The Pickle – 11/03/23

Sweet Pickles!!

(AP Wheeling, WV October 22, 2023) I’m sure you’ve all heard of Spy-Gate and Deflate-Gate of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick lore. Let me introduce you to Practice-Gate. The new courts have been installed and lines have been painted at the newly remodeled Total Athlete Indoor Training Facility just in time for kick-off of the inaugural Fall Brawl 8-team Pickleball League. Initially it was thought the timing would provide all players with a week to acclimate to the new courts and lighting. However, Liberty CFO, Nathan Peluchette informed league members that the paint would need several days to cure in order to ensure adhesion to the new surface and he was prohibiting play on the courts until at least the weekend.

In the “never before seen” footage above, Nathan is seen practicing on the new courts with his partner from the Blazing Paddles tourney, Jeremy “Frat Boy” McClelland. The other pickleballers in the photo have yet to be identified and are still under further investigation. The alleged incident does not seem to be in violation of any rules of the OVPC or Fall Brawl League rules at this point. However, Peluchette may not garner a ton of goodwill from the perception that he is gaining an unfair advantage on the rest of the league.

Peluchette has released a statement under advisement of counsel:

“It has come to my attention that my integrity is in question. I have been advised by my attorney not to do any interviews or discuss this matter in public. I will say this. I am very sorry to anyone whom I have offended. Please know that the accusations against me are completely unfounded. I take my status as a role model to young people very seriously and would never encourage any of you to gain unfair advantages over your competition. My intent was to make TA better for everyone and I believe we have accomplished this. Yes, it’s true. I did not want a ton of play on the courts to ensure the lines would adhere to the new surface. And yes, it’s me in the photo playing on said courts. But that is just a photo. One moment in time. I just wanted to see if the yellow balls were going to be visible against the current background. My intent was pure. I am looking out for the safety of some of our older players. I don’t want to mention any names but just let me say that En Fuego will be playing 7 matches here this season. Player safety is of utmost importance to the entire OVPC. I am certain that my integrity will be cleared, and nothing will come of this incident once the investigation has been completed. I would love to answer all of your individual questions but have been advised to direct all further inquiries to my attorney, Shayne Wilson.”

We also caught up with Jeremy “Frat Boy” McClelland. When asked about his involvement in the scandal he had this to say, “My time is very limited, and I need to play. Any chance I get, I will unapologetically play without concern for other’s feelings. When my captain asked me to play, I agreed. That’s all I know. I don’t read the emails; I ignore the texts. I didn’t know that everyone else was prohibited from playing. The blame here lies with my captain.” When Frat Boy was informed that he was actually on Alex’s team, he followed with, “Look, don’t take this the wrong way. But they all look the same to me! I mean how many are there…. A hundred??”

The investigation is ongoing, and we will bring you details as they develop. What we do know is this…. Fall Brawl is set to kick off in less than a week and we are super excited about how things are shaping up and the enhancements made to the Training Center in advance of League Play.