![]() ![]() On the contrary, ten pins-big balls, we used to call it-puts a premium on strikes. It puts a premium on count-that is, using the third ball to pick up a precious extra pin or two. It leaves the fallen pins (deadwood) on the pin deck where bowlers can try to use them to pick up otherwise impossible spares. Why better? Candlepin bowling uses a ball that even a child can manage. I remain convinced to this day that candlepin bowling is the better, more challenging sport, even though it is an activity that has pretty much died out across Vermont and much of New Hampshire. But whenever I got the chance I watched those shows at my grandparents’ house, beamed out of the Boston area, and sometimes even on Channel 9 out of Manchester, NH or Channel 8 out of Poland Springs, Maine. We lived on a back road in West Woodstock, so there was no cable and therefore, no candlepin broadcasts. I don’t know how many of my childhood Saturday afternoon hours I spent watching Weber spin magic with his sixteen-pound ball, but there were plenty.Īs much as I enjoyed watching the events of the PBA tour, the bowling that I really got a kick out of was candlepins. He helped to put the PBA (Professional Bowlers Association) on the map in an era when color televisions were still rare and prize funds were miniscule. Weber was the greatest ten pin bowler-rivaled by Don Carter, and later Earl Anthony-of my youth. It’s a name that probably doesn’t ring too many bells in the Northeast, but hearing it took me back in time. ![]()
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