This is a personal story about discovering Visionary Bowling Products(A GREAT BOWLING BALL COMPANY).
PICS OF ALL BOWLING BALLS I GOT FROM VISIONARY
http://img169.imageshack.us/img169/8148/visionaryoq1.jpgWould you ever expect that the Slate Blue Gargoyle would ever defeat the merciless Black Widow? Well it actually happened on old wooden lanes where the corners never seem to go and the conditions are not nearly as easy as many are use to these days.
A Little Bit about My Bowling Life
I once bowled in adult leagues as a kid, and I was pretty good averaging mid 130s as a 9-10 year old lefty rolling the ball up off the edge with an old Gem Tec Clear Gumdrop Bowling Ball. I still use her today for my spares and occasionally for even strikes. It wasn’t too long after that I stopped playing, I am not sure whether the pressure was insurmountable or I just didn’t like cast that surrounded me, perhaps I didn’t feel welcomed or I just didn’t fit in what ever it was I stopped dead five years later. I never picked up a bowling ball till this past season. Nearly a decade past and I still have the game in me.
Reason for my initial interest in Visionary
Interestingly, I got back into the sport because of Visionary. There balls looked so cool, almost revolutionary. The dark medieval designs and the neat colors really fascinated me. I was also a big fan of faball products as a kid, especially the Pink Hammer (What a Gem – wasn’t too far away from my first three hundred with that ball). I found Visionary by searching for where Faball went too (searching for names of the founders and so forth and finally came a cross a forum that mentioned Visionary as being the remains of Faball.) There web site is so cool and ultimately this season I ended up getting a whole line of bowling balls including 5 from Visionary. Off of Ebay I picked up (mostly NIB) a Sorcerer, Purple Ice Executioner, A Glowing Amulet, Scorcher, and a Slate Blue Gargoyle along with an old line that I picked up a Star Trak Force 1, AMF Gold Angle, Black Axe, Red Pearl Hammer, and of course my Pink Hammer which I had. As you can see an interesting line up and it consists of primarily Urethane Equipment.
The Story: Black Widow vs. the Slate Blue Gargoyle
Who would have thought that I could actually defeat a guy throwing a Black Widow who averages almost 20 points higher than me and has incredible striking power and speed? While he averages 190(Third highest average in the house) I average merely 173. I have slow speed and I put some hand on the ball and I tend to be very smooth and consistent. The Slate Blue Gargoyle was drilled up pin under the fingers with the CG kicked out a bit (Set for Control I believe). Well I shot my first 600 series with the ball shooting 201, 236, and 192 = 627 defeating the Black Widow by a good margin I believe the guy shot 558 and his best game was his first and it was down hill from there. He just couldn’t kick out the corner and then he kind of got impatient and missed some 10 pins. Any ways it was very interesting to defeat a guy who is throwing what is hailed as an awesome ball and here I am nice and consistent but nonetheless an underdog throwing a polished urethane right up over the dry boards. Shockingly she moves pretty well, more than most of my hard urethanes and he has a very nice solid hit (she certainly hits better than the older urethanes). And many people keep asking me "what is that ball" "man that is a cool looking ball" "where did you get that" and so forth.
A Note about Visionary
I just wanted to say that Visionary is to the sport of bowling as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory would be to the chocolate world. There is something magical about Visionary, and something very mysterious about their bowling balls. Not only are their products magnificent but they truly last. As I bowl in an old wooden house that tracks up balls easily, I have noticed that the Visionary balls track up at a considerable less rate when compared to the others. I just picked up an old 96 Quantum Helix and man does that ball track up(even after just 5 games in that old house). And what is really cool is after throwing five games with the SBG there is hardly any sign that I used the ball, hardly any track visible, and the ball is as clean as a whistle. Visionary is a unique, mysteriously dark comic like themed group that happens to be amazingly nice and out for the bowler and their needs. This is the only bowling outfit that I’ll be supporting. And I particularly like the fact that these guys don’t just trash the balls when they are discontinued instead they keep them and try and sell them on their website unlike Brunswick back in the 90’s – 80’s my Dad asked if they had any Black Diamonds available and they just said –Sorry as soon as a ball is discontinued it is immediately trashed- What a waste of a product. Visionary even shows their older balls that are no longer readily available which is helpful for those looking for information about an older release.
Some Other Thoughts
Keep up the great work Visionary Group I will always be on the lookout for Controlled peaces and urethanes and other unique bowling balls. Because of Visionary and the fact that I am back in the sport I’ll probably average 190-200 next year if I decide to bowl in the same house, however I might even go throw in a even more difficult house which hasn’t even got a 300 game yet. It sports a reverse block shot where the edges are flooded and the middle is dry and there are some nights where some people think the guy forgot to oil the lanes. Sounds like a challenge and I probably will be lucky to average 170-160. The highest average this year in that old house is in the 170s.
Anyways wish you all success with your Visionary Bowling Balls.
Enjoy the game!
Edited on 5/8/2007 8:47 PM
