Pickleball is on the map in Folsom, California

As a Senior Recreation Coordinator for the City of Folsom, Derik Perez oversees operations, programming, rentals, special events at the 63,000 square foot Folsom Sports Complex facility in Folsom, Calif. The Folsom Sports Complex has: indoor soccer field, basketball courts, volleyball courts, batting cages, café, party rooms, table tennis and shuffleboard. It was missing one thing…pickleball!

In Spring 2014, Perez started receiving calls about pickleball and where there were places to play.

I had heard a little bit about it before, but never really researched or pursued adding it to the Sports Complex list of sports. When more people started calling me and e-mailing me, I thought I better start researching and see what this sport is all about. So I took a road trip up to Auburn, Calif. where the Parks & Recreation Department offers drop-in pickleball twice a week. I visited, watched, played, got hooked!

Perez knew he had a lot of availability on two indoor basketball courts throughout the week. So he started spinning his wheels for ideas and eventually received approval from his Supervisor to stripe (4) indoor courts during Labor Day week. Boom…the pickleball courts at the Folsom Sports Complex were created!

To make sure the program would not be a bust, he networked with area players and built the anticipation for the new indoor courts at the Sports Complex. By doing almost six months of research he knew his complex would be the only indoor facility to have pickleball courts available to the public in the Greater Sacramento Region. This was the driving force for why he wanted to bring pickleball to the area; to expose new players and existing players to the sport and help grow it in our area. He currently has over 85 people on his e-mail distribution list…and growing!

On September 3rd, 2014 he launched the drop-in program. Needless to say it was a huge success!

We had (4) indoor courts at the time and we were full with players waiting during the first week we opened. We offered drop-in times on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday’s from 10am-1pm, and Sundays from 9am-12pm. The cost is $3 per drop-in or you can buy a (10) punch card for $20 ($30 value). After I launched I knew I need an instructor to teach lessons because of all the calls and e-mails I was receiving. So I met Doug Koch (5.0) player and hired him to instruct beginner and intermediate lessons starting in October.

Doug’s classes filled up fast maxing out at 8 for each class and Perez had to add more in November. His November classes filled up fast again to capacity with 8 in each class. This program was really picking up steam.

On December 5, Perez hosted his first pickleball round-robin tournament with eight recreational teams (3.0 below), and eight competitive teams (3.5 above). The tournament was a huge success with 32 players, and several spectators throughout the day. He even received several great local sponsors including Chick Fil-A (breakfast), Whole Foods (drinks and snacks), Skipolini’s (lunch pasta and salad), Oopa Yogurt (t-shirt sponsor), and Pickleball Central (bags). With the success of his first tournament, he’s already planning for his next adventure – a two-day tournament in the Spring.

Amazing Growth

With the fast growth of pickleball at the Sports Complex, Perez has had to add more courts. During the Thanksgiving break last year, he added three more indoor courts at the facility; giving them a total of seven indoor pickleball courts. They are now able to host bigger tournaments and allow for more drop-ins during specified hours.

This was huge as winter was approaching. On Friday, December 12th we had 50 players at the facility. It was pretty awesome!

According to Perez, September through December has been absolutely amazing for the program.

I have worked for the City of Folsom for over 14 years and I have never had a program take off so fast in so short of time. It’s truly humbling knowing the impact our pickleball program is having on the participants physically and socially. The smile on their faces and their passion for the sport makes it really easy for me to come to work every day and work harder at what I love to do…provide recreational opportunities for everyone!

Looking ahead

Where does he go from here you might ask? Well… as of January, Perez has now added Advanced Pickleball lessons. Actually, the January Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced Pickleball lessons filled up in 5 DAYS!!! That just goes to show you how much people are enjoying the sport in Folsom and want to learn more in the Sacramento Region.

My facility is proof that “if you build it, they will come!” We are only successful because of the passionate pickleball players out there and their love of the game. Without their support our program wouldn’t have grown so fast in so short of time. For them I am eternally grateful! Folsom is definitely on the map for pickleball!