Any keglers????

[Beetlenut]

I bowled as a teenager in leagues and tournys from the age of 13 to 19. But since I was about 21 I have only bowled a couple of times a year. Too many other hobbies and at that age bowling wasn't exactly cool. For the first 3 years of high school none of my friends knew where i was on sat & sun mornings when i was at the bowling alley. It wasn't until senior year that my mother slipped up when a friend called one sat morning and she told him I was bowling in my league :-o. He kept it to himself but gave me a hard time in private over it. There were a couple of other guys i went to school with that bowled in the same leagues. We all promised to keep it hush hush. Kind of silly when i think back. for the last 3 years I bowled my average ussually howered anywhere from 200 to 215. All the parents were PO'd that i was in the same league as there kids. I bowled in one adult non money league with my father and most of the men didn't like getting there butt kicked by a kid including my dad. But he got over it pretty quick. Now when I bowl once or twice a years I am ussually in the 190's. The guy that ran the pro shop took and intrest in me (kind of creepy) and was always giving me free gear. I still have about 10 or 12 bowling balls at my parents place and one or two at my house. Someday I may get back into it. It would be cool to bowl with my dad in a league again.

Wow, what a bowling geek! I knew I had something in common with you, besides living in Westfield. I used to bowl in leagues down at that bowling alley in Westfield that was across from Caldors. It's a hardware store now I belive. I also bowled collegiately for Western New England College at Chicopee Fair Lanes when I went there. I was carring a 205/210 average the last few years I bowled. Today was the start of bowling leagues for my two boys! They were so stoked to finally get back to it. I haven't bowled much in the past 15 years, but I did bowl in a father/son tournament last year with my 10 year old. That was a milestone and a lot of fun. Still bowled a 620 series.

 

[MR. evil]

Wow, what a bowling geek! I knew I had something in common with you, besides living in Westfield. I used to bowl in leagues down at that bowling alley in Westfield that was across from Caldors. It's a hardware store now I belive. I also bowled collegiately for Western New England College at Chicopee Fair Lanes when I went there. I was carring a 205/210 average the last few years I bowled. Today was the start of bowling leagues for my two boys! They were so stoked to finally get back to it. I haven't bowled much in the past 15 years, but I did bowl in a father/son tournament last year with my 10 year old. That was a milestone and a lot of fun. Still bowled a 620 series.

Hey....ex bowling geek:razz:

That bowling ally turned hardware store is now a package store. They have a huge beer selection :beer:

There are no 10 pins lanes in westfield anymore, only candle pin. My primary joint was Fair Lanes in Chicopee. But we also used to bowl at all the area lanes to get used to them for tourneys. For some reason I always used to tear the Riverdale lanes in W. Springfield apart during tourney's. It must have been a mental thing or something but I shot several 700 series there and one 800 series. The 800 came at the end of my 1st full year bowling at 13. My average was only around 150 at the time of the tourney. During the first 2/3 of the seaon I sucked but by the end of the year I was in the 190's. The way bowling averages are calculated it would have taken months on 190's bowling to bring my average up to where it should have really been. So during the tourney at the end of the year I pulled an 800 series out of my butt. That plus my handi-cap made for one huge number, over 1000. I still have the plaque at my parent house, I will have to look that up. Anyway my team one the scratch and handicap division and I won the singles scratch & handi-cap divisions. Everyone was really pissed and though I was a sand bagger.

The next several years my teams didn't do so well becuase I had no handi-cap points to add.

 

[Beetlenut]

Hey....ex bowling geek:razz:

That bowling ally turned hardware store is now a package store. They have a huge beer selection :beer:

There are no 10 pins lanes in westfield anymore, only candle pin. My primary joint was Fair Lanes in Chicopee. But we also used to bowl at all the area lanes to get used to them for tourneys. For some reason I always used to tear the Riverdale lanes in W. Springfield apart during tourney's. It must have been a mental thing or something but I shot several 700 series there and one 800 series. The 800 came at the end of my 1st full year bowling at 13. My average was only around 150 at the time of the tourney. During the first 2/3 of the seaon I sucked but by the end of the year I was in the 190's. The way bowling averages are calculated it would have taken months on 190's bowling to bring my average up to where it should have really been. So during the tourney at the end of the year I pulled an 800 series out of my butt. That plus my handi-cap made for one huge number, over 1000. I still have the plaque at my parent house, I will have to look that up. Anyway my team one the scratch and handicap division and I won the singles scratch & handi-cap divisions. Everyone was really pissed and though I was a sand bagger.

The next several years my teams didn't do so well because I had no handi-cap points to add.

Wow 800! I only had a few 700's, mostly 600's. Was the guy that ran the pro shop you were talking about at Fair Lanes? I knew that guy, because he was an ex Western New England College bowler. He use to give me great deals on bowling equipment. I just cleaned out the storage shed and garage in July, and got rid of a bunch of old bowling balls. I still hung on to 4 though. When I bowled in the father/son tourny last year, I got a bunch of looks due to the old equipment I was using. Antique by todays standards. I'm really enjoying coaching my boys, and they're developing a new respect for the ole' man, cause I can do what they're trying to learn to do. Now if I could only get them both on skis. The 5 year old starts this season!

 

[MR. evil]

Wow 800! I only had a few 700's, mostly 600's. Was the guy that ran the pro shop you were talking about at Fair Lanes? I knew that guy, because he was an ex Western New England College bowler. He use to give me great deals on bowling equipment. !

It was the pro at Fair Lanes, his name was John McCarron (sp??), a very large follow. He actually passed away about 10 years ago from a heart attack. But the last I heard about him before he died was that he moved to the middle east to be the bowling coach of one of those countries Olympic bowling teams. Not sure if it was true. I am also not sure how long he was the pro at Fair Lanes.

 

[Beetlenut]

It was the pro at Fair Lanes, his name was John McCarron (sp??), a very large follow. He actually passed away about 10 years ago from a heart attack. But the last I heard about him before he died was that he moved to the middle east to be the bowling coach of one of those countries Olympic bowling teams. Not sure if it was true. I am also not sure how long he was the pro at Fair Lanes.

Yep, that was the guy. Wow, small world! I bowled at Fair Lanes every day after school for team practice. I drive by that place on the pike whenever I go skiing in Vermont. John was there back in the mid 80's when I was bowling there. Nice guy, too bad about the heart attack, but he never seemed like a health nut or anything.

 

[MR. evil]

Wow 800! !

Don't be too impressed, it was dumb ass luck! That first year bowling I didn't know what the hell I was doing and couldn't make a spare to save my life. I just had one wicked nasty strike ball. I am much more proud of all the 700's I had later on once I actually learned how to bowl.