Same shot/diff centers question.....

[mdmjdm]

Your're very welcome. My personal "most important" test shot is the first arrow one. I need to know if I have room outside for the ball to recover if I miss right of target. When I see that I DON'T have any recovery out there, it usually steers me to a straighter line to the pocket, one that stays in the oil a little longer. I'm basically searching for...where does the recovery start outside and where does the hold start inside?

I've even added one thing to my own "personal" warm up shot routine...ignore the first two or three. Why? I have noticed that as I get older, it takes me a few more shots to get a fluid release that will match the one I will be getting 4 or 5 frames into the set. Any reads I get off the first two or three shots tend to be poor...since my release was poor.

[threeripmin]

those were two very good posts, mdmj. i have forgot so much stuff over 20 years its crazy. its nice to see it written down to jar my brain. im with you about my frist few balls are worthless. when i bowled we wouldnt even set ourselves for the first few shots just to get warmed up.

[hokiefan76]

that's the best tip ive seen since i started bowling. thanks for putting it out there.

[Gemfire]

I've even added one thing to my own "personal" warm up shot routine...ignore the first two or three.

I've found that I need to throw the first two or three shots much slower (maybe 1/2 normal speed) to give my arm a chance to warm up. My arm seems to hold up better when I do this. I try not to make any adjustments until I'm warmed up.

[JAnderson]

is there too many variables to solve this question with a simple answer?

Yes. There are hundreds of variables, some of which have already been mentioned. Variables that will generally have a bigger impact on how the lanes will play include (and all can differ from center to center):

Lane Condition
There are many, many factors that go into lane conditions. Some I've listed below, but for this topic, let's just consider the amount and disposition of the lane conditioner as it has been applied to the lane surface. Is it fresh or has there been 60+ games bowled on your pair since the last dressing? When the pattern is fresh, how long is the pattern? What is the ratio of the pattern between the 20th board and the 10th board? What is the ratio of the pattern between the 10th board and the 5th board? How much condition volume has been applied to the pattern overall? How clean are the back ends? How old is the lane machine? What type of machine is it? If it is a wick machine, when was the last time the wicks were cleaned? When was the last time they were replaced? If it is a spray machine, does the house clean the spray nozzles between each dressing? What type of conditioner is in use? Keep in mind too, that factors such as heat, humidity, and drafts all have an affect on every other question in this topic.

Composition and condition of the lane surface
Are they wood lanes or synthetic lanes or wood lanes with a synthetic overlay? If they're wood lanes, when was the last time they were cut? For synthetics, are they Guardian, HPL, Anvilane, or ProAnvilane. There are probably some older types still out there as well. How old is the surface? How much care has gone into maintaining the lane beds?

Of course, there are other factors beyond these, but I feel these are probably the biggest factors (outside of the bowler) that can make one bowling center play differently than another bowling center.

If you bowl more than one league and have the opportunity to bowl each league in a different bowling center, I would urge you to do so. It will help make you a more well-rounded bowler and teach you how to adjust to more than one condition.