UNFORCED ERRORS A PICKLEBALL PLAYERS WORST NIGHTMARES

                         "JUST WHEN I THOUGHT I WAS OUT THEY PULLED ME BACK IN !"

(Famous line by Al Pacino in God Father 2)

"Coach Joe" 6/1/21

I received a phone call from a representative of the DIADEM ICON PADDLE COMPANY wanting me to try their new ICON Japanese Carbon Fiber Paddle. Their paddle is along the lines of the Gearbox Carbon Paddle which is getting a lot of attention, not from the pros, but from middle America "John Q Pickleball" who plays well enough to compete but because of family commitments, finances and time, he just can't travel the tournament Circuit.

Well forgive me, once again I digress. Now I have to weasel my way back into the subject at hand. In all this gibberish, the point I am trying to make is that the "Pickleball Biggies" who are control most all things pickleball, have completely forgotten about the average middle America Recreation and armature competitive player. Most any top ranking pro can take the worse paddle or even an old frying pan and play a great game. The average Joe (pardon the pun) needs a little help to improve his or her game. See Ladies I did not forget about you.

And with this I mean producing space age material paddles that will help the average player with ball control, ball placement, resetting the point, and dealing and dishing out spin. Most big paddle companies are still producing the 1990 style of graphite surface and Nomex core. Just changing the graphics to appease the "pretty paddle" enthusiast in our sport. They usually match their court wear to the colors in their paddle.

Finally some new kids on the production block are building paddles from molybdenum carbon surfaces unsinging Japanese carbon, the best in the world. And thinner cores of carbon fiber that produce some amazing results, especially with ball control and resetting the point, Unlike other sports our "pros" don't receive the high pay day for winning tournaments and titles. They need sponsors and a full time job that pays the bills. They spend hours practicing and pay high rates for coaching. Being a pro pickleball player and trying to make a living doing it is not an easy task. Major brand endorsements are usually reserved for the elite pros who cleaned the clocks of other pros at the National, and Open Championships. \\

A top performing paddle provides the sense of touch to a player for absorbing the blow of a hard hit ball and then dropping that ball softly just over the net. Hitting a line drive forehand from the back court that beats the response time of opponents at the net is a feature lacking in many of today's paddles. The player must do all the work to change ball pace. A top end paddle should also have the ability to play a soft cross kitchen dinking game, with a quick change of pace to a hard fast put-away

Sadly many recreational players are duped into buying the colorful eye appealing pretty paddles, not giving one thought to how it performs. If it looks good, therefore it must play good. The ship of fools has set sail once again, attempting to cross the Pickleball Ocean. Now comes the paddle art work. Does it hamper in any way the performance or responsiveness of the paddle's surface material? Does it create dead spots in or around the sweet spot? Does the colorful design hinder in any way how the surface reacts to the ball? The Performance One (POP) Custom made paddles are the only brand that does not put artwork on the working face area of the paddle. Their brand is down near the throat. And I can say for a fact that paddle performs well in most every category.,

However many paddle companies today install the icon or art work on the face of a pickleball paddle, I am firmly convinced that it changes the virility of the paddle surface. In other words, it causes dead spots on the surface of these paddles. No one will admit this because of the money made from sales of "pretty paddles."

My ideal paddle would be an edgeless (no edge guard) rim of Japanese carbon surface, and a super thin core of Kevlar fiber mixed with molybdenum, and titanium particles. I have no idea what this paddle would cost or if it would even be buildable.

I use these exaggerated mixtures of materials as an example to show how little progress we have made in pickleball paddle structural design.

The most ridiculous roadblock to paddle improvement is the current restrictions on surface texture. If a textured paddle will help the average recreational player improve their ball control and learn the art of spin, more of these individuals would rise to the levels of competitive pickleball. So lets trash the dumb rule on paddle texture. Ping pong players can and have used sand paper glued to their paddles for more spin. Some Pickleball players use clear non-

OKAY, enough said! Back to the DIADEM ICON PADDLE COMPANY wanting me to try their new ICON Japanese Carbon Fiber Paddle. I told the Rep that I have done several pickleball paddle, and accessories, product reviews for different companies. Some were not so complimentary. I agreed to have her send me the paddle and I will put it thru its paces as I now have to recover from a pinched nerve in my back causing pain and weakness in my right leg. If this keeps up I may be starting the first Wheel Chair Pickleball League in MD.

I will keep you all informed about the performance of this paddle.

I have not as yet tested the ICON except for hitting a few hundred balls on my inhouse ball hitting rig. Just with that this paddle is well worth putting it through its paces on a wood or synthetic court.

ICON PADDLE SPECS price$149.95

COLOR White / BLACK with design and artwork on surface

Lite or Mid Weight

7.7 oz or 8.0oz

Length 16 in 16 in

Width 7.6 in 7.6 in

Thickness 0.45 in 0.45 in

Grip 4.25"

Balance 237 mm 237 mm

Core Honeycomb Density 8mm PP 8mm PP

Manufacturers Promotion:

The DIADEM ICON PADDLE was designed to take the game of pickleball to the next level. Utilizing high grade Japanese sourced carbon fiber the face is the perfect blend of stiffness and comfort for a soft but powerful feel. In the core our 8mm PP honeycomb allows you to play comfortably from the baseline with easy power. Spin RP, our proprietary two component polyurethane coating allows the Icon to be the most spin friendly USAPA approved paddle on the market. Perfectly balanced and beautifully designed with a sleek edge guard and high end graphics. The Icon is the next generation of pickleball paddles.

Available in Black, White, and Miami Vice color ways