With my brother and I due to go to a family birthday party later in the day, we found time to bowl this morning. This one was fairly far from being the horror show for me that the last outing was, though I did give my brother an opening in the first game by missing easy spares; he was only around 100, however, after I posted a 139. The other two games were more the norm for me, capped off by barely getting the deuce to end the session. I used my Fast the whole way, and it had returned to having a normal reaction after the cleaning last week.

Today provided another opportunity to bowl, as my best friend Ed’s sister-in-law had a Groupon for Westgate Lanes that she wanted to use today. Ed’s wife rounded out the foursome, but, as the Groupon was only for one hour, we couldn’t get much bowling in. We completed one game each before it was over, with me scoring a 174 in that completed game, but I was making better shots in the partial second game, even walking out a couple of them to show the women in the party how many boards I’m now crossing since the last time they saw me bowl. It had a laid-back feel to it, so I was just out to enjoy myself and my company rather than actually trying to practice.

I just realized today that June 30 had come and passed, and it passed without me making my usual anniversary post. It has been that kind of year for me, because the last one was certainly a landmark one in my bowling time. The big moment came on September 22 of the last calendar year, in the third week of the past season’s Brunswick Mixed League, in which I had the front 10 in a 288 second game on the way to my first 700 series (anyone who wants to revisit that moment can click here for the BowlSK sheet from that night). The night was special for me, because it meant that I had finally eclipsed all of my pre-injury personal bests. Before the calendar turned to 2011, I also had an open bowling session to remember by having a run of 18 of 19 strikes consisting of the last 4 in the first game, a weak 10 to start the second game, followed by 14 in a row, closing out the second game with a 290 thanks to the last 11. As I noted in the post about it, it’s no longer a question of if I’m capable of putting up an honor score, but of putting the strikes together at the right time. I also had my personal best tournament game during the year (a 227 in the December People’s Tournament), as well as my first 200 game on a true sport condition (though I wish that was in the tournament instead of in practice for it). More recently, I’ve become more involved with my local association by setting up and keeping a Facebook page updated, an effort that was partially responsible for my election to the Brockton Bowling Association Board of Directors last weekend.

About the only person I want to thank in this post other than the “usual suspects” is Tony Attardo. As I noted in my post about the 700 series, if it wasn’t for him spotting a timing problem during my practice session on the Monday morning before the 700 night, I might not have had it at all. I don’t know what his past bowling resume looks like, but he’s certainly helped enough bowlers at Westgate Lanes to hope he gets association Hall of Fame consideration in the future. I should also thank my association manager, Bob Young, and the Brockton Bowling Association officers and directors for the trust they have placed in me for the coming year.

“Charlie Brown” finally wins one: With my brother in the area for the holiday weekend, we found time to bowl this morning. As a nod to a recent passing, and noting that my brother has used “Capt. Lou” on the scorer before, I put him in as “Macho Man” (a reference to wrestler Randy Savage). The session began innocently enough, with me shooting in the 180s and 190s for the first two games, but my game fell completely apart after that. After a spare to start the third game, I whiffed on a “picket fence” (the 1-2-4-7), missed a couple of single pins, then had three splits in a row, two of them 2-8-10 type splits, during which my Fast seemed to lose all reaction. I knew my brother was probably going to break through when he followed spares in the 2nd and 3rd frames with a double, which put me in a big hole. By the end of the game, I changed to my Tropical Breeze, and that was making it back to the pocket where my Fast wasn’t, even though the former ball is supposed to be weaker than the latter one. The end result was a 103, easily my worst game since the period when I was getting my bowling legs back under me four years ago. My brother got a photo of the overhead monitor after the game to put on Facebook as a “trophy.” Congrats to my brother today…I’d say it was bound to happen sometime, because “that’s bowling.” 😀

I’ve been wrangling since I got home yesterday with whether I wanted to mention what’s to follow or spare the post out of a wish to avoid self-promotion in the matter, but I decided that I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least make a brief note about it.

I attended the Brockton Bowling Association’s annual open meeting yesterday with the intention of giving a report on the Facebook page. After the reports were taken care of, Bob Young mentioned that with our 50th association tournament coming up next year, and with the Brockton Bowling Association hosting the state open tournament again in the not too distant future, he would need more people to help with tournaments and such, and since I’ve already displayed the willingness to assist the association, suggested I be placed on the board of directors. There was some discussion about how to fit me onto the current board, since I did not want to take the vacant Taunton spot on the board because I don’t bowl there. Eventually, the board was reorganized (I’ll spare the details) and I was elected to a one-year term on the board.

I was able to contribute immediately, as there was discussion on how we could recognize non-members who have assisted the association and bowling in the area in general. I moved (which was seconded and voted on in the affirmative) to exempt Meritorious Service nominees for the association Hall of Fame from the bowling requirements. Some of the people we can now recognize are area bowling writers (who may not necessarily be bowlers themselves) and people who are not Brockton Bowling Association members who have done stuff like assist with the youth bowling programs in the area. I hope this change proves a positive step for the association.

I am looking forward to fulfilling my increased responsibility, perhaps beginning with the Bowler of the Year tournament in September.

I treated the night like a regular league night, so I arrived about the time I usually would for winter league. Before bowling, I caught up with someone from my bowling past: Wayne Webber, who is now AWBA president. Wayne was working in the pro shop at the time I first broke into league bowling and had drilled my first bowling balls, so it really was a pleasure for me to see him again.

For the tournament, I was teamed with the Spotts, Dan and Lorretta, from Colorado Springs. Dan was the wheelchair bowler on the team, and it turned out he was a former national champion, having won the A division handicap championship in 2004, the cloth for which was proudly displayed on the back of his wheelchair. The team didn’t do so well, and I had started out slowly, changing to my Tropical Breeze for the second game, which I had to run into the pro shop between frames to address a fit issue. I found a good line near the end looking around 15; part of my problem is usually trying to swing the ball too much and getting the ball to the dry on the outside too soon. Dan was consistently in the 170s and 180s, and Lorretta, after a poor start, was in the 200s in her other two games; I contributed a 588 no-tap scratch score for a 2060 score with handicap, which I didn’t think would cash, so I left early.

While I was bowling, I was observing the wheelchair bowlers around me, and noticed that many of them could hook it at least a little, which has given me new appreciation for disabled athletes. If I get results for the no-tap event, I will post them. Also, although the AWBA has a website, it hasn’t been updated for a while, so I may have to rely on on-site results for the national tournament, which started today.

Good luck to all of the wheelchair bowlers this week. 😀

I may not have been able to get a photo of my league’s champions at the banquet, but Alex Frisbie let me have this still from his video, so I now present to you my 2010-11 league champions, “The Incredibowls”: