Editor's note: This article has been edited after publication as an error was made associating the players from the Sechelt Senior's Centre and the SC Pickleball Association. Coast Reporter apologizes for the errors.
Pickleball is quickly becoming one of the most popular sports here on the Sunshine Coast.
The game is sort of like a cross between tennis and badminton but with different rules. The Sechelt Senior's Activity Centre has about 100 regular members and on Saturday, Feb. 21 they invited the Powell River pickleball league down for a friendly tournament.
“It grows itself, the game,” said Powell River player Vivian Thickett. “People come and they see that it’s easy to play. If you’ve played racket sports before it’s very easy to learn how to play. If you’ve never played racket sports before it’s still easy.”
The Powell River league started playing last fall and has invited the Sechelt Senior's Centre players up for some friendly games and in-house tournaments. Sechelt decided it was time to return the hospitality by hosting an event on Feb. 21.
Although they are friendly games, meaning that they aren’t for official league standings, they do tend to get pretty competitive.
Stephanie Watston plays pickleball in Sechelt. She used to play tennis, but had to stop due to the physical strain. Pickleball is much easier on the body and has become very popular in senior communities, she said. One regular player at the Senior's Centre is 85.
The rules have similarities to other racket sports like tennis or badminton, but include things like an area on the court called the kitchen right in front of the net. No one is allowed in the kitchen unless a ball bounces into it.
Joel Pritchard and his family first played Pickleball in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, Wash.
The story goes that the Pritchard family invented the sport one summer afternoon when they couldn’t find the shuttlecocks to play badminton. Joel remedied the situation by lowering the nets and using a wiffle ball.
Practices are held at the Sechelt Seniors Centre Mondays from 3 to 5 p.m. and Wednesdays from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Anyone of any age is welcome to come out and try the game.
