Only have a minute but for John Anderson. I mistyped I meant Kept up not went up. Sorry!
My top 10 reasons.....
1. Technology.
Before Play station, yes my generation had Atari and Nintendo, I'll add PS1.... We played outside and did things socially. Today with online gaming, these kids have friends they never met. SOCIAL outdoor activities on the decline. We'd play street football, baseball, head to the court to play basketball, and some times find ourselves at the bowling alley. Just needed someone to drive us there lol.
2. Factory workers declined the past decades, but they are slowly coming back to America.. There's hope...
I don't have to explain this, it has been mentioned already. But with more factory jobs rise, hopefully "happy days" will be back on the lanes.
3. Houses cater to rec bowlers these days compared to the past...
When I left the game of bowling in 1990, I'd go to an alley with friends for some fun times (through the 90's). but we get turned away by the house because leagues were going on. yet there was 6 pairs open. Some houses wouldn't even let use bowl until all the league members all were done!! Today, only a pair separates us league bowler from the rec bowlers. half the house would be full of rec bowlers while we are still in play.
4. sponsors left....
well, here in the Mainland having a sponsor is like finding a fossil in the Utah beaches
5. Money
From the prices going up to spending money for motel/hotel, travel, fees, ect... for a small or no return.... it's easier to make money washing cars every weekend, than cashing in a tourney. Travel league has gotten expensive...
6. Image of bowlers
Majority of league bowlers are viewed as a fat, alcoholic, smoker, uneducated, loud mouth, sloppy, dorky, nerdy, butt crack flasher, not an athlete, and I can go on and on. These are not made up by me, these were spoken by people around me through the years.
7. Good bowling owners are dead or on their way out of the business.
these people were the ones that made league bowling in the past so tempting and loved my many. they took care of us league bowlers. Though I wasn't bowling, I hung out at the local alley and I always came home smelling like smoke! lol. There was a waiting list to join leagues.
8. Attitude.
bowlers want instant results, high averages, easy house shots. Scratch leagues are rare nowadays and the good bowlers slowly left the game. I have three friends who are excellent bowlers who just left the game. All because scratch leagues are gone. Basically, bowling chased away many good bowlers.
9. careers and education
many bowlers I know who left the game did so because of their job. Decided on continuing their education. Or get a second job to pay for their kids education. Fagan left the PBA to get his masters degree?? I don't remember.
10. Tiger Woods
LOL I played golf about the time I left bowling. Golf wasn't as popular as bowling. Tee times was so easy to reserve on the weekends. Then tiger woods came along. Then over the years I would see my friends who were still bowlers at the time on the courses more and more. (I played 4 to 5 times a week for many years, left golf in 2009 R7 last set) These guys fell in love with golf and left bowling behind.....
These are just my opinion. But I do wish things turn around for league bowlers. The good new is, there is one private house here that loves league bowlers and offers many incentives for us league bowlers.
bowlingboards.com bowling ball winner!!
Only have a minute but for John Anderson. I mistyped I meant Kept up not went up. Sorry!
I cannot agree more, 40 years ago I'd bowl anyone with my plastic ball with a 180-190 average. Now after coming back after a 25 year layoff you have to be a mathematician or scientist to bowl good. I bowled action all over in the late 70's and 80's and when I came back I had no clue that the game changed so much.Originally Posted by fordman1
As far as cost if you are not working day's I pay a buck a game mon, tues and thurs. 9 am to 1 pm and 1 pm to 4pm
Last edited by LOUVIT; 03-30-2017 at 02:10 PM.
“There’s nothing like throwing a 16lb 8.5 inch sphere at 10 3.5lb wooden objects spaced 12 inches apart and having them all hit each other” proud member of Bowlingboards.com bowling forums and ball contest winner
Thanks Lou I worked in one of those "factory's" and we had about 5,500 workers in the late 60's. We had 2 morning leagues, and evening and late night league all with 16 teams. Along came automation and designers who made one part fit all the cars and 5,000 of those workers were gone.
The cost of living "wages" got stagnant and everything else went up and the leagues died.
Back then if you were a 165-170 bowler you were pretty good. a 190 bowler you were a real good league bowler. Pro bowlers were just a little over 200. Now the average bowler isn't much better but the others have gone up a ton. I read a USBC report that said the average of all bowlers is now 172 or so.
I can actually remember 3 guys my size could sit in the front and back of a car. Now you have to be a little kid to ride in the back seat. Fort Carson Co. I had a 1959 Pontiac Bonneville. If It would have had a oven I could have lived in it.
Being fairly new o bowling, 4 years in, I would say cost and time is a huge factors. One league I bowl in. One out to be right around $18 a night. Gen I can find a league like the one I bowl in on sundays for $10. But time is also a factor. For those who work then need to take care kids, some may have two jobs. Then the closest bowling alley might not be too close. Bowling alleys are being closed quickly and then those they get bought out raise the rates.
Around here most of the money is made on nightclub bowling.
My biggest problem is time during the week. Being a FSE I never know for sure when I'm getting off work or where I will be. Makes it a bit difficult to be on a long league. I think the split league is an awesome idea. Would be much easier for me to make 12 weeks vs 36 weeks on a regular basis.
My other problem is lane maintenance. Sticky approaches from grime and lanes and equipment that are not maintained well. It was a rare occurrence to get scratches and nicks on my ball. Now it is all the time and very frustrating. Some have been bad enough to warrant repair, others just enough to make you mad. Nevermind the fact it is difficult to get lanes that have been ran anytime recently, especially on weekends. I'm going tomorrow to pick up my urethane ball to add to my arsenal. Lately it seems they will maybe run some oil on the heads and have 30' of backend.
Current arsenal:
Motiv Trident Motiv Jackal Ghost RG No Rules RG DareDevil
C300 Impulse Hammer Black Urethane
It's not that people don't have the time to bowl. People MAKE the time to do the things they want to do. People don't exercise because they don't want to. Not because they don't have the time.
Both tennis and bowlings heyday was in the 60's and 70's. High tech equipment ruined both sports.
I can certainly agree that most people find both the time and the money to spend on what they really want. However, many people have irregular work schedules and decide that keeping their jobs is more important than bowling. Also those who are in relationships have another persons likes and wishes to consider in deciding how to spend their free time. Those who don't consider them usually find themselves with no need to.
John
People had relationships in the 70's as they do now. They also had irregular work schedules. Between 1974 and 1980, my dad worked a mandatory swing shift at a large car factory in Toledo. Swing shift meaning he had to work every shift in a given month.
I would guess that your dad knew well in advance what his schedule would be for a given week. From what I read and hear, it has become commonplace for retailers to change employee schedules on very short notice.
John
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