Aiken Pickleball News

Please Sign the Petition

We are trying to get 2000 signatures on a petition to be presented to the City of Aiken on December 17, asking the City to provide more pickleball courts. Please help by adding your signature - contact Jordan Balba at jdb918@gmail.com. And why do we need more courts?

Over fifty schools in Aiken County now have pickleball programs. The Fall League had 134 players. That number is expected to increase to over 400 participants this coming spring. Each year over 100 people attend New Players Clinics offered at Odell Weeks. The sport continues to grow.

Junior Kids - Mead Hall - After School Program

Breaking News - Outdoor Toilets Closed

The toilets closest to the outdoor pickleball courts at Virginia Acres Park are closed indefinitely for extensive renovations. As the project is expected to take a couple of months, the City plans to eventually provide porta potties. In the meantime, players can use the front entrance at Odell to access the restrooms located near Gyms 1 & 2. An official announcement by the City is expected soon.

Localendar vs Google Calendar

I'm sure most have noticed that the calendar on the website has been taking forever to load. Some of you have just now discovered there are two calendars on the website - Localendar and Google Calendar. What is the difference?

Localendar is generated from the Google calendar by an iCal feed. We do not type any entries into Localendar. When working properly it is easiest to read using a smartphone. When the Localendar site is busy (with calendars in addition to ours) it takes forever to load, sometimes as long as three minutes and has numerous duplicate entries.

Google calendar is the master calendar that we work from. It is generated by us from the monthly schedules we received from Odell Weeks, Smith-Hazel and Gregg Park. We use the entries on the Google calendar to update the Sign up Genius each week. When brought up on a computer or laptop it is easy to read when displaying one week at a time. Not so easy to read when using a smartphone, but still readable.

The good news is the Local Calendar is back to loading in a reasonable amount to time.

Smith-Hazel open

Smith-Hazel is open as of Monday, October 7.

Outdoor courts at Odell Weeks are open

The outdoor courts at Virginia Acres Park (behind Odell Weeks) are open! There is some debris on the courts, so you might want to take a broom or blower if you plan to play there.

Update from Gregg Park

Gregg Park will reopen on Monday, October 14 with regular hours. Pickleball will go back to it's regular schedule starting on Tuesday!

Odell Weeks statue

Indoor pickleball at Odell Weeks resumed normal play on Thursday, October 10.

Why Aiken Pickleball is the Best!

Some 4.0 players joined our Saturday morning drop-in play. It was exciting when they battled each other. The balls that came my way made me play to the best of my ability, but I never got smashed at or felt out of place. Super fun! This is why pickleball is so popular. Thanks to everyone that made this happen.

Courts 4 & 5 Available for Morning Court Reservations

Court 4 & 5 will be available for court reservations 845-11am on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting next Tuesday September 24th.

Smith-Hazel Reopening

Smith-Hazel Activity Center located at 400 Kershaw St NE, will reopen for a 2-hour walk through from 5:30-7:30 pm on Sept. 25th. Pickleball will restart on September 30th - every Monday and Wednesday - court reservations 9-1030am and 1030-12pm - three indoor courts. You will be able to reserve a court using the same Sign up Genius you use for Odell. The membership card you use to access Odell Weeks will allow you access Smith-Hazel. For non members the daily fee is $2, same as at Odell.