With Diablo Valley Bowl bringing back Penny Pinchers while also launching a trios league, a PBA Experience doubles league, and now this singles league on Monday nights, it sure seems that the plug is being pulled on Over The Wall. If they're going to struggle to raise ten teams of four bowlers, maybe the plug should be pulled.
At this point, it seems our options for Monday nights are:
ReplyDelete1) Over the Wall (if it survives);
2) Join Diablo's Monday Trios league with one of us rotating out each week;
3) Join Diablo's PBA Experience Doubles league, forming two teams;
4) Join Diablo's Singles Challenge league;
5) Join Albany Bowl's mixed 4s Reno League.
I'm almost certain #1 isn't going to be an option and I think #3 is doubtful. Judging by the things Bill and Adam have been saying, I think Over The Wall is finished as a league. I also don't expect their PBA Experience League to get off the ground. They had only three teams show up last year. We wrapped up the summer version last night and when they asked who would be returning for the PBA Experience league in the fall, I didn't see many hands go up.
Any preferences or suggestions?
OK I'M DOWN FOR #5 ALBANY BOWL AND THE MY SECOND CHOICE IS #4 THE SINGLES CHALLENGE.
ReplyDeleteThe hitch with Albany is Sharon's and Olivia's carpools. Can they opt out of their carpools on Mondays to bowl in Albany? I can't see them riding all the way out to Suisun City and Antioch in their carpools after work and then driving all the way back to Albany Bowl. That's turning a short fifteen minute drive from the office to Albany Bowl into a 2 hour (at least) ordeal. If that can't be worked out, I'm with The Coach. I think the Singles Challenge league is our next best option.
ReplyDeletethe singles challenge only has a max of 30 Hcp
ReplyDeleteIf I read that right.
so base average would be 170?
That's a good point. I took it to mean the league was limited to 30 bowlers but I didn't give it much thought. I think Peter's interpretation is likely the correct one. I'll ask Jim Service about the handicap. Is it 90% of 210? 80% of 220? Is there a cap of 30 pins? These are things we would need to know before joining that league.
DeleteI just talked to Sharon and she's confident she can work things out with her carpool so she can bowl in the Mixed 4s Reno league at Albany. It looks like we're leaning towards Albany. Now the question is, can Olivia work things out with her carpool?
ReplyDeleteOlivia says she can make it work with her carpool also. Coach has already contacted Mike Richards at Albany Bowl about the possibility of us joining. Before we confirm our entry, we need to know that Olivia is certain she can opt out of her carpool on Mondays.
DeleteGoing from Richmond to Antioch and back to Albany won't work. It barely worked for Concord which is 30-40 minutes closer to Antioch. If we're going to have only three bowlers present most of the time, we might as well join the trios league at Diablo. But if Olivia can commute to Richmond on Mondays so she can go straight from the office to Albany Bowl (which takes about 15 minutes), we can do move to Albany.
Olivia, have you worked out the details with your carpool so we can bowl at Albany? We can't wait too much longer. The Monday night league at Albany is nearly filled.
DeleteBefore we commit to that league, we need to be certain you're not riding back to Antioch after work on Mondays. These leagues at Albany have large prize funds and are very competitive. We need to arrive there with enough time to prepare and take our warmup shots. This won't happen if you're taking a 70 mile route through rush hour traffic to reach a bowling alley that's 4 miles from the office.
Without that certainty, I'm not going to bowl in this league.
According to Google Maps, the route from the office to Antioch, then back to Albany Bowl (under ideal conditions and without any stops) is 73.9 miles and takes 1 hour, 25 minutes. It's 43 minutes from Richmond to Antioch and 42 minutes from Antioch to Albany.
DeleteOf course, we know the ride from Richmond to Antioch would take place during the afternoon rush hour and would have at least one stop (most likely two). On weekday afternoons, the average ride from Richmond to Antioch stretches on average from 43 minutes to 58 minutes, making the full trip 1 hour, 40 minutes (without any stops).
Besides the absurdity of taking a 70 mile detour to reach a bowling alley that's about 4 miles from the office, our experiences in Concord the past two seasons tell us such a route to Albany won't work. If it was a struggle to reach Concord on time for a substantial part of the season, how will the situation be improved by moving to a location that's 20 miles farther away?
Frankly, The late and last-second arrivals were distracting, frustrating, and detrimental our performance. Moving to a location that's less than 15 minutes from the office should resolve that problem, not exacerbate it. It should allow us to arrive early so we can relax, get properly prepared and warmed up to compete.
I talked to Mike Richards at Albany Bowl yesterday. We're not in immenent danger of being locked out. They have 26 solid commitments with a maxium of 36 slots available. Some potential entrants are sitting on the fence. He's expecting to have 26 to 30 teams in the league.
DeleteStill, we need to solidify our plans for our own benefit. If Olivia can't opt of her carpool on Mondays, we'll have to revisit our options at Diablo Valley Bowl.
this is IF there is not enough teams for over the wall.... Right?
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure we're bound for Albany unless Diablo can provide us with something comparable to the league at Albany Bowl. The Reno Mixed 4s league already has thirty teams returning from last season and they're close to maxing out at 36 teams. They also have a weekend in Reno at the end of the season.
DeleteI like Diablo a lot but I don't know that The Blockheads are collectively excited about playing another season in a league with five-to-eight teams. Adam said they've found one new team for Over The Wall. Bill Cotter told Coach they're expecting defections from Over The Wall to the new Monday night mixed 3s league and the Penny Pinchers at Diablo. Neither of those work for us and Over The Wall looks like it can't keep pace with the competition and extras we'd get at Albany. Of course, I can speak only for myself...
BTW, I'm also bowling in the Tuesday Hot Spot league at Albany Bowl. The league is already full at 36 teams. It's $21.00 per week and the prize for first place is $4,000.00.