Attempt One

LAST MEAL: Chicken Curry with noodles. We were out of rice.

SUPPLEMENTARY TRAINING: Driving a 600 mile round trip over the weekend.

METHOD OF FOCUS: Becoming one with the ball

LUCKY LANE NUMBER: 7

BEST SCORE TO DATE: 0

CUMULATIVE NUMBER OF STRIKES: 0

I used to bowl fairly regularly but haven't thrown balls down a lane in anger for a good year or two. My average was nothing to write home about (think three figures, divide by two, add 10, subtract the cube root of the second number and repeat fourteen times to get somewhere close) so I'm certainly not cheating anyone by conducting this experiment. I got the idea last Saturday on a long drive so have had no chance to practice either, as confirmed by my score this week.

When I got to Ocean Bowl I felt a wave of nostalgia, adding to the feeling that I have left it far too long between bowls. I spoke to the team and they are well behind my efforts, giving me every opportunity to attempt what I set out to do. I approached the lane with borrowed shoes on my feet and picked up old faithful, a ball I was semi familiar with in the old days.

Things did not start well. I wanted some promotional shots so readers didn't think I was making this up and lobbed the first attempt straight into the gutter as the photo was taken; rusty was a great description. The goal had been blown on the first ball but it made me realise that I have so much else to aim for - how many strikes can I get? Will I increase my score at all? The perfect game is still the objective but throwing every ball every week gives me a much better chance to do that than chucking one ball, getting less than a strike and going home.

I didn't pick up a spare until the fourth frame and, worse still, didn't manage a strike until frame ten. I felt deflated but that was good as it meant I was taking this seriously. I left the building with a greater knowledge of what I need to do and a renewed vigour for bowling. 

Below is my scorecard for the week. I need to get another round in soon as I essentially missed last week by thinking of this too late in the year (January the 9th, what have I been doing all year??) so there will be another update soon.