It's funny what people will do to make new friends.
Some will spend all of their time talking to virtual strangers on telephones. Others will strike up conversations in shopping malls, and still others will hang out at bars.
Nothing wrong with any of those methods, but I am here to tell you that there is a better and simpler way: Join a sanctioned bowling league.
You don't have to be a good bowler, you don't have to be athletic, and you don't have to be rich to enjoy belonging to a sanctioned league.
Bowling, of all sports, can be done by everyone from age 2 to 102.
I have seen people in wheelchairs bowl 200 games, blind people roll 180 games, and hospitalized veterans bowl 250 games. I once saw a boy stricken with muscular dystrophy roll a perfect game.
And they all had fun bowling, no matter what their score.
So you may be asking yourself why do I advocate bowling in a league rather than just going to a neighborhood bowling center to bowl occasionally. And you may be especially curious about why I advocate bowling only in leagues sanctioned by the Women's International Bowling Congress or the American Bowling Congress.
The reason is twofold: (1) You get a lot for your money; (2) You become eligible to bowl in city, state and national tournaments.
It costs about $16 to belong to a sanctioned league, which boils down to about 50 cents per league night. But for those few pennies, you receive printed rules that are the same all over the country, supplies, awards, and membership in the world's largest sporting organization.
More important, you become eligible to compete in local, state, and national WIBC and ABC tournaments where you become closer friends with your teammates and make a lot of new friends. For example, if you signed up for the 2001 WIBC National Championship Tournament in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., you will be joining about 50,000 other women bowlers at the event.
Another venue opened to sanctioned league bowlers is the 2000 Festival of Bowling, scheduled Oct. 20-Nov 19 in Reno, Nev. There are 13 separate tournaments within the Festival—mixed team, mixed doubles, family doubles, 300 Club singles, senior doubles, open trios, and strike jackpot to name a few. And you can bowl only if you are a WIBC or ABC card-carrying member.
Then there is the healthy exercise part of league competition.
Make no mistake, bowling is not as strenuous as tennis, but it's a lot more strenuous than golf, especially since you have to ride in carts.
The average league bowler walks or runs, depending on his style, about 330 yards each night while first carrying and then swinging a bowling ball weighing between eight and 16 pounds. Then there is the 1,000 feet you have to walk back to your seat after throwing the ball—smiling all the way as your teammates give you high-fives.
For the next five minutes you will spend time talking to your teammates and the team you are bowling against. You will get to know a lot of new people because you will bowl every team in the league at least once.
You'll be surprised how easy it is to make new friends. A few will become lifetime friends because you will have something in common—league bowling.
Now is the time to sign up for 2000-2001 leagues, which are now getting started. Most run through April.
Here are some things you should check out before joining a league:
Here's hoping you strike out for your nearest bowling center and join in the league fun.
Dick Evans is a member of the ABC and PBA Halls of Fame.