Salisbury Moonrakers Pickleball
About Us
John was invited to play with a friend in Oxford and from there we started to play locally with a few friends, and the rest is history. We formed Moonrakers very soon afterwards and affiliated to Pickleball England. We started with one court, one night a week and then the Leisure Centre asked us to organise Drop-in Sessions on a Friday & Wednesday morning, we started with two courts and very quickly moved to four and now we have all eight courts on both sessions. We have three coaches and two Leaders helping run our sessions. We have had great success winning medals, locally and Nationally. Our aim is to continue developing Pickleball in Salisbury & District area and be as inclusive as possible.
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John & Val
About Our Coaches & Leaders
Gary Kemp - Head Coach
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I have only been playing Pickleball since November 2023, but from my tennis background and LTA Tennis coaching qualification, I picked up the enthusiasm for Pickleball straight away, following my Teaching Pickleball course run by RTPP in November 2023.
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I have also completed the Pickleball England club instructor course which has now given me the tools to deliver a first-class beginners (level 1) & intermediate (level 2) course for you.
John - Coach
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I am a volunteer and a founder of the club and have coached from our very early days, but in March 2024 I decided to make it official and I took the Level One Certificate. I help run the Wednesday & Friday Open Pickleball Sessions at Five Rivers and am always available to step in when needed and to give newbies the coaching, encouragement and support they might need.
Cathy – Coach
I started playing only 3 years ago as I couldn’t play badminton anymore (the mind willing but the body not so) Pickleball has been the perfect sport for me. The fact that the sport can be played at so many different levels mean it’s very easy to start playing and very inclusive. I completed my coaching course in November 2023 and have supported Gary in his coaching courses and have this year coached the Moonrakers team in the SW Pilot League.
Mike – Pickleball Leader
I only started playing Pickleball in early 2024 but took to it straight away and wanted to volunteer and help out in the club, so, together with a colleague, I took my Pickleball Leaders Course in the Autumn of 2024. Moonrakers then started the Introduction to Pickleball Course at Chafyn Grove School on Friday evenings in January 2025. We have 16 participants, and the course was only going to be for 6 weeks but it was so popular that it is still running now and will continue until July 2025.
Sadly, due to court availability, it might not run again.
