In this issue:
| 2024 Tournaments |
4.0+ League Play - Feedback Received |
| Mentoring Sessions |
Cancelled Sessions (eg. Weather Related) |
| Non-SAPC Tournaments |
Membership Breakdown by Rating Level |
2024 Tournaments
We will be hosting three tournaments this year.
Our Members Only Summer Kickoff is scheduled for this weekend, June 8th and 9th. Thanks go out to all those who have volunteered to assist with this tournament and good luck to everyone playing!
Food/baking contributions during the tournament should be dropped off at the registration desk anytime. Thank you in advance!
Let's hope for good weather. We hope to only be blown away by the quality of play and fun on the courts - not 60 km gusts!!
Our Sanctioned Tournament will be held on August 16th to the 18th. You may register on Pickleball Brackets by clicking here.
Finally, we will be hosting a Members Only Tournament on September 21st and 22nd.
League Play 4.0+ Update
There has been overwhelming interest in the new League play format this spring. Unfortunately, the creation of this new play format for 4.0+ members has highlighted the fact that we lacked proper processes, documentation and communication for the following:
- the rules governing this mode of play
- job descriptions for the organizers, the league captains and scheduler
The resulting poor communications, lack of understanding, last minute changes and lack of transparency resulted in a number of concerns and complaints raised by our members.
The Board apologizes for not being proactive in organizing League play adequately and the distress and frustration this caused for many of our members.
Please be assured that with help from the volunteers involved, the Board is hard at work in addressing this issue. Very shortly, a detailed report will go out the 4.0+ Club members with specifics about the nature of the complaints and actions that will be taken by the associated volunteers and the Board to address this issue both for the current season and in the future.
Mentoring Sessions
We have mentoring sessions scheduled for June and July as noted below.
Mentoring sessions are at 11 am to 1 pm on Saturdays at the Alpine outdoor courts.
In June we will have :
June 22nd - Level 2.5
June 24th - Level 3
In July we have:
July 13th - Level 2.5
July 20th - Level 4
July 27th - Level 3
July 6th - Level 3.5
A week before each session members for the specific Club Rating Level that is being mentored, as noted above, will be made aware that registration is opening soon. Shortly after you will receive an email advising registration is now open.
Important Change to Note:
We want to give as many people as possible the opportunity for mentoring so members should only register for one mentoring session this summer. Only if there is an opening the day before the session can a member register for another session. Furthermore, if you participated in one of the last few indoor mentoring sessions, please give others a chance to register first for these outdoor sessions.
Cancelled Outdoor Play Sessions
The decision to cancel outdoor play due to wet conditions, air quality or other reasons is made by the captain or captains of each individual play session. These decisions are guided by published Club policies.
To learn if a particular play session is cancelled, please join our Club's members-only Facebook Group and/or join one of our WhatsApp groups. To learn how to join our social media groups click here.
All cancellations are announced at one or both of these sites. Announcements are typically made there 1 to 2 hours before the scheduled start of play. Remember too:
- If there is no cancellation notice in either Facebook or WhatsApp -- the event is ON (please don't ask if it is still on; if no notice is provided on social media you can safely assume the session is still on)
We are occasionally able to book Red Willow for Play sessions when it looks like the weather won’t cooperate with playing outside, so make sure you have joined the WhatsApp group or Facebook group as that is where notifications will be posted (if you are not part of these groups go to the Social Media heading on the SAPC website and you will find instructions on how to join both groups).
Non-SAPC Tournaments
We have been asked to advertise the following tournaments on behalf of other clubs in our province:
Medicine Hat Pickleball Club
The Medicine Hat Pickleball Club is extending an invitation to all members to come play in the Medicine Hat Pickleball Open Tournament on Friday, July 5th to Sunday July 7th, 2024. For more information check the following link:
Medicine Hat Pickleball Club Open Tournament
According to MHPC they have a beautiful outdoor 20 court facility with state of the art courts and look forward to welcoming everyone to the Hat in July!!!
St. Albert Rotary Club
The Rotary Club is holding a fund raising tournament on June 15th and June 16th. This event is a fundraising effort for St Albert community projects. If you are interested click this link.
If you have any questions or still want to volunteer, please contact Daniela at ionitescudaniela@gmail.com to see if there are any opportunities available.
We look for forward to seeing you there!!
Membership Breakdown by Rating Level
976 members have already renewed their memberships for 2024. The breakdown of those members at the end of May (with comparative figures for April) are as follows:
April May (Current) Inc/(Dec)
No Rating 264 327
2.5 Rating 28 34 6
3.0 Rating 135 141 6
3.5 Rating 219 247 28
4.0 Rating 158 184 26
4.5+ Rating 19 43 24
Total Members 823 976 153
Note: The substantial percentage increase in 4.0+ members can at least partially be attributed to the launch of the new 4.0+ League format play in May, 2024.
Until next time keep your paddle up!