LOOK TO THE SKY We take you on an

THE LAND LAY OF

14

A GOODYEAR BLIMP ADVENTURE

16

THE PICKLEBALL PHENOMENON

17

JOE THOMAS' SECOND ACT

FASC I N A T IONS

LOOK TO THE SKY

IN THE PASSENGER AND PILOT AREA of the Wingfoot Two, it was easy to feel small in the sky — to forget that a helium-filled behemoth hovered just overhead, powered by three oversized propeller engines. The Wingfoot Two, at 246.4 feet long, is only 55 feet short of the FirstEnergy Stadium football field it floats over on many Browns game days in downtown Cleveland. It can look small in the sky, but standing in front of it, preparing to run forward and board the few steps that led into the passenger area, the gigantic vehicle filled our field of vision. It moved with any slight breeze, bobbing above the grass like a huge, awkward bumblebee. Earlier that day, we received a text from a Goodyear representative: “The crew is monitoring some wind gusts this morning. They are going to do everything they can to safely fly but if the winds pick up, flights might be affected today,” … gulp.

Four Goodyear blimps exist in the world, with one in Europe and three stationed in the United States — one in Florida, one in California and one near Akron and Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s headquarters.

Unsurprisingly, blimp flights are hard to come by; Goodyear’s three U.S. blimps regularly tour across the country for games and other events. When we asked if we could take a blimp ride during a Browns game, Goodyear declined. Instead, we headed out on a brisk Thursday in October, following a couple of previous rain delays.

Open only to members of the media, Goodyear customers and local charity auction winners, Cleveland Magazine luckily got in on one of just a handful of flights left before the Wingfoot Two left for a Columbus trip to a Buckeyes game.

An informational safety video ahead of the blimp ride let me, photography intern Katie Holub and four other passengers know: “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

There’s a lot of truth in that, since there aren’t a lot of blimps left in the world. Goodyear has a big stake in the blimp biz, operating about a third of all blimps globally. According to a Goodyear representative, only about a dozen operable airships exist in the world and Goodyear’s blimps are the only ones that fly on a consistent, year-round basis.

A blimp is not a cheap thing to operate, considering high helium prices. According to U.S. Geological Survey data, in 2021, government users paid $3.61 per cubic meter for helium, and private industries paid $7.56 per cubic meter. Let’s take the average of the two numbers for a conservative estimate, and say Goodyear might get its helium for roughly $5.58 per cubic meter.

That means it might cost $47,011 to fill Wingfoot Two’s 8,425 cubic meters to take flight.

Why pay so much to essentially unleash a massive balloon into the sky?

It comes down to branding.

Goodyear’s been making blimps for nearly 100 years, placing its signature blue-and-yellow emblazoned blimps into the sky since 1925.

“We’re proud that we’ve been adorning the skies ever since,” says Emily Cropper, the director of Americas communication at Goodyear.

So, what, exactly, is it like to fly in the sky? During our windy excursion: a bit bumpy.

Instead of driving ahead like other modes of transportation, a ride in the Goodyear blimp is more a form of calculated meandering, slowly making your way and watching a massive shadow of the oblong beast track the land below you. A commercial plane travels at 550 mph; a blimp’s maximum speed is 78 mph.

As we traveled, the pilots happily shared highlights of the scenery below us. Jerry Hissem, one of two pilots on our flight, has been flying Goodyear’s blimps for nearly 25 years.

“I compare flying in a blimp to floating in a bubble,” Hissem says, standing in the aisle and swaying to the side as the blimp takes a turn.

Myself, Holub and four other passengers filled the seats behind the pilots, buckled in for takeoff and landing but were otherwise free to roam around the small space, which included a bathroom. (If you’re wondering what the inflight experience was like, it was pretty close to a

Goodyear blimps have been staples in the skies of Northeast Ohio and events around the world since 1925. tiny commercial airplane, complete with folding trays attached to each back, a compartment with informational materials and, yes, barf bags.)

Let’s reiterate: Unlike in other modes of transportation, you can really tell it’s windy when you’re 1,500 feet in the air, especially when you’re prone to motion sickness like me.

As the other passengers oohed and aahed at downtown Akron emerging below us, I took deep breaths, wondering if I’d waited a little too long to take a Dramamine pill that morning. The turning and shaking became a lot to combat while taking in all those beautiful views.

That “once-in-a-lifetime” reminder again rang in my memory, even as I — and this is true — threw up inside the Goodyear blimp. It’s certainly an experience I’ll never, ever forget.

RECREATION

Heat in the Kitchen

Pickleball, once considered a hobby for elderly vacationers, is booming as exercise and sport.

In early 2021, Cleveland residents Michael Jurek and Madeline Hutchinson took a vacation to Hutchinson Island, Florida. The goal: relaxation. Instead, they found a sport that would change the trajectory of their lives. Pickleball, they discovered, is an amalgamation of tennis, ping-pong and badminton featuring paddles and a perforated whiffle ball. For two weeks, the duo spent nearly every waking hour swatting balls under the Florida sun.

“We became obsessed,” Jurek says.

Returning to Cleveland, the duo researched Northeast Ohio's pickleball scene in the hopes of making the sport more accessible locally. That research led Jurek to create Cleveland Pickleball, a website dedicated to helping aspiring players find courts, instructors and tournaments. Now, a few years later, Cleveland Pickleball boasts an annual tournament that garnered 100 players in 2022, a monthly newsletter with 500 subscribers and a rapidly growing player base.

Invented in 1965 by three middle-aged fathers, pickleball is America’s fastest growing sport, according to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association, with an estimated 4.8 million players at the start of 2022. That growth took a huge spike in October when Akron kid LeBron James announced his investment in a Major League Pickleball team, a move that MLP founder Steve Kuhn called a “watershed moment.” A month later, Anheuser-Busch announced it had purchased a MLP team, becoming the first Fortune 500 company to buy a professional pickleball team.

“I haven’t seen a sport grow this fast in my lifetime,” Jurek says. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime moment, which is why we’re so excited.”

While pickleball is still a favorite of snowbirds, it's gaining momentum among 20- and 30-somethings across the nation.

“A lot of our friends were laughing in the beginning because pickleball is seen as a retiree sport when it really isn’t,” Hutchinson says. “Cleveland’s always been great about having intramural sports for younger people, and it’s cool to see pickleball become one of those things.”

When David Barr purchased the Wembley Club in 2014, he was one of those naysayers. But, after a steady uptick in interest, he installed the club’s first pickleball courts in 2018. Then, during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns, Barr renovated the fitness center with pickleball in mind. Now,

the Chagrin Falls-based club boasts more than 300 pickleball players, with two separate nights of open play on the club’s eight pickleball courts. But these days, there are plenty of places to play, such as Bleser Park in Avon Lake (the court where Jurek hosts his tournament), the Broadview Heights Recreation Center and North Ridge Racket and Paddle in North Ridgeville. “It’s a really fun way to exercise with others,” Barr says. “It really helps build camaraderie among the players.” Court etiquette will be familiar to anyone who’s ever hooped at their college's recreation center. During open hours, it’s first-come, first-served. Barr says that easygoing attitude along with the sport’s easy-to-learn, hard-to-master gameplay has pushed the sport to new heights. “Pickleball is easy to learn,” Barr says. “I think people feel like they can just pick up a paddle and start playing.” Wembley Club is now home to some of Cleveland’s best picklers, such as club teacher André Mick and instructor Katie Allan. (Both are in the top 100 for their gender in the world.) “I hope that we’re in stadiums someday,” Barr says. “Cleveland doesn’t have professional pickleball representation yet, but I could see that as something that would happen in the long term.” Until then, Barr, Jurek, Hutchinson and other members of the pickleball community are doing their part to help build the game in courts and gyms across Northeast Ohio. “If there’s one thing we’ve learned in recent Some of the best pickleball players in years, it’s that it’s really important to be healthy,” Cleveland and even the Barr says. “This is a new avenue where people nation play at Chagrin can come out, play and get exercise while having Falls' Wembley Club. fun.”