destinations
Pick a Pickleball By Rena Malai
O
ne summer, a family in Washington State decided to go on vacation. So they packed up their kids and luggage and headed to one of the beautiful islands in the Pacific Northwest to enjoy the great outdoors.
American pastime, and Prince William is no exception to the pickleball craze.
Like any well-intentioned family vacation, it didn’t take long before the parents were going crazy trying to keep their kids entertained. So they asked them to do what parents since the beginning of time have been asking their kids to do — go out and play, and keep yourselves busy.
Pickleball is a combination of tennis, badminton, and table tennis or ping pong, according to Jason Shriner, a Prince William-based PPR Certified Pickleball Coach.
Armed with various racquets and paddles, balls and a net, the kids trooped outside and started to play a netball game of sorts — pickleball, named for the family’s dog, Pickles. This is one common urban legend of pickleball’s origins. According to Pickleball Magazine, the game was created in 1965 on Washington’s Bainbridge Island, where the Pritchard family spent their summers. But it was the adults who trooped outside and made up the game, to prove to a bored 13 year old in the group that it could be done. There was a dog — Pickles — but the Pritchards insisted he came later and was named after the game, not the other way around. The magazine says the name “pickleball” was chosen as a reference to the pickle boat term used in crew races — the boat that carries the leftover rowers who weren’t picked by other crew teams. Hence the way pickleball was said to be slapped together, with bits of equipment from other sports thrown in here and there to create something new. However it came to be, pickleball has been rapidly gaining popularity across the country in recent years as the latest
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April 2021 prince william living
What is Pickleball?
“You use about ping pong size paddles and a hollow whiffle ball to play,” Shriner said. “It’s played on a smaller court (than a tennis court) and it’s addictive.” A pickleball player for about five years, Shriner says the quick pace of the game keeps it engaging and exciting. “A lot of games like football and soccer can take a lot of time to play out,” Shriner said. “You can play super quick, individual rallies in pickleball and it moves very fast. I could play for an hour, but it feels like five minutes.” It is one of the hottest new sports, says CC Bartholomew, and a good way to spend time during the pandemic. “It’s an easy game for all ages to learn and do, and it’s very affordable,” Bartholomew said. “I could play it all day and can’t get enough of it.” Both Bartholomew, who is a real estate agent, and Shriner say the social aspects of pickleball make it simple for beginners to join and for seasoned players to continue. “Pickleballers are a very warm and welcoming group of people,” Bartholomew said. “Especially now with people in their house all
