This lawsuit could reshape pickleball paddle design overnight…

Episode 102 of the KewCast breaks down one of the biggest moments in pickleball gear history — JOOLA’s ITC lawsuit targeting multiple paddle brands and technologies.

We explain what the patents actually cover, why this isn’t just about “Gen 3” paddles, and how this could impact EVERYTHING from foam cores to hybrid designs.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

1:48 JOOLA lawsuit against 11 other paddle companies

23:21 PPA Hanoi Cup standout moments

27:54 Paddle of the Week: Thrive Ignite

34:06 Gear of the Week: JOOLA R4LLY Shoes

44:57 Deep Dive: Study on Grip Strength, Impact Location and Ball Speed

1:06:44 Kew & A: Franklin Aurelius for junior players (8–12)?

1:09:10 Paddle erasers: safe or damaging?

1:13:03 Can UPA ban blacked-out Proton paddles?

We also dive into:

Thrive Ignite (new full foam paddle)

JOOLA’s new R4LLY pickleball shoes

PPA Hanoi Cup takeaways

And a fascinating study showing grip strength might NOT matter for power

Key Topics

🔹 JOOLA lawsuit explained (ITC, patents 826 & 891)

🔹 Brands and paddles named in the complaint

🔹 Could foam + hybrid cores be restricted?

🔹 Thrive Ignite paddle breakdown

🔹 JOOLA R4LLY shoe tech + weight comparison

🔹 PPA Hanoi Cup observations

🔹 Grip strength vs ball speed (Technical Pickleball study)

Podcast Takeaway

At the sweet spot, the ball is gone before your grip even has time to matter — impact location is doing almost all the work.

Helpful Links

🔹Technical Pickleball Study: https://www.technicalpickleball.net/grip

🔹Thrive Ignite: save 10% with code JOHNKEW: https://thrivepb.com?sca_ref=5609835.GqRRIIgfl9

🔹JOOLA R4LLY shoes (releasing in May): https://www.joola.com/?bg_ref=SGHmrvEFDJ