen Cabot

Rating Coordinator - Jeanine Au

This Rating Committee is meeting regularly to discuss Club ratings and DUPR with the mandate to make a recommendation to the SAPC Board regarding the potential use of DUPR in the Club's player rating process.

As progress is being made, members will be kept abreast of any new developments including the aforementioned recommendations to the Club Board.

The Club recently ran rating clinics under the old approach managed by Sean of In a Pickle.  That session will be our last rating clinic until we know the outcome of this review process and pending the recommendations that may flow from it.

So as not to cause and alarm nor anxiety amongst our membership, and to quell any rumors that may arise, please note that for the foreseeable future that any decisions made in this regard will only affect new members who wish to be rated and existing members who want to be assigned a higher Club rating.

We will keep you posted.  Once the recommendations of the Committee are finalized, these will be published in multiple forms of communication to the membership and, at that time, we will welcome your feedback.

Level 1 Sports Venue - New Play Offerings

Would you like to "rent a court" for a small group of members, family or friends?  Would you like to play at Level 1 Sports, but be able to decide at the last minute without having to pre-register or prepay?  If so, read on... 

Details of these sessions have been added to the Level 1 Sports Calendar on the SAPC Website.  Please note that event details may evolve as we adapt to our members' take up of these great play opportunities.

As noted in the previous Newsletters, details are as follows:

On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, we will have "Group Reserved Play" for each of the six courts.  How will this work?

GROUP RESERVED PLAY

• A group may be four or more people.

• Only one person reserves the court.  The reserver must be a member.  Other group members may be non-members.

• A member may book up to 2 courts each day.

• A separate reservation must be made for each court.

• Fee is 10 stickers per court, payable upon arrival (that works out to $33.50/court)

• Stickers must be purchased in advance.  The club does not sell stickers at the facility.

• The captain will assign specific courts to group leaders in a random fashion.

• Players can be any skill level(s).

• Reservations can be made through the Level 1 Sports Calendar (click here)

• Reservations open at Thursday midnight (12:01 am Friday) the week before the day of play with the first registrations opening this coming Friday, February 3rd.

• If all six courts are reserved, join the waitlist.

• If your group can't attend, please cancel your registration so those on the waitlist can be automatically registered.

This "Group Reserved" or "Book-a-court" play is perfect for many classes or types of players - casual players, recreational players, "70-plus" players or unrated players who wish to play amongst themselves.  Of course, it is also suited to groups wanting competitive play, tournament prep, or court drills.  

On Mondays and Thursdays, we'll have individual "Drop In" play for certain skill (rating) levels.   How will that work?  

DROP IN PLAY

• Cost will be two stickers per member.

• Guests sponsored by an attending member are allowed (for now at least) - the cost is three stickers.

• No advanced registration needed (that's what "Drop In" means).

• Thursdays will be for 3.0s and 3.5s only.

• Mondays will be for 3.5s and 4.0s only.

• No limits (at least initially) to the number of attendees - so everybody plays - but (typically) only with members of their skill level.

• The play session Captain may decide to play round robin or paddle play.

How will the courts be allocated between the two skill levels for drop in play?   The allocation will generally be based on the proportion of players  who are at each of the two levels.  For example:

Group Reserved Play AND Drop In Play

• No prepayment will be needed - you pay with stickers upon arrival.

• All play times are 10 am to 12 noon.

Until next time, keep your paddle up!    

In this issue:

Board Nominations Recruiting	Proof of Membership
Level 1 Sports - January Openings	Level 1 Sports - New Play Offerings
Stickers	Rating Requests

Board Nominations/Recruiting

As members may or may not be aware, the SAPC Annual General Meeting is scheduled to take place in about 3 months on March 8, 2023.  Some of what takes place at the AGM is the election of Board members and other key positions.  The Board currently consists of the following individuals (incumbents): 

President - Eileen McClean

Vice President - James Porter

Secretary - Douwe Spriensma

Treasurer - Ray Keroack

Director at Large, Web Manager - Tamas Virag, Edmonton Resident

Director at Large, Tournaments - Ken Dentzien

Director of Membership and Volunteers - Carol Mah

Director of Communications - Roger Hutlet

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

Treasurer, Secretary and Director at Large (one of the two Director at Large positions) Please Note: The 3 current incumbents have requested that they NOT let their names stand for re-election to these positions.

Non-Board roles that must also be elected at the AGM are:

Ombudsperson  Note: this position is currently held by Mike Bowen

Auditor  (If the auditor is a certified CPA, only one is needed, otherwise we need two)  Note: This position is currently held by Lawrence Taylor

Nominating Committee (3 persons)

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.  

On the following web page you will find the Ombudsperson job description: 

https://www.pickleballstalbert.ca/resources/Documents/Policies-Rules/Operational%20-%20Ombudsperson.pdf

Please note that at our upcoming AGM we also will vote on a motion by Kevin McClean to increase the terms for the Ombudsperson, Auditor and the Nominating Committee to two years and that these terms will be staggered as warranted. 

Candidates seeking to put their names forward for one of these positions can 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 

Gerry Gartner at gerrygartner@shaw.ca 

Jenna McCully at jmccully23@gmail.com 

A Nominating Committee report covering the candidates will be sent out to all members with the notice of the AGM in February, 2023.

Proof of Membership

Yes, it's a new year - HAPPY NEW YEAR pickleballers!   You know what that means - half of our members head to warmer weather down south, diets begin, gym memberships get utilized and, yes, you have to renew your SAPC membership!

Please be reminded that as of January 1, 2023 members must now be prepared to present their 2023 membership cards - digital or hard copy at SAPC play sessions.  Captains will be asking for this proof of membership prior to play sessions beginning and it is the member's responsibility to have this information available for presentation to the Captain or they will be denied play.

Level 1 Sports Venue - January Openings

Please note that we have two spots left in the 4.0+ series play that starts Tuesday, January 10th for which play is from 10 am to 12 noon.  The series is for four play sessions, one per week, every Tuesday up to and including January  31st.  

Note:  These sessions are booked and paid for in advance.  If you are interested, just click on a Series start date in the January page of the "Level 1 Sports Calendar" on our website for more details and to register.  If a session is full, we recommend you add your name to the Waitlist.

Level 1 Sports Venue - New Play Offerings

Would you like to "rent a court" for a small group of members, family or friends?  Would you like to play at Level 1 Sports, but be able to decide at the last minute without having to pre-register or prepay?  If so, read on because we will be offering both starting on February 6th.  

Details of these sessions have now been added to the Level 1 Sports Calendar on the SAPC Website.  Please note that event details may evolve as we adapt to our members' take up of these great play opportunities.

As noted in the December Newsletter, details are as follows:

On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, we will have "Group Reserved Play" for each of the six courts.  How will this work?

Group Reserved Play

• A group may be four or more people.

• Only one person reserves the court.  The reserver must be a member.  Other group members may be non-members.

• A member may book up to 2 courts each day.

• A separate reservation must be made for each court.

• Fee is 10 stickers per court, payable upon arrival (that works out to $33.50/court)

• Stickers must be purchased in advance.  The club does not sell stickers at the facility.

• The captain will assign specific courts to group leaders in a random fashion.

• Players can be any skill level(s).

• Reservations can be made through the Level 1 Sports Calendar (click here)

• Reservations open at Thursday midnight (12:01 am Friday) the week before the day of play.

• If all six courts are reserved, join the waitlist.

• If your group can't attend, please cancel your registration so those on the waitlist can be automatically registered.

This "Group Reserved" or "Book-a-court" play is perfect for many classes or types of players - casual players, recreational players, "70-plus" players or unrated players who wish to play amongst themselves.  Of course, it is also suited to groups wanting competitive play, tournament prep, or court drills.  So start thinking about a few people you'd like to play with - set your groups up in advance if you'd like.  Use the club website member directory and WhatsApp groups to send messages to other members to help set up and communicate with other members.

On Mondays and Thursdays, we'll have individual "Drop In" play for certain skill (rating) levels.   How will that work?  

Drop In Play

• Cost will be two stickers per member.

• Guests sponsored by an attending member are allowed (for now at least) - the cost is three stickers.

• No advanced registration needed (that's what "Drop In" means).

• Thursdays will be for 3.0s and 3.5s only.

• Mondays will be for 3.5s and 4.0s only.

• No limits (at least initially) to the number of attendees - so everybody plays - but (typically) only with members of their skill level.

• The play session Captain may decide to play round robin or paddle play.

How will the courts be allocated between the two skill levels for drop in play?   The allocation will generally be based on the proportion of players  who are at each of the two levels.  For example:

Group Reserved Play AND Drop In Play

• No prepayment will be needed - you pay with stickers upon arrival.

• All play times are 10 am to 12 noon.

Stickers

To simplify our ongoing accounting and our transition to a new accounting system, there will be a slight change to the way we charge for sticker card purchases.   Effective January 1st  we have included the delivery charge (which was 90 cents per order) into the base cost for the card itself.  For anyone ordering one card at a time, the total including GST will remain at a very affordable $67 for 20 stickers ($3.35/ea).

Once again, please be reminded to put your name and phone number on the back of your sticker sheets...we've had a few instances lately of members misplacing their stickers and your contact info makes it easier for us to get them back to their rightful owner.

Rating Requests

We would like to gather information regarding members' interest in being rated in order that we may plan to make future rating opportunities available.  As such, for anyone that wishes to be rated, please send an email to rating@pickleballstalbert.ca  - you should include your name, the level you wish to be rated at as well as any constraints to your availability for such rating clinic (eg. only available in evenings, currently out of country until April 1st, etc.).

Until next time, keep your paddle up!   

In this issue:

Mentoring	Indoor Play
Level 1 Sports - January Openings	Level 1 Sports - New Play Offerings
Pickleball Rule Changes	Message from the President

Mentoring

Mentoring sessions will begin in the New Year.   The dates are as follows:

Level 2.5/Unrated - January 14th and March 4th

Level 3.0 - February 4th and April 15th

These will take place at Bertha Kennedy at the 12:00 - 2:15 pm sessions.    While this will take away play sessions at the 2.5 level for 2 weeks, there will be an "All Play" session starting at 2:15 pm.  Many of our mentors play at the 9:00 am session at Bertha Kennedy, so this makes the transition for them much easier - they can simply flow from playing to mentoring. 

Please note that we will get back to mentoring higher rating levels when we return to outdoor play next spring.

Special thanks to our mentoring team for taking on these sessions in 2023 and to Rachel for setting this all up in the registration system.

Please note that there are only 12 spots for each session, but always sign up for the Waiting List as life happens and there are usually cancellations.  

Registration will open up the week before each session at the same time as the Red Willow registration opens up - that is Friday morning (Thursday immediately after midnight).   For example, the first session on January 14 will open on January 7.  Please note that the cost for each mentoring session is one (1) sticker.

Indoor Play

Proof of 2023 Membership

Please be reminded that as of January 1, 2023 members must have and be ready to present their 2023 membership cards - digital or hard copy.  Captains will be asking for this proof of membership prior to play sessions beginning and it is the member's responsibility to have this information available for presentation to the Captain or they will be denied play.

Stickers

Just a reminder to members to put their name and phone number on the back of their stickers...we've had a few instances lately of members misplacing their stickers and your contact info makes it easier for us to get them back to their rightful owner.

Level 1 Sports Venue - January Openings

Please note that Series Play continues at Level 1 Sports for January and we have some openings.  Each series gives you 4 two (2) hour play sessions - one per week for four weeks.  These sessions are booked and paid for in advance.  If you are interested, just click on a Series start date in the January page of the "Level 1 Sports Calendar" on our website for more details and to register.  If a session is full, we recommend you add your name to the Waitlist.

Level 1 Sports Venue - New Play Offerings

Would you like to "rent a court" for a small group of members, family or friends?  Would you like to play at Level 1 Sports, but be able to decide at the last minute without having to pre-register or prepay?  If so, read on because we will be offering both starting on February 6th.  

On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, we will have "Group Reserved Play" for each of the six courts.  How will this work?

Group Reserved Play

• A group may be four or more people.

• Only one person reserves the court.  The reserver must be a member.  Other group members may be non-members.

• A member may book up to 2 courts each day.

• A separate reservation must be made for each court.

• Fee is 10 stickers per court, payable upon arrival (that works out to $33.50/court)

• Stickers must be purchased in advance.  The club does not sell stickers at the facility.

• The captain will assign specific courts to group leaders in a random fashion.

• Players can be any skill level(s).

• Reservations can be made through the Level 1 Sports Calendar (click here)

• Reservations open at Thursday midnight (12:01 am Friday) the week before the day of play.

• If all six courts are reserved, join the waitlist.

• If your group can't attend, please cancel your registration so those on the waitlist can be automatically registered.

This "Group Reserved" or "Book-a-court" play is perfect for many classes or types of players - casual players, recreational players, "70-plus" players or unrated players who wish to play amongst themselves.  Of course, it is also suited to groups wanting competitive play, tournament prep, or court drills.  So start thinking about a few people you'd like to play with - set your groups up in advance if you'd like.  Use the club website member directory and WhatsApp groups to send messages to other members to help set up and communicate with other members.

On Mondays and Thursdays, we'll have individual "Drop In" play for certain skill (rating) levels.   How will that work?  

Drop In Play

• Cost will be two stickers per member.

• Guests sponsored by an attending member are allowed (for now at least) - the cost is three stickers.

• No advanced registration needed (that's what "Drop In" means).

• Thursdays will be for 3.0s and 3.5s only.

• Mondays will be for 3.5s and 4.0s only.

• No limits (at least initially) to the number of attendees - so everybody plays - but (typically) only with members of their skill level.

• The play session Captain may decide to play round robin or paddle play.

How will the courts be allocated between the two skill levels for drop in play?   The allocation will generally be based on the proportion of players  who are at each of the two levels.  For example:

Group Reserved Play AND Drop In Play

• No prepayment will be needed - you pay with stickers upon arrival.

• All play times are 10 am to 12 noon.

Watch your emails and read the specific event details when they are posted to the Level 1 Sports Calendar.  Event details may evolve as we adapt to our members' take up of these great play opportunities.

Pickleball Rule Changes

The Official Pickleball Rulebook is reviewed and, to the extent necessary, revised and updated every year, as pickleball rules continue to evolve as the sport evolves.  As a result, it is important to stay up-to-date on pickleball rules changes so that you know the right call on the pickleball court (especially if you plan to play a pickleball tournament).

If you are interested, please read click on the following link to learn about the 2023 calendar year rule changes:

https://thepickler.com/blogs/pickleball-blog/2023-pickleball-rule-changes

Message from the President

From Eileen:

As I reflect on the closing of another year I think about the countless hours our volunteers spend making this club work so well.  Thank you cannot be said enough times!

Thank you, thank you so much the hard working board members, to our captains especially those who go the extra mile in this cold weather to deliver sticker sheets, to our training and mentoring team, Nicole Currie for managing Red Willow and organizing all of the training and mentoring, our health and safety team, our tech team including our new registration people - Cherran Simpson and Rachel Peltonen, our social team, our equipment manager, rating co-ordinators, tournament team, Nela - our binder and paper forms organizer, the nominating committee and other volunteers - and thank you also to these many volunteers' spouses and partners who put up with the hours they spend on behalf of SAPC.

Merry Christmas and all the best for 2023!  May you find a new pickleball paddle under the tree!

Until next time, keep your paddle up!  

In this issue:

Board Nominations/Recruiting

Guest/Visitor Play and Sticker Cost

Until next time, keep your paddle up!

Dear SAPC Member, Have you been wondering about our indoor play this year?  Would you like to know more about our new venue in particular?  Well, read on! Organizing play for a new season (indoor versus outdoor) involves a lot of volunteer hours, planning and even some risk-taking.  We’re not sure how it will all turn out, and sometimes we have to guess a bit at what our members are looking for, when they’d like to play more, as well as where, with who, and for how much.  When you fill our events, we know we’ve hit the mark, at least partially, with some of you. We are very fortunate in our St. Albert club to have as many indoor venues and play times as we do.  Most Alberta clubs struggle to have an indoor season. In our club, we benefit from the past and current pro-active pursuit of all opportunities, sometimes snagging space before competing clubs and competing sports. That was the case with landing the play opportunities we now have with Level 1 Sports – our new venue at 145th St and Yellowhead Trail in Edmonton.  We’ve secured most play times, from 10 am to noon, Monday to Thursday, for nearly all days this indoor season. What a coup! One of our challenges with this new venue is keeping it full for the play times we have. Level 1 Sports has six courts, so can accommodate 24 people at once (26 with 2 spares), it has great lighting, great floors, few lines (and the pickleball ones are now better marked), ample space around most courts (two courts recently adjusted), and the kitchen lines are at a true “non-volley zone” width – so it beats our many school play venues on many fronts. One key disadvantage of this space though is our club has to make a commitment to use a certain amount of courts three-plus weeks in advance of the play.  Once the commitment is made and this change window expires, our club is on the hook for the rental cost, whether people show up or not. This is different than our situation with schools and Red Willow where we can fortunately cancel play with little notice to the venue owner and have no obligation to pay when we cancel without advanced notice. Being a bit risk-averse with YOUR club’s money, we have chosen to offset this Level 1 Sports commitment risk by selling “series play” – a set of four to six play times – in one package. This form of play was successful with some levels in the past, but it requires that we pretty-well fill the reservable spots in a series before its “change window” expires.  The upshot is that if a series does not fill well in advance of the first play date, we have to cancel the series or at least cut back on the number of courts we commit to using.  And if we have to cancel a series, because few are registering say to the “All Play”, “2.5” (beginner) play, or “3.0”, then we are also reluctant to schedule play for that level again in the next round of series. Now we know many of you have other commitments so cannot make it to four weekly plays in a row. Or you’re getting ready to head off to the south. Or, heaven forbid, you’re still working and can’t yet take advantage of this weekday play (your time will come!) But if none of these are holding you back – then you’re missing more fun with friends. If you are simply reluctant to make a commitment so far in advance, then our drop-in play at schools or our reserved play at Red Willow play is for you. But sometimes having fun requires a bit more planning – and a commitment. Now, the series play at Level 1 Sports doesn’t show up in our online calendars like our other play. Instead, only the first play date in a series is in our calendars. You have to open one of these events in the calendar to see the other play dates (and times) in the series.  Unlike our other play, we also issue you direct invitations (announcements) to the series play by email, enabling you to start making your reservation with a push of the button in the email.  This email is only sent to those in the level(s) eligible to play so, for example, only those club rated 4.0, 4.5 or 5.0 get the emails for our 4.0+ series play. If you lose the email, you can also make a reservation by going to the Level 1 Sport calendar and clicking on the event there. Don’t forget to look ahead a month in the calendar, because that’s where the series are that are open for registration. We currently have a few spots open for the following 4-week series play: ·         3.5’s starting Monday Nov 21, ·         4.0+’s starting Tuesday Nov 22, ·         4.0+’s starting Wednesday Nov 23 ·         3.0’s starting Friday Nov 25 (and Thursdays thereafter) If a series is full, don’t hesitate to go on the waiting list; several people typically get in this way. Look for emails or calendar entries for future play at Level 1 Sports to be published as follows: Registration Opening   Play Starting   Sessions; Series Nov 20 to 22 (target)   early January    4; Series I, J, K, L Dec 20 to 22                      February           4; Series M, N, O, P Jan 20 to 22                       March               4; Series Q, R, S, T Feb 20 to 22                       April                 4; Series U, V, W, X As there was negligible interest in 2.5 or All Play in a recent series, look for two new opportunities in January: “3.5+” and Partner Play.  Partner Play is like “All Play” in that players can be unrated or at any level, but you register with and generally play with the same partner each game. This is particularly suited to couples who are at different levels, but anyone can join in. If you need a partner, consider advertising for one in our WhatsApp or Facebook groups, or randomly message members via our member directory! Substitutions allowed. Do you have any doubts about trying Level 1 Sports and our series play?  Is there a question about this play you’d like answered before making a commitment to try this play? Do you have a suggestion for future series play? Email venuemanager@pickleballstalbert.ca

Did you miss seeing an invitation to past series? Check your junk mail or spam mail folder. Still not there? Ensure you have not unsubscribed to our emails. Want to know more about the topics below? Check out these webpages. How and Where to Play Where we play Play Types Making a Reservation Some Play Calendars Red Willow Community Church Gym Calendar – has play for various levels Bertha Kennedy School Gym Calendar – has play for various levels Holy Family School Gym Calendar – has All Play JJ Nearing School Gym Calendar – has 2.5 Play Indoor Calendar – shows all indoor play events in one combined calendar Rated 2.0 – 2.5 calendar – shows play for this level at various venues Membership Fees, Renewals and Credits Membership Fees–see the “Fee Summary–2023” article on our home page Renewing your membership for 2023–read this page, then click “Edit your member profile”, and then click the button “Renew to 2024-01-01” How to use a member credit (must log in to see this page) All these webpages and more can also be found via our website menu.website menu.

All of us who volunteer with our club, from the front-line captains to the many coordinators and teams behind the scenes, do so because we love the sport, the friendships, and the social interaction; we want to stay fit, smile and laugh; and we want to spread the joy to you and others.  These are all the same reasons you play and love this sport too. It is a real pleasure to be on the court with you!

Keep your paddle up and have a great indoor season!

The board of the St. Albert Pickleball Club

Follow on Facebook

In this issue:

Outdoor Play	Indoor Play
Level 1 Sports

Outdoor Play

We have received notice from our public operations team that the nets at all tennis courts and pickleball courts will be taken down on Friday, October 21, 2022.  With colder weather setting in it looks like the last full day of outdoor play will be this Thursday.  As such, this will be the last week of outdoor organized play and it may be intermittent as many of our captains are now captaining indoor sessions.  Keep up to date on WhatsApp for updates regarding outdoor play at your level.

If you plan to go to the courts when the organized play session is cancelled, make sure you have your own pickleballs as there may not be a captain on site.  That being said, the outdoor courts are the Club's to use so continue to enjoy this week while this good weather continues!

There are no evening outdoor sessions planned for this week as it is getting dark before 7:00 pm, but, once again, feel free to organize play with your friends until the nets are take down on Friday. 

Indoor Play

Stickers

Remember stickers are needed for school venues (1 sticker) and registered play at Red Willow (2 stickers).

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 (click here).  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.  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.

Level 1 Sports Venue

Everyone should check out the new sessions at the Level 1 Sports venue which begins this November - we need the sessions filled for them to be viable!   

You can register by going to the "Level 1 Sports Calendar" (click here) and clicking on the session that applies to your rating level.  These new sessions are for 4 games over four weeks at a very good price per session (if you cannot make a session that's no problem just arrange for a substitute). 

Until next time, keep your paddle up!