Pickleball has become extremely popular because it is fun and easily learned by a wide range of ages and fitness levels. It is a combination of tennis, badminton and ping-pong and is played with hard paddles and a whiffle-type ball. It is a lower-impact sport and improves balance and agility (and burns calories.)
It is played on a smaller version of a tennis court, typically for doubles. Recently the tennis courts at Jeff Young Memorial Park were renovated and now one of the courts has two dedicated, regulation-size pickleball courts.
All courts were resurfaced, repainted, and relined. The tennis court furthest from the gate was converted into two pickleball courts, each one centered on either side of the existing tennis net. The tennis net remains acting as a barrier between the two courts.
Two new permanent pickleball posts, sleeve center anchor and nets were put in (pickleball nets are two inches lower than the standard tennis net). For the two remaining tennis courts – each had new lines painted – one set of white tennis lines and one set of red pickleball lines. Four additional center tie downs were installed to easily convert the tennis nets to pickleball nets. This will accommodate any pickleball overflow.
The courts at Jeff Young Park have lights and are playable until 10 p.m. until Nov. 15. The lights are turned on automatically at sunset, so if it’s a particularly dark day, be patient, they will come on.
Fall indoor pickleball is offered Wednesdays during the day from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Church Street Rec Center. There is no instruction, players rotate into games for as long as they like. Rules can be found at www.usapa.org. This is for adults 18 and over.
Evening pickleball is offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. for ages 9th grade and above. Come find out what all the excitement is about.
To register for indoor pickleball and all program information, visit www.moorestownrec.com.
