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by Bob Korth 7/01/13

 

Q. I have always been amazed that a 15 or 16 pound ball would deflect as much as it does when

contacting a 3 and ½ pound pin. Do you know how this happens?

 A. The pin is sitting on a base of about 2 inches in diameter. The part of the ball touching the lane is extremely small. So when it contacts the pin the weight of the pin plus the amount of surface it sits on has a deflection effect on the ball because of that small amount of surface the ball sits on. Not to mention the ball has just rolled down a lane with oil on the surface of the lane which the ball picks up. This reduces the amount of friction between the ball and the lane even more.

Q. I am getting older and have noticed my ball speed getting slower and slower. What can I do to get my ball speed back up?

A. I have been going through this very problem I just turned 71 and was getting very slow. I was recently on a trip around the US and I stopped by Kegel Co. and took a lesson there for the answer to this very problem. I found that number one I got very deliberate with my approach. This made me go very slow to the line. They showed me a tape of Chris Barnes and he takes 2 deliberate steps and the increases speed the last 3 steps gaining speed. I tried this and it helps but it does take some time to regain timing. I picked up about 1 mile per hour in ball speed. Then I visited a friend and coach in North Carolina, Ron Clifton. Together Ron and I determined it it might be easier to teach this old dog a new trick by moving back on the approach and simply going to the line faster with all steps. A longer first step in my 5 step approach to get things started. This was much easier for me to get timing back. After returning home during a practice session I tried another method. I backed up to the furthest set of dots on the approach and went to 6 steps. This only took about 10 minutes to get the timing down and I have gained 2 miles an hour in ball speed. With this method you don’t move the ball for the first 2 steps and then go into the swing. You can give all or any of these a try during practice but I do suggest having a coach with you to help determine which will work best for you.


When you read this article I will have just finished up a week at Bowl Expo. This is a BPAA sponsored week of seminars, and trade show in Las Vegas this year being held at Bally’s and Paris. If you would like to know more of the goings on at Bowl Expo ask me a question about it. I will answer it in next months article. Write [email protected]