Pickleball Courts In Pine Island Upgrades: Pickleball is gaining in popularity across the United States, and Pine Island is enthusiastically joining the movement. On July 30, the city completed a $40,000 resurfacing project on its pickleball courts upgrades, originally installed last year. Initially intended as an ice rink, the city opted to repurpose the space for year-round use. The result has been a surge in court usage beyond initial expectations.
Vino Raj, owner of ‘To Pickleball and Beyond,’ remarked, “I mean check this out, right? It’s amazing that within a couple of years almost every little community has a pickleball court. It’s a way to get people gathered, get different demographics playing and get people active.” Raj’s business is dedicated to promoting pickleball through lessons, tutorials, and events, with a focus on reducing barriers to the sport’s growth. “My passion is however I can help the sport grow, reduce the barrier to entry so that’s how ‘To Pickleball and Beyond’ is trying to grow the sport,” Raj added.
With the rise of pickleball leagues and tournaments, Raj explained why the sport is capturing widespread interest: “We came out of a pandemic and we were looking for something social and pickleball is such a social networking thing. Yes, it’s harder to master but it’s really easy to get into. It also helps when you have a really friendly community so I think all of those together all contribute, good timing, population, the social part I think all of that contributed to this.”
News in Brief: Pickleball Courts In Pine Island Upgrades
Pine Island, Minn., has joined the pickleball boom by resurfacing its courts on July 30 with a $40,000 investment. Originally designed as an ice rink, the courts are now used year-round and have seen higher-than-expected usage. Vino Raj, owner of ‘To Pickleball and Beyond,’ highlighted the sport’s rapid growth and its role in fostering community engagement, saying, “It’s amazing that within a couple of years almost every little community has a pickleball court.” Raj also noted that pickleball’s appeal lies in its social nature and accessibility post-pandemic. Local players can visit Cook Park and Eagles in Rochester for games.
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