Many in Decorah are relishing pickleball

Showing how pickleball is played at the Decorah city courts on Claiborne Dr. are Jerry and Elaine Gipp (left), and Charlotte and Bill Brenning (right). (Photos/text by Decorahnews.com's Bob Modersohn)

A while back Elaine and Jerry Gipp along with Arizona snowbird friends Mark and Deb Harman brought the increasingly popular sport of pickleball to Decorah. The Gipps set up a court on an old piece of cement behind their barn, Elaine Gipp said while demonstrating the game last week. Now, two years later, they're playing the sport along with some 50 others here on spiffy, permanently lined city courts on Claiborne Drive. A Decorah Pickleball Club has been set up through the city's parks and recreation department.

Think of pickleball as a combination of tennis and badminton using oversized ping-pong-like paddles and a Wiffle ball the size of a baseball. The court is half the size of a tennis court, about 40 by 20 feet in size, so two courts fit onto one tennis court. The deadness of the Wiffle ball slows the game down enough to neutralize different skill levels. It's especially popular with the over-50 set.

"Having played racquetball and some tennis in the past, I found pickleball amazingly fun and easy to play," Mark Harman wrote in an email. "I've played with persons in their teens to 80s and have been beaten from time-to-time by most of them. Many tennis players are beginning to lean towards pickleball as it's much easier on the body."

Since Pickleball's introduction to the Iowa Games in 2011 it has set registration/participation records in each of the Iowa Summer Games, Iowa Senior Games, and Iowa Winter Games — growing by 25-65 percent in each subsequent event, Iowa District Ambassador for the sport, Steve Stone, told Decorahnews.com. YMCAs and community centers across the state are wanting to add pickleball to their schedules. And the Iowa Sports Federation is considering holding a state cup for the rapidly growing sport.

Those interested in joining the Decorah Pickleball Club may contact Mark Harman, mark@harman2020.com, or contact Decorah Parks and Rec. For more information on the sport in Iowa, visit Steve Stone's website, www.pickleballiowa.com

The oversized ping-pong-like paddles and a Wiffle ball used in pickleball.

Jerry Gipp returns a shot while Elaine Gipp looks on.