Pickleball The States

  August 30 2023 The plan was to drive three and a half hours from Wenatchee WA and play pickleball in The Dalles OR that evening and then drive to Hood River the next morning for some play at Golden Eagle Park. Perhaps it was the blustery wind, but not one player showed up at Sorosis Park in The Dalles.  We were starting to get concerned about playing in OR in our limited window of time. Would anyone show up at Golden Eagle Park? Would we have to alter our schedule and head to Portland? Hoping to get some assurance, we posted on the Hood River Valley Pickleball Community FB page that we would be there the next morning. There was one response, and it wasn't from someone who would be playing. He wished us well, but had some concern that the courts might have puddles from a recent rain. Fortunately, there was only one small puddle on one of the three courts when we arrived. That one small puddle was the only thing on the courts at 8:30 am which was the time we understood play general

 August 28 2023 We are often asked how we choose our locations to play pickleball. For this trip, Barb's nephew Steve and family live in Wenatchee, WA so combining a visit with them and playing pickleball in the Wenatchee Valley was an easy decision. Communicating with players prior to our arrival also directed us to play at Eastmont Community Park where we would find players with similar skills to ours playing in the mornings. As soon as we arrived at the courts, we met Diane and Allie, a mother/daughter team. Diane brought us up to speed on the paddle system in use. Paddle handles pointing north indicated advanced players. Handles pointing east were intermediate and handles pointing south were beginners. The six dedicated outdoor courts were filled with players, however, courts became available rather quickly. We had placed our paddles down with Diane and Allie and before long we were on the courts. They made a formidable pair to play against. Diane's background in volleyba