Welcome to the Pickle Madness Weekly!

A pickleball paddle fanatic’s review of the Vulcan V940 16mm, the MLP vs the PPA, and more!

Remember the American Basketball Association, aka, the ABA? Unless you’re a boomer, the ABA probably means little to you. But from 1967 to 1976, the ABA was a men’s professional basketball league that played in the shadow of the National Basketball Association (the NBA). The ABA was a flashy league – it had a crazy innovation new to professional basketball (the three-point shot) that juiced up its games, it had colorful red, white and blue basketballs instead of the (still) blasé orange balls of the NBA, and it had, arguably, the most dynamic player and biggest star in all of pro basketball on the roster of the New Jersey Nets, that being the incomparable Julius “Dr. J” Irving.

All of that, to a basketball-crazed kid growing up in the 1970s, was really, really cool. But there was a downside to the ABA – while it was in existence, fans never got to see Dr. J square off against the hardcourt magician that was the NBA’s Pete Maravich. We weren’t privy to Kareem Abdul Jabbar posting up Artis Gilmore, or Bob McAdoo and David Thompson trying to outdo each other lighting up the scoreboard. Eventually some of these match-ups happened when the two leagues finally merged, but how many classic encounters did we miss out on? Too many.

And now the sport of pickleball appears to be on the cusp of a maddening separation of its stars. The merger that was announced last November between Major League Pickleball and the Professional Pickleball Association is “in jeopardy,” according to an August post by CNBC (https://www.cnbc.com/2023/08/25/major-league-pickleball-and-ppa-merger-in-jeopardy.html).

CNBC reported that the PPA claimed that MLP has not signed the partnership agreement that had been verbally agreed to. A PPA executive told CNBC that MLP had gone quiet. But MLP appeared to have a different take. CNBC reported: “He (MLP owner Steve Kuhn) said if the PPA is willing to pay their players more, he’s willing to talk about aligning with the league. “We asked the PPA to join us in paying players more, and their reaction was that we pay the players too much,” Kuhn told CNBC.

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The Vulcan V940 comes in a nice white cardboard case with black writing that makes you feel that something special is inside. And you know what? There is! When you open it, you are greeted with a card that graciously thanks you for supporting Vulcan Pickleball – a nice touch, especially when you just spent over $200.

Once you remove the dark gray styrofoam piece, you finally see your new Vulcan V940 paddle. It looks pretty impressive with the geometric black, white and shades of gray design. There is a card inside that gives you the exact weight of that particular paddle.

Once you feel the face, you’ll be struck by the gritty surface, which Vulcan describes as Quatro-Carbon™ face. Per Vulcan, this is a 3k cross-weave carbon with two bi-directional layers on each side produced in Japan. Vulcan claims this type of carbon fiber is superior and more durable than other carbon fiber materials. This proprietary to Vulcan surface is also supposed to give a more “lively spin” when hitting the ball.

The 16mm thick ZEP9 polypropylene honeycomb core is engineered to give more dwell time, enhance the sweet spot and help reduce vibrations.

The paddle is a medium weight, ranging from 7.6 to 8.2 oz with an elongated design. The grip is a 4 ¼” thin shape, as opposed to a rounder shape.

The Details

• Paddle Weight: 7.6 - 8.2 oz

• Paddle Face Material: Quatro-Carbon™ Carbon Fiber Face

• Paddle Core Material: ZEP9 Polypropylene Honeycomb

• Paddle Shape: Elongated

• Core Thickness: 16 mm

• Paddle Length: 16 1/2''

• Paddle Width: 7 1/2''

• Grip Size: Standard - 4 1/4''

• Handle Length: Long - 5 1/2''

• Colorway: Silver

• Vulcan Max Control Grip

How It Played

The paddle I played with weighed 7.8 oz. As you’d expect, it felt really light in my hand. I am used to a more rounded grip shape, so at first this thinner shape felt strange. But the more I played with it, the more comfortable I became with it. Usually when testing out a paddle, it takes a few games to adjust to the way the paddle plays, but the V940 is a very easy paddle to use. It has been described as an all-court hybrid and that is pretty accurate. Typically, 16mm paddles really lean towards control and sacrifice power, but the V940 blends both power and control seamlessly. I had no problem getting the power I needed on overheads and drives. It’s also a very forgiving paddle with a large sweet spot and a soft feel that made resets a breeze and dinking placement easy. Does the special Quatro-Carbon™ face make a difference, is the spin more lively? I can confidently say yes! The spin is amazing on the V940. Little effort was required to get that shot that frustrated my opponents as it spun away making it a difficult shot to return. I had no problem getting both hands on the elongated handle for two-handed backhand returns.

I would recommend this paddle for anyone looking for a great all court elongated paddle. The V940 does go over the $200 mark as it retails for $229.99. But if Vulcan is right about their new Quatro-Carbon™ face being more durable than typical carbon face paddles, and that it can outlast the average life of the typical carbon face, it will be well worth the cost!

You can purchase the Vulcan V940 16mm paddle HERE.

Rule Review of the Week

Need one of pickleball’s confusing rules cleared up? Let us know and we’ll include it in next week’s issue.

4.A.4. The moment the ball is served:

 4.A.4.a. At least one foot must be on the playing surface behind the baseline.

4.A.4.b. Neither of the server’s feet may touch the court on or inside the baseline.

4.A.4.c. Neither of the server’s feet may touch the playing surface outside the imaginary extension of the sideline or centerline.

4.L. Service Foot Faults. During the serve, when the ball is struck, the server’s feet shall:

4.L.1. Not touch the area outside the imaginary extension of the sideline.

4.L.2. Not touch the area on the wrong side of the imaginary extension of the centerline.

4.L.3. Not touch the court, including the baseline.

The confusion around serving often comes from the rule that prohibits any contact with NVZ (non-volley- zone), including momentum after the play has volleyed. For there to be a serve foot fault, the player’s foot or feet must be out of position, touching the imaginary extension line of sideline of centerline, touching the baseline, or on the court before the ball is served or as the ball is being hit. But once contact from the paddle is made with the ball, and the ball is on its way, the server’s foot can be anywhere.

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