Bowling Game - Equipment and Supplies:

The game of bowling is one of America's favorite pastimes since it is really easy to learn how to do and almost any can do it (54 million people bowl at least once a year). It used to be that you would go to the bowling alley with your entire family, pick a bowling lane and roll. Families bowl less together these days, but bowling remains a popular form of entertainment for teenagers and adults. Bowling alleys have also made kid friendly bowling lanes that have bumper guards which keep balls from going in the gutter, essentially making sure kids get at least a few pins knocked down on each roll of the ball. Modern bowling alleys also have computerized scoring instead of doing it manually (which took some time). Now you just type in the name of each player and let the computer do all the math. A perfect score in bowling is 300 (all strikes) and although it seems unattainable is quite common amongst avid bowlers. A strike in bowling is knocking down all the pins on your first ball without ever having to use the 2nd ball. A "spare" is when all pins are knocked down using both your 1st and 2nd balls for a frame. A "turkey" is when you get 3 strikes in a row.

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Bowling equipment consists of a pair of bowling shoes, a bowling ball, and some people wear bowling shirts or wrist guards on their throwing hand. The majority of bowlers just rent their shoes (free) and the bowling balls are free to use (no rental fee). Games are about $1.50 at discounted times and $2-$3 at peak times. Bowling leagues have taken over most bowling alleys during the peak times, so individuals looking to get on a lane may have to wait. There are many bowling techniques amongst amateurs (discussed below), but most people throw straight balls down the lane unlike professional bowlers (PBA) who have slider balls. The official site of the PBA (Pro Bowlers Association) is at PBA.com - you can enter tournaments, see the pro schedules/tour, and see who leads the Denny's PBA Tour. Bowl.com is home to the United States Bowling Congress and is an excellent resource for bowling news and learning more about high school and collegiate bowling programs. AMF.com is a great place to start if you want to go bowling, they have tips and bowling alley locators so you can find where to take the family bowling. Keep in mind that bowling is the #1 participatory sport in America because it's fun and people of all ages can get involved. Instead of letting your kids play video games all day, get them out to your local bowling alley and be active. Bowling is the type of game you can play your entire life. Below we will get into buying bowling shoes, balls, bags, and other bowling supplies that will make your game more consistent and reliable.

Best Bowling Shoes:

When we first start bowling, we wear those funny looking rented bowling shoes with wacky colors and big shoestrings. I liken them to a pair of clown shoes, only I don't want to look like a clown when I bowl. Even the bowling shoes you buy look a little different, but at least 1000's of other people haven't worn them before you. The top brands among bowling shoes are ABS, Brunswick, BSI, Circle Athletics, Dexter, Dyno-Thane, Ebonite, Elite, and Etonic. You can check out the line-up of mens bowling shoes here. The top selling bowling shoes are the Dexter Mens Ricky II Black ($29.99), the Etonic Basic Mens Blue Flame ($33.99), Dexter Mens SST 6 LX Black Right ($109.99), Dexter Mens Slash ($34.99), Dexter Womens Raquel III White/Pink ($29.99), Dexter Womens Raquel III White/Blue Wide Width ($29.99), and the Circle Womens Rio Pink/Black ($35.99). Other popular models include the Dyno-Thane ABS Mens Sport Ultra ($88.99), Brunswick Ladies Zone Target White ($46.99), the BSI Ladies Suede Cosmic Rental Shoe ($34.99), the Ebonite Childrens Rental ($29.99) - velcro straps make it easy for kids (no laces), the Elite Mens Triton Black ($42.99) and the Elite Womens Athena ($42.99). Best-selling women's bowling shoes are listed here. Another site to consider if you are looking for specific shoes is Bowling.com - they carry mens bowling shoes, womens bowling shoes, kids bowling shoes, left hand shoes, rental shoes, right hand shoes, and wide bowling shoes. The site consistently adds new shoes to their "latest bowling shoes" category so you can keep up with the fashion trends of bowling.

Reviews of the top Bowling Balls & Bags:

My dad always complains about finding a rental bowling ball that doesn't fit his hand properly and he's been doing this for decades. We say "just buy a darn ball that fits", yet he never does. If you plan on bowling more than a few times a year, then buying a bowling ball is a good idea and will ultimately improve your game with more consistent results. The top makers of bowling balls are AMF, Brunswick, Clear Balls, Columbia, Dyno-Thane, Ebonite, Elite, Hammer, Lane Masters, MoRich, Roto-Grip, Storm, and Track. They are available in high performance, entry-level, intermediate, or plastic/spare balls (most popular bowling balls here). You can buy kids bowling balls, clear balls, professional balls and Viz-A-Balls. The best high performance bowling balls are the Hammer Black Widow ($124.99) - this a professional series ball that "goes long and attacks violently on the backend", Ebonite The Infinite One ($119.99), the Brunswick Radical Inferno ($125.99) - octane coverstock, or the Columbia Action Attack ($143.99). The top selling mid-priced balls are the Brunswick BVP Rampage ($94.99), Hammer Raw Hammer Pain ($104.99), and the Storm Jolt ($91.99). Kids have smaller hands that are constantly growing so buying a bowling ball for children may not be a wise financial decision. If you child plays in leagues and bowls quite often, then purchasing a kids ball makes sense. The most popular kids bowlings balls are the Brunswick Spiral Glow Viz-A-Ball ($81.99), the Columbia White Dot Blue Pearl ($49.99), the Brunswick Hello Kitty Pink Viz-A-Ball ($99.99), and the AMF Xtreme Glow ($48.99). The Viz-A-Balls are the best for kids since you can popular characters and designs on them like Barbie, team logos, Hello Kitty, Spongebob Squarepants, or a Smiley Face. You can research and buy bowling balls online at Bowling.com or Bowlingball.com. They also carry bowling ball bags ($40), bowling gloves ($15), wrist supports ($18), bowling shirts ($12), and bowling videos or DVDs for about $25-$30.

Bowling Tips - Technique:

As we mentioned above, bowlers have many styles and techniques for launching the ball down the lane in an attempt to knock down as many pins as possible. All the professional bowlers use hook or slider throwing styles so that the bowling ball comes into the pins at an angle which gives them the best chance of knocking over all the pins in one shot. Amateurs and intermediate players tend to throw a more "straight" ball that leaves more room for error and less chances at strikes. There are bowling lessons one can take, but learning to bowl properly requires lots of practice and dedication. There are bowling videos that show the various techniques of professional bowlers and are a great way to learn which is best for you. For bowling tips, we recommend going to http://www.bowlersparadise.com/tips/ - they've got dozens of quality bowling pointers on using insert tape, preparing your shoes, getting the right hook, keeping your eye on the target, target practice, spare ball tips, practice thoughts, knee bend, the release and much more.

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