How a Snakebite (Yes, Really) Led Mary Jane to Rally’s Goldies League
When Mary Jane got bit by a baby copperhead, she wasn’t hiking a remote trail or camping in the backcountry. She was at home, on the phone, grieving the loss of her best friend.
“I was talking to my girlfriend’s daughter. Her mom had just passed away. And then bam, the snake bit me,” she said. “I laid in bed for four days with my leg straight up in the air.”
Doctors had offered anti-venom, but at $75,000 a dose and with side effects as unpredictable as the bite itself, she passed. "Even after insurance, it would’ve cost me twenty grand." I told them, I’ll just take a nice trip instead.”
The recovery for Mary Jane- or MJ as we call her here at Rally- was brutal. “I couldn’t even stand for four months. Before the bite, I was always active. Cycling, swimming, yoga. But after that bite, I couldn’t move.” For months, everytime MJ attempted to do something- like heading to a beach weekend with some girlfriends- she was humbled by her injury, a new symptom arising and making her miserable. “I was the Debbie Downer who couldn’t leave the house. I wouldn’t wish it on anybody.”
“I Googled pickleball, and Rally came up. I thought, this looks like a cool place. So I signed up for Rosie’s beginner class. First thing I’d done in months that made me feel like myself again.”
Life After the Bite
Many months of misery later, she had a realization. “It was like the universe smacked me. I’d just lost my soul sister. Then I get bit by a snake? Maybe that was the message. Wake up. You’re still here. Live.”
She had heard about pickleball, and decided it was a great way to get active again after months of involuntary sedentary living. After a quick google, she found Rally and immediately signed up for the Rookies Instructional Series. It was here she met Rosie, Rally’s Director of Pickleball, who taught her the fundamentals of the sport. She made fast friends with her fellow Rookies classmates. “Half the people are half my age, but I don’t care. I tell them, you don’t want me on your team, and they say, yes we do,” she laughed.
In her same post-snakebite season of saying “yes”, she also joined her local production of The Wizard of Oz, where she is an Assistant Director. “I needed something to get me out of the house”, she said.
Now, Mary Jane has found her rhythm again. She spends several days a week at Rally playing pickleball- either Courts & Coffee or Rookies League, and five evenings a week in the theater for rehearsals. Her only gripe? Finding more pickleball friends her age. “When are you going to start a senior citizen league?”.
Introducing: The Goldies League
Goldies League is Rally’s community for players 55 and up. Whether you’ve never picked up a paddle or you’re chasing weekly court time, it’s casual, social, and just the right amount of competitive.
If you're searching for how to learn pickleball after 50 or wondering if there's pickleball for seniors near you, this is your sign.
As Mary Jane puts it:
“I want to meet people. I want to live more. Now’s the time.”