Nationals Pattern - First Impressions

[John_Velo]

Hi Guys and Gals,

Here is another ten minute thought.

I had the chance on the weekend to try out the Nationals pattern at Strike Zone Illawarra, the same as the Mick Camarda Memorial in two weeks.

I am not a power bowler, rev rate mid to high 200’s and like to keep the ball down the boards and online with the pocket. Each ball I had was spun up on the ball spinner at 800 grit no polish. My though was sure, 38ft but there is a reasonable volume, even though it looks like a house shot, but there is oil outside 9 boards.

From a pin above the bridge with the CG just right of the Grip Centre I found the ball was simple skidding through the pin deck and always looking to find its feet.

Next I went to my basic early roll ball, pin outside the ring finger and in line, CG on the Grip centre, I had the same result, the ball would start to roll earlier but almost back away from the pocket, speed was critical.

Next I tried stacked. Pin above the ring finger, cg just right of the grip center. This stacked layout gave the best result. It just needed a slightly slower ball speed. Counting it out I found that if the ball was at 3 second or just above, release to pins worked best.

For me, stroker I think a ball pin down and stacked will work well. Something with a heavy core to get the ball to roll at the end of the oil will work well.

Geoff Sara took a walk down the lanes at the end of a five game block, responce from Geoff was that the oil carry was right through the the pin deck.

What experience on this pattern have the rest of you found.

Thanks for reading.

 

[jason_doust]

Hi John,

There are so many variables here. Don't read too much into it. And what works for you may well be awful for somebody else. e.g. I'm liking the look of 5-6" pin to PAP gear and a medium-soft hand with very low tilt and rotation on this pattern. I don't think you would though! Also this pattern is quite flat, so it will play different from day to day, from pair to pair and depending on the weather.

What part of the lane did you settle on? Would be interesting to know.

The jury is still out for me as it has played differently every single time I've bowled on it. (In two different houses.) I thought I had a good bead on it until my last session when a squiggly left lane tricked me up. Now, not so sure. One thing is for sure, playing around 10 board is dreadful! You just get a bunch of hang outside and hook inside. I was throwing Brooklyns from that part of the lane! (How embarrassing!)

Sorry people, but the ultimate sacrifice must be made; You'll need to move your feet and target. Worst of all, accuracy and repetition will be rewarded over ball choice!

From what I've seen, you have to play a smidge further out (6-8 at the break point) and stay out and straight for as long as possible. If some clown comes along with a heavily sanded (sub-2000) ball inside and starts swinging it outwards on the fresh, then the streaking outwards will probably see that pair become a graveyard for ages before it opens up. (At nationals, there won't be ages between re-oils, btw.) I have played this pattern from a lot of angles and have found success in the usual fashion of keeping a keen eye on ball reaction and adjusting quickly. I've also had a lot of "what if" experiments end disastrously!

The left should play a smidge further inside than the right, which is always reasonable, given the lower amount of traffic and superior surface condition on their side. (Vastly superior on older installations.)

Gonna be an interesting Nationals. Shame I can't make it to Mick Carmada.

Cheers,
Jason

 

[mickyd213]

Hi John,

What board were you targeting at the arrows? It sounds like you have a similar shot to myself (but you bowl with the wrong hand... ) if you were bowling outside of 10 board, did the shot play like a reverse block...

 

[John_Velo]

Hey Jason,

As you said "From what I've seen, you have to play a smidge further out (6-8 at the break point) and stay out and straight for as long as possible."

That is exactly where I started and it went away fairly quickly.

I am trying to not read much into either as I know I was not being clean of my hand and the timing a little a miss. But the few shots that came together showed that outside 8 was good trying to hit 9 or 10 at the end of the oil.

It will be an interesting pattern to play, tough and fare.

As always, good shots will be rewarded, bad shots, well you will get exactly what you laydown.

 

[Ryan_E]

I plan on playing this pattern on Sunday; I will let you know how I go. So far; sounds like a pattern I'd love to play!

 

[Phluff]

We're running it for our Victorian Sports Series event this weekend. Have about 40+ bowlers playing 8 games.

 

[da_cowman]

Don't forget you're playing on a different surface, which is probably one of the most important variables.

Ebonite NSW Sport Series at Rooty Hill on the Nationals Pattern. That will be the best practice you can get...

Cow

 

[John_Velo]

Hi Stephen,

It will be very interesting to see how different it plays from the Illawarra to Rooty Hill.

I agree, for the nationals, you really do have to bowl in the Ebonite NSW Sport Series at Rooty Hill.

For the Mick Camarda Memorial, go throw a few games at Strike Zone Illawarra.

Both will be challenging I am sure.

 

[BigDaz]

Im very much looking forward to the Mick Camarda Memorial. Im starting to get a shot going again after all the troubles i have been having. I bowled at Rooty Hill Sport Series last year, and unfortunetly my 1 Tournament ball i owned got gouged and cut up down the back the day before, so i was left with my only other ball at the time, a Storm Paradigm Domination(2007) drilled very mildly for the wood lanes here at taree. Couldnt get any movement at all so was a bad experience bowling on the nats pattern last year.

Hopefully this year will have the full arsenal and a bit of mental presence. I've been focusing more on shot making and less on scores lately, just trying to bowl well and enjoy myself.

 

[jason_doust]

Don't forget you're playing on a different surface, which is probably one of the most important variables.

Ebonite NSW Sport Series at Rooty Hill on the Nationals Pattern. That will be the best practice you can get...

Cow

I was going to mention surface, but the only real difference between Kegel Edge and Brunswick Anvilane is the pattern printed onto it and the age of the two installations. There will be no substitute for playing at Rooty Hill, so take all practice in other houses (especially those without Nationals squads going on) with a grain of salt. Air conditioning plays a big role in how the pattern plays, as does the gel time where the pattern rests before being bowled on, allowing the oil to cool down and solidify on the lane.

This pattern will also vary a lot depending on who's been on the pair before you. There's nothing like the joy of getting on a pair where somebody has burned or streaked you a really nice spot and you just happened to have a piece that fits it like a glove. Likewise, there's nothing like getting on a pair with some cretin throwing a lump of charcoal right where everybody else is, making a bloody mess of things for everyone.

HINT: If you really want to carve a spot in a pattern, use your charcoal ball OUTSIDE where the blend is. That way you increase the bounce. Using it right on the spot just creates a hang spot outside your line and it all turns to crap in a big hurry with hang to the outside and hook to the inside, giving you a score sheet that looks like tennis sets. (6-3,6-2,6-love.)

Cheers,
Jason

 

[Geoff300]

Don't forget you're playing on a different surface, which is probably one of the most important variables.

Ebonite NSW Sport Series at Rooty Hill on the Nationals Pattern. That will be the best practice you can get...

Cow

Stephen Is correct here
Rooty Hill plays much longer than other Centres presently
Strikezone still had a strong backend with the right ball, line
and ball speed

Having sadi that Rooty Hill played different from day to day
as well LOL

Gotta love that

 

[jason_doust]

Stephen Is correct here
Rooty Hill plays much longer than other Centres presently
Strikezone still had a strong backend with the right ball, line
and ball speed

Having sadi that Rooty Hill played different from day to day
as well LOL

Gotta love that

It's only 39ft long, so it's a medium length pattern and 21ft is a lot of backend. The difficulty is that you need to be making good shots and that is perfectly reasonable for a National Championship.

Rooty Hill is a newer installation than most centres, so the RHS still plays in the front and midlane like the LHS everywhere else (i.e. like it's newer). StrikeZone (a.k.a. "SweatZone" - Thanks Robbie Townsend!) has always had a pretty aggressive wash regime, so it backends more than a lot of houses. At Tuggeranong, on 11 y.o. Anvilane, it plays all sorts of ways depending on how you break it down, but goes reverse more easily because of the age and beaten up condition of the surface. We have a similar pattern set up on the A22 at Bathurst and it plays pretty close to Tuggeranong has so far. i.e. Highly dependent on how you set it up in the first place. Go in too early with sandpaper and your pair will be a horror show. Stay out too long, play too safe and you miss the scoring window.

There's a lot of ways to play this pattern and they all depend on when you hit it and what you're following. Keep your eyes peeled people! Play smart.