There’s been a lot of interest in Pickleball lately around our readership communities. Becker put in a new pickleball court at the Community Center a couple years ago. Palmer just finished installing one that’s nearly ready for players. The Big Lake Spud Fest is featuring a pickleball tournament. I’ve written articles about this sports fad.

I have to confess, however, I never did try playing the game. 

I played tennis in high school, and pickleball looked to me like it was just tennis with the wrong equipment. It had a goofy name, and I figured that this was a fad that would just blow over in a couple of years. 

But, I always want to try everything twice, and since the pickleball craze seemed to be ramping up instead of winding down, I figured it was finally time. 

I called up my mom and asked if she would be able to take a break from work to come play with me for an hour. She was skeptical, but she agreed to come try.

We met at the Becker pickleball courts. I didn’t have the equipment, but conveniently the library will loan you a set with a valid library card (which you can keep for a full week, by the way! So you can totally borrow a set and take it with you to the cabin over the weekend, or to your local court.) My mom looked up an instruction video on YouTube and we got to playing. 

I have to admit, I stand corrected on pickleball being a dumb game. We had a blast. We even got my dad to join in for a few rounds. We didn’t keep score (which is good, since my dad kept trying to score points on me while my back was turned or I was tying my shoes) but we had a lot of fun. I don’t work out nearly as often as I should, but I found myself focusing more on the fun of the game than how tired I was feeling, which is the highest rating I can give a sport. My parents told me they would love to play together as a family again sometime, and I plan to introduce the game to my husband this weekend.

So, although many of you already knew this: Pickleball is a blast, and I highly recommend giving it a try!