win a ball from Bowling.com
« previous next »
Pages: [1]

Author Topic: USBC hurts bowling's integridy  (Read 1915 times)

Atochabsh

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1467
USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« on: August 09, 2007, 04:06:35 AM »
Once again USBC has lowered its standards.  Here's an example fresh off the press about lane dressing and house certification.

quote:
USBC changes lane dressing inspection requirements
Effective Aug. 1, a USBC local association is required to perform a minimum of one lane dressing inspection per season at each bowling center in its jurisdiction that holds USBC-certified competition. Additional inspections will be performed at the discretion of local association officials.
 
The USBC Equipment Specifications and Certification Committee approved the elimination of the previous requirement that required an inspection 30 days prior to or within 30 days of a rolled honor score. The committee also approved the elimination of point assessments against bowling centers where lane dressing inspections resulted in noncompliance with the three-unit dressing rule.

These changes reflect a movement towards a meaningful lane dressing inspection program. Association representatives could hit the point home with bowlers by wearing an official association jacket while conducting inspection, reinforcing the notion that we’re taking seriously bowling credibility issues.


So now if a house is not in compliance they get absolutely no penalty,  no points against them.  Pretty much USBC has totally dropped out of trying to maintain any regulations on house equipment, machinery and lane dressing.

As for the wearing of an official association jacket...I'd like to see one of them try to check gutter depths and deck slants wearing a dress jacket.  Plus these certifications are usually done in the early morning hours so that we do not disrupt customer traffic for the centers.  No one is there except the center employees.  

Erin

Logged

 

Juggernaut

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 6498
  • Former good bowler, now 3 games a week house hack.
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #1 on: August 09, 2007, 12:50:15 PM »
So, what they are saying is this:  Maintaining lane condition integrity is much less important than trying to project a nice image for the public.

  So far, to me, the U.S.B.C. has been nothing more than a sad joke.  They increased the fees, claimed to have cut back the beurocracy when they were actually cutting back on their own expenses, then cut back on the awards given to the people ( members ) who are funding the whole damn thing in the first place.

  The awards are nothing to me.  I have all the rings you can win, so I really don't need anymore, but they would have been nice.  What really bothers me is those guys/gals who don't have them and can now not get them without having to buy some of them at their own expense.  Hell, I can commission them myself at the jewelry store if I wanted to buy them myself.

  And now this.  On top of everyting else, they also claim this is a move to IMPROVE the lane dressing inspection program by pulling all its teeth and dressing it up to make it look good.  My grandma used to say " you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still just a pig".  Sounds right to me.
--------------------
THIS SPACE FOR RENT
(\ /)
( . .)
c(')(')

My Bowl.com member page



Edited on 8/9/2007 12:53 PM
Logged
Learn to laugh, and love, and smile, cause we’re only here for a little while.

Fluff E Bunnie

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5617
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #2 on: August 09, 2007, 01:13:11 PM »
Fear the jacket.
Logged

Bowler19

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 433
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #3 on: August 09, 2007, 01:35:12 PM »
quote:
a USBC local association is required to perform a minimum of one lane dressing inspection per season at each bowling center in its jurisdiction that holds USBC-certified competition.

The USBC Equipment Specifications and Certification Committee approved the elimination of the previous requirement that required an inspection 30 days prior to or within 30 days of a rolled honor score.


So to me this basically says inspect the lanes once then we dont care what you do with the lane conditions afterwards.

If the Associations dont want to do more than 1 inspection per house. The house can pass inspection then make the lanes WIDE open and have 100-300 games a year and they dont need to be re-inspected.

Good job on trying to raise the integrity of bowling. Inflated scores are what is hurting bowling today. tHE usbc has acknowledged this but they keep making decisions like this one.
--------------------
Bowler19
But be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.-W. Shakespear
Logged

Atochabsh

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1467
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #4 on: August 09, 2007, 02:36:14 PM »
quote:
If the Associations dont want to do more than 1 inspection per house. The house can pass inspection then make the lanes WIDE open and have 100-300 games a year and they dont need to be re-inspected.


Don't blame your local association, they are probably as surprised by this as you are.  

Erin
Logged

Fluff E Bunnie

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5617
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #5 on: August 09, 2007, 02:45:21 PM »
Why do you guys care so much about frequency of lane inspections and penalties being assessed?

Maybe you missed this part:
quote:

These changes reflect a movement towards a meaningful lane dressing inspection program. Association representatives could hit the point home with bowlers by wearing an official association jacket while conducting inspection, reinforcing the notion that we’re taking seriously bowling credibility issues.


The jacket alone reinforces the notion that they are taking the credibility seriously.
Logged

shelley

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9655
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #6 on: August 09, 2007, 02:50:51 PM »
quote:
These changes reflect a movement towards a meaningful lane dressing inspection program. Association representatives could hit the point home with bowlers by wearing an official association jacket while conducting inspection, reinforcing the notion that we’re taking seriously bowling credibility issues.


They're reinforcing the notion that they're taking seriously the image of checking lane compliance without actually giving a shti about it.  Doesn't matter what the lanes are like, so long as we look good once a season.

SH
Logged

Juggernaut

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 6498
  • Former good bowler, now 3 games a week house hack.
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #7 on: August 09, 2007, 02:56:11 PM »
quote:
Fear the jacket.


  I tremble, even as I type.
--------------------
THIS SPACE FOR RENT
(\ /)
( . .)
c(')(')

My Bowl.com member page

Logged
Learn to laugh, and love, and smile, cause we’re only here for a little while.

shelley

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9655
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #8 on: August 09, 2007, 03:05:53 PM »
quote:
The USBC is a joke. I dont understand why leagues even bother to sanction themselves any more, I mean, what do you get out of it?


Bonding and insurance.  Wait 'til your secretary runs off with $12K the night before payouts and wonder why you're sanctioned.

The USBS is screwed up, no doubt.  Awards are getting pretty lame.  If they'd just shut up about pretending to care about integrity, no one would give a flip about how often the lanes are inspected.  But for those leagues that have been helped by the prize fund protections, they're worth all the nonsense.

SH
Logged

Fluff E Bunnie

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5617
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #9 on: August 09, 2007, 03:21:15 PM »
Could someone point out the silver lining in this that I am missing?  Maybe are they going all sport leagues now or something?  Since the current scoring is out of control, maybe they are just letting that go (including the rewards) and moving their focus to the sport patterns?
Logged

Fluff E Bunnie

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5617
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #10 on: August 09, 2007, 03:26:22 PM »
quote:
This is what we get when a proprietor is elected USBC President. Jeff Boje is the owner of Brandon Crossroads Bowl where I bowl. He is as phony as they come. He will do everything to favor the proprietor and could care less about the league bowler. This is only the beginning.


Wasn't this announced back before Boje even took over?  I am not sure of that.

In my opinion, he runs a top notch place there at BCB and while you may know more things about him than me, I know I have heard only good things from other people about him.
Logged

shelley

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9655
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #11 on: August 09, 2007, 03:27:56 PM »
quote:
Could someone point out the silver lining in this that I am missing?  Maybe are they going all sport leagues now or something?  Since the current scoring is out of control, maybe they are just letting that go (including the rewards) and moving their focus to the sport patterns?


Sport leagues are supposed to have tapes pulled before each league session.  Given the expense of the readings (not that high but try doing it for a LOT of leagues) and the time involved, I don't see them trying to make Sport Bowling the standard.  For associations with a lot of houses and multiple leagues most nights, there's no way they could get all those tapes read.  Even our association, which is not even 1000 bowlers and only has three houses, we have one lane inspection machine and one guy who really knows how to work it.  He can't be at each house every night to pull tapes for Sport leagues.

SH
Logged

CHawk15

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 764
Re: USBC hurts bowling's integridy
« Reply #12 on: August 09, 2007, 03:34:44 PM »
Why all the surprise and outrage here ??? I mean they've been lowering standards for years now because I believe they want the competitive bowlers to bowl in PBA Experience Leagues, not these recreational leagues with a THS.  The problem with this is that unless you have one of the $50,000 lane machines, you can't really do a PBA experience league correctly because the lane machine can't lay down the pattern.  I think that the USBC should first focus on an incentive to bowling proprietors to upgrade thier lane machines and hold PBA experience leagues for the more competitive leagues instead of these leagues on a THS where it basically turns into a carry contest instead of a bowling competition.  Classic example, my Friday night league last year laid down a shot that didn't just let you bank the outside and had some volume in the front.  Scores went down 20-5 pins a game for most bowlers in the league and next year they want to go back to the old shot, which is basically throw it right and watch it come back.  This house did try to do a PBA experience summer league, but because the lane machine isn't up to snuff, it really wasn't able to lay the patterns down correctly.  I think it did OK with the Viper and the Cheetah, but not the other ones.  

I used to think about the integrity of the game and all that, but that's done now because the integrity of bowling lies with the bowling center proprietors.  If they want to see big scores and inflate the recreational bowlers' ego, then go ahead.  But at the same time, don't be upset when the bowlers come back after a tournament frustrated and confused.  If the owner wants to increase bowlers' skill in the area, they'll invest the $$$ to get the proper lane machine, side boards, pins, etc. in order to create a tougher scoring environment.
Logged
Pages: [1]
« previous next »