Inside the Open

It was brought to my attention today that I haven't written anything on here in a while. Time just seems to fly by at the tournament. It turns out that Saturday, April 26 is the offical halfway point. That means that by then, nearly 30,000 bowlers will have been here and gone.

We recently had a relatively slow news week, which followed a week with all kinds of news and stories, so I wasn't too upset with the chance to sit back and take a look at what's coming up. My friend David Bartlett from Ebonite and his girlfriend Michelle came to town yesterday, and we had a nice lunch during one of the doubles and singles squads. And tomorrow night, I will get the opportunity to step out of the office and spend some time with my friends Leanne and Gary Hulsenberg. As always, one of the best part of this job is seeing old friends and making new ones.

Back in the trenches, I've spent a lot of time getting ready for some great bowlers to come through. Sam Lantto and his team will be here on April 22 and 23, followed by Steve Fehr and the defending Team All-Events champions on April 23 and 24. This also makes for some very good On the Lanes segments. I've also spent time trying to settle some things that have gotten out of hand on the message boards. Sometimes people only hear what they want to hear, and things get blown out of proportion. Here's something that occurred to me recently: How come so many posts are negative? I understand that people sometimes have bad experiences and want to vent/share their thoughts, but I wish more people would be just as quick to share the good things and their positive experiences. I know some do already, but it would be great if the ratios were reversed.

Last night, someone asked what we usually write about and why. Typically, early in the tournament, we write about anyone who takes the lead or rolls a 298, 299, 300 or 800. As the scores begin to settle, we start writing about anyone who cracks the top three. Because of the frequency of big scores and other features/news items, we hold steady there for a while so we don't get overwhelmed. This is where we are right now, and there has been no shortage of news. Expanding the coverage too soon could result in too many stories since there are nearly 1,000 bowlers between press releases. Soon, we will expand the coverage to the top five, and eventually the top 10 as we get toward the end.

Anyway, it is exactly 30 days until I take to the lanes for the Open Championships. I think that my preparations will begin this week. My arsenal is complete, so it's time to try my luck at the Bowlers Journal and Roto Grip Sport Bowling Challenge. Two different challenging conditions that will help prepare me for making good shots and spares, something that is difficult during league on a house shot.

On a completely unrelated note, we are moving forward with the move to Arlington. While I don't know what my role will be after the move, or even when we will be relocating, I am already looking for a place to live. It is an exciting time. And while I'm used to moving every six months, I've thought about the possibility of a permanent residence, even if I am only there for half the year. Right now, I have very little personal stuff besides clothes, and my furniture is always rented or inflatable. I think it might finally be time to grow up. I'll be heading to Texas on my day off during the first week in May (that's going to be tough, since I've only stayed away from the convention center one day since Feb 1), which will give me a chance to check out the area and the new building.

That should wrap things up for today. I'm headed out to Center Desk to watch Rhino Page, Bill Hoffman and David Haynes.