Traveling
It’s been a while hasn’t it? The holidays are upon us and between Thanksgiving and Christmas, things become pretty hectic. I’m not making excuses for the lack of blog posts. Okay, I am. On top of the usual festivities, this is also the “we’re up to our eyeballs” time at work. So, bowling hasn’t been as much of a priority. Mentally, it’s still front of mind. Just the actual occurrences that are down. This post is well overdue. Hope it makes up for the infrequency. At least a little…
The filth of who knows how many people... Sick!
I was in Lawrence, Kansas last week on business, so I missed my first night of league this season (and hopefully the last). Even though I was nowhere near my gear, I still managed to get out and bowl. Those of you who follow Roto Grip on Twitter (do it, you know you want to) know that it was just a single score guess this week since I was bowling recreationally. Or maybe that should be wreck-reationally… It wasn’t pretty. But I have to admit, it was fun. And disgusting.
First, rack balls are just gross. Even if you’re not an avid bowler, go out and at least get a lower-end ball. It’ll help your immune system, seriously. You wouldn’t want to show up for softball and just grab a grimy glove off a rack, would you? Anyway, I picked a dirty, ancient ball that sorta-kinda fit my hand like I was used to and started chucking. Definitely chucking. It felt all kinds of wrong. Instead of fighting it, I just went with it. This was for fun and it was just warming up. I definitely did not take the game seriously and ended up at 134. First thought: how can I bowl worse than that when I’m actually trying… definitely a mental issue.
Next game, found that if I slowed down to about 10MPH, I could find some hook in the ball. Squeaked out a 151.
Four splits, crappy ball, house shoes... 166 isn't too shabby, really
Final game, for all the marbles (really, you don’t follow Roto Grip on Twitter? You can win free stuff and everyone likes that) was next. I was warmed up and was done “playing” with the situation. Crap equipment on unknown lanes was just a challenge. Someone had to win the contest for guessing my single game high score and I wasn’t about to give it to the lowest guess (don’t recall if it was or wasn’t, but I sure hope not). I gave it my all and somehow managed a 166, battling all the way through. Felt pretty good about it. Best part was I could focus on my form and not worry too much about what happened when I let go. It was a crap-shoot. Sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t.
Thank you to Royal Crest Lanes in Lawrence for having open bowling during the week. Was nice and easy, no hassle. Although, you have RIDICULOUS graphics on your screens. It’s seriously embarrassing. If I want cartoons, I’ll find it on TV…
Oh yeah!
That sums up Kansas. On Friday, I made my way home for a brief 32-hour visit before boarding another plane. This time, to the wonderful state of Utah. All the stereotypes aside, I have enjoyed my two trips to Utah. I love mountains and that’s where the Storm and Roto Grip folks are based.
I was psyched to get another plant tour (which is equal parts impressive, surprising, and tempting) and then dive into two days of meeting. No need to get into the details of the business side of things, but for those who don’t already know, the advertising agency I work for represents Storm and Roto Grip in the social media world. At some point during the meetings, it was decided that I should get drilled for a Defiant. Seriously, I didn’t ask for one. The wonderful, attractive, fit, intelligent people at Storm are just that nice. Did I mention how awesome they are? So, we headed off to the pro shop area with none other that PBA tour representative for Storma and Roto Grip, Chris Schlemer. How cool is that? We couldn’t get my measurements from the mighty Dr. Richter, so he measured me up again and started poking holes in the ball. By the end, we had a wicked looking ball just itching to scorch the lanes.
The beast on the bench, begging for bowling...
There was plenty of scorching, but not because of me. Well, the skid marks maybe. First of all, the approaches were REALLY slippery. Like, almost teeter and fall over slick. That took about four or five throws to get used to (which was then awesome and smooth). I was blown away by this ball. I don’t have much for revs (as some may know from past videos) but that didn’t stop the Defiant from just eating through the oil and diving sharply across the lane. Bad part is that I don’t know how to handle that. It rewarded me mighty heavily when I did throw it someone near correctly, but otherwise it made me pay. It really felt like professional equipment. Impressive, surprising, powerful. It’s like a secret superpower that you don’t want to let into the wrong hands. A bowler that knows what they’re doing would wreak havoc on the lanes with this ball. But, just like a wild stallion or 128-oz. steak, you better know what you’re getting yourself into. I am excited to learn from this ball. A lot of failure learning…
I threw about 20-25 shots and could have stayed their all day, but apparently my co-workers weren’t interested in standing around watching me bowl. Weird… hahaha. I also got some great pointers from Chris, Jan Schmidt, Kristy King, Matt Martin and everyone else within sight of my numerous flaws. Just little things. They were nice enough to not try to throw too much at me or complicate what’s still left of Steve’s coaching (need to get another lesson scheduled once the chaos calms down—nothing sets yours scores right like a solid session with a genius).
I almost look like I know what I'm doing. Almost.
This post has grown out of proportion, time to wrap it up. It’s been a while since my last post, but no sense in trying to go to Steven King lengths here. Excited to get back and bowl league tomorrow, but a bit worried. A week on the road, the Defiant’s voice in my head, and enough work stress to choke an elephant could destroy my mental game (that thin, weak slice of mental game I occasionally display). We will see.
Make sure to head over to the Roto Grip Twitter page and submit your guess for my series score tomorrow. Entries close at noon Central time. Just put in your guess, mention @RotoGriproger and use the hashtag #guttertoglory — it’s so easy and you can win free stuff! Go, go, go!
Seriously, I’ll wait here until you go…
Stay tuned for what happens tomorrow. It could be interesting/hilarious. Stay out of the gutter!
