LOVE AT FIRST PLAY Pickleball Craze Sweeps Essex County STORY BY MICHAEL SEGUIN / PHOTOGRAPHY BY JANET BALMER PHOTOGRAPHY
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PICKLEBALL, MALINDA HEBERT EXPLAINS, is the fastest growing sport in North America. The game originated from Bainbridge Island, Washington, during the summer of 1965. Joel Pritchard and his two friends, Bill Bell and Barney McCallum, attempted to set up a game of badminton for their families, but were missing some equipment. They improvised, lowering the badminton net and bringing in a plastic ball and plywood paddles. And thus, pickleball was born. The name itself—pickleball—originated from either term “pickle boat”—small vessels manned by leftover oarsmen—or the Pritchard family dog, Pickles. Malinda first encountered pickleball right before she retired from her sales position at the Windsor Star. “I saw a full page article for something called ‘pickleball,’” Malinda recalls. “When I read it, I said to myself, ‘I’ve got to try this!’ I used to play a lot of racquetball, and Ioved it. I thought it would be a perfect sport for me because it was low-impact, and racquetball courts are so scarce.” After retiring at 60, Malinda marched over to the Riverside Sports Centre, picked up her first paddle, and her life changed forever. “It was an instant love,” Malinda laughs. “I was so excited because Pickleball is great exercise, wonderful people showing you how to play, very inexpensive and a lot of fun. It’s not like golf where it could take a long time to get good at it. Or tennis where you need some kind of skill to enjoy it. It’s for everyone. That said, it can be intensely competitive if you want it to be.” When asked what her favourite part of the sport is, Malinda mentions the social aspect. “It’s a very social sport,” Malinda explains. It gets me off the couch and I also like the competitive play. The competitive aspect is not my main thing, although I have played in many tournaments. But, the social end means a lot to me. I tell everybody that, once you try this sport, you’re going to fall in love at first play.”
Clockwise from top: Outdoor courts located at 13158 St. Gregory's Road in Tecumseh, Ontario, West of Manning Road, on the North side of ST. Gregory's; Bob Butnari, last year’s number 1 ranked Men’s 60+ singles player in Canada; Tecumseh Pickleball Association directors (l-r) Laurie Howie, Joanne Neilson, Russ French (Pickleball Ontario Ambassador), Malinda Hebert, Deb McGivney and Pat McGivney.
