I have to admit that I have never had a crystal clear perception of bowlers and bowling;  I don't even know if 'bowler' is even the right term to use when describing a person who goes out bowling on a regular basis.  Like many others who are not involved in the pastime, my perceptions of bowling were in large part influenced at an early age by portrayals of the bowling stereotypes that were out there.  I remember seeing characters such as Fred Flinstone and others on television obsess over bowling.  True there were the occasional movies (almost all comedies)such as Kingpins and the Big Lebowski that delved somewhat more into the whole cuklture of Bowling, but there again it was largely for comedic effect.  I knew some of the basics of the pastime that mattered to the bowler: that you needed to have a certain type of shoe to play up to your best potential, that the bowler probably ends up owning their own ball and have a preffered bowling ball bag to carry it to and from the bowling alley in and store it in when not in use.  And of course there are the (in)famous bowling shits, a particular style of shirts that are associated with bowling and that many non bowlers are even known to be partial towards wearing.

  I have tried bowling myself a few times in the past and have had acertain amount of beginners luck with it, but it didn't appeal to me enough to keep at it on a regular basis.  For me it has never gone beyond the point of being a social outing with friends.  I suppose that it was always an assumption in the back of my mind that bowlers are the same as anyone else that has a pastime that they are passionate about and that many portrayals of them tend to be on the extreme side for the sake of entertainment value.  They are as normal or as weird as anyone else - just like your dentist. (and trust me, that is not intended to be a shot at dentists, lol)  This perception of bowlers and bowling was affirmed for me with the recent realization that some of my friends are in fact somewhat serious bowlers; that some of my friends go out to bowling alleys on a somewhat regular basis to get into teams and forcefully roll large heavy balls down a long and straight polished plywood surface. It wasn't until I discussed their pasttime with a few of them that I realized how serious they can be about it, or how diverse their tastes can be. I was not aware that many bowlers have strong predelictions towards certain brands for almost everything associated with their pasttime.  Before this I just assumed that bowling balls and women mens bowling shoes were just, you know, bowling balls and women and men's bowling shoes and that they were pretty much all the same wherever you bought them from.  

  Not so much.

  From chatting with friends I have come to realize  that whose balls you use and whose shoes you wear can really matter to some bowlers. Before this I knew nothing about brand names of bowling balls. I didn't know that many swear by Ebonite bowling balls or that there were so many other brands out there, names such as Brunswick, Columbia, Elite, Hammer, KR,Morich, Motiv, PBA, Roto Grip, Storm, and Track. Who knew that there could ever be so many brands of ball out there and that they would all have countless users and supporters in the ranks of bowlers? And you can be sure that each of those companies that I just rattled off also offers their own version of bowling ball carrying bags with their name on the label to go with their particular balls. It seems to be the same way with men and women and their bowling shoes to some extent; there are those who will wear nothing but Dexter bowling shoes when out bowling and no other brand unless caught in a pinch. Meanwhile, others swear just as strongly by other brands such as 3G, Brunswick, Circle, Etonic, Linds, or NXT.  Wow, that is alot of shoes to choose from.  

  I will spare any non-bowlers out there and not get into the variety of bowling gloves, ball maintenance products and all of the other sundry bowling supplies that are also available out there - besides, that is what the internet is for, right?

  Honestly though, my growing awareness of the culture of bowling and all of its associated peraphenalia has only served to reaffirm my belief that bowlers are people, too - and just as picky as the rest of us...