Post-pandemic, pickeball is all the rage it seems. With great fun, however, comes increased noise, and in some communities across the U.S. it seems like certain neighbors aren’t too happy hearing paddles and ricochets all hours of the day. Because of this unwanted additional noise, there is a movement to actually shut down pickleball courts (probably coming from the same people who thought Kevin Bacon was the bad guy in Footloose).
Rachel Stuhlmann via Rachel Stuhlmann YouTube, screenshot
Well, Rachel Stuhlmann, a popular online tennis influencer, has decided that these fun-killers are going to have to find something else to complain about, because she truly believes that pickleball is here to stay.
“Pickleball isn’t going anywhere. People are still going to find a way to play,” the tennis aficionado said in an interview with Outkick.
She’s got a point, we’re just a few new HOA violations away from underground pickleball speakeasies popping up in well-respected neighborhoods, pickleballing all day and all night with the likes of who knows who. Think of the children!
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This month, the town of Walker in Michigan went full-on North Korea and closed down their local courts due to “unauthorized pickleball games.” Lake Bluff, IL, also decided to make life more boring and residents are currently battling anti-pickleball laws after some killjoys wanted to permanently suspend play over noise complaints.
You’re probably thinking, “I thought this was America? Not communist Canada.”
You’re not alone, Stuhlmann assures you.
“People are entitled to their opinions and feelings,” she said. “If the sound is keeping people up at night, maybe there could be some kind of mutually agreed upon Pickleball curfew where Pickleball play stops by a certain time so people can sleep peacefully.”
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Signs of the pickleball stasi aren’t hidden, should you be worried that some of your local Karens might find a new crusade by targeting your local pickleball court. Unlike the mafia or Mexican drug cartels, they coordinate in Facebook groups (that old social media site your grandmother falls for Facebook Marketplace scams on) such as the group Pickleball Noise Relief.
But will can this anti-pickleball illuminati get in the way of progress? The numbers don’t seem to show it slowing down at any rate. As Stulmann pointed out earlier this year when asked about pickleball’s popularity, its only going to grow more and more.
“It’s amazing how many people have picked it up. I love how it’s a way for people to get out of the house and stay active and have fun,” she said. “It’s so accessible and generally easy for people to pick up. I’ve spent some time with the Professional Pickleball Association community and it’s filled with happy, passionate, and fun people. The tour has such a positive vibe and I love how happy pickleball makes people.”
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