I went on a work trip recently and ended up at a bowling alley. Obviously I didn't have any of my equipment with me, so had to use rental shoes and a house ball. That's the first time in a very long time I did that.

It was so weird because the rental shoes didn't slide at all and the only house ball that fit my hand was 12 lbs. I basically had to change my entire approach to throw the ball which took some time to figure out.

The only thing I could get to work was moving way up on my approach to plant my foot and throw the ball up the 2nd arrow. Amazingly I was still able to hook it a good amount even with a conventional grip.

I actually had a lot of fun and found it to be a challenge. I had to be super accurate hitting my mark. Too far to the right and it wouldn't recover. Just a hair to the left and it went through the nose.

I just thought the entire experience was kind of interesting. It really makes me appreciate just how much of a difference modern equipment makes.   

Just for fun.  We used to have a "pot bowling night" that you had to throw a house ball.  I found out that 190-200 average bowlers can get pretty good with a house ball on a houseshot..  The only "cheating" we allowed was tape for the holes.  Even years ago, the guys who threw with no thumb were the best though.

You can still pack light, just pack a bowling slide sock. 

I remember when I was on vacation in Vegas, there was a Storm matchmaker event going on. I had to try the new stuff. The rental shoes I got were way to slippery. I had to put some moisture on them. I had to concentrate more on my approach so I wouldn't  fall, I couldn't really get a read on the balls I was trying. From then on, if I don't have my stuff. I won't bowl. I don't want to risk an injury.