Bowling Essay, Research Paper

Picture this scene: The best athletes in your community are gathered for the

annual high school varsity letter awards banquet. Halfback Henry and Jumpshot

Jenny already have received accolades from the Master of Ceremonies for their

accomplishments, but the attention is now focused on Susan Strike, Central

High’s varsity bowling superstar. Bowling is Central High’s newest varsity

letter sport," he proclaims, "and we’re extremely proud to announce

Susan Strike has not only earned All-Conference honors for leading the Little

Nine with a 206 average, but she led Central High to its first state bowling

championship." A standing ovation follows. You beam because Susan is a

product of your youth league program. She is the first of a new generation of

Varsity Bowling letter winners and she’ll serve as an inspiration for hundreds

of young bowlers in your community. This scene may sound like a dream to you,

but it’s a reality in some areas of the United States where a handful of

dedicated proprietors have laid the groundwork to launch the nation-wide Varsity

Bowling program during the 1998-99 bowling season. Varsity Bowling is going to

be a two-pronged attack: 1. From the Top Down – Five states have been selected

to participate in a targeted Varsity Bowling program during the 1998-99 with a

focused effort to secure state high school athletic association approval for the

sport. 2. From the Bottom Up – Every local/regional proprietor group in any area

of the United States is invited to "test" the Varsity Bowling waters

on their own. A comprehensive organizational kit, including detailed manual,

videotape and support materials, is available today from the Young American

Bowling Alliance and the Bowling Proprietors Association of America to help your

proprietor group and local association volunteers get a headstart in organizing

a "high school club conference" to demonstrate the program’s

feasibility. Varsity Bowling is a program that cannot succeed without the

commitment and dedication of the proprietors. You own the arenas, you have the

expertise and it’s your youth bowlers who will benefit the most. Varsity Bowling

is one of the most comprehensive step-by-step organizational programs ever

developed in bowling (or any sport). It is based upon 10 years of experience and

research in Northern Illinois and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, culminating in

resounding success. Be Part of Bowling’s Biggest Success Story in Decades

Varsity Bowling will become our sport’s most significant success story in

decades, with your help. Mark these figures down and watch them grow: In

1996-97, only 728 of America’s more than 16,000 high schools offered any kind of

bowling program. Out of 6.1 million high school students who participated in

athletics in 1996-97, only 15,600 were able to bowl for their schools. Only

seven of America’s 50 states had as many as 30 high schools offering bowling as

an extracurricular activity. Bowling has nearly 500,000 young people

participating in Young American Bowling Alliance leagues and tournaments. They

know and love bowling, and most of them are denied the opportunity to experience

the thrill and excitement of bowling for a letter for their high school teams.

American Sports Data states interest in bowling is at an all-time high among

young people, with a 15% increase in interest among pre-teens and 17% growth in

interest among high schoolers. As a proprietor, you will never experience any

program as rewarding as you’ll discover by becoming a part of the Varsity

Bowling team. Send for your comprehensive Varsity Bowling organizational kit,

including detailed manual, videotape and support materials, today! order your

kit now or Send for your comprehensive Varsity Bowling organizational kit,

including detailed manual, videotape and support materials, today! To order your

Varsity Bowling kit, please send an email to Jennifer Williamson or call her at

the Young American Bowling Alliance (414 423-3398. Smart Program The Scholarship

Management and Accounting Reports for Tenpins (SMART) program will help locate

and secure existing bowling scholarships for YABA’s membership. SMART will also

help any organization start and manage a new bowling scholarship program while

relieving new and existing bowling scholarship providers from the burden of

administering their scholarship funds. YABA has developed two service levels to

accomplish this mission: LEVEL ONE Level one is SMART’s information and

assistance level. This SMART level can be contacted in one of three ways -

telephone, mail or email. SMART Level One will provide the following services:

Information on how to start a bowling scholarship league, tournament or written

application. Information on how to manage the scholarship dollars collected.

Advise, assist and support organizations regarding any problem encountered in

conducting or administering their scholarship programs. A booklet containing

location of scholarship leagues, tournaments, and written scholarships offered

worldwide; universities and colleges that offer bowling scholarships and those

offering bowling as a scholastic or club sport; and national scholarship

applications. LEVEL TWO In Level Two, the organization forwards their

scholarship dollars to SMART, and SMART will manage their scholarship dollar on

a daily basis. SMART charges no fee to use the program. SMART operates off the

interest made on the scholarship funds. At the end of each bowling season (July

31st) SMART will deduct the operating expenses from the total interest earned.

The remaining interest will be credited to each organization. The amount each

organization receives will be determined on a percentage basis by the total

amount of scholarship funds in their account. The organization then may use the

interest as new scholarships at their discretion. For more SMART information,

write to SMART 5301 S. 76th St., Greendale, WI 53129, call 414/423-3343, fax

414/421-3014 or e-mail Ed Gocha at [email protected]. 1999 Youth and

Collegiate Bowlers Scholarships SMART’s 1998 Youth and Collegiate Bowling

Educational Guide is provided here for you to download. Junior Olympics Program

To help young bowlers progress from their first visit to a center to becoming a

Junior Olympic Gold member, YABA has created a pipeline (to be released in July

1999), to guide them through the different stages of development and prepare

them for active roles as participants in the adult membership organizations.

With this road map, youth bowlers will be guided through five different levels

of bowling; Introduction to Bowling, First Organized Program, League

Participation and Introduction to Tournament Competition, Purely Competitive and

Elite Competition (TEAM USA). The Gold Progam Who are Gold members? The Gold

Program is the highest level of the USA Junior Olympic Bowling Program. To

become a Junior Olympic Gold member, athletes must carry a minimum 165 average

for girls and 175 for boys based on at least 21 games and be YABA members in

good standing. Only Gold members are eligible to participate in the Junior

Olympic Program’s pinnacle event, the Junior Olympic Gold National

Championships. More than 500 athletes competed in the National Championships

held in July in Orlando, Fla. Complete Coverage of the 1999 Junior Olympic Gold

National Championships. Gold members (YABA members with minimum average of 165

for girls and 175 for boys) may qualify to compete for a spot on the Junior

Olympic Bowling TEAM USA through the Junior Olympic Gold National Championships.

The program’s goals are to emphasize advanced training, coaching and team

bowling. In addition, the program will help develop more elite bowlers to feed

into collegiate or professional bowling and become future members of American

Bowling Congress or Women’s International Bowling Congress. How does the Junior

Olympic Gold National Championships work? Athletes qualify for the National

Championships by winning or finishing high enough in a Gold Event. (Entries paid

by the Event sponsor.) The five-day competition is conducted on multiple lane

conditions and consists of double elimination match play. The top 16 boys and

top 16 girls advance to round-robin finals to compete to win the six boys and

six girls spots available on the Junior Olympic TEAM USA. The Junior Olympic

Bowling Program was created from YABA’s partnership with USA Bowling, and in

conjunction with the United States Olympic Committee. The Junior Olympic program

focuses on athletes’ skill levels rather than age and gender and offers several

player development levels. Gold members have the opportunity to become members

of Junior Olympic TEAM USA, chosen annually at the Junior Olympic Gold National

Championships. Being a Junior Olympic TEAM USA member offers several benefits,

including representing the United States in national and international

competition, access to scholarships, training at the United States Olympic

Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., all-expense paid travel and

competition fees, uniforms, recognition from other skilled bowlers and being

part of a feeder system for future TEAM USA members. Canadian members are

eligible to be Junior Olympic Gold members, compete in the National

Championships and earn scholarships. They are unable to be Junior Olympic TEAM

USA members. Canada has its own tournament, the Canadian Tenpin Federation Team

Trials, which lead to its champions being named to TEAM CANADA. For more

information about the Junior Olympic Program, email [email protected] or [email protected].

Featured Events Junior Olympics Program To help young bowlers progress from

their first visit to a center to becoming a Junior Olympic Gold member, YABA has

created a pipeline (to be released in July 1999), to guide them through the

different stages of development and prepare them for active roles as

participants in the adult membership organizations. 1999 USA Bowling

Championships USA Bowling and $10 May Get You Around the World. Nothing in

sports compares to wearing the red, white and blue and representing your country

in international competition. Your chance to experience the feeling first hand

is as easy as one, two, three "steps." Take that first step today by

bowling in a Local Qualifying event. Bowling centers may conduct qualifiers at

any time, during regular league sessions or special events. Associations can

easily build a Local Qualifier into an Association Championship tournament. Send

your all-events champion or your high-average bowler to the next level.

Coca-Cola Youth Bowling Championships Tournament June 23, 1999 The Coca-Cola?

Youth Bowling Championships, conducted by the Young American Bowling Alliance (YABA)

and sponsored by Coca-Cola? USA, is the premier international tournament for

youth bowlers. Featured Events Junior Olympics Program To help young bowlers

progress from their first visit to a center to becoming a Junior Olympic Gold

member, YABA has created a pipeline (to be released in July 1999), to guide them

through the different stages of development and prepare them for active roles as

participants in the adult membership organizations. 1999 USA Bowling

Championships USA Bowling and $10 May Get You Around the World. Nothing in

sports compares to wearing the red, white and blue and representing your country

in international competition. Your chance to experience the feeling first hand

is as easy as one, two, three "steps." Take that first step today by

bowling in a Local Qualifying event. Bowling centers may conduct qualifiers at

any time, during regular league sessions or special events. Associations can

easily build a Local Qualifier into an Association Championship tournament. Send

your all-events champion or your high-average bowler to the next level. Featured

Events Junior Olympics Program To help young bowlers progress from their first

visit to a center to becoming a Junior Olympic Gold member, YABA has created a

pipeline (to be released in July 1999), to guide them through the different

stages of development and prepare them for active roles as participants in the

adult membership organizations. 1999 USA Bowling Championships USA Bowling and

$10 May Get You Around the World. Nothing in sports compares to wearing the red,

white and blue and representing your country in international competition. Your

chance to experience the feeling first hand is as easy as one, two, three

"steps." Take that first step today by bowling in a Local Qualifying

event. Bowling centers may conduct qualifiers at any time, during regular league

sessions or special events. Associations can easily build a Local Qualifier into

an Association Championship tournament. Send your all-events champion or your

high-average bowler to the next level.