Tueday, Nov. 25th - MTA Gym (logan)

TANTRAMAR PICKLEBALL

TUESDAY 25 NOVEMBER 2025

SUMMARY – STOMPIN’ TOM CONNORS EDITION

By all accounts, pickleball is flourishing on Prince Edward Island. There are courts all over the place, from Cornwall to Kensington, Brackley Beach to Charlottetown and Morell. And all points in between, as they say.

This summer just past, I had the opportunity to visit the Stompin’ Tom Connors Museum in

Skinner’s Pond. And, much to my surprise, there wasn’t a mention of pickleball anywhere.

There were hats, shirts, cups, ashtrays, towels, soap dishes – well, just about anything you

might imagine, all featuring a guitar image, or a black Stetson, or a lobster. But not a paddle or a pickleball to be seen. I insisted that the young woman behind the counter explain the situation. I left before she could call security.

Now this experience gave me some pause. I’ve always believed that Canada’s most well-known troubadour was a pickleball devotee. Must have been. He had the attitude, right? And he wrote the songs that all of us pickleball fanatics can relate to.

“Come and listen and I’ll tell ya what the old folks say.”

Now it’s not really clear whether or not Big Joe Mufferaw had pickleball in mind “…when he

paddled into Mattawa all the way from Ottawa in just one day.” But what better lesson could

all of us learn than to pay attention to what the old (read, experienced) folks are trying to tell

us?

Today, we had about 22 players in attendance, five courts in operation with two waiting on the bleachers. And each and every one of those competitors has at least a couple of experienced players to thank for their introduction to our great game. Everyone has to start somewhere, right? For me, it was Paul for the most part, with assistance from Frank and Kirk. Seems impossible that that was only three short years ago.

I’m sure that Paul’s mentorship has been important to many of us. I remember the first time he explained to me that, if your momentum carries you into the kitchen after a volley, then that’s a fault. My incredulity must have been obvious, because he quietly took me aside and

explained the nuances of the kitchen and the importance of this innovation in separating

pickleball from the other racquet sports. Don’t think I’ll ever forget that.

And Paul’s coaching on court positioning and footwork has been invaluable to me. Now,

knowing and understanding is one thing, execution is quite another. I have Paul to thank for

the former, and only myself to blame for the latter. But the patience Paul and our other

experienced players show in helping us along, whether in understanding the rules (thanks

Larry!) or in trying to become just a little bit better…well, this is one of the things that makes

our pickleball group such a fine bunch of folks.

Now I’m almost certain that the players on PEI are just as accommodating. Good coaches,

great friends. But every once in a while… “He’s gotta catch the boat to make Tormentine,

And he heads up that old New Brunswick line.”

The boat that was the vessel for Bud the Spud’s trip exists only in our memories of course,

unless you’re sailing from Wood Island to Caribou, NS. But for those of us who grew up ‘round here, summer excursions on the MV Abegweit, over to Borden and back, are very fond memories to reflect on from time to time. Today, the Abegweit serves as a clubhouse for the Columbia Yacht Club in Chicago. Let’s hope she’s generating as many memories for them as she did for us.

But despite the loss of the main ferry line, we still get back and forth to PEI on the

Confederation Bridge. Perhaps not so romantic, but what we lose in romance we make up for in efficiency, I suppose. After spending the summer on PEI, our friend Allen Flemming has rejoined us for some spirited play. I’m told he keeps his game in shape all summer by playing with a club in Summerside, a beautiful six-court outdoor facility. As far as I can tell, there are more than 100 members of the Summerside club, a healthy number for a mid-size town. It’s our good fortune that, for Allen, “that old New Brunswick line” ends in Sackville. If you need any proof of how Allen hones his game, just take a look at the smaller picture on this page:

https://secure.pickleballcanada.org/club/pei-pickleball-ipe/11/summerside-pickleball-

club/5563/

And why not PEI? As Stompin’ Tom said in his famous pickleball promotional song: “Make this call the best of all for PEI pickle fun – eight double zero, five six five, seven four two one!”

You know, as we welcome Allen back for another fall/winter of pickleball, I can’t help but recall how many of our players say that the level of play in our group is really, really good. Everyone is improving, everyone is competing, and everyone (mostly everyone, most of the time!) has a smile on their face.

“Cause everything is wonderful tonight, we had a good fight.”

Historians of Stompin’ Tom’s body of work insist that this lyric is about a Sudbury Saturday

night. Ha! We all know the truth. There were “good fights” all over the gym today.

I was in a couple of really great battles. Larry and I took on Catherine and Freddy, and despite taking an early 6-2 lead, we ended up on the wrong end of an 11-9 score. And then Frank and I

fought Larry and Ali. This time, we battled back from down 4 or 5-1 to take the game, maybe

11-8. But the play was very quick and spirited, and both games were a “good fight.” Best of all, there were no bloody noses, as there might be in Sudbury on a Saturday night.

And speaking of putting up a fight! Saeed and Christian played a tournament in Truro this past weekend, losing the bronze medal match in their category by the slimmest of margins, 15-13.

Well done! Having played with and against both of these gentlemen on many occasions, I can attest to the intensity of the battles when they’re plugged in. They even let me escape with a point or two now and then.

“…it’s the best game you can name, cause the best game you can name, it’s the good old…”

There’s no real need to complete this lyric. Everyone knows how it ends. Right? And leaving it unfinished allows me to continue the fantasy about Stompin’ Tom as a pickleball enthusiast just a little bit longer. The kicker? We all get to enjoy the best game you can name again on Wednesday night, 8:00 p.m. at the Salem School gym, and then again on Thursday morning at the Mt. A. gym from 9:00 till noon.

New players especially, don’t forget to pass along your name, email address and phone number

to Logan Atkinson. He is helping the Steering Committee by building a database of players in our group. Send your info to tantramarpickleball@gmail.com and it will be forwarded on to

Logan.

Update on parking, starting in January: It seems that Mt. A. will be charging $2 per hour to

park in their lots. Regular street parking managed by the municipality will remain free, as far as we know. This means that York Street, Landsdowne Street and the spots over by our outdoor courts will be available, as usual. But those spaces will be at a premium, so plan to arrive early to get your spot.