Quite the Pickle
Cindy Pope and Kim Needy team up for a game of pickleball at Marty Snook Park.
Our physical capabilities fade as we age, but pickleball seems to be the remedy many are turning to
By Charles Jeffries
When my son moved back from California last fall, he introduced me to pickleball. It’s not that I didn’t know about the sport, but I thought it was too the 2020s what the Hula-Hoop had been to the 1960s. I told him I’d give it a try anyway.
Alex took me to Marty Snook Park one afternoon when no one was around and showed me how to dink. As an athlete whose tastes in his younger days ran more toward sports that involved collisions, or at least participants moving at a very fast pace, this dinking seemed like nonsense.
“OK, this is fun,” I told him in a tone laced with sarcasm. He convinced me to continue.
We moved on to the drop shot (only slightly more exciting). Then the serve; under-handed and with a little pace, but still humdrum as physical activity goes.
“Think of the serving motion like cornhole. You’re good at cornhole,” he said, trying to hold my interest. I am good at cornhole, but I don’t consider it a sport. It’s a way to pass time while having a beer at a picnic or family gathering.
OK, so pickleball may not be the Hula-Hoop, but so far it’s not much more than cornhole.
Alex explained the kitchen. Well, that seems silly. Then he told me the return serve must bounce before it can be hit back, which seemed to me to eliminate the advantage of having the serve. So, at this point it seemed to me we are basically paddling a Whiffle ball back and forth over a net. Exciting.
“That’s where strategy comes in,” he said. “Remember this: third shot drop shot. If you can drop the third shot into the kitchen they’ll have to dink it back over the net.”
Oh, great, the dink shot again. “Why wouldn’t the opponent just rush the net and slam it back?”
“Don’t you remember what I told you about the kitchen? You can only go in there if the ball bounces first. Think of the kitchen as out of bounds.”
“But it’s in the middle of the court. How can it be out of bounds?”
Clearly frustrated with me, he simply said, “You’ll see.”
Why Play Pickleball?
Live Longer: A study in the International Journal of Research in Exercise Physiology found pickleball a feasible alternative to traditional exercise for older adults. Regular participation improves cardiorespiratory fitness and moderates key cardiovascular disease risk factors like blood pressure and cholesterol.
Perk Up: Any exercise is a proven mood booster, and pickleball is no exception. An article in Leisure Studies reported that older adults who played pickleball had a lower risk of depression.
Just Give it a Try: Many older adults start playing pickleball because a friend or partner suggested they join them. Often skeptical, these people more often than not end up enjoying the game enough to come back for more.
Make Friends: Pickleball is a great social outlet. And that desire to connect with friends helps improve your overall mental status.
Avoid Assisted Living: Older adults who play pickleball regularly may improve their reflexes and balance, which can help them live independently for longer.
I hung with him and got the hang of the serve and the volley, but the dink simply didn’t suit my athletic taste. I could do it once or twice, but I was always anxious to hit the ball hard, which usually resulted in it sailing out of bounds because the court is so damn small.
I told him pickleball was silly—a game designed to neutralize athletic ability, and therefore an activity for folks of the three O’s persuasion—old, overweight, and out of shape. I fit only the old category. I long to go back to playing basketball, the game I played through high school, college, and well into my 40s before a medical issue forced me into retirement.
My son told me we’d come back in the evening and play when others were on the courts. In the twilight of a fall evening, the lights illuminating the courts at Marty Snook, I had my official introduction to pickleball. And I loved it.
Everything together, the serve, the volley, the dropshot, the strategy, the slam (still my favorite part of the game)—even the dink—captivated me the way basketball had done in my younger years. As a senior somewhat limited in what my exercise regime can include, pickleball renewed my athletic interest. The court is small enough that you only have to run a few steps at a time, and in the proper position with the correct strategy, the game can be well executed from a nearly stationary position. I play two to four times a week, which still leaves plenty of time for golf and all the other semi-retirement things I enjoy.
Cindy Pope
In the beginning, pickleball is a frustrating game for an athlete. It took me a month to keep from smashing the return serve back without letting it bounce. It took another few weeks to keep my momentum from carrying me into the kitchen.
Once, before I understood this rule, I was moving toward the net and my opponent’s soft lob of a volley was floating there like an eephus pitch. I moved faster, kept my feet behind the kitchen line and slammed it back, only to be told it was an illegal shot because my momentum carried me into the kitchen. I was enraged—stupid game, stupid rules.
When a wide receiver catches a pass, taps his feet in bounds, and his momentum carries him out of bounds, it’s still a catch. When I used to shoot three-pointers they counted three points even if my momentum carried me across the arc. But, no. In pickleball that kind of display of athletic ability can’t be tolerated.
It took me months to accept that pickleball is an activity, not a sport—much like my other favorite pastime of golf. I created ways to adapt, like realizing maybe it’s called the kitchen in honor of our mothers and their constant demand: “STAY OUT OF THE KITCHEN.” And understanding that pickleball needs to be played at 80 percent because the Whiffle ball doesn’t move as quickly as a baseball or tennis ball.
My gradual understanding and acceptance of these non-athletic pickleball principles brought me to the proper understanding of the game. Pickleball is not a sport, but it’s also not the Hula-Hoop or cornhole—it’s better. The game challenges seniors to stay in shape and have fun while mingling with folks of similar age and background—and if you get good enough (I did) you can beat people a lot younger than you.
It’s far from a physically taxing sport (occasionally I break a sweat), but it burns calories. I’ve lost 15 pounds since I started playing, and I feel like I’m in the best shape since my basketball days. Yeah, my knees, Achilles tendons, and, as a southpaw, my left elbow and shoulder ache the morning after I play, but it’s a good ache; a rewarding ache that comes not from aging, as so many pains do, but from fighting off aging.
Pickleball? I’m all in. Thanks, Alex.
Where to Play Pickleball in Washington County
There are dedicated pickleball courts and tennis courts with pickleball lines throughout Hagerstown and Washington County. Although the height of a pickleball net is a little lower than a tennis net, these makeshift courts can be a good introduction to the game. There are also dedicated courts at places like the Hagerstown Field House and the YMCA.
Camp Harding Park
13029 Pectonville Road, Pectonville
Chestnut Grove Park
3106 Chestnut Grove Road, Keedysville
Clear Spring Park
12424 Big Spring Road, Clear Spring
Doub’s Wood Park
1307 South Potomac Street
Fort Richie Community Center
14421 Lake Royer Drive, Highfield-Cascade
Hagerstown City Park
City Park Drive, Hagerstown
Hagerstown Field House
290 East Memorial Boulevard, Hagerstown
Leitersburg Ruritan Recreation Center
21427 Leiters Street, Hagerstown
Marty Snook Park
17901 Halfway Boulevard, Hagerstown
Pleasant Valley Park
3199 Gapland Road, Gapland
Tammany Park
16700 Tammany Manor Road, Williamsport
Washington County Regional Park
20245 Mt. Aetna Road, Hagerstown
YMCA
1100 Eastern Boulevard, Hagerstown