Three Strikes! You're...awesome?

This past Saturday, our LifeGroup had a class get together at a local bowling alley.  It was a fairly good day to go, since there was also an airshow in town and the seventy-two lanes were mostly empty.  We were able to spread out over four lanes, one for men, one for women, and two lanes for the twelve kids we had along with us.

It’s safe to say that none of us will be entering the PBA anytime soon.  There was all manner of technique on display, from a wicked curve ball to plain brute force, none of which resulted in impressive scores.  There was also quite a lack of technique to be seen as well.  The important part is that most everyone had a good time.

After all was said and done, I found that one thing really stood out to me.  I mean no disrespect to the bowling alley or Professional/Amateur bowlers in general, but from what I’ve seen, this is just not a kid’s game.  Much to their credit, they try to make it work, with rails that come up out of the floor to block the gutter and ramps to help the kids aim their ball and give it the necessary speed to make it to the pins.  But let’s be real, the odds are stacked against children from the start…

First off, there’s the bowling ball.  It’s an unwieldy six to sixteen pound slippery-smooth sphere that the child is supposed to manhandle from the ball return to the top of the lane.  This might be overlookable if those stylish bowling shoes came standard with steel toes, but they don’t.  Gage tried to set it down on the floor and kick it like a soccer ball…he only did that once.

That brings me to the technique of actually throwing the ball.  There is a tendency among many children to hover close to their parents in social situations.  You don’t have to be a genius to figure out that connecting the backswing of your ball with a toddlers face is largely undesirable.  Compound that with the fact that not all of us are professional bowlers, and as such, the release of the bowling ball is not guaranteed to be in a forward direction.

But, assuming all that was fixed, and we were able to fling puffy white clouds at the bowling pins, there’s still the matter of the rules.  For the first years of a child’s life, you pour yourself into teaching them how to take turns and treat each other fairly.  Now, take them to a bowling alley and try to explain to your sobbing four year old why she doesn’t get her second turn after making a strike.  It’s punishing them for doing a good job…not fair!  And let’s not even mention the tenth frame, where some of their friends get THREE turns while they only get two.

Despite these “issues”, I think every kid had a great time.  If you’re considering taking yours bowling, I’d suggest that you go ahead and do it.  Maybe knowing these pitfalls ahead of time will help you safely and enjoyably navigate the game.