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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
December 1, 2011     Shelton Mason County Journal
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December 1, 2011
 
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Arnold Lofthu: ets low to return a serve during a at the Mason Transit Community Center on Wednesday, Nov. Journal photos by Emily Hanson 23. By EMILY It started with a gressman, a success dog named Pickle i965. According to the tion website, and his friend Bill bridge Island in the "The property h court so Pritchard badminton "full set of rackets," usap'a.org st~ ~mprovised, cutting shafts of th, : state con- rackets and found a The rackets didn't Associa- ummer of 1965. was Pickle's ball." tes. "They , damaged [astic ball. ell, so the similar to hards had ho became henever a take the it !l, a game senior citi- zeus. "It's one of the fastest growing sports in America," Perry said. "It's designed for those over 55 and it's a much slower game than tennis so it's easier to play at high in- tensity." Perry began playing pickleball on Harst- ine Island eight years ago when his neigh- bor put in a court. Before that, he'd never heard of the sport. He said there are now seven or eight courts on the island. "It rains all the time out there, so I asked the city if there was an indoor place to play and they said 'no,'" Perry said. "I saw some- one coming in [to the Mason Transit Com- munity Center] and asked then~ and they said they'd love to have us play here." During the seven years that seniors have been playing at the center, located in the old armory building on Franklin Street across from Safeway, Perry said an average of 15 people, mostly men, play on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to noon. "We ask players for a $3 donation, which mostly goes to the county for renting the building and the rest goes to buying pick- leballs," Perry said. "Players provide their own rackets." Playing pickleball keeps Perry, 78, active and competitive, he said. "How many people who are 78-years-old can play any sport and compete?" he asked. "You would be surprised to see how much better a lot of these guys are after playing here for a couple of years." Since there are not many indoor courts in the area, Perry said seniors come from as far away as Panorama, a retirement com- munity in Lacey, to play, "This sport makes you fee] like you can still be athletic," he added. "There isn't a lot of running because we play in doubles and that's one thing we all like about it. It's a definite health benefit." Some of the players at the center enjoy the game so much, in fact, that they play in the Washington State Senior Games, Perry said. "We'd love to have more people, men and women both," he added. For more information, contact Perry at 426-7330. COMPLETE SOMP:S'rS %ale offered ot~ 360-426-5254. • 61 W State (Located next to Little i Page C-4 I Ravor lOOs & Higl~Air ~OOs Sale offered onAdditive-Free Fult flavor lOOs & quality product& plas to expect from a daily 108 • Shelton WA 98584 ason County Journal - Thursday, December 1,2011 Andy Hospader serves during a recent pickleb | retch, .......