The Racket Wars

“Pickleball is like communism,” a sweatband-wearing tennis player says. “Everyone can play it and it’s taking over our courts in the blink of an eye. It’s a fake sport — very fake. I mean, a real sport relishes in the fact that not everyone can play it well and that you can experience a life-altering injury during a friendly game.”

On a sunny weekend morning, a group of tennis players and allies gather around the final tennis court in south Eugene to raise awareness that their courts are being taken over by pickleball, one of the fastest growing sports in the U.S.

Among the tennis players’ allies are some neighbors of Eugene’s pickleball courts, who say the noise of the sport is overwhelming. One anti-pickleball protester holding a sign with “No HB 2001 and no pickleball” says that the popular paddle sport is “too loud.”

“All I hear is laughing and the pop, pop, popping sound of the ball hitting the paddle,” the protester says. “If there’s one thing I can’t stand hearing, it’s the sound of people having a good time.”

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!