Offbeat Sunday: Peppy and Relationships

Pickles are hard to love...

It has been a while since we heard from Peppy. Since Valentine's Day was this past week, he opened up about his relationships.

Offbeat Sunday: Peppy and Pickleball Experience

Pickles never change...

It has been a while since we heard from Peppy. Today he talks about his pickleball past.

Offbeat Sunday: Peppy and Relationships

Pickles never change...

Aspen Kern manages the Pickleball Forum and contributes a character he has created - Peppy the Pickle. Peppy seems to have problems with the opposite sex. 

Pickleball PEP Talk - the Keys to Success

The more disciplined you become, the easier pickleball gets...

This might be the most important post I have written in nearly 2 years of blogging. I have been playing pickleball for over 3 years and studying it for nearly as long. I have studied techniques and strategies. I have read and listened to the best in the game tell me what I need to do. I have taken pieces from each that make sense to me. But I have not grasped a simplified concept to the keys to success...until now. 

Bu what is a simplified concept without an acronym? So here is what I came up with - PEP. As hard as I tried to honor Peppy, I was unable to come with a "Y" word. PEP works better anyhow, because the fewer keys to remember, the better.

Will Skinny Singles Replace Regular Singles

Skinny singles does not require a diet...

I previously posted a short article called Skinny Singles. Aspen Kern recently posted on the same topic in Pickleball Forum. I corrected some typos and otherwise made it more readable, but the text is Aspen's.

Half Court Singles (Skinny Singles)

10 years ago the number of players in the USA was small. It was difficult to even find 4 players to get a game of doubles going so I came up with a game I called half court singles or "skinny singles". It had most likely been played before but I was the first one to put it on youtube with the rules. About a year later we noticed Coach Mo was using it to teach his students down in The Villages. 

Aspen's Advice: Body Language and More

Body language gives away tendencies...

I had an article about deception all queued up and ready to go. Then Aspen Kern posted a one of his advice pieces in the Pickleball Forum that I thought would be a good lead-in. Below is Aspen's advice. We'll branch out from here over the next couple of days.

Aspen's Advice

Get in the habit of watching your opponents as they get ready to hit the ball. There is body language and there is paddle language. If you pay attention to their body mechanics as they are preparing to hit the ball, several things will let you know where they are planning to hit. Their feet,

Offbeat Sunday: Peppy and TMI

Some personal thoughts are best left unsaid...

Aspen Kern manages the Pickleball Forum and contributes a character he has created - Peppy the Pickle. Sometimes Peppy is a little too open. 

Aspen's Advice: Get to the Net

The first big movement...

I started a series of posts last week on movement around the court. We will pick that back up today with a brief post from Aspen Kern and the Pickleball Forum. It discusses the first big court movement - getting to the net from the baseline.

Aspen Kern is the creator of the Pickleball Forum and often adds his thoughts on pickleball topics. Aspen is a top player in the game and knows what he is talking about, especially with regard to the way the game is changing and how to win. 

Aspen's Advice

Warning, if you're afraid of a "gut punch" read no further, if your main reason for going to play rec is because you know there will be "potato salad" when you get done, read no further. Now that I have gotten rid of the weekend warriors, let me get to a serious matter. If your goal in a game isn't to get to the net and start a dink war, you are not playing Pickleball. 

Aspen's Advice - No Man's Land

We will not get caught in no man's land...

Aspen Kern is the creator of the Pickleball Forum and often adds his thoughts on pickleball topics. Aspen is a top player in the game and knows what he is talking about, especially with regard to the way the game is changing and how to win. 

Aspen's Advice

NO MANS LAND REVISITED. People refer to the area between the kitchen line and the baseline as No Mans Land, this is a term that has carried over from tennis. Let's get one thing perfectly clear. Pickleball is NOT Tennis. If you fall into the trap of never getting caught in no mans land in Pickleball you are cutting off 2/3 rds of your playing area. 

Don't get me wrong, this area can leave you susceptible to some uncomfortable positions and shot selection but when you become comfortable in an uncomfortable situation you elevate your game by using shots from this area as a weapon, this advice admittedly is not for the lower level players but the 4.5 and 5.0 player needs to work on mastering the dreaded no mans land. 

Doing drills designed to increase your play in this area will give you confidence when approaching the net. A good drill to get started mastering this taboo area is to practice volleying with someone from no mans land to no mans land. Yep, I said it, practice volleying with a 25 foot distance between you and your drilling partner, this will build up your wrist strength and allow you to attack the ball from a distance most opponents have not seen. I like to attack the fifth ball that would normally land in the no man land, take it out of the air and be on the offense early. Being able to do this shot on the forehand and backhand side is a very valuable weapon to have in your arsenal. Especially after a 3rd shot blast that the opponent might happen to pop up nice and high. 

Another drill that I use is to have one person play at the kitchen line and try to hit balls at your feet as you play in no mans land, your job being to dig these out of the asphalt and gain control enough to advance to the line. This is where the split step is invaluable, by using the split step you can more easily advance in stages and not worry as much about getting to the net off one ball. 

If you make No man's land your friend it is no longer no mans land and you are free to play wherever you want and isn't that what America is all about!!!.

Offbeat Sunday: Even Peppy the Pickle has Feelings

Never waste your feelings on pickles that don't value them...

Aspen Kern manages the Pickleball Forum and contributes a character he has created - Peppy the Pickle. Today's Peppy feature is about feelings. 

Offbeat Sunday: Peppy the Pickle on Food

Peppy gets very nervous at a picnic...

Aspen Kern manages the Pickleball Forum and contributes a character he has created - Peppy the Pickle. Today's Peppy feature is about food. After all, Memorial Day is around the corner and everyone will be celebrating the first day of summer with a picnic.

Aspen's Advice - Patience

Good shots come to those who wait...

Aspen Kern is the creator of the Pickleball Forum and often adds his thoughts on pickleball topics. Aspen is a top player in the game and knows what he is talking about, especially with regard to the way the game is changing and how to win. This piece of advice is timely after yesterday's lessons post.

Aspen's Advice

PATIENCE YOUNG GRASSHOPPER --- A common mistake I see players making, even at the 5.0 level. Is that when they see an attackable dink, they feel like they have one chance to end the point. Unless the ball is clearly high enough for you to end the point, don't feel obligated to do so. Most popped up dinks are at a height where you have to make a decision, these balls mean you're winning and not that you have won. Most times I will use the debatable popped up ball to go on offense to build the winning shot, just like in chess, if you take somebodies queen you are winning but you have not won. As long as I am hitting down, I am in control of the point and will try to build the advantage until I get the ball I am looking for, then and only then is it checkmate.

Peppy the Pickle on the US Open

I'm kind of a big dill...

Aspen Kern manages the Pickleball Forum on Facebook and contributes a character he has created - Peppy the Pickle. Today's Peppy feature is a set about tournaments in honor of the ongoing US Open in Naples, Florida.

Aspen's Advice: Grip

"Grip it and rip it" is not a strategy...

Aspen Kern is the creator of the Pickleball Forum and often adds his thoughts on pickleball topics. Aspen is a top player in the game and knows what he is talking about. Since the subject of this week has been about the results of my new grip, his thoughts on the grip are very relevant.

Aspen's Advice

There are Pickleball coaches that recommend certain grips that come from tennis (mainly the continental), that translate well to the game of Pickleball. What they don't tell you is every tennis grip can be mimiced by making an adjustment with the arm and wrist. My go to grip is a slight variation on the continental, but as you can see below I use it with different wrist angles to construct a variety of Pickleball specific shots. The photo on the top is a continental grip wrist adjusted to project a downward volley. The 2nd photo is a variation I use on my forehand dink to disguise misdirections. These are the result of over 7000 hours worth of drilling, but I know they can be implemented fairly quickly because I have taught them to other players, and they were using them within a few months. If your a tennis player, start thinking Pickleball, and if your a Pickleball player, start thinking angles.

Aspen's Advice: The Serve

Any tool in the bag can be turned into a weapon...

Aspen Kern is the creator of the Pickleball Forum and often adds his thoughts on pickleball topics. Aspen is a top player in the game and knows what he is talking about, especially with regard to the way the game is changing.

Aspen's Advice

If someone has told you that the serve in Pickleball doubles is not important, they are misinformed, it is very important. The serve can be a dangerous weapon and should be used to set up an advantageous start to the point, many times you can get points with just your serve being too difficult to return. The next time someone tells you the serve doesn't matter, tell them to keep walking and stop interrupting your serving practice time.

Peppy the Pickle on the Lob and Other Shots

A pickle is a cucumber with experience...

Aspen Kern manages the Pickleball Forum and contributes a character he has created - Peppy the Pickle. Today's Peppy feature is a set about the lobs and other shots.

Aspen's Advice: Plateauing

Everything can look like a failure in the middle...

Aspen Kern is the creator of the Pickleball Forum and often adds his thoughts on pickleball topics. Aspen is a top player in the game and knows what he is talking about. Since I wrote of a recent setback in my game, this recent topic was particularly relevant.

Aspen's Advice

As a Junior tennis player, I would become frustrated when I didn't see improvement in my game, My coach explained to me that as a player we go through peaks and valleys, but think of it as each time you hit the ball you are putting a penny into a piggy bank. You may not see it filling up but one day it will be full. His advice has helped keep me motivated when I start to think I have hit a plateau. There will be times that you have what appears to be setbacks, but from experience I can tell you the things that set you back are also the things that make you a stronger player. Many improvements in my game have been the result of little inconveniences, a minor injury that forces you to play slightly different, a court at dusk without lights will make you focus on the ball closer, even something as petty as forgetting your sunglasses at home can make you re-realize the power of a lob hit into the sun. Don't get discouraged when things don't seem to be going your way, there is indeed a Pickleball silver lining.

Aspen's Advice: Drilling

Practice puts brains in your muscles...

Aspen Kern is the creator of the Pickleball Forum and often adds his thoughts on pickleball topics. Aspen is a top player in the game and knows what he is talking about. Since I have been posting a series of drills, his recent topic was particularly relevant.

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Aspen's Advice