What The Heck Is Pickleball Anyway?

What the heck is Pickle Ball anyway? It doesn’t sound very fun. If you think about it, pickles aren’t even really that fun of a food. If you want one, you have to reach into a jar that’s much too small for your hand – and if you are fortunate enough to snag a one, then you have to get it out of the jar without dropping back in again. When you finally get one out, pickle juice drips all over the place while you eat it. I really don’t see how that’s any fun. It’s actually more frustrating than anything else. So, do we really need to be naming a sport after pickles? I suppose that it’s fruit for thought. I digress.

If you live in the Pittsfield area, you may be following or are at least aware of the ongoing Pickleball controversy. Basically, a proposal for as Pickleball court in the city’s Springside Park has been kicked around between the Pittsfield City Council and a city council subcommittee for what seems to be a ridiculous amount of time. Part of the discussion surrounds the funding source. The city council preliminarily approved $35,000 in community preservation funds for the court this past Monday. While advocates of the park itself have expressed concerned that a Pickleball court would be disruptive to the otherwise passive park.

The details surrounding the “controversy” are many, and my focus instead is on the sport of Pickleball itself. As it turns out, Pickleball is more serious of a sport than I had thought. Beside being a recreational game, Pickleball is apparently also played at a professional level. There is actually a U.S. Open Pickleball Championship for both men and women – And it’s actually on television. Who knew? There is even a USA Pickleball Association.

Pickleball is basically a paddle sport that is sort of a combination of tennis, Ping-Pong, and badminton. Now, you may not be looking to go pro, but if you are interested in the game and want to give it a try, when and if the controversy is ever settled, here’s a video that will give you the basics.

Video: Third Shot Sports via Youtube