One of the fastest growing sports in the nation and its die-hard participants took center court at the Durango Community Recreation Center over the weekend.
The fifth annual Alpine Bank Durango Pickleball Tournament drew 130 participants as part of the Western Slope Pickleball Tournament Series. Players from Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico and Washington joined fellow pickleball enthusiasts from Durango and surrounding communities to play in the two-day event. In the five years the tournament has been running, participation has grown so fast that the tournament organizers aren’t sure if they can host future events unless the community adapts to the increased demand.
Durango Parks and Recreation Department Supervisor Chris Clements recognized the sport’s growth five years ago and knew he had to do something to give a growing group of active adults a chance to play the game they love.
“Over the last five years, pickleball has been the fastest-growing sports in the nation,” he said. “We had 38 players the first year we did this. That number has grown to 130 and, with just six courts, we’re maxed out. This community needs outdoor pickleball courts.”
Pickleball falls somewhere in between table tennis, tennis, and badminton. Singles and doubles matches are played on a 44x20-foot court, which are the same dimensions as a badminton court. Players use oversized table-tennis paddles to hit a wiffle ball over a 34-inch high net and play matches to either 11 or 13 points depending on the format. The Durango tournament has four classifications based on skill. While younger, faster and stronger players might dominate an older team in tennis, pickleball has a surprisingly level playing-field. The Durango event had players between 15 and 80 years old.
Colorado Christian collegiate tennis player Ryder Searle joined forces with Durango High School tennis star Mavis Edwards for Sunday’s mixed doubles competition. Edwards was the Colorado High School Activities Association’s 4A runner-up as a freshman just a few weeks ago at the girls state tournament.
“I feel like if you’re good at tennis, you’ll be good at pickleball,” Searle said. “We just got beat pretty bad though. There’s a lot of finesse in this game and not a lot of ground to cover. Some of the older people here are really good.”
The “older people” are good because they love to play of pickleball – and they can’t get enough of it. When Durango’s RaNae Bakel took up the new sport, she got hooked. She wanted to share the experience so much that she took the initiative in starting the Southwest Colorado Pickleball Association.
“Montrose just build a few courts and there are some in Grand Junction and Cortez, too,” she said. “We’re behind the ball. Half of the people here have came from out of town, and when people travel across the country, they want to know where the pickleball courts are. If there are pickleball courts, that’s where they’ll park the RV.”
Durango has no shortage of tourists and retirees in the summer. Some, like Sun City, Arizona’s Sharon Allen, rarely go that doesn’t offer access to her favorite game.
“I can’t believe that this town doesn’t have outdoor pickleball courts,” she said. “We spend half our time in Arizona and half in Ruidoso, New Mexico and they have indoor and outdoor facilities. It would be great for the community here.”
Albuquerque’s Sally Gillich had similar thoughts about the potential value of new facilities in Durango.
“I came all the way to Durango for this tournament because I’m just a pickleball die-hard,” Gillich said. “I play almost every day. We have 18 courts close to us in Albuquerque and half of them are lit up at night. We have tournaments and clinics going on all the time. It’s been great for me and I’m sure the people of Durango would be grateful as well.”
While 18 lit pickleball-specific courts would be welcomed by the players in this community, it wouldn’t take that much of an effort to make a difference. Remarking a few tennis courts in town could make a difference for pickleball players and also help youth tennis.
“Many communities have fit pickleball courts into tennis courts,” Clements said. “The dimensions are the same as youth tennis so you could play junior tennis matches on the same court and solve two problems at once. The growth of pickleball right now exceeds tennis by a wide margin, so it makes sense.”
If Durango can’t find a way to accommodate more pickleball players, it’s clear from talking to the tournament participants that they’ll go somewhere else to play. That would be unfortunate for locals who have fallen in love with the sport.
“It’s clear that the city’s recreation people have recognized the need for more courts,” Durango’s Cheryl Schlabach said. “Pickleball means a lot to me. I adore the game and the people I’ve met. For newly-retired or senior people just moving here, there’s no better way to get involved, meet new people and stay active. We just need some more facilities.”
jfries@durangoherald.com
