Hi all,
thank you for your replies. Well, about the "stiffness" - it is something other bowlers have been talking about with me, too, even though I must say it does not feel so to me. They also mention that my head was "bobbing" while walking on the approach - I did not find this to be too severe in the films, but external eyes see more/different things from the subjective perception, so I am glad about your suggestions.
I use the brace all the time, unfortunately. My wrist is not the strongest/biggest (quite slender/thin, "pianist hands"), and I had a bad wrist injury almost 2 years ago while playing and "overdoing" bowling without any support. At that time I had a poor release and struggled to gain revs - but I got wiser and learned to let the ball do what it was designed for on the lane.
Since healing and thereafter, I have been using the brace, even though I tried several times without it with mixed success. It works, but not for long (4 games max.). I still use it mainly as a preventive tool, to distribute the ball's weight while holding it in the approach position and in the forward swing phase. It is not intended for revs - in fact, my "natural" release is a rather snapping wrist motion that also took its toll on my hand, and with the back support from the ProRelease things got a lot more controlled. I think I'd need lots of wrist training, and I do not want to risk an injury again. At the m oment, it works and I am fine with it.
Another thing I am working on is the release point of the ball. You are correct, I am a little late - but compared to the past I made a tremendous progress. 1 year ago I still used to loft the orb out to the arrows, and since then I have been working a lot on an earlier release point, paired with a more upright upper body.
The latter, combined with slightly flexed knees throughout the delivery and a CG shift of my body backwards has been the key for improvement so far. I can feel and see it though the much better/cleaner ball reaction I get. But I am with you, I still can let the ball go fraction of a second earlier, you can still hear it bounce when it lands on the lane. A ninja release is still a dream, but probably the key to more progress.
Do you think my swing is forced? I put some conscious muscle to the swing in the forward phase, coming "through the ball". One thing I am still working on is the drop-down phase, because I used to lift the ball upwards from the starting point at waist level. My league start last weekend was with a conscious effort to push the ball rather forward - and it paid off, because it was in better sync with my slide (a tad later), for very good leverage and effortless control. Maybe I put some more muscle than necessary on the swing in the film because my pendulum is still a little late there.
I found that very minute things have a recognizable impact on my game, and I am probably a bit too conscious about the things I do...
The knee bend is another piece that I found crucial - I generally don't bend enough, but when I concentrate on getting down, I feel that my release instantly improves (concerning consistency and also leverage). You have very keen eyes, and this confirms my personal impressions.
Thanks a lot for your support, your feedback is highly appreciated, and I am happy that the video shots are that revealing!
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DizzyFugu - Reporting from Germany
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