HCPA Newsletter - Be sure to check out our new spring newsletter found in both our website (under Assoc. News) and the mobile app (Under Newsletters). Thanks again to Carol White who is our Chief Editor.  Here's the link to the newsletter:

Pickle Juice - Spring 2024

 

New offerings from Columbia Association - the following announcement was sent out to CA members. Looks like CA is embracing pickleball.

Wanna play pickleball?

The weather is warming up and we're moving outdoors for pickleball! We've got group clinics, leagues for all levels, and open play lined up for you...

Here's what's in store:

  • Pickleball Leagues: Beginner, Intermediate, and "Hybrid" leagues are offered at various times of day and days of the week.

  • Pickleball Clinics: Up your game with clinics, which combine instruction and drills for players looking to get better quickly!

  • Open Play: Open play at Owen Brown will start up on Saturday, April 6 and run from 10 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Open play is also available at Supreme Sports Club.
     

Call Long Reach Tennis Club at 410-423-4120 to learn more or sign up for leagues and clinics… and get ready to have some fun!

You can also join the "unofficial" Columbia Area Facebook Pickleball Group to get early updates on lessons, open play, leagues, and other offerings around the Columbia area.
 

Light it Up!!
 

Matt Blevins

CA Pickleball Coach
Long Reach Tennis Club
6180 Old Dobbin Ln, Columbia, MD 21045
410-423-4120

Registration for Active Aging Pickleball is now open - Howard Co. Recreation & Parks Active Aging Pickleball Program opened their registration for their various pickleball offerings as of 6 pm last night.  Active Aging Sports is offering 44 spring and summer pickleball programs. They anticipate they will fill up fast. The link below will take you to the HCR&P site for you to review their offerings if you are interested. 

Active Aging Pickleball Program Offerings

Resuming evening sessions - As we draw closer to the end of winter folks are wondering when we will be offering evening sessions again. That depends on three factors: 1) The return of daylight savings and more light in the evening, 2) the weather and 3) when the session coordinators are ready to resume their sessions. It's likely to be either later March or early April. Stay tuned, the sessions will be posted to both the mobile app's schedule and the website's organized play page.

Marc Austin's Winter Clinics - A fellow member, Marc Austin, is working with Howard County Recreation & Parks to offer some clinics for the winter session. Please see the announcement located under the website menu item Assoc. News if interested.

Preparing to play pickleball - A local chiropractor who is working with pickleball players has submitted two articles to assist pickleball players preparing for play: Pickleball Power Up and a Warm Up graphic.  Both can be found listed under Assoc. News.

HCPA Events Sign Up Now Open!

HCPA Round Robin (RR) and Minor League Pickleball (MLP) events are now available for sign-up via the Stack Team App for events beginning on March 2, 2024.

Please only sign up if you are in the correct age group and level, thank you!

Please arrive for round robins 15 minutes prior to the posted start time. See full rules for round robins below in this email.

Scheduled Events:

*Men’s *Dubs RR
Level 3.5
*All Ages *
Saturday, 3/2
3-5 pm

*Women’s *Dubs RR
Level 3.5
All Ages
Saturday, 3/9
3-5 pm

*Women’s *Dubs RR
Level 3.0
*All Ages *
Saturday, 3/16
3-5 pm

*Men’s *Dubs RR
Level 3.0
All Ages
Saturday, 3/23
3-5 pm

*MLP – *Men’s Women’s and Mixed *Dubs RR -
Level 3.5
Must have a 3.5+ DUPR rating or you won’t be permitted to participate
Men’s and Women’s registration are two different events on TeamApp. Please pick the right one.
All Ages
Saturday, 3/30
3-5 pm

All events are held at the PutAway in Millersville. 254 Najoles Rd Suite A-K, Millersville, MD 21108

All Events will be recorded in the DUPR HCPA Club

Please only sign up if you are in the correct level, thank you!

Please sign up as an individual, including minor league pickleball. For round robins, you will be playing with a different partner each round of play.

Go to the HCPA TeamApp page now and then click on “Events”.

Better hurry, they fill up quickly!****

ROUND ROBIN and MINOR LEAGUE PICKLEBALL CANCELLATION/ARRIVAL POLICY***

All cancellation emails must be sent to: 

hcparoundrobin@gmail.com

HCPA Round Robins and MLP are non-transferable and non-refundable.

Cancellations

• The cancellation cutoff is 24 hours prior to the event start.
• Any player who cancels after that time will forfeit the right to signup for or play in a HCPA Round Robin or MLP the next two times they are offered.

No Show or Late Arrivals

• All players must sign in 15 minutes prior to the posted start time.
• Any player who arrives after the posted start time is considered a no show.
• Any late arrival or no show player will forfeit the right to sign up for or play in a HCPA Round Robin or MLP the next two times they are offered.

Leaving Early

• Any player who leaves a HCPA Round Robin or Minor League Pickleball prior to the posted end time, will forfeit the right to sign up for or play in a HCPA Round Robin for two months.
• This does not apply to any player who is forced to leave early due to an injury sustained during the HCPA Round Robin or MLP.

Please remember, Round Robins and MLP necessitate an exact number of players. Players who cancel late, or worse, don’t show up or leave early, potentially ruin the event for the other 15 players. Games can’t be played without the required number of players. Please respect your fellow players.

The later the cancellation, the harder the slot is to fill. Additionally, late cancellations are unfair to waitlisted players who would love to play, but due to late notice of slots are often no longer available or unable to get to the courts on time or don’t have their equipment with them. Please cancel as soon as you realize you have a conflict, aren’t feeling well, or are injured; waitlisted players and our volunteers depend on your timeliness.

Please leave enough time to park and still get to the courts 15 minutes early to check in. And, we all know that traffic can be unpredictable; please plan accordingly.

If a Round Robin or MLP is canceled by HCPA due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances, players will be notified by email and will receive a refund.

If an event is full, please send an email to 

hcparoundrobin@gmail.com

 to be added to the waitlist.

Events will not be rescheduled.

IF EVENTS DO NOT FILL UP****
If all of the events do not fill up on or before February 20, 2024, HCPA may have to cancel ALL of the Events planned for March due to a lack of interest.

HCPA Competitions Committee

We recently lost a member – HCPA is sorry to share this sad news about the passing of Dave LeDane last week, on Tuesday, January 16th while clearing snow from his cars. It appears to have been a heart attack. Our deepest sympathies go out to Maria LeDane for the loss of her husband. Dave was a great guy and a very competitive pickleball player and tennis player. He always had something encouraging to say while playing with him. He will be missed. A celebration of life is being planned for late spring. If you would like to share your condolences, please mail them to Maria LeDane, 11263 Aslalom Lane, Columbia MD 21044.

Change to Indoor Session at Gary Arthur Community Center - Skills and Drills for Tuesday February 23rd – Changed to Open Play

Gary Arthur Community Center – 2400 Route 97, Cooksville MD, 21723

Tuesday February 23rd, 5:00 – 6:45
Open Play $10
3 courts – 16 Players

Come in from the cold!!

 

Looking for places to play while traveling?

Check out these free apps for finding pickleball courts. Each app uses an entered location to list pickleball courts in that area.

Swimply 

PicklePlay

USAPA Places to Play

For local places to play, check out the updated list on the HCPA website: Local Places to Play