Summer League for Boomer

[boomer]

Hi - my name is Mike and I sometimes LOOK like a bowler. . .

Well, this week our pattern got upgraded. New machine (well, new to us, but at least rebuilt and reconditioned) and new pattern (High Street? - was told 44' 31ml) so we'll see.

OH - and found out why it's been so difficult to bowl against this one guy. REALLY sweet guy, nice guy, above average bowler. . . but we'll get into that.



Game 1 - right in the pocket for first 2/3 of the game. Missed the 10 in the 6th - oh well. Then in the 8th I pulled it just a touch and it slid. :/ really? Yep - this guy rolls a 1980s vintage rubber Black Beauty - no flare, no nuttin. Right down and in. So I pull the ball just a touch, and I guess I'd been flirting with it already, but I hit his carrydown and WOW. . . just slid. Men - 1-2-7. Picked it up but this is going to be a theme. Oh - went too far and left a Greek Church in the 9th. 200 and we lost the point.

Game 2 - Struggled to avoid that puddle of oil he's depositing downlane. Had our PSO subbing with us and it was FAR more dramatic for him, but I could easily see it too when I hit it. Missed another 10-pin and a 2-8-10. 189 but we won the point, by 2.

Game 3 - Ball change back and forth but figured out to grab the Zen, move a couple boards left and get out early so it would hook outside and before where his puddle was, now. Worked. five strikes to end with 210. We took the point and total.

Pattern was definitely strikable. My wife does NOT like it, being backup on the left side and it's messed with her but we're working on that.

But now I realize what this guy does to us - not deliberately. He just likes that old ball (and boy it's old! LOL) and he rolls 188 average and has a great time bowling with his wife, another sweet older lady and a really nice, lefty, disabled guy. They're a sweet team and we enjoy bowling against them but . . . hate bowling against them! LOL

anyway - not going to complain about 599. My spread was only 21 pins and I'm starting to roll the ball more, rather than hit up the ball. Getting the hang of the new setup.

[boomer]

Hi - my name is Mike and I'm slightly masochistic when it comes to bowling. . . LOL



To start out, I find out from my wife that my father-in-law is in the hospital but that I SHALL remain and bowl but she won't be joining me. OK then. . .

Game 1 - trying my Zen Master. Middle of the house is always slicker than the ends, but the Zen just isn't hooking up. When I CAN get it to hook up, it does well. Try the Nova and it's no better - actually worse as it's over/under reacting.
Game 2 - move to the Diva and go straight down/in. Much better. 193.
Game 3 - we're talking now. I figure things out, get the fine tuning in and . . . 252.

600 series. We lost three - we won my low game! Was quick though since only 5 on the pair.

Went home, my wife and mother-in-law were waiting. He's doing better, but was touch and go with pneumonia.

[boomer]

Hi I'm Mike and I impersonate a bowler, sometimes.



Well, up and down . . .

Lanes were WONKY. I had to use two different balls with two different lines. When I tried to stick with the Nova, I left 10's on the right lane no matter what I did (well, that was the BEST result); when I tried to stick with the Zen Master, I left splits on the left lane no matter what I did. When I moved to the Diva, it was just . . .

Game 1 - couple stupid opens in 1 and 2. C'mon, man! Just trying to figure things out. Nova just was. . . off. Moved to the Diva at 8 and got lined up. Didn't feel like it was really "there".
Game 2 - moved to the Zen and . . . wow. bad decision! Swapped to the Nova and decided to go with the flow. Too late. . . 132. OOF.
Game 3 - OK, on left lane, Nova at 29 and 14 and on the right lane Zen at 23 and 10. Rewarded.

Ugh - felt like work.

[boatman37]

Hi I'm Mike and I impersonate a bowler, sometimes.



Well, up and down . . .

Lanes were WONKY. I had to use two different balls with two different lines. When I tried to stick with the Nova, I left 10's on the right lane no matter what I did (well, that was the BEST result); when I tried to stick with the Zen Master, I left splits on the left lane no matter what I did. When I moved to the Diva, it was just . . .

Game 1 - couple stupid opens in 1 and 2. C'mon, man! Just trying to figure things out. Nova just was. . . off. Moved to the Diva at 8 and got lined up. Didn't feel like it was really "there".
Game 2 - moved to the Zen and . . . wow. bad decision! Swapped to the Nova and decided to go with the flow. Too late. . . 132. OOF.
Game 3 - OK, on left lane, Nova at 29 and 14 and on the right lane Zen at 23 and 10. Rewarded.

Ugh - felt like work.

I did a pretty good job of impersonating a bowler the other night for the first 1.5 games. Then reality hit...lol

Do you have the Zen Master or the Zen? Think I'm gonna order a Zen tomorrow but going back and forth on that or the Zen Master. Figure I can scuff up the Zen a little if I need to. Been playing more in the oil lately and all of my skid/flip stuff doesn't work well in the heavier oil

[RobLV1]

You are very consistent in your inconsistency! How are you adjusting?

[boomer]

@Boatman - I have the Zen Master. It seems to react differently to differing conditions so I'm having problems converting practice application to league. Esp with the new pattern AND the new drilling so . . . deep end.

@Rob - why thank you! LOL yeah, I hate the consistent inconsistency. I pride myself in having a small std-dev and I'm not that right now. I'm really attributing it to the new drilling, which is really only a month or so old, and with the move and family, I haven't been able to put a lot of practice in.

How I'm adjusting:

In practice - start at typical with Nova since we were closer to center of house which is typically "slicker" - so let's use the earlier, more progressive ball to start. It looked good on one lane but was leaving ring-10s. Cool - I typically think that means I'm close so next throw on that lane, make a 3" backward move (my normal effective ring-10 move) and same deal - hit target line, good reaction . . . OK, let's move forward a touch and see. On LEFT lane, it's crush strike. High flush. 6 pin doesn't even touch the deck - it goes flying. Well - got THAT one. But right lane? Just not doing it. But I'm running out of practice time so . . . bring out the Zen Master and see how it works - it's typically about 5:4 right - longer but snappier so . . . good look on the right lane but splits on the left.

Yes, I SHOULD Have noted that and gone with it. That likely would have given me a good look throughout. That's what I ended up with anyway and it gave me the 225 (only flaws were 6th and 8th frames where I lost focus and went in heavy).

Instead I decided to try what's been working . . . nominally? Diva has been working lately at a 22:10 out to 8/9 so that's where I went and it was over/under. Move a bit left with it and what you see game 1, 4 and 8. Move a bit right and . . .

And if you look, you'll see that I was crushing ONE lane, and then the OTHER . . . it wasn't until I listened to the lanes at the end of game 2 that I got BOTH.

(((this is on a couple of days' remembrance so . . . But, Rob, I WAS trying to make systematic adjustments)))

[boomer]

Oh - this was also the first time in several months that I went in to bowling without my back aching like CRAPOLA. We'd spent several months moving, including literally a ton and a half of lead (father in law was a reloader so that was all unloaded lead) so my back has been aching . . . we're getting close to not moving stuff anymore! YAY!!!

[boomer]

This week's was really good, then really bad.

222 for first game, but in the tenth I felt my middle finger pop and each shot was painful even after taping up my finger. 150s the second and third.

Getting another opinion on span . . .

[boomer]

Hi - I'm Mike, AKA Boomer (although SoCalBoomer is often what I have to do - would LOVE to get just Boomer but . . .) and I bowl.



Sooooo - got the Diva re-drilled just as an experiment. It was a huge success. Almost ZERO finger pain - and that was really just residual. I'm still taping my middle finger but it's like 90% better and I'm kinda taping it for prevention and to get that last 10% before I head to SouthPoint in a couple of weeks.

That said - I only had the Diva. I really would have loved to have had the Nova or Zen Master - lanes were pretty wet and scores were a bit lower across the board (at least those who enter brackets). . . and I didn't have my plastic ball so I had to flatten the Diva to try to get to the 10.

Game 1 - stupid mistake in 1 but otherwise clean and had a great run from 7-12. Felt good.
Game 2 - better than the score indicates, but I'm getting tired at this point. Missed a stupid 4-pin left. Bleh. Just grabbed it, knew it when I let it go.
Game 3 - legs were just failing me. Ball speed really low and I just couldn't keep up with the tracking.

I know WHY I was tired - my wife loves free stuff. . . we were driving home from something on Saturday and took a different route (I never take it because I always get stuck at a train) and there was a ton of free paver stones. She insisted we stop (we need them) and pick up a load. Poor Gladiator was searching the sky on the way home with ~100 . . . then another load after that. Sunday it was two more trips so we now have ~400 pavers. She wants more. LOL Part of me is "YAY Free Pavers!" but the other part of me is "crap, free pavers"

[J Anderson]

Hi - I'm Mike, AKA Boomer (although SoCalBoomer is often what I have to do - would LOVE to get just Boomer but . . .) and I bowl.



Sooooo - got the Diva re-drilled just as an experiment. It was a huge success. Almost ZERO finger pain - and that was really just residual. I'm still taping my middle finger but it's like 90% better and I'm kinda taping it for prevention and to get that last 10% before I head to SouthPoint in a couple of weeks.

That said - I only had the Diva. I really would have loved to have had the Nova or Zen Master - lanes were pretty wet and scores were a bit lower across the board (at least those who enter brackets). . . and I didn't have my plastic ball so I had to flatten the Diva to try to get to the 10.

Game 1 - stupid mistake in 1 but otherwise clean and had a great run from 7-12. Felt good.
Game 2 - better than the score indicates, but I'm getting tired at this point. Missed a stupid 4-pin left. Bleh. Just grabbed it, knew it when I let it go.
Game 3 - legs were just failing me. Ball speed really low and I just couldn't keep up with the tracking.

I know WHY I was tired - my wife loves free stuff. . . we were driving home from something on Saturday and took a different route (I never take it because I always get stuck at a train) and there was a ton of free paver stones. She insisted we stop (we need them) and pick up a load. Poor Gladiator was searching the sky on the way home with ~100 . . . then another load after that. Sunday it was two more trips so we now have ~400 pavers. She wants more. LOL Part of me is "YAY Free Pavers!" but the other part of me is "crap, free pavers"

Slightly off topic; our town is having its spring bulk pick up. It amazes me to see how much of it disappears before the town truck makes its way to our neighborhood.