Spring is in the air! Time to head outdoors!
Spring is in the air and a perfect time to start playing some outdoor pickleball!
What’s the saying… “April showers brings May pickleball outdoors!” LOL. Yes, we’ve had a typical spring weather pattern in St. Louis with some rain, storms, cold, followed by warm, sun, and wind. Some of you might prefer to play indoors all year at your community centers, Y’s, J’s, Vetta’s, etc. However, for many of you looking to start playing outdoors, we have several places to play including:
Tilles Park in South St. Louis City
Kennedy Park in South County,
Chesterfield Valley Athletic Complex,
Kirkwood Park,
McNair Park, Wapelhorst Park, and Blanchette Park in St. Charles County,
Lake Forest Country Club (membership required),
Jokerst Park in Festus,
Innsbrook Resort, (guest of resident required)
Phoenix Park courts and New Haven Courts in Washington, MO and Franklin County
Plus some great new venues highlighted below: Whether your game is indoors or outdoors, we hope to see you on the courts soon!
NEW places to play: Schroeder Park, Manchester, MO & Maryland Heights Community Center As mentioned we are excited about some great new venues for play. Manchester, MO Parks and Recreation department has painted 4 pickleball court lines outdoors on their newer LIGHTED tennis courts at Schroeder Park (359 Old Meramec Station Rd, Ballwin, MO 63021). They have set out 2 roller pickleball nets inside the tennis courts to be used when you are interested in playing pickleball. During busy play times, you can bring your own portable nets for the other two courts or they will have all 4 roller nets available this summer for pickleball use. The courts times available for play are daily from 7 am to 9 pm (Spring) and 6 am to 10 pm (Summer). Because this is a mixed use space with tennis, the pickleball courts are not available on Saturday mornings from 8a – 12 noon because of prescheduled tennis lessons. Likewise, some late afternoons during high school tennis season the courts will be reserved for local tennis teams for practice. Cost is FREE! Bring your own balls and paddles. We anticipate this to be a very popular pickleball venue with great lights in mid-county!
Another new place in the brand new Maryland Heights Community Center (2300 McKelvey Rd, Maryland Heights, MO 63043). Open play times are Sunday 2:00pm to 5:00pm and Tuesday/ Thursday/ Friday 9:00am to 12:00pm. Drop in cost to play is only $4.00 for non-residents.
Tilles Park Pickleball Play times:
If you haven’t traveled to South St. Louis City to Tilles Park (Hampton Ave. & Marquette Ave) to see/play on the new outdoor courts at Tilles Park, you are missing out! 6 dedicated pickleball courts are FREE to use during daylight hours. The best place to park street-side is on Marquette Ave (one-way street heading west, so turn off of Hampton Ave on Potomac Ave. Go 2 blocks and turn left on January Ave to Marquette Ave. The bathrooms at the park are now open and there is a nearby water fountain.
Tilles Park Group Play Schedule:
Group play beginning May 1st! Every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday mornings at 9 am. Monday, Wednesday at Friday evenings starting at 5:30 pm. Bring your own paddles and balls. On the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month starting May 1st, from 6-7pm there will be a free “learn to play pickleball clinic/session” with Pro-Lite demo paddles and balls available for use.
Please share and rotate on courts if you find they are "full” when we have more people than courts playing. Rotations can be done by "next group up" or "skill-level" whichever the group decides. Keep in mind that people new or learning the game of pickleball including neighborhood folks will not know the pickleball court etiquette and that information will have to be shared.
Also, please help and monitor the "rules of the court" where the use of the courts should be for pickleball and tennis use only. No dogs/pets, soccer, scooters, bikes, etc. on the courts. There are other places in the park for those activities. There are now dedicated signs that have been posted. However, the more that people can help communicate to others not following the rules, the better it is for everyone. Please clean up after yourselves and/or throw out trash after your play. We want to ensure that our courts stay nice for as long as possible. Through our efforts at the beginning of play this spring, it will help people know what to do when we are much busier in the coming months. Thanks!
Pro-Lite Paddle New Releases and Updates:
Pro-Lite is one of top paddle manufacturers in the pickleball business. They are a Wisconsin based company and have been making some of the lightest and top performing paddles on the market for more than 30 years. Along with the rest of the pickleball industry growth has been significant in the sport and there is a strong demand for new technologies and paddle developments. Pro-Lite continues to be a leader with a line of paddles like the Pro-Lite Titan Pro Black Diamond Series with a Carbon Fiber face and quad core polymer core for excellent feel and power. The Pro-Lite Rebel is also a top paddle in their Power Spin Series with significant power and maximum spin. The Groove is also an excellent and stylish paddle designed for women with a lighter, yet powerful polymer core, and a smaller handle grip circumference to fit most ladies smaller hands.
Pro-Lite is releasing 2 new paddles at the US Open this week. The Pro-Lite Super Nova is the next Pro paddle in the Black Diamond Carbon Fiber Series that was designed by top pro Simone Jardim with a wider face and longer handle excellent for “converted tennis players”. The Pro-Lite Crush in 3 unique color designs is the next paddle in the Power Spin Series is a very light and powerful paddle made for all-around players.
Please note, as a distributor for Pro-Lite, I am happy to help you demo each one of these paddles and offer you discounts (better than most online retail prices). If you would like to order any of the current models at 2016 prices, please have your orders to me before May 12th. 2017 prices will go up about $10 - $15 across most paddle models (including my discounted prices). You can contact Mike Chapin directly at mike@stlouispickleball.com or 314-761-1120.
Tournaments, Tournaments, Tournaments:
A few tournaments that are neaby and local that are coming up where you can still participate in are the St. Louis Sr. Games (May , The St. Charles Golden Games (May 12th and 13th), St. Louis Senior Games (May 25, 26, 28) and St. Charles is having their First Annual St.Charles Classic Pickleball Tournament. It will be held outdoors at McNair Park tennis courts on June 3rd and 4th. All ages and skill levels are invited. For more information or to register, see attached form. For questions, contact Cindy Butler at cynth.butler@gmail.com or 636-219-6930. Deadline to register for discounted price is May 1st.
A full list of the tournaments including the summer ones are found under the "News Events Tourneys" tab on StLouisPickleball.com or PickleballMO.com including the Festus Firecracker, Lake Forest Classic, and Innsbrook's Gherkinball are other local popular tournaments in 2017.
Pickleball Clinics, Skill Development and Learn to Play:
There are some great opportunities to learn to play pickleball and/or develop the skills of your game through clinics or learn to play opportunities. Clinics are more formalized programs that may include special sessions or reserved lesson time with groups of people. There are also weekly individual or small group "learn to play" opportunities at formal places like "Vetta Racquet Sports" or "St. Elizabeth's of the Hungary (Crestwood, MO).
FREE NEW PLAYER CLINICS: Tilles Park Pickleball Courts – May 1st 6 – 7pm (plus every 1st and 3rd Monday of the month during the spring/summer) – Pro-Lite paddle demos and balls are provided. Signed waiver and proper attire required for clinic.
Cindy Butler, USAPA Ambassador in St. Charles/St. Peters area is hosting terrific clinic by nationally recognized teachers Coach MO and Coach Matty who tour the country with their training clinics and offer a take home DVD of their lessons.
FOR ALL LEVELS OF PLAY
Clinic 1: Sold Out
Clinic 2: Fri., May 19th 9:00am-
noon - 3 spots left
Clinic 3: Fri., May 19th, 9:00am-
noon - 1 spot left
Clinic 4: Sat., May 20th 9:00am-
noon - 5 spots left
Cost - $75.00 per person/per clinic*
