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Pickleball Lessons Offered All Across the Shoreline

As a sport that’s continuing to grow in popularity over the last few years, with the likes of LeBron James, Tom Brady, and more than 36 million other Americans showing support, pickleball continues to attract more and more people. As a result, lessons are now being offered to people of all ages and ability levels across the Connecticut shoreline. Coaches Bill Sadick and Kim DiRaffaele (both PBR-certified pickleball coaches) encourage anyone who’s a beginner, advanced, or intermediate player to sign up for their clinics, taking place through both the Branford Parks and Recreation Department, as well as the Shoreline YMCA. Private lessons are also available, as well.

DiRaffaele emphasized the idea that pickleball is a sport for all ages and abilities, with proper instruction.

“When Bill and I first learned how to play, we attended a 30-minute introductory class and were immediately thrown into playing with others,” said DiRaffaele. “We played that way for almost a year, when we realized we had learned bad habits from not learning the appropriate, foundational skills. We decided to attend a couple of professionally run clinics, and it changed our game! We were hooked and decided to become certified instructors so we could give back to others.”

Speaking further to the impact Sadick and DiRaffaele want to make on anyone who signs up for their clinics, DiRaffaele explained that having two instructors working simultaneously with the students gives them more attention and focus than they would get anywhere else.

“Our approach is to focus on the basic fundamentals of pickleball so the student can learn the correct way to play and avoid the mistakes we made,” DiRaffaele said. “Additionally, since Bill and I teach the beginner and advanced clinics and private lessons together, it sets us apart from other instructors, as it affords the student with the attention and expertise of two coaches. As teachers, it’s important to be able to speak in ways that resonate with the student; the attention of two coaches provides the student with an enhanced depth of skills to draw upon. It also helps to have two sets of eyes watching what the student does well [to emphasize and encourage], and not well [to re-educate].”

If you are interested in signing up for a lesson or clinic, visit https://branfordct.myrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=30185 or https://ymcaccc.sgasoftware.com/Sales/Product/Details?ActivityID=135246&RegistrationID= for more information. You can also email Sadick and DiRaffaele at pbcoachbill@gmail.com.