Abbey Tournament an Overwhelming Success

http://pickleballcanada.org/node/156 wrote:

Abbey Tournament an Overwhelming Success:

Abbotsford, BC held their first ever open tournament that attracted 90 participants from Vancouver Island, Kelowna, Port Moody, Ladner, and South Surrey.

The event was held at the Abbotsford Recreation Centre, ARC, with eight courts.

Congratulations to Grant Brittain for being tournament chair and Shirley Shepherd for the article.

To read the article, find out the names of the winners, and see pictures of the event go to Tournament Photos at ARC June 26, 2010.

Tournament Photos at ARC June 26, 2010

Players were arriving as early as 7:30am and our tournament was finished at about 5:00 pm. We had 90 competitors from all over B.C. including Nanaimo, Ladner, Port Moody, Kelowna, Chilliwack, South Surrey, and a team of about ten volunteers who worked tirelessly throughout the day. Food and beverages were available to players all day: Muffins, donuts for breakfast, gourmet sandwiches, appetizers, fruit platters, desserts for lunch, snacks were available for the rest of the day. We all needed the nutritrious food to keep our energy up for so many competitive games. Eight courts were in constant play for the entire day. We were glad to watch a lot of advanced 5+ skill level players performing their excellent skills, talent and experience.

Congratulations to all the medal winners !!!! Congratulations to our five Abbotsford players who won third place bronze medals: Rod Koch and Henry Meerkerk (Mens Doubles 55+), Matt Koning and Nathan Krabberdam (Mens Doubles under 55) and Mandy Witt (Ladies Doubles under 55) !!!

Players commented on our excellent facility at Abbotsford Recreation Centre, ARC, our superb customer service, delicious food and our friendliness and hospitality. Players were able to meet new pickleball friends from other areas. I was delighted to meet people who enjoyed reading our blog. Overall, everyone had a great time !!!!

Mixed Doubles under 55 - Gold: Zhekhovsky/Zhekhovskaya, Silver: Iggulden/Iggulden, Bronze: Pitcher/Pitcher


Ladies Doubles 55+ - Gold: Edwards/Postler, Silver: Copp/Hill, Bronze: Robinson/Wheatley


Mens Doubles 55+ - Gold: Kusch/Touchet, Silver: Copland/Skinner, Bronze: Meerkerk/Koch


Ladies Doubles under 55 - Gold: Iggulden/Zhekovsky, Silver: Yey/Choy, Bronze: Pitcher/Witt


Mens Doubles under 55 - Gold: Beckwith/Zhekovsky

Tournament Winners Names on June 26, 2010

Shirley waiting to play with volunteers Catherine, Henrietta.

Thanks to Grant and all the volunteers for making our first Pickleball Tournament a great success !!!! A great big thank you to all 90 competitors including those who came from Vancouver Island, Kelowna, Port Moody, Ladner, Chilliwack, South Surrey. We look forward to seeing you again !!!!

Grant Brittain was our tournament director. Julie Turner was our official Scorekeeper. Rod Koch, Henry Meerkerk, Ken Witt and Carol Haworth from Chilliwack were the referees for the medal games. Ken Witt, Henry Meerkerk, Dave and Mike Shepherd, Elaine Griffiths from Chilliwack, Peter Darvill from Ladner and others were line judges. Catherine, Henrietta, Lorie, Heather, Richard and many others were volunteers. Shirley Shepherd and Allan Turner were the photographers. Thanks to everyone !!!

TOURNAMENT MEDAL WINNERS:

Mixed Doubles 55+
Gold Hill/Kusch
Silver Jonker/Jonker
Bronze Yeh/Leung

Mens Doubles 55+
Gold Kusch/Touchet
Silver Copland/Skinner
Bronze Meerkerk/Koch

Ladies Doubles 55+
Gold Edwards/Postler
Silver Copp/Hill
Bronze Robinson/Wheatley

Mixed Doubles under 55
Gold Zhekhovsky/Zhekhovskaya
Silver Iggulden/Iggulden
Bronze Pitcher/Pitcher

Mens Doubles under 55
Gold Beckwith/Zhekovsky
Silver Watkins/Pitcher
Bronze Koning/Krabberdam

Ladies Doubles under 55
Gold Iggulden/Zhekovsky
Silver Yeh/Choy
Bronze Pitcher/Witt

First Division Tournament Draw ARC June 26, 2010

All players should be at ARC gym at 8:30 am. 2499 McMillan Road, Abbotsford, B.C. (See direction map at right). Grant Brittain will welcome all players and give a brief outline of the tournament.

The first division to play is Mixed Doubles 55+ starting at 8:30 am with 18 teams. Click the document to enlarge and see the draw for this division. The other five divisions will follow. Eight courts will be in play.

Tournament Practise, 10 Players Sunday Night

10 players showed up Sunday night. Matt, Nathan, Henry came to practise for the tournament with Mike, Dave and me. I enjoyed to play against Nathan and Matt in order to improve my game with stronger players. Catherine and Anne played and Rita watched. We welcomed one new player who played very well because she is a tennis player with good ground strokes.

90 Players Signed Up for Our June 26 Tournament

There were about 25 players on Tuesday afternoon. New players Peter, Dennis and Brian joined us today. Catherine really plays well with her new S-Type paddle. I showed everyone a beautiful portrait of Grant's family which I developed into a large placemat. Thanks to Lorie for bringing the healthy snacks, savory salad and fruit.

Grant told us that 90 players have registered for our June 26 tournament, fantastic !!! Players are coming from all over B.C. We look forward to welcoming them all to Abbotsford !!! Grant is busy trying to schedule the matches and we will let you know when it is done.

Tuesdays Snack Schedule, 9 Players Sunday Night

9 players showed up Sunday night. A new player Glen played very well for the first time because he played tennis before. His son Eric, lifeguard 6'10", enjoyed playing the second time. Barry and Edie were there. Allan came to practise for our upcoming tournament with Mike, Dave and me. I really need to practise with some stronger players in order to improve my game for the June 26 tournament.

We are glad that Carol found a partner Elaine from Chilliwack for Dave's friend Peter in Ladner who will be playing in two divisions in our tournament. Dave and I will only be playing in one division because we can't find a partner for the second division. Mike will play in two divisions in our tournament.

TUESDAYS SNACKS SCHEDULE:

July 6 Ken
July 13 Bill
July 20 Al
July 27 Joyce
Aug 3 Michelle
Aug 10 Julie
Aug 17 Tom
Aug 24 Rita
Aug 31 Catherine

Senior Demo, 30 Players Thursday, 20 At Night

Hurry! Only 2 days left to enter our June 26 Pickleball Tournament.

Eight courts were filled with about 30 players on a rainy Thursday afternoon. Today is Seniors Pickleball demo for new seniors to try it out, at least 12 new players came to play and many others showed interest and asked questions about it. Julie and I were teaching two new players how to play the game and they obviously enjoyed it.

All four courts were busy at night with about 20 younger players, most of them are new players. I played with Mike, Matt, another Mike, Edie, Brian and Anne. I taught a new player who was doing Nordic pole walking and she really appreciated it.

4 Days Left to Enter Our Pickleball Tournament

Hurry! Only 4 days left to register for our pickleball tournament.
65 players have already signed up for the event. We are in need of players in the Mixed doubles under 55, ladies doubles under 55, and mens doubles under 55.

Abbotsford Pickleball Tournament at ARC:
Tournament date: June 26, 2010
Tournament hours: 8:30 - 5:00 pm
Fees: Player $25, additional events: $5, non-player: $7
(Fee includes lunch & eligibility for prizes)
Entries must be received no later than June 12, 2010
Please note: This is a non-apike paddle event.
Division Information:
Please select the division(s)you are entering and your partner's name.
Mixed Doubles: ( ) 55+ ( ) under 55
Ladies Doubles: ( ) 55+ ( ) under 55
Men's Doubles: ( ) 55+ ( ) under 55

Please register at ARC or mail completed forms & payment to Sarah Morris, Abbotsford Recreation Centre, 2499 McMillan Road, Abbotsford, B.C. V2S 7R3 604-853-4221
Click registration form located in 'slideshow'. Right click the documents and click 'print picture' to make copies of registration form.
Please contact us if you have any questions, email Grant: uthdudegrant@hotmail.com or abbypickleball@shaw.ca

23 Players Tuesday Afternoon, Coffee & Snacks

About 23 players participated on a sunny Tuesday afternoon. Two new players Peter and Brian, they both played really well. This was the first time for Brian who plays squash and racquetball. We are glad that Dave's golf friend Peter and some of his friends from Ladner will be playing in our tournament.

Julie baked some very delicious brownies and cookies with lovely skewers of fruit for our coffee and snack. We were all discussing the long lists names of players in our tournament to see who we are going to be competing against.

Nanaimo Tournament on Saturday July 24, 2010

Tournament date 24th July 2010 830 am to 5pm

It will be held at the Oliver woods Community center in Oliver road Nanaimo.

54 and under mens , ladies and mixed doubles.........

55 and over mens , ladies and mixed doubles


if you are arriving slightly late we will allow to 9am provided you let us know in advance.

A draw will be sent out by 15th July so that entrants know their first play times

We will be charging $20 for both events and $15 for 1 event only

contact person is ronniepitcher@gmail.com

Hurry! One Week Left to Enter Our Tournament

Hurry! There are only 9 more days to register for our June 26 Pickleball Tournament at ARC. The deadline to register is June 12. Thanks for the support of 61 players who have already signed up for the event. We are in need of more players in the Mixed doubles under 55, ladies doubles under 55, and mens doubles under 55.. It would be great to have more players come to play in our tournament and we will have a blast !!!!

Please contact us if you have any questions, email Grant: uthdudegrant@hotmail.com or abbypickleball@shaw.ca

18 Players Thursday Afternoon, 22 At Night

About 18 players showed up on a sunny Thursday afternoon. Regular players Catherine, Tom, Richard, Al, Rod, Frank, Allan, Dave, Mike, Shirley, Annette, Henry, John, Barry, Bill, Rita played for two and a half hours.

At night about 22 players, Matt, Mike, Ganbat, Grant, Barry, Edie, Anne, Dan and a lot of new younger players (Chris played for the first time) enjoyed rallying with each other.

USAPA International Pickleball Week

About 28 players participated in Tuesday's pickleball. We enjoyed a large cake and lots of fruit to celebrate USAPA International Pickleball Week. In addition, we celebrated the five fold increase in the number of players. We had plenty of conversation about the upcoming tournament.