The Hillsborough County Fairgrounds announced its upgrade for a holiday light spectacular, running through Sunday, Jan. 1.
Tampa Bay’s Festival of Lights and Santa’s Village will feature over a million lights for this year, attracting people from all over the state. The entrance is marked with a signature light display along State Road 60 to their exit, which passes by twinkling trees when leaving the fairgrounds.
It will feature a two-mile drive-thru of lights, followed with by a festive walking visit to Santa’s Village. This year’s light show is supposed to appeal to everyone of all ages and backgrounds. It will be filled with many activities and treats for the children, such as Santa’s barnyard, holiday movies, visits with Santa and plenty of opportunities for taking social media pictures.
USF business major Sam Gonzalez says his favorite part was the way the lights reflected the Sunshine State.
“My favorite part was there a lot of like Florida-themed lights,” Gonzalez said. “There was like gators and things like that.”
His roommate, Andrew Gurganus, says it reminds him of his childhood.
“I liked this because I used to go to this all the time,” Gurganus said, “every year, with my mom and dad and one of our neighbors put on a show where they would do their whole house in lights and stuff so it reminded me of that.”
For event details go to their website www.hillsboroughcountyfair.com
Pickleball is rising in popularity and no signs of slowing down
When you combine tennis, badminton, and ping pong, the result you get is the sport of pickleball. The sport has popularized these last couple of years and is the fastest growing sport in the Bay Area and it’s only getting bigger.
Tampa Parks and Recreation revealed that it will be building 49 pickleball courts by 2023. The sport has been growing rapidly in the Tampa Bay area since the pandemic ended.
The Tampa area is just following the growing trend that many cities across the country have picked up. The sport is easy to learn and does not require a lot of equipment and is fun for all ages. Now all players need to get started with Pickle ball is a paddle and a ball. The playing area is similar to that of a tennis court just smaller and the sport has its own rules and regulations.
Pickleball courts have been showing up all over Tampa since last summer. Hillsborough County set aside $3 million dollars to build 36 outdoor courts.
Local player Enrique Barboto says one reason he enjoys the sport is it reminds him of similar sports he has played.
“I think just how quick it is compared to tennis,” attribution here “I used to play it for fun. Growing up, I was a soccer player, but it’s just fun because it’s like tennis, but it’s also like ping pong. There are so many things inside of it you can play. I’m Hispanic, as well my mom and I played paddle ball growing up, where you keep it up on the beach and it never touches the ground. So it’s a mix of all the sports.”
Pickleball is expected to continue to grow in popularity, especially with big names such as LeBron James, Drew Brees and Tom Brady purchasing major league pickleball teams.
Pickleball enthusiast Zach West says it has been pleasing to watch the sport grow over the years.
“I remember playing back when it wasn’t as big, but now everyone is doing it so it’s cool seeing tournaments pop up and getting competitive,” said West.
In the near future, Tampa officials have plans to build more indoor pickleball courts for players to use as well. Major League Pickleball, or MLP, will also play games in Florida next year.
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Anchor: Christopher Zingale
Reporters: Aziz Turner, Antonio Delucca
Web Editor: Jose Delgado
Web Managing Editor: Chrisovaladou Pantelis
Graduate Assistant: McKenzie Muskett
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Stephanie Anderson, Wayne Garcia
