The second iteration of the 3rd Shot Pickleball has just opened in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. The first of the company’s two indoor facilities opened 45 miles away in Longmont on November 18.
An Avid Pickleball Player
Adam Kahn, the proprietor of Meadow Creek Tennis and Fitness Club in Lakewood since 2004, and Max Ireland, a seasoned manager in the hospitality industry, joined forces earlier this year to conceptualize and pinpoint the Wheat Ridge location.
Subsequently, Kahn sought potential sites for additional 3rd Shot venues and ended up meeting Dale Katechis, the founder of Oskar Blues.
“Dale had become an avid pickleball player and was planning on starting an indoor pickleball club here, and we had a meeting and really hit it off and decided it made sense for us to partner,” Kahn explains. “And here we are.”
Recognizing Custome Potential
Kahn, who had been facilitating drop-in pickleball play at Meadow Creek for years, recognized the customer potential and identified a need for an indoor pickleball club in the metro area.
As he became a pickleball enthusiast himself, Khan found overseeing the establishment of the Longmont location at 20 South Bowen Street was thoroughly enjoyable:
“It’s been a delightfully fun experience working with this team,” he says. “One of the characteristics that I think all of us have in common is the desire, despite all the hard work, to keep it really fun and light and just keep that really positive vibe.”
Community Building
Management responsibilities for the Longmont venue sit with Robert Leonard, while Max Ireland takes charge of the Wheat Ridge joint (located at 3545 Wadsworth Boulevard).
Leonard, who formed most of his social connections in Colorado through pickleball, loves the community-building aspect of the sport.
Katechis sees similarities between the communal spirit of pickleball and the early days of Oskar Blues Grill & Brew in Lyons, emphasizing the natural ability of pickleball to bring people together in a social, enjoyable, and unpretentious environment:
“I’ve noticed that parallel and similarity with pickleball,” he says. “It just naturally brings people together in a social, fun environment that is non-pretentious. This will be another addition to Longmont that will attract people to the town and foster an even closer-knit community.”
A Eureka Moment
The business name, 3rd Shot Pickleball, has its origin in Kahn and Ireland playing together at Westword’s 2023 Best of Denver pick for Best Place to Play Pickleball, the Apex Pickleball Courts in Arvada.
Khan was inspired by the significance of the third shot in a pickleball rally he noticed while his girlfriend was watching instructional videos before bed. He had a eureka moment upon waking up, realizing that the name would be perfect for a business enterprise.
The Wheat Ridge 3rd Shot venue claims to be the largest indoor pickleball facility in Colorado, occupying the former Lucky’s Market at West 38th Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard.
It boasts 13 courts with premium surfaces, court-separating netting, and a bar/lounge area.
“Pickleball Is A Beautiful Sport”
“Pickleball itself is a very beautiful sport,” Ireland notes. “There’s a lot of community that goes with it, and oftentimes, if you go play at the park or something, the community elements sort of end when the game ends.”
3rd Shot’s objective is to cultivate those community elements by hosting lessons, drop-in play, tournaments, and clinics for all ages and skill levels, including free Intro to Pickleball classes. Ireland even hints at the prospect of using the space for pickleball-themed weddings.
The venue offers play seven days a week.
