Letter: VRD pickleball director signs off
For the past eight years, as the pickleball director for the Vail Recreation District, I have had the privilege to build a very successful pickleball program serving thousands of pickleball players, both from our local community and from all over the country.
I want to thank the town of Vail for building a great pickleball venue, with six dedicated courts, at Golden Peak and the Vail Recreation District for hiring me as the pickleball director.
It’s been fun to help pickleball in Vail grow from three courts and a handful of players playing a few hours a day, a few mornings every week, to six outdoor courts all filled from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day during the peak summer months. And indoors during the winter, from one night a week to five days a week at Red Sandstone Elementary School.
I’ve been fortunate to watch the sport grow, both locally and nationally, and to see all the new players enjoy the game.
Our last tournament at Golden Peak, the 2019 Vail Pickleball Open, was a great success, attracting more than 1,000 spectators and 260 players. Many of the top pros in the world participated, including Ben Johns, Callie Smith, Riley and Lindsey Newman, all of whom can be seen these days on YouTube, the Tennis Channel, CBS and ESPN.
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Hopefully, as the sport continues to grow, Vail will step up again and build more courts to accommodate the ever-increasing demand for court time in this great recreational resort town.
I am retiring as the VRD pickleball director, but I will continue serving as a USA Pickleball ambassador and look forward to interacting with the Vail pickleball community for years to come.
See you on the courts.
Jerry Stevens
Vail
