SPRING VALLEY, Calif. — If you've ever wanted to try pickleball, there's a paddle and people waiting for you at San Diego's largest pickleball club which opened its doors earlier this year. In this Zevely Zone, I found 'Pickleball Heaven' in Spring Valley. I went to The Hub San Diego because honestly, I could not find anyone who wanted to play pickleball with me. At The Hub San Diego, you'll find everything pickleball, all day, every day.
"I just walked in, and they said we need a fourth," I said while immediately being whisked onto a court. "We need a fourth," said Marita, Joe and Steve. "Do I just serve it out of my hand?" I asked. My new friends answered all of my questions and suddenly there I was playing pickleball.
Joe got hooked two years ago. "Oh yeah, it's addictive. She got me into it. There is cocaine and then there is pickleball," joked Joe pointing at Marita. "I retired so I could play pickleball, all of the time, so I could be out here five days a week," said Marita. Steve skipped work to play pickleball. "Everyone is going to see what I was doing," said Steve. "Do you think you can edit his face out?" asked Joe.
Pickleball remains the fastest growing sport in America, in part, because people of all skills levels can play it. "I'm not very good. It's hilarious," said Teresa Howes who helps run The Hub San Diego. She says anyone can play, even me. "When you saw me falling down, making mistakes, what went through your mind?" I asked. Teresa laughed and said, "I thought look at how much fun he is having."
The Hub San Diego Pickleball has 26 courts for professionals to enjoy all the down to beginners. People play pickleball at a park next to my house on the weekends. One day, I worked up the nerve to ask them if I could play with them. They told me I was not good enough and it hurt my feelings. I learned on this story that maybe they were right, but Joe disagreed. "You're never going to learn unless you play and that's the great thing about this sport is that it is for everybody and everybody has to be included," said Joe.
In case you're wondering why it's called Pickleball. Decades ago, the story goes a person playing the sport had a dog named Pickles. The dog always chased the ball down and brought it back. The sport was then called Pickleball.
For 99 dollars a month at The Hub, anyone can Pickleball their brains out and play unlimited games seven days a week. "Good game, good game," said my new pickleball buddies. We tapped paddles and I said, "That was really fun. Thanks for including me."
Pickleball may become an Olympic sport as early as 2028. For more information on The Hub San Diego click here.