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Gherkin Draco First Session

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Big noise, big handle. That’s my first impression of the new Draco pickleball paddle by Gherkin. Had my first session using the Draco, and I liked its overall play. Power from the baseline was effortless as well as the pop from the kitchen line. The ball would fly off the face quickly and cleanly.

I had a put away around head level and the sound of the hit was deafening. Not sure how to describe the sound of the paddle, but it can get loud. One issue I encountered was flat out mis-hitting short shots. I went to strike the ball but totally hit the wrong part of the paddle. I want to say this is due to the handle size. It’s 5.5-in long so hitting two-handed backhands is comfortable. When I first picked up the paddle, I thought the handle felt chunky, and I applied a Pickleball Effects overgrip adding to the 4.25-in grip circumference. I think a smaller circumference would suit me better so that I can rotate and position my hand more easily. I don’t think dwell time, swing weight, or sweet spot size had anything to do with my lack of touch at the kitchen. I just think I need more play time to adjust to this paddle (or look for paddles with a smaller grip circumference).

Supposedly, the Gherkin Draco needs a few sessions to break in. Not sure what that means but guess I’ll feel or notice a change after repeated use. But overall, no complaints with this hybrid paddle.

draco-first-session
draco-handle

I Am a Melon Head

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…and maybe a future Melin head. After hearing the Pickleball Studio mention their love of hats by Melin, I went online to research. They sure have a lot of variations, models, and design combinations – almost overwhelmingly too many.

I literally stopped looking through their web site after seeing all the products. It would be easier if I could see their hats in real life to help figure out which shape would work best for my melon. Then this melon head wondered where Melin was sold. I used the Melin store locator and found a bunch of vendors in Hawaii, including a brand store in Waikiki. Even HIC and Nordstrom sells some Melin products, so I’ll be making a visit to see what makes Melins so good.

Liking these color designs but $80+.

70258_SNCM_001 Large
70447_NTAU_001 Large

I Don’t Watch Podcasts

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In general, I don’t subscribe to and watch podcasts. Nothing against them, just the long time format is not for me. Okay, okay, there was that two plus hour YouTube video I watched while planning a trip to Iceland, but I digress.

I found this pickleball podcast from Pickleball Studio featuring guest Zane Navratil very interesting and held my attention. I still have one hour to go but am enjoying the contrasting points of view of pros and amateurs and their insights and predictions for the game. 

BTS Banking Before the Concert

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BTS already brought in heavy revenues with its $22 Army membership in order to participate in early pre-orders for Arirang. Now, they’re about to bank more cash by retiring the old “Army Bomb” aka their branded light stick and introducing version 4.

Pre-sales for the new light stick start on Sunday, February 8, 2026 at 4pm HST but no price is yet given. Unless you want to buy additional merch at a concert, it might be a huge time saver to pre-order now and skip the long lines at the actual concert.

Retiring Light Stick
Retiring Light Stick

Trying the Backhand Flick

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Been trying to incorporate the backhand flick into my kitchen play and learned that paddles really matter. Recently, I was using the CRBN 1X, and trying a backhand flick with this paddle was tough. Due to its weight, flicking the paddle was even kinda sore on my wrist and the motion just felt sluggish.

Will keep practicing the backhand flick and see how other paddles feel.

The Confidence Behind a Paddle

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So I’m still learning all the terms that describe the characteristics of a pickleball paddle – power, pop, dwell, twist weight, swing weight, and more. But one missing characteristic is confidence, more specifically the player’s increase (or decrease) in playing confidence when using the paddle.

This is by no means a measurable attribute but something you see and experience. My niece is also a pickleball beginner but started playing a few weeks after the rest of the group. It’s natural for every beginner to experience moments struggle and success, and of course, increased playtime will improve your game.

But something noticeable happened when she switched from a beginner’s Selkirk from Costco to my Bread and Butter Loco, a 2025 paddle of the year contender. Her game became more aggressive. While her growing skill level isn’t outpacing the performance of the Loco, you could see that her hits were more sure as the paddle responded to what she attempted. The form may be off and the shot selection not ideal, but she was trying to shape her shots, and the Loco was giving her better outcomes. Because the paddle responded to her, her confidence in her shots went up which in turn  translated to a more confident and aggressive game.

In the most recent session, she was at the kitchen line putting away every pop up and defensively, returning drives and dinks. So while getting a higher performing paddle to match your improving skill level is important, hopefully you experience that intangible confidence boost from the paddle. 

bring-the-smoke

Is That Dwell Time?

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So I think I finally understand what a pickleball paddle’s dwell time feels like after watching this Westside Pickleball YT short comparing the new Honolulu Pickleball J6CR and J6CR-H. In the review, there’s mention of the stiff face of the J6CR-H causing little dwell time and a lack of control.

While playing this past weekend, I experienced that sensation while at  the kitchen hitting with a Boomstik. Quite a few times, my dinks fell short. I was trying to move the ball but each time, my shot was weak since the ball had already left the paddle face. The contact, or dwell time, was shorter than I was used to while playing with the CRBN 1X in a previous session.

Not sure how to adjust to this, but at least I’m understanding the feel and the resulting effect

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