Faqs

The kinetic movement in pickleball has more start and stop movement than the running motion in tennis. There is more sudden jamming of the toes in the quick movement at the kitchen line in pickleball. For this reason, we have made a shoe that locks in your heel with a sculpted fit, and we have used a wide toe box both in width and height to minimize toe injury. We also focused on building a solid playing platform of midsole construction that assists in preventing rollover by giving stabile torsion control and support. Combined with anti-fatigue materials such as a phylon midsole allows for more extended periods of play on the court.

When introduced to the sport of pickleball, we first played in running shoes and realized it was dangerous due to a lack of support and stability in the shoe. We witnessed players rolling their ankles and taking terrible falls as a result of improper footwear. We couldn’t find anything on the market that addressed the specific kinetic movements made in pickleball, so we decided to take it on ourselves

Both shoes are designed for court play, and both are suitable for both sports. Both products are designed for lateral stability, and both are much better than a running shoe, which is designed predominantly for forward action movement only. We have made specific changes to our shoe designed explicitly for pickleball by adding more width and height in the toe box to prevent bruised toes a common injury in pickleball. The added depth in our design also provides for the insert of custom orthotics, which are sometimes challenging to fit in shoes with shallow toe boxes in many shoes designed for tennis. We also were attentive to ensuring a stable playing platform that provides traction and torsional support to prevent rolling your ankle in the quick side to side movement of pickleball.

Pickleball is a start and stop forward action sport with quick lateral short step movement. As a result, toe, foot, and ankle injuries are very prevalent in pickleball. Many of these injuries can be prevented by proper heel lock fit and extra width and height of the toe box. We have designed our shoes with user safety in mind.

The fit in a heel of athletic footwear is critical. If your heel slips in a shoe, you are not getting the proper performance from your shoe. It has been said that the heel fit is the engine that drives the shoe. It is imperative to have a non-slip heel fit for pickleball. We use a sculpted last during the construction of our shoes that creates a curved heel. This curved heel sets your foot snuggly into the back of the shoe. We encourage you to use all lace eyelets at the top of your shoe. These have been designed to settle your heel into the back of the shoe. The heel fit also provides correct alignment in the shoe and supports the shank feature to prevent ankle rollover.

In one word, “stability.” It is crucial to have a good playing platform and grip on the court. Our shoes provide a stable midsole, outsole traction, torsion control, and heel stability to prevent ankle rollover. We also believe the anti-fatigue midsole and wide fitting toe box will allow for longer playing time on the court.

We have shoes designed for both indoor and outdoor play. The significant difference in shoes designed for indoor play is that a softer rubber compound and a “wave pattern” are used on the outsole. Shoes designed for outdoor play will feature a harder rubber compound and a “chevron” patterned outsole. Our Striker Pro, Volley and Rally series shoes excel on indoor court surfaces. These include the wood parquet gymnasium floors, tiled floors, and smooth concrete floors used in indoor arenas. These shoes also perform well on outdoor Asphalt. These models, however, may wear prematurely when used on silica grit treated surfaces. Playing on silica grit surfaces is similar to playing on sandpaper, it will wear down outsoles quickly. Playing on extremely hot surfaces (like in the southern states where court temperatures often exceed 100F) will also increase the wear on the outsole. Extremely hot, silica grit treated courts can be very tough on footwear. We have worked in partnership with Vibram to create an outsole specifically for pickleball that will hold up to the rigorous of outdoor play. We feature this Vibram outsole on our Drive V and Striker Pro V models.

Since our shoes do fit large, because of toe box width and toe height, we generally recommend going down one-half size from that which is usually worn by other widely known athletic brands. For example, if you wear a size 10 in an athletic shoe from USA athletic branded shoes, we would suggest you order size 9.5 in our footwear. We do recommend that you allow for liberal toe movement in your shoes. If your toe is pushing the interior toe box, the shoe is too small, and you are susceptible to toe injury when playing pickleball.

Our shoes start with a generous wide fit due to our 2E width in the forefoot and extra height or girth in the toe box. We do not offer shoes in 4E or 6E widths. Please note our sculpted heel design ensures a snug heel fit to prevent slippage at the back of the shoe.

If you have a narrow foot, we would recommend either the Volley or Rally product as they are narrower through the vamp of the shoe.

No. Athletic shoes made today are made with synthetic materials that may loosen up but do not stretch like leather materials used long ago.

Longevity is a difficult question due to the many variables involved. The playing surface, frequency of play, duration of play, size and weight of the player, and style of play all factor into the wear of the shoes and will determine the life expectancy of the product. Some players drag their toes or heels while playing, while others are lighter on their feet.

The upper materials of shoes generally outlast the outsoles which will wear out first. Outsoles of shoes will last much longer when played on smooth indoor surfaces and wear quicker on Silica Grit painted outdoor surfaces. The temperature of courts also plays a role in the wearing of rubber. Hot silica grit treated courts are similar to playing on sandpaper and will wear down rubber outsoles faster. Rubber does wear out and can be formulated for various surfaces. The harder the rubber compound, the more brittle and slippery it becomes. It may wear longer but does not often offer the traction desired. The softer the compound, the more tackiness, and grip provided; however, the rubber wears faster. Professional tennis players change shoes after every full game (complete set) when playing in hot environments as their sole wears down, but provides them the performance desired on the court. For these reasons, we do not offer a set time warranty and choose to handle any product concerns on a case by case basis.

General maintenance of shoes is quite simple. Because the materials are synthetic, they can be cleaned by applying water on a cloth and wiping down the shoes. It is recommended to dry out your shoes in a well-ventilated area. Our shoes have a ventilation system to provide airflow through the bottom of our sock liner, midsole, and outsole configuration. It is also highly recommended to remove shoes from the trunk of your car after playing. The extreme temperature of cars in hot environments can potentially delaminate cements used in constructing the shoes.

While we can’t promise they’ll improve your game, they can give you hours of comfortable playing time while also providing tremendous lateral torsion control support to prevent on-court injuries.

Running is a forward action kinetic movement. Our shoes have been designed specifically for movement, in the sport of pickleball, which is rapid start and stop and quick lateral side to side mobility. There is no reason our shoes cannot be worn for running; however a more flexible outsole for forward movement would be a better choice of product. Our shoes are great for walking as they offer excellent lateral support and traction.

Yes. While the shoe is designed for the sport of pickleball and does offer a higher and wider toe than found in most tennis shoes, they are a stable playing platform and offer the torsion control also required in a tennis shoe.

Yes, the rubber soles on our product are non-marking on gymnasium floors.

We do not offer a specific guaranteed warranty on our product as there are too many variables involved to do that. The number of hours played, conditions, and consumer expectations are too variable to offer a set guarantee. We have produced a product expected to perform and offer our customers a fun playing experience. We choose to look at Product returns on a case by case basis and decide what is expected from our product and also ensure our customer has a pleasant experience with our brand.

Our products can be returned within 30 days of the original purchase of the product. To be eligible for a return, please make sure that:

• The product was purchased in the last 30 days
• The product is in its original packaging
• The product isn’t used or damaged
• You have the receipt or proof of purchase

Products that do not meet these criteria will not be considered for return.
Shipping charges incurred in connection with the return of a product are non-refundable.
You are responsible for paying the costs of shipping, as well as the risk of loss or damage to the product during shipping — both, too, and from Tyrol Pickleball.
Please contact us before you send the product:

• By email: returns@tyrolpickleball.com