While exact numbers vary according to source, there’s little doubt that pickleball is America’s fastest growing sport and has been for several years.

One of the best things about pickleball is that it is a cross-generational sport; in 2023, players 25-34 comprised the largest age bracket (16.7%), players over 65 were the second largest age bracket (15.4%), and players 18-24 were third at 13.3%.

An additional one million kids under the age of 18 joined the sport in 2023 alone.

The pickleball courts in Sequim’s Carrie Blake Park are often busy with more senior (in age) players, but there has been a noticeable increase of younger folks and families enjoying this popular pastime. Children are being introduced to the sport by their parents, as well as in the Sequim School District.

I reached out to Sequim High School Athletic Director Ian Henley to ask about pickleball instruction in local schools. At present a short annual pickleball unit is taught starting in third grade, and kids seem to enjoy it. However, there are no current plans to form official school pickleball teams, perhaps because tennis is still popular (at the high school level), and pickleball as a team sport is not yet established to anywhere near the same extent.

To find out more about local kids and pickleball, I recently spoke with several young Sequim Picklers about their experiences.

After watching their parents play for several years, Laina Bo, 11, and her brother Liem, 8, decided that pickleball looked like a fun family activity (with sister Ellie, 5, also occasionally getting in on the act), and they have been playing ever since. At first, parents Vebol and Shauna spent a lot of time working with them on basic drills, but now both Laina and Liem are skilled enough to play a good level of doubles with their parents.

While Laina enjoys the fun and camaraderie of the game, she is also serious about improving her skills. One of her goals is to partner with her mom in tournaments. She participated in last year’s Sequim Picklers’ Big Dill tournament and is planning to do so again in May.

In addition to working with her parents, Laina learns from playing with different partners and by observing others’ technique and strategy. She looks forward to seeing pickleball grow in popularity around the world.

Liem likes to play hard and fast and loves the running aspect of pickleball. He especially enjoys chasing down lob shots, a skill not easy for older folks. Liem is working on mastering his favorite shot, called the “erne,” where a player jumps over the Non-Volley Zone (the “kitchen”), strikes the ball mid-air, and lands back outside the kitchen. His goals are to do his best and to help his team win, and he will also be playing in the upcoming Big Dill tournament.

Kaiden McKenzie, 10, started playing about three years ago, after watching his dad Kyle (a nationally rated player and coach) on the courts.

Coached by his dad, Kaiden focused first on dinking and the soft game; he is now working on ground strokes. He plays pickleball several times a week and practices 30 minutes every day at home with his Dink Master (a home pickleball practice system).

Kaiden and Kyle also play ping pong, which is good cross training for “fast hands” in pickleball. (The shorter the distance you have to move the paddle the “faster” you will be.)

As well as participating in organized Sequim Picklers activities (such as the recent King of the Hill tournament where Kaiden and his partner came in second place), Kaiden traveled to Georgia last year to participate in a junior pickleball tournament. He aims to be the best and to play professional pickleball. Kaiden will soon be launching an Instagram site that will feature videos of training sessions with his dad so people can follow his journey toward professional play.

As part of Sequim Picklers’ mission “…to facilitate the growth of pickleball in Sequim and on the Olympic Peninsula for enjoyment, health, and social engagement among players of all ages…”, the Club has been working with the Sequim YMCA to organize a children’s summer pickleball camp.

I do not doubt that the number of kids playing pickleball in Sequim will continue to increase and that we will see even more cross-generational play as a result of instruction and encouragement provided by the Sequim Picklers, as well as local schools and families.

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The Monthly Slice is a column written by members of Sequim Picklers.