Alex Jeffery Interview: Director of The Power of Pickleball
Diana Landau | March 24, 2026
Bonus episode! Carl combined his two passions in this interview with Alex Jeffery -- Pickleball and Documentaries. Alex is an accomplished documentary filmmaker who recently released an in-depth documentary called the The Power of Pickleball. Alex co-owns the production company Bespoke Works with his friend and long-time collaborator, Paul Petersen. His first feature film, “A Chance Encounter,” won the audience choice award at the Heartland Film Festival in 2020 and then was released by Samuel Goldwyn Films.
His film “The Power of Pickleball” captures the essence and spirit of one of the country’s fastest-growing (and evolving) sports and it just was just released on Prime Video and Apple TV. Alex points out that although many people think pickleball just happened overnight, it has a history going back to the 1960’s.
A few years ago he was spending time with his Mom and Aunt, who are pickleball fanatics, and they said, “What if we made a documentary about Pickleball?” Not knowing much about it, Alex says they started reaching out to people to learn more. What struck him was how welcoming everyone was. “People opened their arms to us and started telling us their stories and wanted to share more about the sport.”
The documentary, which took several years to make, starts at the beginning of the sport in Bainbridge Island, WA, weaves very personal stories of how the sport has changed players’ lives, covers the controversies and also the growth of the professional circuit. “The response has been overwhelmingly positive,” Alex adds. “It’s really cool to see people from all walks of life discover pickleball and it gives them purpose again.”
Alex originally wanted to be an actor and moved to LA after college. Realizing LA was not right for him, he created his second act as a low-budget, independent film director. Based in Shreveport, LA, Alex loves mentoring film and acting students of all ages and experience. He also strives to a life-long student of the world and an avid traveler.
Diana Landau is the Content Wrangler for Pickleball Media. After 15 years in corporate marketing, in 2012 she pivoted to write and wrangle content for Niche Media's weekly blog. She now manages the "I Used to be Somebody" blog.
Best of "Pickleball Chronicles with Traver"
Carl Landau | September 02, 2025
It's BONUS day in the Landau Tiki Bar this week. We're featuring The Best of "Pickleball Chronicles with Traver". Even if you're not a pickleball enthusiast, you'll really enjoy this episode. Six fun-filled and heartfelt stories.
Uh, let's scratch that. It's total Pickleball Mania -- anecdotes, insights, quirks, crazy cliches, true confessions! All in less than 30 minutes!
Traver West joined me on the show about 2 years ago. He works at Pickleball Central, the world's largest pickleball company in the world. We have fun every month just talking about the sport we both love...PICKLEBALL.
Enjoy our 6 favorite segments of "Pickleball Chronicles with Traver"!
• Valentine’s day, sweet customer anecdotes
• Playing in adverse conditions
• How my DJ career has helped in pickleball
• Being a good pickleball partner
• Turning a bad run around
• The growth of Pickleball
David Johnson Interview: The King of Pickleball Industry Begins His Second Act
Diana Landau | August 12, 2025
Carl is excited to interview David Johnson, an internationally recognized pioneer and leader in the pickleball industry. He co-founded Pickleball Central in 2006 with his wife Anna Copley at the dawn of the modern day pickleball renaissance. He built the company into the largest pickleball retailer and led the acquisition of Pickleball Tournaments and Pickleball Inc. while leading Pickleball Central to tens millions of dollars in sales annually before selling the company to Dundan Capital, owner and operator of the PPA Tour, Major League Pickleball, Pickleball Brackets and other related companies. And David has found new ways to give back to the industry in his (un)retirement.
David had an adventure-filled childhood, born in North Dakota and then living in Copenhagen, Denmark for 4 years. His father was a Lutheran pastor and his family traveled extensively while David was growing up. Right after graduating college in Seattle, David formed a software consulting business with partner and then launched Pinnacle Publishing in the early 1980's. (Seeing a serial-entrepreneur pattern yet?)
David has launched at least 7 different companies, everything from software to publishing to online funeral planning. But he saw a BIG opportunity with Pickleball. He and his wife, Anna, first started with a website selling t-shirts and merchandise, then pickleball equipment and the business took off. Sales soared to $40 million annually at Pickleball Central and eventually David and Anna decided to sell the company.
Carl asks about the stress of the transition. "When we sold, Anna retired immediately. I stayed on for a year and then retired. I took a full 8 months where I didn't do anything pickleball-related. But I started feeling a little antsy." So, David decided to do some consulting involving developing pickleball facilities, which led to him forming the International Association of Pickleball Facilities (IAPF). His team advises businesses and cities on building facilities. They've created a conference and trade show and also publish a magazine, "The Business of Pickleball" and more. David says they help their clients understand building requirements, develop programming, avoid mistakes and take that next important step--build a sense of community within a pickleball facility. "So when people come to play, they have a great time!" he emphasizes. When David isn't working in his new pickleball (ad)ventures, he spends time with his family in Seattle and yes, plays some pickleball.
David Johnson's (un)retirement advice:
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"I think (un)retirement can be more successful if you make sure you have some accountability that you apply to what you're doing. I found in the 8 months when I wasn't doing anything that I got bored. I didn't feel like I was accountable to do anything useful. Give yourself some structure, some accountability."
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"Focus on the things you enjoy and just look for opportunities. It might be advising smaller businesses that are just getting started as a way to expose yourself to other opportunities out there. On LinkedIn you can get some really good intel on an industry you're interested in."
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"I was sort of a behind-the-scenes guy. I am not fond of listening to my own voice. To get out of my comfort zone, I've really tried to work on in the last years or so, to be more public and forward-facing. I've moderated a number of panels in the industry and we're doing videos. I've got to push myself. Practice is the way to do that and get comfortable."
• I Used to be Somebody World Tour: Croatia
Diana Landau is the Content Wrangler for Pickleball Media. After 15 years in corporate marketing, in 2012 she pivoted to write and wrangle content for Niche Media's weekly blog. She now manages the "I Used to be Somebody" blog
Mitch Dunn Interview: Ad Agency Wiz turns into Pickleball Entrepreneur
Diana Landau | March 11, 2025
This episode is about successfully reinventing yourself in your 50's AND building a huge pickleball community. What's not to love about that? Carl interviews Brand Developer and Pickleball Fanatic Mitch Dunn, who left the big ad agency life he'd been living for almost 30 years to pivot to the wide world of Pickleball. Mitch is now the co-owner of one of the largest dedicated indoor pickleball facilities in the country, with over 1,000 members.
Mitch grew up in Louisville, KY, the youngest of five siblings. Due to the age difference, he says he spent a lot of time alone. "I learned creative problem-solving at an early age because of that," he tells us. His love of creative expression stayed with him through high school, college and into his careers.
After graduating from Xavier University, he started with the legendary Leo Burnett Agency. "Boy did I learn a lot about media and brand strategy!" Mitch worked in the big agency biz for almost 30 years, working on all kinds of brands from Fruit of the Loom to Dewar's. In 2019, Mitch became intrigued with and then deeply passionate about pickleball. In 2020 as a side hustle, he launched one of the fastest -growing community clubs in the country, the Cincinnati Pickleball Club. His non-profit, all- volunteer organization eventually led him to the business side of pickleball.
He was a Senior Vice President at Empower when one day he was "uninvited" to stay at the agency and pivoted quickly to becoming a first time entrepreneur. "This part of my second stage of life is being focused on a brand that I created myself!" he says. He is now co-founder of the Pickle Lodge, one of the best places to play in the Midwest.
Mitch and his wife love Cincinnati. "I've never been happier in my entire career than I am right now. I get to make people happy every day. I get to help them have fun and I connect them to other humans. I feel like a kid. I'm 55 but I feel 25 years old."
Mitch's Tips on (un)retirement and becoming an entrepreneur in mid-life:
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"I'm glad I have the life lessons and career lessons to use now."
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"I'm a big believer in 'What if .....?' thinking. Go through the process of asking yes, and....? When you do that, you can come up with a really cool proposition."
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"I really encourage others to embrace pushing through the fear of becoming a late-stage entrepreneur. It's never been easier to start a business right now. You can publish content to communicate about your business. You can shoot videos about your business. You can start a podcast about your business. Those are important tools regardless of what your business is."
Diana Landau is the Content Wrangler for Pickleball Media. After 15 years in corporate marketing, in 2012 she pivoted to write and wrangle content for Niche Media's weekly blog. She now manages the "I Used to be Somebody" blog
50+ Community -- Pro or Con?
Carl Landau | March 11, 2025
I've always been pretty negative about living in a 50+ community. I'm not sure exactly sure why. I think to me it meant that I'm officially old. Why would I want to be surrounded by a bunch of old people?
I think the first time I ever heard about an "active" 50+ community was way back in the late 1990's, when negative headlines about The Villages in Florida came out. It was about all these old people running around having STDs. They drove around in golf carts everywhere. And they had political shouting matches with each other. I remember late night comedians having a field day at these people's expense.
The fact of the matter is that I personally have visited some friends in an active adult community for a grand total of ONE TIME. They seemed really happy with their community. Most recently, a good friend of mine invited me to play pickleball at his brand new 50+ community that just opened. It was incredibly nice! The club house was like like being in a fancy club or spa. The pickleball courts were amazing. My friend told me there's a fun activity on the calendar almost every night. The average age so far for this new community is early 60's. Huh! Half the people living there still work. Every person I met was friendly. There was a real sense of community there.
I checked with my financial advisor, who has a lot of clients in these communities and he said that in general, the properties are a good value. Plus his clients really like living in them. So I wonder why I've been so negative? Did I feel superior because I don't need everything provided for me? I have had my eyes opened and my opinion is now totally turned around. Today's 50+ communities have come a long way since Del Webb started building in the 50's.
I'm not sure if I'll ever live in one of these communities or not. But I learned not to be so judgemental about it all.
What are your thoughts about 50+ communities?
