From Alcatraz to the Pickleball Courts

Tracy Sellard was never a prison inmate. It’s difficult to imagine her jay walking, much less committing a crime that would earn her a stretch on The Rock. Nonetheless, Tracy, an endurance swimmer, braved the currents and frigid water when she swam from Alcatraz to San Francisco. She also swam a six-mile race from the Golden Gate Bridge to The San Francisco Bay Bridge. That said, it might seem odd that she would be attracted to a comparatively tame sport like pickleball. While she still swims three-and-one-half miles every morning, and competes in ocean racing events, she is one of the legions of Landings Club picklers.

Tracy Sellard and Rich Nielson

 Tracy’s husband, Rich Nielson, is no less the athlete. He played tennis for his high school in Palo Alto, when the team won over two hundred consecutive matches. Rich, who also played volleyball and basketball, continued his tennis career at the University of California/Davis. In a sense, with his sports background, it is natural that Rich gravitates to pickleball. Rich disputes his DUPR rating of 4.943 as too high, suggesting that 4.5 is closer to reality. Those who have seen him play, however, might doubt his assertion.

Both native Californians, Tracy and Rich met at Cal Davis where they lived in the same dorm. After graduating, Rich went to law school at University of California Hastings College of the Law, and Tracy earned her master’s degree in secondary education at San Francisco State, and National University. They dated for seven years before marrying in 1989. 

In 1990, Tracy and Rich moved to Denver, Colorado where they lived for thirty-two years before moving to The Landings. Tracy taught math, science and physics, while learning medical massage therapy. Rich practiced law with the Colorado Court of Appeals where he rose to Deputy Chief of Staff for the Colorado State Court of Appeals. He later chaired the Colorado Board of Bar Examiners. 

Tracy and Rich moved to The Landings in 2022. Already picklers, they were thrilled to discover pickleball courts a short walk from their new house. Tracy, a solid 3.0 player, is frequently seen playing with groups led by Nancy Ambler and Marilyn Brady. Rich meanwhile is matching cannon shots with other 4.0-5.0 ballers. Tall, and possessing a wing span which rivals Eric Larson’s, Rich roams the court with ease while frustrating his opponents. Rich, who was an open level ranked tennis player in Colorado, joins the chorus of former tennis players who claim their background gives them an advantage, but suggests there is a point where pickleball strategy and positioning differ from that of tennis.

Tracy and Rich echo the opinion held by many others: pickleball at The Landings Club is an excellent way to forge new, deep friendships. That endorsement alone should encourage those who don’t play to give pickleball a chance. 

Separately, for those following the unending saga, while hopes were that Chatham County would give approval to the Franklin Creek project by June 1st, we’ll have to continue to wait. The bureaucracy, not surprisingly, continues to move at a snail’s pace.