May 8, 2008

Blind bowler, The Hammer, rolls 300 game :

read story | posted by justgary to Other at 2:51 PM CDT (11 comments total)

Great story. Maybe if I closed my eyes, I could bowl better too!!! Best thing about the story is no one is asking him to submit to a steroid test.

posted by RAZORDODGER at 7:29 PM CDT on May 8

That dude can roll, man.

I particularly liked the part about "...can't see the lane or the pins and he has "a heck of a time finding my ball sometimes." Cool post, justgary.

I wonder if he can tell by the sound the ball makes when he rolls if it is a good throw.

posted by steelergirl at 9:12 PM CDT on May 8

"I have something here for you. Your father wanted you to have this when you were old enough, but your uncle wouldn't allow it. He feared you might follow old Obi-Wan on some damn fool idealistic crusade like your father did. It's your father's bowling ball. This is the weapon of a Jedi Kegler. Not as clumsy or as random as a particle ball, but an elegant weapon for a more civilized age. For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Keglers were the guardians of alleys and lanes in the Old Republic. Before the dark times, before the PBA."
- Obi Wan Kegobi

posted by bobfoot at 11:28 PM CDT on May 8

I wonder if he can tell by the sound the ball makes when he rolls if it is a good throw.

Being a bowler, the ball sounds the same no matter how you throw it. The bowling alley would have to be pretty quiet to even hear the ball on the lane to begin with. He can tell by the way he releases the ball. He'll feel that through his fingers, hand, and arm swing.

It is an incredible feat. I have never thrown a 300. The best I've done is 288. I can't imagine doing that with my eyes closed. Even though there are some nights I feel like I'm bowling blind.

posted by dbt302 at 10:11 AM CDT on May 9

Being a bowler, the ball sounds the same no matter how you throw it. The bowling alley would have to be pretty quiet to even hear the ball on the lane to begin with.

dbt, you're probably correct, but I wouldn't doubt that his sense of hearing is a part of it. It's not uncommon for a blind person (or deaf) to rely heavily on their remaining senses. Maybe he heard a squeak in the floor where he starts. Oh, and by the 8th frame or so, I'm sure his lane, and the adjacent lanes were pretty quiet, while watching him bowl.

Either way, it's an amazing story. The two stories linked to in the article are great too. Thanks for posting this, justgary.

posted by BoKnows at 12:12 PM CDT on May 9

He's blind....and his score was 301 better than my personal best.

Okay, slight exaggeration on my part, but still an amazing story.

posted by NerfballPro at 12:24 PM CDT on May 9

WOW, I'v been bowling for about 40 years and my avg. has been in the 220s for many years. I'v had 298, 299, and many 11 in a row and i just had my first 300 on april 15 2008.rolling a 300 and being blind is one heck of a task. AMAZING AND CONGRATS!!!!

posted by freypac at 1:30 PM CDT on May 9

A tip of the cap to you, bobfoot. When I bowl it's all "Use the arrows, Luke" and "Luke,you've shut off your scoring computer. Is everything OK?". A Jedi Kegler feels the beer flow through him (or her). Just remember, fear leads to anger; anger leads to hate; hate leads to 7-10 splits.

posted by THX-1138 at 2:24 PM CDT on May 9

I can't even bowl a 300 game with having good eye's, way to go Davis!

posted by dman at 3:32 PM CDT on May 9

Being a bowler too (204 avg) the most impressive fact is he's like 100 years old. To bowl strikes consistently you have to have some serious action into the pocket. Sure, you can get lucky with strikes without hook, but never 12 in a row. Usually, like most sports, you start to lose flexibility and power with age, and everything slows down. Plus, he's blind? I would have loved to have been there. That is amazing.

I envy you freypac, I have always choked on frame 9. I suck.

posted by smithnyiu at 5:52 PM CDT on May 9

Makes me think much less of the 214 I bowled Saturday... good for him to pull off such a feat. I look forward to seeing if he can still bowl at that level at age 90.

posted by Kendall at 3:19 PM CDT on May 12

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