FROM THE USAPA
USAPA MEMBER PROFILE
Earl
Hill
Assistant USAPA Ambassador Chair
BY RICHARD SMITH
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The Arizona Traditions active adult community is not the birthplace of pickleball ; that would be Bainbridge Island near Seattle — all the way back in 1965 . It is not where the game began in Arizona , or even in Surprise ; neighboring Happy Trails had a small core group of players by the mid-1980s . But the spark for the game ’ s explosive growth was lit by a small group of pickleball pioneers in this gated community in the northwest corner of the Northwest Valley .
“ Now I see decals ( for pickleball ) on their cars and RVs . You know right away . There were two guys making paddles way back when . There ’ s over 50 now ,” Arizona Traditions resident Ed Hamer said . “ It put Surprise on the map . It ’ s the pickleball capital for the nation . It ’ s been fun to be a part of that .”
Why Arizona Traditions , instead of any of the thousands of other active adult communities in America ? It ’ s largely thanks to the efforts of Earl Hill and a small group of residents he attracted to the game .
When Mr . Hill and his wife , Gladys , arrived at Arizona Traditions in the late 1990s , Happy Trails had just added three courts to what was the original court in Arizona .
Mr . Hill learned how to play in his native Pacific Northwest , where the game grew slowly but steadily for three decades . Washington congressman Joel Pritchard and businessman Bill Bell needed to find something for the whole family to do and developed a game they named after Pritchard ’ s dog , Pickles — the source of many delays in the early years .
Players use a paddle to hit a baseball-sized whiffle ball with a ping-pong paddle over a net on a badminton-sized court . The sport was a Puget Soundonly phenomenon in 1985 when Mr . Hill first tried it out in a Tacoma gym .
After a decade of play he had become quite adept and made pickleball a consideration when picking a home in the desert . Other than in and around Seattle , the early decades of pickleball were the most robust in the Thousand Trails Campground System at RV parks across the western United States . Special , larger composite paddles were now being introduced .
Mr . Hill played at Happy Trails , but got the word out among his new neighbors . He said games in the then very new Arizona Traditions started among himself and six or eight friends .
“ I just got a hold of a few people way back then and asked them to bring some friends over ,” Mr . Hill said .
By 2000 , about 30 residents played on four courts — really a tennis court with tape marking the pickleball boundaries . Tennis players would remove the tape , starting a tug of war between the two sports that remains today .
One of the early converts , Norm Davis , became one of pickleball ’ s prime evangelists . Mr . Hamer heard about the group from Mr . Davis , who led training sessions for the sport for more than a decade .
“ This guy right here ( Hill ), he got it moving ,” Mr . Hamer said . “ I came over here one day and Agnes ( Weber ?) showed me how to serve .”
While the Arizona Traditions group grew steadily , all the pioneers credited the 2001 tournament at the Arizona Senior Olympics as the impetus for the local pickleball boom .
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