So, a lot of pickleball and bike riding stuff found under the tree yesterday.  The family and I did a few hours of volunteer service to help prepare about 1100 meals for community folks and then we returned home and my wife and daughter cooked up probably the best holiday meal I have had in ages.  Thanks to a suggestion from my daughter we migrated from the usual of either turkey or ham and entered the realm of Beef For Christmas.  My daughter is one of those cooks that see recipes as more of a guideline where as I am a strict measurement and ingredient guy.  To her credit, she usually sticks the landing.  So since I still feel stuffed as a tick, it's time to think pickleball and burn some calories as we trot off to the Pickleverse.

1. The Centre (Schedule) - The SignUpGenius reflects this but I just wanted to remind folks that on Monday and Friday, The Centre will have 8 courts available.  On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, there will be a canine event on the turf side of building and they also rented the floor space where the original 4 courts are located.  With rental of the turf side, drop-in and private court reservations will be limited to the 5 courts on the gym side of the building.  Other than fewer courts for play, some other impacts will be a more crowded parking lot and when you enter the building you will go to the right since instead of the usual left.  I will reduce the number of drop-in sign up spaces for dog show days.  The change in the number of spaces does not mean you cannot come but alerts you that the courts will be crowded and the rotation to play may be a tad longer.

2. The Centre (drop-in fee) - a final reminder that the daily drop-in fee will go up from $8 to $9 on January 1st.  Your inflation fighter strategy would be to purchase play credits in advance at the current price and then burn them up in 2026.

3. The Centre (New Year's Day) - The Centre is celebrating the growth of its pickleball program with free pickleball on January 1, 2026.  There will be the usual drop-in session and then the 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM private reserved courts sessions.  Business as usual just no charged for those sessions.  I have absolutely no idea if the drop-in will be just lightly attended or the courts will be flooded.

4. The Centre (Private Court Reservations) - Effective immediately, a person can only reserve a maximum of 3 courts for private reserved play.  If your group needs more than 3 courts a second player may reserve up to 3 additional courts.

5. C3 Sports (Schedule) - I looked that the C3 Sport calendar and as best I can tell, the facility should be open except for New Year's Day.  If you wish to reserve a court, unless you have first hand knowledge of their schedule, I would recommend calling to confirm availability.  Their number is 814-234-0711.

6. Dinking In The New Year 2026 (Last Call) - Registrations are up to 101 players and the window for registration closes on January 1, 2026.  There are number of local player competing and there should be some lively competition.  For more information or to register go to: Dinking In The New Year

7. New Tournament - The Westmont High School Hockey Team will be hosting a pickleball tournament at the high school on January 17th and 18th.  The registration fee is very pocket friendly so if you have never played a tournament and didn't want to spend too much money to try one, this might be the one for you.  See the flyer below for more information.

8. Rules For 2026 - As I mentioned previously there are not much in the way of dramatic rule changes with most work going into clarifying language.  I stumbled across this YouTube video and the narrator does a good job of hitting the highlights.  2026 Rule Update
   
   

It has been a lot of fun this past week meeting the family of some local players.  Looking forward to seeing you on the court soon.

C3 Sports:  Indoor Play At C3 Sports

The Centre:  Indoor Play At The Centre

Randy S. Hoffman

Pickleball: The art of keeping your eye on the ball…mostly.