New fans getting into the swing of pickleball in Golden Gate Park
Pickleball. “I’d never even heard of it,” shrugs Carolyn Harvey, 70. “I had no idea what it was.” Harvey wasn’t the only one. Mentioning the game often results in quizzical looks. But the court game, which combines elements of tennis, pingpong and badminton, has been catching on with mostly retired folks in cities around the country. Harvey is trying to root the sport here. After learning how to play the game two years ago, she started looking for more folks to play. “Nobody knew what the game was,” she says. So she asked if she could do some free clinics on Saturdays at the Golden Gate Park Tennis Courts, sharing the news on the park’s Facebook page and handing out flyers. Within a few months, the class grew big enough that it was given a designated court. Now you’ll find Harvey and her new pickleball lovers at Court 5 every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday morning from 9 to noon. “Physical activity and a social outlet are really important, especially for retired people,” she says. “With pickleball it doesn’t take that long to be good, so you’re running, you’re on your feet. It’s good for balance, and you get some rallies going so it makes it a lot of fun.”
Carolyn Harvey plays doubles pickleball with Jason Keenan at the Golden Gate Park Tennis Courts. “I have a friend who took care of her parents and had other family responsibilities, and she said it saved her life,” Harvey says.