In Today's Picklebilly Presents, we'll connect with Christine Barksdale, a successful senior pickleball pro, and a person who has run national championships and who's helping get  Head Pickleball some much deserved recognition.  Today we'll be talking all things pickleball.

Background: Christine Barksdale is a decorated pickleball athlete. She was a tennis player through her youth and was a competitive 4.5-5.0 tennis player and a USTA National Champion in 2010. After finding pickleball, she has had a lot of success on and off the court. Along with all of her medals on court, she also was USAPA’s Director of Competition and Athlete services and is currently HEAD’s National Promotions Manager for Pickleball. Christine was also an announcer during the Margaritaville USA Pickleball Nationals that was co-hosted with Murphy and Luke Jensen and was the on court announcer during the pickleball exhibition with Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi.

Meet Wicket.  Wicket is an adorable bear who has amazing adventures and meets the most interesting people.  Wicket is the brainchild of Vincent Soo. Join us today as we hear all of the places Wicket has been and see the famous folks who have posed with Wicket.   As Vincent is an avid pickleball player, Wicket is now on the pickleball scene as well. 

More about Vincent Soo:
" I have thousands of photos of Wicket from all over the globe.
Wicket's latest adventures are where Wicket flew in the Atlanta airshow in an F-16 Fighting Falcon and then one week later he did two flyovers at the Indianapolis 500!  Once was at end of National Anthem and the second pass was to honor our fallen soldiers for Memorial Day. 
• Muhammad Ali
• Gordie Howe
• Mitt Romney
• James Earl Jones
• Willie Nelson
• Larry The Cable Guy
• Kenny G - jazz saxophonist
• Derek Jeter
• Alex Rodriguez
• Olga Korbut - Mother of Gymnastics
• Eric Burdon - The Animals and funk band War.
• Jackie Joyner-Kersee
• Joe Walsh - James Gang, Barnstorm, Eagles, the Party Boys, and Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band.

I have been a certified ski instructor for 17 years, although I taught skiing back in the late 70s as well.  I’m also  a National Ski Patroller and a NSP instructor.
I grew up in Royal Oak, Michigan and moved to Kalamazoo, Mi in the late 70's.
Shooting and teaching photography and videography was my primary career, while my hobbies consisted of martial arts (52 years now) and racquetball.  I switched over to pickleball two years ago and I've been hooked since!"

So much in today's episode, including the early days of pickleball, the invention of the first composite paddle, a visit to Bainbridge Island, and Steve weighs in about the current Pickleball Hall of Fame controversy.

Background: Steve is the longest-running tournament player from 1974-present. He has been teaching pickleball since 1980 and was one of the first certified pickleball instructors with an IPTPA certification. Steve also helped his father Arlen, invent and design the first composite pickleball paddles. This was the creation of Pro-Lite back in 1984. Steve is a multi-National Champion at the 5.0 level. Steve was inducted to the Pickleball Hall of Fame in 2019 while his father Arlen was inducted into the inaugural class of the Pickleball Hall of Fame in 2017 along with the founders of the sport. Steve has a Masters in Education and has taught physical education for 30 years.

The goal of the PicklePlay app is to build a pickleball community; it's a free resource to all pickleball players no matter their skill level. 
Pickleplay offers the following:  finding courts, finding players of a certain skill level,  finding local clubs or groups to join, managing playtimes, and much more.  
Some more from Blake:
Our family loves pickleball and we started playing about 3-4 years ago. What we love most about the sport is ANYONE can play. I love to play casually, my husband plays more competitively; our kids love to play and have FUN! Playing and seeing the need ourselves for a mobile application to help players find courts, find others to play with, and manage play schedules was our motivation to make our dream a reality with developing PicklePlay! My background is in business management and marketing. I have teamed up with a professional development team to create our application. We have learned so much and are excited for new enhancements and more features coming this fall.

Steve Wong has over 28 years of playing experience, is a National Champion, and is a person who strives to grow the game. We'll talk about the early days, his previous companies, Armour pickleball and a new paddle release, along with Steve's annual tournament for his brother Tommy. Finally, we'll ask for some highlights from his popular pickleball clinics.  

Here's a timeline of some of Steve's accomplishments:

2005 - Steve Wong and several friends (Mark Friedenberg, Fran Myer, Barney Myer, Lela Reed, Phil Mortenson, Erne Perry, Carole Myers, Earl Hill and other pickleball lovers created the USAPA.org (USA Pickleball Association).  Steve started as the webmaster and Vice President.
2005 - Steve Wong co-founded S-Type Sports, LLC which later became Onix Sports, Inc.
2009 - Steve Wong participated in the first Pickleball National Tournament.
2011 - Steve Wong created the Surprise Pickleball Association and led a movement to get permanent city courts created.
2011 - Steve Wong became the first Pickleball Professional (Pro) by touring the USA and promoting the game.  He did clinics Nationwide.  He taught many pros that became successful in their pickleball careers.
2012 - Steve Wong co-directed the USAPA National Pickleball Tournament.
2018 - Steve Wong was a Nominee to the Pickleball Hall of Fame.
2019 - Steve Wong founded Armour Pickleball with a mission to keep growing the game and give back to the community for future generations to come.

Bonnie Coffey and her husband Ky have lived a nomadic "pickleball" lifestyle for five years.  In their adventures, they take lessons with pros across the country, experience amazing pickleball courts, and meet new people everywhere.  Bonnie writes a regular blog, and today we'll chat with her about some of her best experiences these past years.   When asked why she likes to write and why she has a blog, here's what she wrote:   
"I think I have said this before, but it's good for me to remind myself that writing, for me, fulfills three purposes. 1) A blog is a type of diary and a place to organize my photos. 2) It is a way to stay in touch with the amazing people who we've have the good fortune to meet on this journey as well as our wonderful family and friends. 3) It is a way to encourage and spur people to get out and live their best lives. To spur those with nomadic souls on to say, 'Hey, if they can do it, so can I/(we).' "   Check out Bonnies blog at www.coffeys2go.com

Join today's "Picklebilly Podcast" as we chat with Dan Normand who started with pickleball in 2019 and has since been a whirlwind of activity. Dan created the SoCal Pickleball Academy, a consortium of coaches,; he has a company with unique pickleball products, and he developed a coaching system that gives his players a detailed "report card" of their progress.  We discuss pickleball concepts and strategies as well as a great new location Dan helped to design. Stay tuned! 

Here's more about Dan's background:
Entrepreneur, Inventor, Innovator, Dan Normand is one who questions everything and who also happens to be an advanced Pickleball player.
After working in the healthcare industry for 35 years as a respiratory therapist, marketing manager, product manager, sales director and CEO Dan ventured into his own businesses.  Dan is respected and admired by our pickleball community as a fair, honest,  clear communicator.  Leadership is natural because he is never afraid to roll up his sleeves and dive into challenges.  
Dan is currently CEO of Aromox, Inc.  Aromox is a natural product device delivery company.  Aromox is the producer of PaddleCleanse, an all-natural plant-based Pickleball paddle cleaner.  Dan has also recently become an IPTPA Certified Instructor and has founded the SoCal Pickleball Academy based out of Escondido, CA.
Dan attended the University of Rhode Island biology program and graduated with honors from the Rhode Island School of Respiratory Therapy.

Matthew Cross is involved in all aspects of pickleball; He is a USA Pickleball Certified Referee, an IPTPA Instructor, and the Referee Coordinator for the PPA.  You'll want to hear what he has to say in today's broadcast including overcoming a tragedy, why pickleball is "transcendent,"  tips for overcoming anxiety on the court, being center court at a championship match, and the importance of hosted housing at upcoming tournaments.

What's it like to be a top athlete and new to the pro pickleball circuit?  Today we'll chat with Julian and Stacy about their recent competition in Newport Beach.  This was Julian's first singles pro match and their first match as partners in 5.0.
 We'll discuss their preparation beforehand, their game plan going into the matches as well as how the action unfolded.

What will they focus on going forward?

Addam Shand is bringing his extensive background to getting kids involved in pickleball.  Those interested in adding pickleball to their community will want to hear his thoughts and get his contact information.  Addam's energetic style is a pleasure to hear as he talks about the dynamic future of pickleball and some exciting things in store for the development of youth pickleball.