Need a reprieve and a new recreation? Try pickleball.
You could hear the smacking froma block away.
“Great shot, Italo!” one player yelled to another from across the net. Smack!
“Nice try, Dorothy!” anotherwoman yelled.
Smack!
“Sorry Dee!” awoman called out. Smack!
Welcome to pickleball, a sport combining elements of tennis, badminton, table tennis, with two or four players using solid paddles to hit a perforated polymer ball over a net. According to legend, the sport got its name fromthe “Pickle Boat” crewwhere oarsmen were chosen fromthe leftovers of other boats.
“You’re witnessing something special, brother,” said Hugh Harshbarger, 57, of Hobart.
He wasn’t talking solely about the sport as much as the sportsmanship of these games at Pennsy Park in Hobart. Three to five mornings each week, players of all ages showup to play and to playfully compete. Senior citizen members fromthe near by Maria Reiner Center typically showup, but anyone’s welcomed to play or learn how.
“I feel like I’m 12 out here,” said Sherri Green, who began playing in January.
“It just looks like it’s not competitive,” she joked in between games.
“We can get … uh, excited,” added Italo Ivaldi, an acclaimed ping pong player whose pickleball partner on this day is Dorothy, a 95-year-old woman who asked that her last name not be used.
“I can’t keep up with these youngsters, but they allowme to keep playing,” she told me after their game ended. “Atmy age, when you’re on a roll you just keep playing. I don’t knowif I’m going to even be here tomorrow.”
Green whispered, “Don’t let her kid you. She’s got a strong forearm. It’s pretty darn impressive.”
Everything about this sporting experience seems impressive. A couple of years ago, I bought a pickleball paddle and balls with hopes of regularly playing it, somewhere. I may have found my opportunity with this hospitable group.
“It’s much more than just a sport. It’s America’s fastest-growing sport,” said Harshbarger, who’s been teaching pickleball to newcomers for two years. “He’s also a talker,” onewoman joked. “Something else I do is listen intently,” Harshbarger said. “To be able to discuss family heritage, history and traditions with them and the others on the court has offered me little pearls of wisdom to use inmy own life. That’s the beauty of this game. It’s multigenerational.”
“We’ve had kids as young as 15 playing next to Italo and Dorothy (who’s 95). Don’t be fooled by their age. Both are fierce competitors. I cherish the time spent with them. It’s truly a gift. Forme, this is the ultimate payoff. I’ve watched it happen over and over,” he said.
Iwatched it happen Wednesday morning. Watch a video of these players in action onmy Facebook page.
If you need a reprieve fromthe coronavirus pandemic, its related pressures, and a historically divisive presidential race, I suggest playing (or watching) a game of pickleball between surprisingly competitive senior citizens, in any community.
“It’s just fun,” said Green, supervisor of the Merrillville Adult Education program. “I love playing doubles, with less running around the court.”
Earlier this year when the senior center was forced to halt operations due to the pandemic, some of its members began playing outdoors at this park, a former train depot. Their long-term goal is to raise funds to resurface its play area and add two more courts.
“Wewant to be able to share this sport with our younger community members who can’t play in the senior center,” Harshbarger said.
“Maybe the city can help our cause?” another player asked.
Gary and Barbara Dlouhy are credited with introducing pickleball to members of the Maria Reiner Center a few years back.
“We love playing pickleball because it provides us a good aerobic activity in a competitive setting,” Barbara Dlouhy toldme after the program first got underway. “Besides the physical benefits, we have the opportunity to meet new people and increase our social outlets. With minimal basic skills, many seniors can pick up a paddle and reap the benefits of this game.”
The hybrid sport got its start in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, a short ferry ride from Seattle, according to Pickleball.com.
The site states, “When Congressmen Joel Pritchard, William Bell and Barney McCallum came home froma game of golf one day to find their kids bored and restless, they set out to create a game thatwould engage them through the lazy days of summer. They handed the kids table tennis paddles and a wiffle ball, and lowered the net on their badminton court.”
The game’s rules have evolved through the years. Only the smacking hasn’t changed. Today, a pickleball game normally is played to 11 points and it must bewon by two points.
“We play to seven to make the games shorter because other players are waiting. There are only two courts here,” Green said.
Most of these players come to the park three days aweek, playing Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings from 8:30 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. Some of the more steadfast players showup during off days to learn new skills and spend time together.
“Anyone who wants to play or learn can just showup,” Harshbarger said. (Contact him at 219-501-6907 or hughharshbarger@yahoo.com.)
As I left the courts that day, Ivaldi encouraged his 95-year-old pickleball partner to play one more game. “Come on, partner,” he told her. “OK, one more game,” she replied. And off they went, like a couple of, well, 12-year-olds.