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38 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | MARCH 2014 | SPORTS & OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES SPORTS & OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES | FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | MARCH 2014 39 Racquet Club February was not just the month for Valentine's day, where "love" means something, rather than on the tennis court where it means nothing. The Four seasons Beaumont racquet Club (FsBrC) was invited by the tennis aficionados at neighboring sun Lakes for a day of friendly, but competitive tennis and a hosted lunch on Feb. 8. our club sent a worthy contingent of men and women players to compete in mixed, women's, and men's doubles. at the end of the day, sun Lakes players had prevailed in many of the matches, but all participants had a fun time and got to meet lots of new tennis friends. FsBrC looks forward to the opportunity to reciprocate, though doing so with just our two courts, will be a challenge. speaking of our courts, we are all very impressed with and appreciative of the newly resurfaced courts. The colors are bright and the lines are sharp. That has not, however, vastly improved some of our line calls! While the day at sun Lakes was certainly a highlight, our other activities have continued. The Mixed doubles play has continued on the second and third Thursday night of the month. during February, the regular rotating of playing partners has continued. in March, the "mixed-up" Mixed doubles will continue on the second Thursday of the month. When we get to the third Thursday in March, the mixed doubles partners will be assigned and the team will stay together for the following few months. so, in March and subsequent months, it will be "mixed-up" Mixed doubles on the second Thursday and "teamed-up" Mixed doubles on the third Thursdays. We'll see how that works out and adjust as necessary. The monthly Play days continue to be held on the last saturday of each month. all Four seasons Beaumont residents are welcome to come and play beginning at 8:30 am. it's not just for the club members, so come on out for some safe fun and good exercise. on the tennis courts we have had some service breaks, but no bone breaks. so for those for whom some other sports have resulted in a few injured limbs, leading to comments such as "No way in hell," when asked if she will return to that other court game, we think you'll enjoy coming out for a tennis Play day. Please visit our club website www. fsbrc.org. ~ Steve Hovey Ping pong is a fun game and fun is what we have here at beautiful Four seasons as we play on a recreational level. occasionally, however, some of our players like to take the game to the next level where it is still fun but becomes much more competitive and serious in nature. There is no better venue to do just that than the annual Palm desert international sports Festival and senior games. This year, for the table tennis competition, it was held over two days, Feb. 6 and 7. This tournament, because of its status and because of the coveted medals it offers, draws top players from all over California and even a few from out of state. The players it drew from our own Four seasons Ping Pong Club were gilbert apodaca, don Fant, rick Jimenez, Barry Pope, suchart sudhamma, and Niles sundstrom. it was also great to have two other players on our club, rony Tordesillas and Bob smith, come out and lend us moral support with their cheering. doubles competition was held on day one. gilbert apodaca teamed up with Bill souder of solera, while don Fant teamed up with dennis sauer of sun Lakes. Both of these strong teams advanced all the way to the final. The final proved to be a very exciting game with gilbert and Bill winning three games to two over don and dennis. suchart sudhamma and rick Jimenez, playing in a younger age bracket, won the Bronze medal in their doubles competition. singles competition was held on day two. although our guys played very well and earned honorable mention accolades, they were over powered by much higher rated players in the battle for medals. you don't have to be tournament level player to enjoy ping pong. Just come out and join in the fun Monday through Friday at 10:30 am and saturday at 11 am. Please contact Niles sundstrom at (951) 572-5119 or alan Chan at (951) 769-4202 if you have any questions or need more information about your Four seasons' Ping Pong group. ~ Niles Sundstrom We are all still having lots of fun and laughs, making new friends and building memories. great to be out in the crisp air getting our heart rates up and keeping our bodies moving. remember, bodies that sit get sore and stiff. We all need to get off the sofas and chairs and get active. Pickleball is often described as "the fastest growing sport in North america." along with the growth of pickleball is the players' growing attachment to the sport; it's not uncommon to hear players describe the sport as "addicting." yes — we have had some injuries on the court. These are usually caused by swinging incorrectly, not bending from the knees only the waist, running forward, running backward, and coming to the game with body injuries already in place. if people haven't played a sport in years, if they have been a couch potato, if they haven't exercised since their hair was its original color, they are accidents waiting to happen. 'use it or lose it' is an important mantra after 50. so, get out there and start stretching and strength training and then come join us. remember we play Tuesday, Thursday, and saturday. open play is 9 am. For more information, please contact Marty Key at (562) 331-0817 or e-mail keeksmail@ yahoo.com. ~ Marty Key Ping Pong Club Pickleball Friends having fun on the courts Photo far left: Dennis Sauer, Gilbert Apodaca, Bill Souder, and Don Fant Photo left: Suchart Sudhamma and Rick Jimenez

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