The season is only a month and a half old for the Dolbeau-Mistassini pickleball club, but we can say that it is already full of success. Compared to last year, the club has practically doubled its number of members.
Last summer, there were around forty players in the club. This year, there are 75, and a few new ones could register soon.
This is undoubtedly one of the largest increases in membership since the launch of the club’s summer activities.
“Before the pandemic, there were a few of us playing on the field behind Notre-Dame school. But since 2020, we have had five fields set up in the summer inside the Mistassini arena. Since then, the number of players has been slowly increasing, but there was a big increase this year. The only reason that explains this is that we are talking more and more about this sport, which is super easy to access,” comments the manager, Jean-Claude Boivin.
Also, during the fall and winter, FADOQ manages pickleball activities. According to Jean-Claude Boivin, several players learn this sport during this period, and continue to play come summer.
Happy problem
Faced with this increase in players, the club has had to, and may still have to, adapt its ways of doing things.
Already, some new volunteers have started to get involved in the management of activities.
“I couldn’t do everything alone, so I had a few enthusiasts who started to help me manage it. We also had to add an activity session one more evening and one morning per week to meet demand. »
Soon, leagues could be formed to ensure a good turnover of players and allow everyone to play at a good weekly frequency.
“With leagues, players would know that they are playing, for example, every Tuesday and Thursday morning. Currently, without a league, they just have to show up at the arena, sit in front of a field, and at the end of a game, there are rotations. But there are starting to be too many of us to continue like this, people will no longer be able to play as much as they want. »
For this summer, Jean-Claude Boivin indicates that a few more registrations could be taken, but places are limited.
