Every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday night a secret group of eager pickleballers awaits at various doors surrounding the Oyster River High School (ORHS) gym or multi-purpose room.
I have played a rally or two but nothing extreme. My quest to discover what has caused the dramatic increase in pickleball participation began with advanced pickleball night hosted by Durham Parks and Rec and I continued my exploration with the help of pickleball experts. The numbers of involvement are staggering and pickleball has become a phenomenon not only in Durham but throughout the world.
John Morin, a pickleball enthusiast, passes on his knowledge within EPW (exercise physiology and wellness) classes, where he teaches an entire unit on pickleball. But, forewarning, if you mention pickleball to Morin get comfy, because as I began to say the word ‘pickle-’ he swiftly handed me a dusty copy of “Pickle-ball For Players and Teacher.” The book is a 1985 second edition which describes the origin and player development.
If you’ve already taken EPW you are likely familiar with the pickleball lore, but if not, here’s a brief description. Pickleball was created in 1965 by the Pritchard family as a backyard game. The pickle in pickle ball was named after Pritchard’s dog. With my new knowledge in the universe of pickleball I continued my mission to discover why pickleball is the fastest growing sport in the world.
The Durham Parks and Rec, who initiated this league around seven years ago, have more than quadrupled their numbers from a dozen initial players to 50. To accommodate the increase, Durham Parks and Rec created three separate nights, which range from beginner, intermediate, to advanced. Eileen Wong is the brains behind the operation running these pickleball nights. Wong and I sat watching the intense rallies of the advanced session, mesmerized by the fast-paced hollow pop. Every court had a doubles match with people waiting to play on the sidelines. The age demographic spans from 27 to 76. Kelly Lacoste – a weekly player – loves this array of ages. She said, “When you’re playing with people of all generations it builds a greater sense of community, especially since there aren’t a lot of activities an 80-year-old and 20-year-old can fairly compete in.”
Surprisingly there are no highschoolers competing, despite its popularity in EPW. Wong referenced that in correlation with the current sign-up rates, saying, “sign up is at seven in the morning and within a half hour, it’s gone.” Teenagers, many of whom are professional procrastinators, aren’t signing up on time or are even aware of the program’s existence.
Maureen Tartaglia, the founder of HotStuff Pickleball, out of Weston Connecticut, got her start in pickleball by coincidence. She was staying at a resort in Mexico which was hosting the international pickleball tournament. She spoke about the tournament saying, “there were all these young people, it’s not an old sport at all. There are people playing from Argentina, Spain, and France.” Tartaglia used her time in Mexico to partake in some pickleball. She began taking lessons and at the end of the week competed in a tournament. She reported on her performance saying, “I came in second to last place and my friend came in last place, but we were in it. So then, ever since, I was hooked.” It wasn’t just her, the pickleball phenomenon began to spread like wildfire.
Tartaglia has traveled around to many urban areas including Chicago and New York City and recalls the pickleball epidemic, saying, “there are probably a 120 kids out there playing on 20 courts with four people each. They’re jammed from 6:00 at night till 11:00 at night. It’s incredible.” There are not enough courts in her hometown, so Tartaglia set up her own pickleball courts transitioning from a passion project to a full-on league and business. A similar spread has taken place in Durham.
There is a high demand for places to play but a low supply. Pickleball courts are popping up all throughout the country, but some are against the new wave of pickleball mania. In York, Maine, the Mill Lane pickleball league has faced a lot of heat for a possible violation of the York noise ordinance. In Durham, this has prevented any new construction of courts because they can’t be constructed in residential areas.
We remain at a crucial standstill in the pickleball progression. With a high demand among residents of all generations in Durham and Durham Parks and Rec, as well as the world, we have struggled to keep up. Maybe sharing this secret, hidden, pickleball society, that has now embedded itself in our community, will push the pickleball progression out of its standstill: the next signup begins November 13th
-Maeve Hickok
Image courtesy of Maureen Tartaglia
Mouth of the River 
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