You really know you’re getting into the Spanish culture when you buy your first ‘Padel’ racket, especially when, like me, sport is not usually high on a list of favorite pastimes. Does padel have a life outside Spain? Not in England anyway, as far as I can remember. It’s a kind of half-sized version of tennis, with smaller, polystyrene filled rackets, and you can (try to) play off the walls at the back (a recipe for flailing around like a complete idiot for the first 20 games or so.)
But it’s great fun! Now I know what these Spaniards have been going on about for so long, plus, I’m one step further down the path to Spanishification! So thanks to a fellow local blogger (who isn’t Spanish but knows a lot about Spanish wine) for getting me onto the padel court.
Whatever next? Perhaps I’ll inadvertently develop a taste for squid in it’s own ink, or callos…
deecree
3 Apr 06 at 10:17 pm
Is is played with two players?
Sounds a little like a simplified version of “Real Tennis”, the old game that used to be played by English and French monarchs.
http://www.real-tennis.com/game/plan.gif
Ben
4 Apr 06 at 9:09 am
It can be played by two players but is usually played with four – I think it is similar to real tennis, yes, but simpler.
outpostbabu
5 Apr 06 at 3:50 am
I’ve never heard anything of this sport in the US. The image you posted makes me think its king-sized ping pong.
Javier
24 May 06 at 6:45 pm
If anyone want to know how padel is, check this url:
http://www.doblepared.com/index.php/category/jugadas/
padten
7 Jun 06 at 2:15 pm
Great to hear your enthusiasm for the the sport!!
I am an Englishman who discovered the great game of padel when some of my Spanish friends bought me my first padel racket about a year ago.
The sport seems to be slowly spreading to other countries and there are now a couple of padel courts in the UK. This number is likely to grow as more and more people find out how easy it is to pick up the game and how much fun it can be.
If you’d like to find out more about the sport in English, and what is happening to develop the sport in Britain you might be interested to checkout my padel blog: http://www.padten.wordpress.com
paddler
5 Nov 06 at 7:06 pm
Try this web site with lots of amazing videos:
http://sportpadel.blogspot.com/search/label/v%C3%ADdeos