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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1986-08-20, Page 14a Page 14-CLINTON N h: wS- ri t..r .b %ii u ' 1Ni i V I , n v 4 1 u _ I !VI' I' •ill l uHb; The fine art of the step and release in lawn bowling is demonstrated by Walter Newcombe of the Clinton Lawn Bowling Club. (David Emslie photo) A traditional game. By David Emslie CLINTON - Although many people have seen the men and women in white out on the lawn bowling greens, few realize there are many traditions and complexities about the game. Just the history of the Clinton Lawn Bowl- ing Club speaks of tradition itself. No exact date for the opening of the club is known, but according to club member Walter Newcombe, "1894 is the closest date we can find, but there are no minutes from those days, there are no minutes until 1906." The original clubhouse, with the odd renovation, still houses the club's members. Mr. Newcombe was responsible for helping to make the clubhouse more accommodating. "There was nothing on the floor, and a couple of light bulbs hanging down," he said. "When I moved from the original store I salvaged the floor and light fixtures so they'd have a decent floor." Also a tradition is the white clothing bowlers wear. Although most bowlers wear white, Mr. Newcombe said this clothing is not compulsory, but traditional. Straying from tradition into how the game is played is a large step, as there are many rules and regulations surrounding the game. First there are the balls, which are known. ; as bowls, and are made of composition rub- ber, though the old bowls were made of wood. These bowls weigh an average of 3.5 pounds and come in six different sizes, vary- ing by one -sixteenth of an inch in diameter. "One side is weighted or biased to pro- mote draw. You don't bowl straight, you throw to the side," Mr. Newcombe said. He tried to come up with a simple defini- tion of draw, but it was not possible. Pro- bably the easiest explanation is that the draw is how much the ball hooks or curves while traveling down the green. The average set of four bowls costs ap- proximately $179. Next in line for description is the jack. The jack, cat, or kitty is the little white ball used as a target 'for the bowlers. The jack must be white, and is approximately 2.5 inches in diameter. Finally there is, the playing field, with a number of different alleys known as greens. Greens are usually 12 to 14 feet wide for each lane. "The official length is 132 feet, but around here they average 100 to 110 feet long;" Mr. Newcombe explained. There is usually bent grass on bowling greens, which is .a special , bowling green grass. The greens are fertilized and watered frequently, and they are cut and rolled prior to each tournament at the Clinton club. Because Clinton's greens are rolled so fre- quently they are fairly fast. "The better bowlers would like them fast, you get better control over your bowl. If they are not fast you have to heave them and lose control," Mr. Newcombe said. He explained that each green has a dif- ferent draw, but the outside lanes are usual- ly heavier, or slower. The last piece of equipment necessary to play the game after the bowls, jacks arid greens are the flat soled shoes. "Brown or white are usual," Mr. Newcombe said. "Brown is better because if you stand at the other end with white shoes and the cat is in front of you it is pretty hard to pick out sometimes." Now that all of the equipment is accounted for, how the game is played can .)ie. explained. The bowlers stand on a mat to bowl, the front of which must be six feet from the ditch, which runs along the end of the greens. Once on the mat they aim for the cat, which must be a minimum of 75 feet from the front of the mat. As this is a general explanation of the game, Mr. Newcombe explained it in terms of a doubles tournament where each player on a team bowls four bowls each. After the 16 bowls are bowled, an end is completed. Usually 12 to 14 ends are played. ' "After that end is finished the bowl closest to the jack gets the point," he said. However, teams can get more than just the one point. All of the bowls closer to the jack than the opponents closest bowl count for score. Turn to page 15 • Sports Sport bits Although I have thoroughly enjoyed writing this sports column over the last weeks, I've found I am running into a few problems. The first, and most monumental pro- blem is I am not very knowledgeable in a lot of sports. After playing football for so many years, it is understandable I have a good handle on the game, but I cannot write football every week. I also don't get a chance to go out and try a new sport each week so I can relate my experiences. Another problem I face is running out of ideas. It isn't like I can call up Tony Dorsett and ask him what he thinks of Herschel Walker at a moments notice. What I write has to come from me and from information I gather from other papers. Therefore, this week, as no great idea popped into my head, I would like to relate some sports happenings which have caught my eye recently. First I would like to point out that my guess of the United States Football League (USFL) break up bringing some color to the Canadian Football League (CFL) was proven correct on August 15 when Ottawa played British Columbia. With J.C. Watts gone from Ottawa's roster, Todd Dillon, a recent refugee from the USFL got a bit of play time at quarter- back. From the little of Dillon I saw, I can say the man throws a bullet. Another veteran CFL quarterback was given the boot earlier this week. Although Montreal has yet to admit Joe Barnes was let go because they have signed USFL quarterback Walter Lewis, experts are taking Barnes' departure as a strong sign. In the other half of North America there are also some interesting football moves taking place. With the acquistion of Herschel Walker to the Dallas Cowboys, Dallas should have an amazing backfield, teaming Walker with Dorsett. �. The Buffalo Bills have also made an ad- mirable deal to get Jim Kelly to sign with their team. Although he comes expensive- ly, at approximately $1.5 -million a year, he was the top passer in the USFL, and can hopefully help the suffering Bills, who have won only four of 32 games. One last football note. Geoff Townsend, who was recently traded by the Toronto Argonauts to Calgary, has retired. The five-year CFL veteran said he would rather retire than move west. Now, into the world of boxing. Although never an avid boxer myself, except when I was very young, I still enjoy watching the sport. It is nice to see some Canadians moving up in the world of boxing, or at least get- ting some coverage. Sean O'Sullivan has to be my favorite boxer, and I am hoping his hand will heal soon so he can get back in the ring. Speaking of O'Sullivan, Sugar Ray Leonard had been helping him out over the last little bit. This may change now, as Leonard will be returning to the ring himself in March of 1987. He will be battling the middleweight boxing champion, Marvelous Marvin Hagler. This will be Leonard's second time coming out of retirement, and by the time March rolls around, he will not have fought for 34 months. Last May he said he would return to the ring only to fight Hagler. Finally, Canadian heavyweight boxing champion Willie de Wit will not be fighting his scheduled bout for this weekend. An elbow injury, sustained while sparring, will stop him from fighting his first bout in front of his home town since he turned pro- fessional two years ago. The last sport I will go into, at least for this week, is baseball. Although I was never a great baseball fan, while I was living in Mississauga it was pretty hard to avoid Blue Jays fever. Since moving to Clinton I have become an avid statistics reader, and try to stay on top of the Jays. Since I am not an expert on the sport, I'll just relay some of the rumors floating around the Mississauga area about the Jays. Even though most people are big fans of the Jays, the general concensus is they cannot play catch up with the likes of Boston, New York and Detroit leading them. But, with 43 games left in their schedule, who can really say? So, there are some of the recent happen- ings in the sports world that I have found interesting. Hopefully by next week, I'll have an idea for my column.' Three Pitch Tournament The Clinton Recreation Committee an- nounced recently that a co-ed three pitch tournament will be played on September 5 and September 6. Teams must have at least four men and four women on their rosters. Around six teams have already signed up, but the committee would like to see eight, so anyone interested should get go- ing and register. Recreation committee sets ice rental rates By David Emslie CLINTON - The recreation committee here set their new ice rental rates for this year at their meeting on August 17. Based on a five per cent increase, the new prime time rates for out of town skaters will rise from $46 to $49. In town skaters will face an increase of $3, from $44 to $47. Minor hockey and figure skating will be paying $31 for prime time, a $2 raise over last year's price of $29. The minor tournament rate will go up $2, from $22 last year to $24 this year, as will the adult tournament rate, which will be $37 this year. Skating parties:Vill get the $27•this" year, again a $2 rise from last year. Non prime time rental rates will be at a set price of $20 this year for both in and out of towners. Rental rates for the arena floor with li- quor will go from $340 to $360, while the arena floor without liquor will cost $135 this year. Rental of the arena and auditorim will also cost $135. The cost of renting space for meetings will remain at $15. Other matters concerning the arena discussed at the recreation meeting includ- ed new flooring for the arena. The committee will be approaching coun- cil with the idea of putting Toughflex floor- ing in the main lobby area and the two washrooms in the arena. The total cost of this cut proof flooring would be $11,000, with 50 per cent of the ttiioney-doming• from an Ontario Neighborhood Tmprovtitnent Program (ONIP) grant, Recreation Director Steve Campbell said. "It has been recommended to go ahead with new flooring in the upstairs auditorium," Mr. Campbell said. "It will cost around $5,000 for the upstairs." Clinton's pool staff will be facing an ad- justment in their wages. "We are adjusting wages to keep within government stan- dards," Mr. Campbell said. The eighth_ annual hockey school, held in Clinton and put on' by the recreation com- mittee, was also discussed at the meeting. This year's school will run from September 15 to September 20 at a cost of $75. The coaches for the school will be Bill Webber, Dennis Martin and Peter Thompson: /Wording to . Mr. Campbell, "There are three age groups that run for an hour and a half each day, with a scrimmage on Saturday." Over the years the school has been a suc- cess. "It is always full," he said. Bartliff batting .714 in fastball league playoffs Men's Fastball League Top 10 Batters in league games and playoffs ABH BA 1. Brian Bromley (Lawries) 51 24 .471 2. Dave Bartliff (Merners) 59 26 .441 3. Bill Van Ninhuys (Dynamos) 73 27 .429 4. Scott Millar (Dynamos) 73 31 .425 5. Brian Millar (Dynamos) 64 27 .422 6. Doug Riehl(Merners) 61 25 .410 7. Wayne Andrews (Norholme) 67 27 .403 8. Len Van Wonderen (Norholme) 70 25 400 9. George Collins (Norholme) 61 24 .393 10. Fraser Abbott (Dynamos) 54 20 .370 Top 10 Batters in Playoffs AB it BA 1. Dave Bartliff (Merners) 7 5 .714 2. Fraser Abbott (Dynamos) 10 6 .600 3. Don Freeman (Dynamos) 10 6 .600 4. Keh Daer (Merners) 11 6 .545 5. Glen Lamb (Dynamos) - 11 5 .455 6. Neil Cartwright (Dynamos) 11 5 .455 7. Travis Lyndon (Vikings) 8. Dave Wright (Dynamos) 9. Bob Ladd (Vikings) 10. Scott Millar (Dynamos) 11 5 .455 9 4 .444 7 3 .429 12 5 .417 • Last Week's Scores August 13: Norholme 8, Merners 12; Dymanos 17, Vikings 6. August 18: Vikings 7, Dynamos 13; Norholme 0, Merners 7. C&W Home Improvements • Remodelling • Refinishing and Refurbishing Door Framas, Windows, Baseboards, Staircases • Furniture Refinishing 482-7948 GLASS/ ALUMINUM Ss. us for your building projects •Glass and mirrors •Energy-efficient replacement windows • Window & screen repair •Plexiglass • Door service and repairs •Complete range of aluminum siding and building products canton GEAk00 mirror and aluminum products 24 Princess St. West, CLINTON 482-3322 BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY 1 F RM patz SALES and SERVICE i And Parts KEITH SIEMON FARM SYSTEMS LTD. 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