TWOHAND834 wrote on 12/20/2011 11:53 AM:

My main gripe is this:  Manufacturers concentrate on more and more hook and yet the centers dont keep up with oil volume.  We only have 60 feet from foul line to pin deck and yet your higher end balls keep forcing people to play farther and farther inside.  The "average" league bowler doesnt know anything in regards to matching up bowling balls to conditions.  More and more, I see centers laying down lower volumes of oil and yet the "average" bowler still buys the most expensive stuff out there and then the lane is fried after only a game or so.  Then, they complain because they cant control their stuff while the higher end bowlers are using lower to mid performance equipment and shooting higher numbers.  I can understand having maybe one high end ball, 2-3 mid performance balls, and one lower end ball for each manufacturer.  Most manufacturers now, typically have 2-3 high end, 2-3 mid-performance, 2-3 low end, and a spare ball. 

 

EX:  League I bowl on Thursday Nights....this past week we bowled against one of the better teams in the league.  On the ball return, we started with a Prodigy, VG Nano x2, 715C, Taboo Blue/Silver, VG Nano Pearl, Tornado, and a couple other balls.  By the 3rd frame second game, the track on the right side was blown wide open.  I had already moved more with my Tornado in that first 13 frames then I did the previous 2 weeks combined.  The Prodigy, one of the Nanos, 715C and Taboo were all dull and playing in or near the track area.  Make a long story short, I was high on the pair with 670 because the others could not get left fast enough and stop their balls from overhooking. 

 

IMO....the customer is just as much to blame as the manufacturers.  We, in general, are sucked into buying the next hook monster with zero knowledge that we probably dont need it.  I am averaging 250 in my first 3 weeks after drilling up a $100 Ebonite Tornado.  If bowlers would stop making so many ball purchases and instead using that money to join more leagues/tournaments, I believe bowling can survive.  This is not a one way street here.  It is a combination of manufacturers, Center Managers, and the customers for the decline of bowling.  We are all to blame.  The only people that may suffer from significant changes are maybe pro shops.  However, I also believe that the best ball drillers will continue to succeed as they would continue to sell equipment, just not as much higher end stuff and quite a bit more lower end. 

Peace doesnt always have to be silent.

TWOHAND834 wrote on 12/20/2011 11:53 AM:

My main gripe is this:  Manufacturers concentrate on more and more hook and yet the centers dont keep up with oil volume.  We only have 60 feet from foul line to pin deck and yet your higher end balls keep forcing people to play farther and farther inside.  The "average" league bowler doesnt know anything in regards to matching up bowling balls to conditions.  More and more, I see centers laying down lower volumes of oil and yet the "average" bowler still buys the most expensive stuff out there and then the lane is fried after only a game or so.  Then, they complain because they cant control their stuff while the higher end bowlers are using lower to mid performance equipment and shooting higher numbers.  I can understand having maybe one high end ball, 2-3 mid performance balls, and one lower end ball for each manufacturer.  Most manufacturers now, typically have 2-3 high end, 2-3 mid-performance, 2-3 low end, and a spare ball. 

 

EX:  League I bowl on Thursday Nights....this past week we bowled against one of the better teams in the league.  On the ball return, we started with a Prodigy, VG Nano x2, 715C, Taboo Blue/Silver, VG Nano Pearl, Tornado, and a couple other balls.  By the 3rd frame second game, the track on the right side was blown wide open.  I had already moved more with my Tornado in that first 13 frames then I did the previous 2 weeks combined.  The Prodigy, one of the Nanos, 715C and Taboo were all dull and playing in or near the track area.  Make a long story short, I was high on the pair with 670 because the others could not get left fast enough and stop their balls from overhooking. 

 

IMO....the customer is just as much to blame as the manufacturers.  We, in general, are sucked into buying the next hook monster with zero knowledge that we probably dont need it.  I am averaging 250 in my first 3 weeks after drilling up a $100 Ebonite Tornado.  If bowlers would stop making so many ball purchases and instead using that money to join more leagues/tournaments, I believe bowling can survive.  This is not a one way street here.  It is a combination of manufacturers, Center Managers, and the customers for the decline of bowling.  We are all to blame.  The only people that may suffer from significant changes are maybe pro shops.  However, I also believe that the best ball drillers will continue to succeed as they would continue to sell equipment, just not as much higher end stuff and quite a bit more lower end. 

Peace doesnt always have to be silent.