Mike300Smith:

Doctor Doom:

Back on topic. Mike we had a center in Montgomery that I use the love to practice at. It had a lot of birthday parties on Saturday and Sunday. Usually I would go on Saturday afternoon .95 a game could not go wrong. The only problem was out of the blue and at no specific time, on would come the lasers, smoke, mirrored balls, and Rap at it's best. The decibles were louder than a jet taxiway. Ten minutes of that and out the door I went.

Thanks, Doc, for bringing this back on-topic.  I'm with you on that one.  I used to run a moonlight doubles tournament back in the day, but the only difference was the lights were out (just pinlights and telescores -- where's THAT word been?) lit up the lanes -- no music, no smoke, but a packed building of 150 couples at Saturday midnight.  In the scenario you describe, you can't even hear the pins fall.  Besides, those blacklights they use nowadays give me a migraine. 

 

Those were the fun days. I remember much of the same. The house I bowled in back in New England use to run a Scotch Doubles on Saturday night, followed by a colored pin deal after that. The house was always full from about 9:00 PM until 2:00 AM. If the night manager was in a good mood we could even get in a few pot games after. Many a Sunday I would get home just as the sun was coming up, and the only headache was called a hangover, of course I was single and free at the time. Met my wife bowling scotch doubles. Now everything is lasers, smoke, and ridiculous loud music. BTW do you have your travel arrangements set yet.

It looks like I have to go out of Baltimore to get any decent rates.  Best shot out of DC National will cost us almost $400 each at the moment.  I can book Baltimore on SW for $488 for both of us.  Now I just need to work on shortening the stopovers.  We're staying at Homewood Suites for Mrs.-Me's rate of $39/night.

 

Mike300Smith:

It looks like I have to go out of Baltimore to get any decent rates.  Best shot out of DC National will cost us almost $400 each at the moment.  I can book Baltimore on SW for $488 for both of us.  Now I just need to work on shortening the stopovers.  We're staying at Homewood Suites for Mrs.-Me's rate of $39/night.

 

Mike, Southwest out of BWI $469 2 stops going out. nonstop coming back. Leave 4/22 at 8:30 am arrive 1:35 pm. Return 4/26 depart at 10:45 arrive 4:20 nonstop to BWI. Brian and Randy will be arriving about an hour earlier.

skullpants:

Is "Exploring Uranus" one of those names, by any chance?

 

That name has been used in the past, but it is not one of those on display on the past-winners plaque. But obviously, you get the idea. 

Fish I encountered the Sarasota Exploring Uranus team at one of the Florida tournaments that I participated in a few years back.

One of the all-women's teams is called Lickety Split.

Good grief, y'all -- I'm not sure which is worse -- listening to street rap with kids in hearing range or watching this thread go south (and WITHOUT a parental advisory on either, I might add) ...

 

 Dear Mike:

I'll "spare" the thread any more "grief" by not mentioning any more of those team names. 

Mike300Smith:

Good grief, y'all -- I'm not sure which is worse -- listening to street rap with kids in hearing range or watching this thread go south (and WITHOUT a parental advisory on either, I might add) ...

 

Mike did you ever get my PM. I will keep shopping around for you.

This past weekend we didn't have the Music but a birthday party next to the City Tournament. Kids were running around the ball return and I almost walked over one on the lanes, and I was 4 lanes from the party.  Guess the center needed to make every dollar they could. 

 

Wow, this is a very interesting thread, I bowl in a 12 lane house and many Sat & Sun they usually have at least 2 birthday parties going every 2 1/2 hrs. Thank goodness that our center uses its head when it comes to the music during these times. We use the Siris music program which does have a station that is rap but it is censored and we very seldom have the music so loud you can't hear yourself think, even on the nights they have "glo" bowl they don't have it up so loud it pops the older crowds ears while they try to enjoy bowling. One of the main reasons they don't play the music loud is so the staff can hear if there is lane trouble.

BTW, guys we have a true mixed team on one of our leagues that uses the LS name previously mentioned. We have had some unsavory names for teams in the past years but think we have finally got it through to the bowlers that since we are a family oriented center and much of the summer business is based on open bowling that our teams now choose names that are nonoffensive. Censorship of team names in a family oriented business should be allowed since it is open to the public many people wouldn't go to a store that had those kinds of names on the wall they would probably find another place to shop or file to have the offensive names removed from public view.

HJ

I know that the props in our area are  big on birthday parties, so big that they will not give you all of their lanes for a major tournament coming to town.  They have to reserve at least 8-10 lanes for possible birthday parties even though you are trying to schedule the squads 2 years in advance. 

  Moonlight bowling used to be one of our favorite nights out with our friends but we can no longer stand the music so loud you cannot carry on a conversation and lights that hit you right in the eye when you are trying to deliver a ball.  Since I don't drink I never got used to the new theme but there were quite a few young people that seemed to enjoy it.  Although I will say that one of the centers has been having a problem filling up their moonlight squads lately.

We shouldn't worry though because the BPAA is coming to our rescue so I am sure they have already informed their members that little things like this bother the old bowlers, their future is in the young bowlers.  But it is interesting to note that when bowling started losing it's integrity and members is when the shot got too easy.  Perfect games and 200+ averages are commonplace now. Now even when a 74 year old man buys a new ball and shoots a 300 game on his first league game can't get coverage in the local paper.  I have a good working relationship with all of our proprietors but an inflated average doesn't do me any good when I go to a tournament.