When I think of America, I think of apple pie, baseball, rock and roll, all the great presidents and weirdly enough… bowling. I know that may sound strange, but bowling has been around for almost 100 years in America. It has seen the roaring 20’s, the Great Depression, World War II, Vietnam, hippy love, and the terrible fashion of the 80’s. Bowling is America. We all used to take our girlfriends there when growing up, flirt and tease as they threw gutters. Often we would think, “Maybe we should let them win”, but our pride would never let us, and we would laugh as we beat our dates by 100.
Last week, I was driving down Wayne Road, in Westland Michigan, and I came across a sign from Westland Bowl, that read, “Hosting first dates since 1965.” This made me chuckle, because as a teen, I often took dates bowling. I decided to take my girlfriend bowling there.
When we got inside, I was amazed. This bowling alley still has that charm it had when I was a kid more interested in the snack bar food, then in how I bowled. It’s 60 lanes just put me at awe, even though only half were being used, I could imagine what it looks like when all 60 lanes are buzzing during tournaments.
We rented a lane for an hour and got our shoes and the price was very reasonable. As we bowled, I kept thinking to myself how much nicer it is now that you can’t smoke inside. The air was clear, the beer was cold, and I was having an amazing time with my girl. The service we got was top notch, and with automatic scoring, I didn’t have to worry about keeping score.
I know Westland Bowl doesn’t have big screens, or some of the high tech gadgets newer alleys do, but it also doesn’t have the price those do. You can take your entire family there, share in great memories, and still have money for ice cream afterwards.
I remember watching the Flintstones bowl. Same goes for the Brady Bunch, Al Bundy, and even the A team! Throughout our history, one of the constants has been bowling. It really hasn’t changed much. Still 10 pins and if you knock them down it’s a strike. Westland Bowl brings that to you, and they do it in a way that is hard to top. I had a great time playfully flirting just like I did when I was 14. The only thing that changed is this time I let her win.