Striking Leaders

So it’s been a while (3 months) since last post. I am still looking for my next interview candidate…local alleys Shrewsbury, Worcester, Gardner.

However, I was practicing yesterday and had almost the whole alley to myself! Shrewsbury is leaning toward recreational only (a long way since Town&Country). The lanes were a bit broken down and I had to request a ball return for all the 6 balls I was using. It was quite a sight! I tried to take a video when the balls were rolling in but I was so fascinated that I forgot to record. At least they are not moving to string pins. Not the same, how can it with strings attached?

It was a good practice. Gerard Richardson my old coach was there having a cola. We chatted for a while until I jumped on a lane. Decent practice and Robbie (there are two Robbies in Shrewsbury, Robby the Manager and Robbie the mechanic who I know also bowls out of Gardner Ten Pin) was able to get the ball return. I tried all the balls, but ironically had the best luck with the illegal urethane Storm’s Pitch Black… 4-bagger nearly turned 6-bagger in the last few frames. It’s also my lightest ball at 12 lbs while my heaviest is 15 (Attention Star). Not sure why I have such a range but it’s not terrible. Makes things interesting. My score for that game was 214! It had been a while as I’ve been working on stuff (too many things) but Joanne Herman got me back on track with focusing on 1-2 things for at least a month! I was jumping around every game with different tactics.

Had a nice drive home and super pleased to see my Doubles Partner and I (Rich Hallacy) cashed in the US Open Championships in Reno this year! I got a letter from USBC in the mail with the check. We placed 923rd with a score of 985. It’s a far cry from first place but I don’t know how many thousands bowled…I’m planning on holding on to that first check…

Excited for fall leagues to start. Julia and I have a brand new team with a rising star! Sami is an excellent bowler and glad to have her onboard with us and Dan Darcy. In addition, will be playing on Strikers’ East NE Women’s Travel League on Sundays once a month. That team is with Toni Marie Vaughn, Cheryl Eng, and Julia. We’ll be traveling to NH, VT, MA, and possibly ME for the fall season. Sabrina Quiñones may also be joining us to sub at least one squad. The Manchester lanes have recently been renovated by Stephen Hardy’s crew. Looking forward to it!

To wrap up the brief post, a little help from CoPilot to capture my bowler’s sentiment:

“Midnight Strike

The lanes wake up when you do, buzzing under the hush of late-night lights— a quiet electric promise running the length of polished wood.

You hoist the ball, feel its weight like a secret you’re ready to release, and suddenly the world sharpens— the pins gleam like a challenge, a nebula waiting to scatter.

Your swing cuts through the stillness, a smooth arc, a small rebellion against exhaustion’s gravity. The ball rockets forward, a comet on a mission, humming over the boards with just enough fire to make you grin.

Then—impact. A bright, cracking chorus, pins exploding into motion, a burst of triumph that ripples through your bones and shakes off the day’s heaviness.

For a moment, you’re lit from within, alive in the echo, resting in the afterglow of a strike that feels like a tiny victory you didn’t know you needed.”

Here’s for tiny victories in this world.

xo