It started just over a year ago, when two intrepid and brave pickleballers, Julian Synett and Jerry Bower, started the weekly Tuesday SACPS Pickleball Club. Who would have thought that the Freeman Sussman Hall would ring out to the shouts and laughter of players, aged from 8 to (over) 80? And that two pickleball courts would be taped out on the floor for our use? And that we would learn, in said Hall, to dink (look it up) instead of drink, and would learn a scoring system, clearly designed by someone with a sadistic streak?!
Who would have thought that some people, who occasionally go to shul, would go religiously (no pun intended) every week? No, not on a Shabbos, but on a Tuesday!
And on Tuesday, 27th January, the First Stanmore Shul Pickleball Annual Awards and Social were held in Freeman Sussman Hall. A great success attended by 45 keen Picklers.
Dinking competition. After feasting on snacks, a selection of Eli’s delicious pizzas, fruit, and a good selection of soft drinks, we were divided into 4 teams. And invited onto the ‘court’ for a competition to see which team would score the highest points, by ‘dinking’ into hula hoops, laid strategic distances away, with professional coach Roy and wife Yvette, being the judges, and in charge of the scoring. Competitive it was. Noisy it was. Olympic standards it was not. And whilst I would not suggest for one minute that anyone cheated, the purchase of a VAR system would be a good investment before the next event.
The unique pickleball awards ceremony then followed, including “The person who ….
- hit most light bulbs, causing the lights to fuse (don’t tell the Management),
- was the best lobber (not a typo for lobbus),
- was the fastest person around the court,
- was the most argumentative and who had “more rabbit than Sainsburys!”
….and more. I think you get the idea!
Cheering and laughter accompanied the awarding of the dinkiest trophies you will ever see.
And a magical conclusion with a truly entertaining magic show by Daniel Bower, involving AI, and of course, a pickleball theme that kept everyone guessing.
So thank you to the organisers and all the helpers who made the first-ever SACPS Pickleball Annual Awards and Social such a success.
We were all winners!
Sue Diamond
(With photo credit to Bernard Redhouse & others)
