Welcome And Book With A Mission

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hi, I'm Shelly Mauer. And I'm Cher Emmerich.

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Welcome to Life Lessons from Pickleball, where we engage with pickleball players from around the world about life on and off the court. Thanks for joining us.

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Before we get started, we have something really exciting to share. Our book, Life Lessons from Pickleball, is now available on Amazon, and a portion of every sale is donated to Operation PaddleLift.

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Your purchase helps deliver paddles, nets, and resources to underserved communities around the world.

Meet Randy Fuller From Rally

SPEAKER_01 0:34

Thank you for being a part of Growing the Game We All Love. Now let's jump into today's episode. Welcome everyone to Life Lessons from Pickleball. Oh, today we're really excited to welcome Randy Fuller. Randy, we're so glad you're here with us today, and you're a founding partner of Rally Pickleball Club in Auburn, Washington, kind of in our neck of the woods, helping grow one of the vibrant pickleball communities here in the Pacific Northwest.

SPEAKER_00 1:02

Randy, you grew up in the Pacific Northwest and discovered early on that you had a natural talent for rocket sports. That passion led you to compete in tennis, win two league championships in high school, and later teach tennis at Central Washington University.

SPEAKER_01 1:18

And today you live in Pierce County with your wife and your six boys. Yes, six boys, seven to seventeen we just learned, who occasionally join you on the court and even help out in the pro shop at Rally Pickleball Club.

Discovering Pickleball And Getting Hooked

SPEAKER_00 1:34

Randy, so many people discover pickleball in unexpected ways. Before Rally Pickleball Club, how did pickleball first come into your life?

SPEAKER_02 1:43

You know, I started actually, we had a curriculum in my freshman year, and that is where I learned. I think we played a month-long uh course and I loved it. It always came down to me and one other guy at the very end, and I felt I had a knack for it, and it just turned out to be a really fun sport.

SPEAKER_01 2:02

And then what turned it into a profession?

SPEAKER_02 2:06

You know, uh, I think uh transitioning into tennis, it came very naturally, natural for me. You know, I started my sophomore year of tennis, so I I didn't play before that, but um about two or three, no, about two and a half years ago, I had a friend say, Hey, why don't you come join me at the YMCA and uh and and play on my team? And I said, Okay, I've played once in my life, but I'd love to come learn and hopefully you can teach me because I don't remember the rules, but it uh I was glad he invited me.

SPEAKER_01 2:36

And then when you started playing, it you obviously got hooked.

SPEAKER_02 2:41

I did. I did. It's it's such a fun sport, and it's really for everyone. It's not just for young people, it's not for uh elderly, it's for everyone. You can play until you're 85. I still play with 80 to 85 year olds on a daily basis.

SPEAKER_00 2:58

Well, and just in case Joyce Jones is listening, you can play well into your 90s.

SPEAKER_01 3:05

Indeed, indeed. So, what was your job before you got into the club business?

SPEAKER_02 3:11

You know, I am in medical sales, so I own a company. Yeah, I sell laboratory equipment. Um, and there's four of us that are owners for Rally Pick a Ball Club. Um, you know, there's a we have a plumber, we have a construction guy, we have a dentist, and then I'm the medical sales. So none of us, um, you know, we kind of just came together after pitching this idea to each other, and it it went from there.

SPEAKER_01 3:38

Have you ever thought about starting a band?

SPEAKER_02 3:43

You know, you know, I do play the viola, so I play for lots of weddings.

SPEAKER_00 3:48

Oh so you could.

SPEAKER_02 3:51

Yes, yes, yes.

SPEAKER_00 3:53

So, what was the vision behind Rally when you guys first started it?

SPEAKER_02 3:57

You know, we saw a need, you know, for being the birth birthplace of pickleball on Baden Bridge Island, we thought, where are all the indoor facilities and what are we supposed to do during the winter and when and during the spring when it's just raining so much? Yeah, and we we couldn't find very many indoor facilities, and so we thought there's gotta be something somewhere. And we when we found out there wasn't anything within 40 minutes, we thought we got to make this happen. And you know, we all play, we all love to play. Um, so that was one of our passions. But really, we really wanted to make somewhere where people could come and play when they can't play outside.

SPEAKER_01 4:38

So that's very entrepreneurial of you. Did any of the four of you were you entrepreneurs before?

SPEAKER_02 4:44

Yes, yes. So again, I own um my lab equipment company, and then the uh Dave the dentist, he owns his company, and then Dylan, he owns his plumbing company, and uh and I believe Chris, he he works at a just a construction company. So um, yeah, several entrepreneurs in the group.

SPEAKER_01 5:06

So you you kind of knew what you were getting into.

SPEAKER_02 5:08

Yeah, yes, yep. A little bit. Still lots to learn, though.

SPEAKER_00 5:14

So, what do you think makes Rally pickleball unique in the pickleball community?

Inside Rally’s Courts And Amenities

SPEAKER_02 5:19

You know, we're not a franchise. So what's unique about us is you can come up with an idea as one of our members, uh, or if you're even a visitor, and we can tailor any need that you have for you. You know, if you have a great idea, we love ideas. And in fact, we send out polls, and if somebody wants to play glow in the dark pickleball, we say, okay, let's do it. So um we can change on a regular basis, and we're really about community. Um, we're not catering to higher-level players, we're not catering um to maybe professional players, but we're catering to those that want to learn the sport and want to grow the sport with us. And again, is really about building a community-based place where people could hang out and have the extra added benefit of playing pickleball.

SPEAKER_01 6:12

So tell us about your facility. And actually, before that, before that, tell us what it took to build this. Did you actually build the facility or was the building already there? And what did it take to do this?

SPEAKER_02 6:28

Yeah, so it was so the facility was already there, it was renovated. Um uh, and it used to be, as far as I understand it, a World War II production facility.

SPEAKER_01 6:40

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 6:41

Yeah, so I think so they had a big old production line. They had um, I think, you know, somebody just told me another story of how uh the soldiers' boots used to go back to there. Um, and so that so we're learning a lot about this history, and some of our doors are the original doors that are painted, and they look like they're from uh like army green with this metallic on it. They look really cool and original, and we've kept some of the cogs that used to be in there, we've kept some of the lights that used to be in there, so there's a lot of history in that building. That's um regarding the facility itself. Yeah, we had to completely redo the inside, but there's uh 14 indoor courts, they're all pre-cut, yeah, they're all pre-cushioned. Um, so really what that means is you can play on it and it's gonna be better for your joints because there's seven layers that are added cushionings to help support your joints and your movement. Um, they are all made of Acrotec, so it's it's the best surface you can play on indoors, and it'll give you true bounce. And uh really we have 11 courts on one side, and then we have a big wall in between, and there's three more additional courts on what we call the sliver. So in the space with 11 courts, we have cabanas, we have a sauna, we have some exercise equipment, uh, we have vending machines, we have a physical therapist, you know, who can, you know, he has a hyperbaric chamber, he has a plunge pool, he has a table. So that's all in the main area. And then in our sliver, we have three additional courts with cabanas. We have a golf simulator that we're putting up actually this week. It just went up yesterday. And and that's really our event center. So if you want to come and rent it out for a party, for a guy's night, for a girl's night, somebody asked if they could do a wedding there, and we said, why not?

SPEAKER_01 8:43

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 8:44

Um, so we have um learning classes, you know, we've had uh uh softball teams come in, we've had uh church youth groups come in, and they all just you know, can we can we use this space for a couple of hours? Absolutely, and some of them want to throw tournaments at our place, and we're okay with that, with that too. So there's a lot of things you can do. We have a lot of space where you can just change it into anything you want. Um, so it's great. Uh, before right when you walk in the front door, we have a pro shop, so we have all of your paddles, your backpacks, your socks, your grips, your shirts, you know, anything you might need to be able to play pickleball for the day.

unknown 9:24

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 9:25

Did you say golf simulator?

SPEAKER_02 9:27

Yes, yes, I did.

SPEAKER_01 9:29

And that's in a pickleball club.

SPEAKER_02 9:31

Yes, yes. And and what's what's good about it is we can take that down anytime we want. So it's not permanent. So if a group says, hey, yeah, we we'd like to use this, then yeah, we have that for you. So we everything, we have all the clubs, we have the everything all set up, ready to go, and it could be one of your amenities that you use for the event center. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:52

Wow, sounds like I could just come and stay all day. I know. Like the medical ball, physical therapist, hang out, get some golf.

SPEAKER_02 10:02

Yep, and we even have a couple of ping pong tables. We have a massive lounge with eight couches, some coffee tables, um, and and it's all safe. So, because we have 10-foot nets around every court, so there's not going to be balls flying out at you. Um, and so it's really, again, a place where we want people to stay after and mingle and and you know, create friends and community.

SPEAKER_01 10:28

So brilliant and so needed at this time of our world's life. So when you mentioned that uh baseball teams and all come, are they coming to play pickleball or they change up the whole set?

SPEAKER_02 10:41

No, yeah, good question. They are coming to play pickleball. And so we give them a little intro to pickleball course, and then they'll have you know their food set up, and then we've uh we've had video game trucks been brought in, we have coffee stands, we have food trucks. Um, so yeah, we we really cater it to whatever you need. And so they're not so they're not playing baseball in our space yet, but I have had some, I've had some groups approach us that want to put down uh uh basketball and volleyball courts. So who knows? Maybe in the future we might be able to do that too.

SPEAKER_01 11:16

Wow.

Family Nights Events And Flexible Space

SPEAKER_00 11:17

Wow. So uh what does it look like pickleball in your family with those six boys?

SPEAKER_02 11:25

You know, um, some of them try hard and we love to play. Uh some of them um may not have the best paddle skills and I hand-eye coordination, but we do, you know, my son just won the last tournament at our place. He's the last yeah, he's the 17-year-old. Uh so he's gotten pretty good, and it's because of practice. He he gets to play quite often. Uh, the next son after him, the 15-year-old, he has a really good serve and he loves to play, um, but he's never you know formally played in any tournaments or anything or any leagues. So he's he's a good, and then I have and then I have two more that are that are pretty decent that like to play and they're getting to and they really like it. And two of them are just kind of like uh I'd rather be doing something else. But but on family nights they come play with us anyway, so they're good sports about it.

SPEAKER_01 12:19

Oh fine. And what's that mean, family night?

SPEAKER_02 12:22

Uh usually on Monday nights, we take our family to go to rally just so that we can get out of the house, just so we can get away from the the video games or the computers or whatever it might be, and get out and and exercise. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 12:36

That's a really cool tradition. I I think that do you do that at the club? Is it a family night? Monday night is family night for the whole club or just for your family?

SPEAKER_02 12:48

Just for my family, yep. And and if we can't make it on Monday, we'll make it a different day.

New Club Growth Discounts And Veterans

SPEAKER_01 12:53

Sure. So sure, yeah, yeah. Wow. And are how long have you guys been in business?

SPEAKER_02 13:00

Uh four, four and a half months, I believe. Yeah. So we're still pretty new.

SPEAKER_01 13:04

Are you kidding? Four and a half months?

SPEAKER_02 13:07

Yes, we're still very new. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 13:09

You are hot off the press here.

SPEAKER_02 13:11

Yes, we got a lot of great members. I think we have about 350 members already. Uh another and another 150 punch card members. And so um, we're we're growing, we're growing. We we'd love to have more people come. We have lots of space to grow, we have lots of place for members to come. The courts aren't full, so we're trying to tell people and kind of educate people where we're at, what we're all about. We want more. So and you're based in Auburn, yes, right off C Street, which is right next, which right behind Boeing and right to the right of the Safeway Distribution Center. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 13:47

Well, right near Boeing seems like you have a natural clientele right there.

SPEAKER_02 13:53

Yes, we have talked to them, and uh and uh we offer discounts for several different members, um, especially if you work at Boeing, but also firefighters, EMTs, paramedics, uh police, um, and we even give senior discounts as well. So, yes, goodness.

SPEAKER_01 14:12

Yeah, that's a win-win-win.

SPEAKER_02 14:15

It is, it is. We they work hard for us. You know, it's not, you know, everyone works hard, but um we like to, we're a veteran-owned business. So um two of our two of our guys, two of our owners, Dylan and Dave, they served and they are veterans. And you know, they're they're proud to say that. We have flags hanging up all around our building that recognize the Navy, that recognize the military, the or the um, the army, the air force, and so on. So yeah, we're proud of that. And and we like to give discounts for for those that have helped us serve.

SPEAKER_00 14:51

Great. What what so what excites you the most about the future of pickleball?

SPEAKER_02 14:57

You know, it's it's the fastest growing sport in America, and it's almost the fastest growing in the world. And I just think, you know, more and more people are watching and watching it on TV, and more people are joining. You know, we have an intro to pickleball class uh three days a week, and we get 12 to 16 new members every time. And and it's it is such a fun sport, but it's a safe sport, you know, it's it's a lifetime physical activity. So you don't have to have 11 on 11, you don't have to have five on five like basketball, uh, you know, nine on nine. It's you just need one person, one other person, and it's good for your body. Um, the trend is now physical therapists are recommending it for people to play this sport to help them it with their recovery. That's how good it is for your body, yeah. And everyone can play, like I said. I mean, you can be a two-year-old, you can be at least 85. That's the highest I've played with. So it's it really is for everyone.

SPEAKER_01 16:09

How has it been for you running this club?

SPEAKER_02 16:12

It's a lot, you know. It's a lot, right? It you have to spend a lot of time, and we we built this for an entire year before we opened. It took us a year, especially with all the permitting and then just uh putting up all the sound, soundproof walls, the the courts themselves, the courts themselves took an entire month just to just to pour. Um, you know, there's a lot of paint we had to do, there's the Pro Shop we had to build out, all the 50,000 wires we had to run for internet, for cable, for cameras. It's a lot of work, but it's worth it when somebody comes out and says, I really had fun during your league. And we say, Great, come back. Or somebody says, you know what? That was the best tournament I've been to. Um, we hold tournaments once a month, and they can stand with our mascot, which is Smash Squatch. Yes, yes. So he's a he's a big, big Sasquatch, but we call him Smash Squatch.

SPEAKER_01 17:15

Smash Squatch.

SPEAKER_02 17:16

Um, and people love it, you know. We're we're unique, we because we can change, and we have the ability to again cater to to whoever whoever we can. Um, so it's a lot of work, but it's worth it. I love making people happy. I love seeing them smile when they come out. I love it when they're super sweaty and they say, Man, I just had a great workout. Um, it's just it's rewarding to know when when people tell you those kind of things and give you those compliments and uh and they say, Hey, you're doing it right, that's that's what makes it rewarding.

SPEAKER_01 17:50

Amen.

SPEAKER_02 17:51

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 17:51

Now you mentioned cameras.

SPEAKER_02 17:53

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 17:54

What's that mean?

SPEAKER_02 17:55

We have nine save my play cameras on on courts, and that means if you want to have your whole game recorded, you say, Hey, I I want to turn save my play on, and you can watch your entire game. And these cameras will analyze every shot that you make. So every dink, every drive, every serve. It's telling you how fast you're serving, it's telling you how many times you drop the ball uh for the third shot drop. It's telling you what shots you missed. It's it has heat signatures where it tells you where you've been standing on the court most of the time. Um, it tells you if you hit every shot out, and it also analyze what your rating is for your duper rating. And that duper rating is what allows you to you know tell you where you're at as a player. Um those cameras can tell you what your rank is. And then we usually have an instructor make sure everything is correct and make sure that duper is final and and makes sense, right? But you can really go back and analyze your entire game of what you needed to do better, of how you why did you hit that shot here? Maybe you could have hit it there. Or if you just you know, if you body bag somebody and you want to show your entire workplace how cool and how gnarly that was, you can do that too.

SPEAKER_00 19:18

I don't ask I didn't know the cameras could tell you your duper.

SPEAKER_02 19:23

Yes, yes.

SPEAKER_00 19:24

So are you are they gonna use is that what they're gonna use for the duper reset?

SPEAKER_02 19:29

Uh no, uh-uh. No, they still have that. That's based on criteria, and they they did recently change that. So um it's better, it's a better system now, and it's more accurate. Uh it's not just based off of wins and losses, it's based off what your um how many you win by, how many you lose by, and so you can go up and down and not just uh against wins and losses. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 19:51

But I was thinking of the upcoming where they said people can reset their dupers. Have you have you seen that? There's a duper reset coming up. So I was I haven't really dug into it to know how they're gonna do that. So I was just curious if they're gonna do that with those cameras. I think we could do that.

SPEAKER_02 20:08

I don't think so, but that's something we'll look into. But yeah, I don't think so. I don't think that will be integrated into the cameras that we have. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 20:17

So when the cameras identify the duper for the person who's being recorded, that's just for their own personal edification. It's not an official.

SPEAKER_02 20:27

That's exactly right. Yep. And if and if later on, uh again, the instructor would say, hey, you know, this might have been off by point one or point two, and then they could later put it in into the system into a court reserve of what their actual duper is. So I see. Yeah, yeah. So it's really easy, but at least it gives them a starting point of where they should be entering for tournaments or league play that requires a duper. Yep.

Life Lessons And How To Find Rally

SPEAKER_01 20:52

Wow, your place just sounds amazing. It sounds amazing on so many levels because you have incorporated all of the magic that Shelly and I love about this game, and it's the socialization, it's the exercise, it's keeping ourselves fit, and having the therapists right there. Um, it's amazing and then all the different ways that you are helping each player improve if they want, and just to have a blast if that's all they want to do too. I mean, really, you've just seems to incorporate everything at your place. And you've gone on such a journey. First, you have your own medical business and medical supply business, and now you've got this uh pickleball rally club. So, what are some of the life lessons, my friend, that you have gleaned in your journey?

SPEAKER_02 21:45

You know, um I love, you know, learn to play for fun. It's it's okay to lose, and it's not a big deal. Um I don't personally play to win money, but that's one of the things that I that I learned. I thought, you know, this is such a fun game. It doesn't have to be intense. It can be for anyone. And I love playing at you know at any court that has somebody playing pickleball on it because everyone's so friendly. So I've learned that the community is just so accepting. And they really they really want you to learn. They really want people to learn. It's not, you know, you get on a basketball court and you know they target you and everyone's dunking on you. Um but pickleball is is just such a good community. And I've learned that everyone there is not 99.9% of the people there are there to have a fun time, and they'll teach you and they'll coach you, and and they're just really good people. So I love the community, and so that's one thing I've learned, and it's really all about you know connections, and it like I was saying earlier, the um it's a physical lifetime activity, you can do it forever. So you learn that you can do this sport, you don't have to be good, you don't even have to have uh you know any knowledge about the sport at all. And so I've learned that anyone can pick it up, it's for everyone, and those are some of the things I've learned, and and I and I just love it. It's it's fun, it's easy, it's for everyone.

SPEAKER_01 23:33

So cool. And you've even played in other countries.

SPEAKER_02 23:36

I have. I actually won a tournament in Mexico. Yeah, so so we do a lot of uh work down in Mexico. We we put on hoop camps, and so um there just happened to be a tournament that I found out about, and I said I'd like to join. And so my sister and I joined, and we uh we we both got uh first place.

SPEAKER_01 24:00

So congratulations.

SPEAKER_02 24:03

Yeah, that wasn't totally planned, but yeah, I've played in Mexico. Um, I I've played in a couple different places in different states, and it's the same everywhere. That's that's why I love it because it's so friendly, everyone wants to help you, everyone wants to give you advice, everyone is so friendly, um, and and just so welcoming.

SPEAKER_01 24:22

So cool. So, how can people find you and the club?

SPEAKER_02 24:28

So they can find us on Facebook. Um, our we usually post something a couple times a week, and that'll give you updates. Uh, we usually do lives. So one of our guys is holding a camera and he's explaining what might be going on this week. Um, you can find us on our uh website page, rallypbc.com. Um, we're also on Instagram, we're on X, we're on um TikTok. And really just type in Rally Pickleball Club, Auburn, Washington, and we'll come up. We we hope we come up. And if you ever you ever need to put it in your maps, it comes up. That's all been taken care of. So um, you know, it's a little confusing at first because there's construction going on and we're kind of behind in these in these back um uh warehouses, but once you find it the first time, it's easy peasy from then on out.

SPEAKER_01 25:22

Well, that is so exciting, and I love that you've provided this for the Auburn community and for all of us in the greater Auburn area. And uh I can strongly encourage people to do birthday parties at your club because I had a birthday party at a pickleball club and it was the best fun of all, the best party ever. Shelley put it on for me. So, yeah, it's a great way to do events and celebrations and family night. I love that idea. Family night. Come on, get those kids out on the court and have a blast. Yeah, absolutely. Well, thank you, Randy. How fun to hear about everything and only four and a half months. My gosh, we really appreciate you taking the time. I know, geez, you are a one busy guy. And thank you to your partners too for making this happen. And thanks for being on the show.

SPEAKER_02 26:17

Absolutely. I've enjoyed every bit of it. And uh come on down again. We'd love to have you again at the Rally Pickleball Club in Auburn.

SPEAKER_01 26:24

We'll do. We'll see you on the court. And hope to see you all on the court. Thank you all for tuning in today. And remember that pickleball is for everyone at every age, and just want to remind you guys that we have put out this book, Pickleball, Life Lessons from Pickleball, that features about 80 short little stories of people whose lives have been changed and influenced by this silly little game. And uh portion of the proceeds from this book go to support Operation Paddle Lift, which is taking paddles and balls and nets all around the world for all of the underprivileged, uh, underserved areas. So thank you all for tuning in. And Randy, thank you for having this club in Auburn, and we hope to see you all next week for our new conversation. Bye-bye.

SPEAKER_00 27:13

Bye-bye. If you love our podcast, we'd be so grateful if you'd take a few seconds to follow or subscribe to Life Lessons from Pickleball. This ensures you'll never miss an episode and helps us continue these wonderful conversations.

SPEAKER_01 27:28

On Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen, go to the show page and tap the follow button in the top right corner. And on YouTube, click the subscribe button under any of the episodes. Thanks so much. Hope to see you on the court.