Strikes, Spares and Gutter Balls: Reviewing 3 Local Bowling Alleys

Dozens of bowling alleys lace the Hudson Valley and Capital District areas. Catskill’s Hoe Bowl, the The Hootz Family Bowling Center in Ravena, NY and Guilderland’s Town ‘n Country lanes stick out as three of the better lanes in the region. But only one can be the strike, the spare and the gutter ball of the three.

The Hoe Bowl was once considered, by some, a dive. In recent years, though, they’ve changed their image by remodeling the alley, and it’s worked. Along with their many leagues and tournaments, as well as high school bowling leagues, Friday night’s cosmic bowling has attracted high school students for many years now. If you’re a good bowler and want to post higher scores, try to keep to the lanes 20 or higher. My best scores have come on those lanes as they are more worn in. Assessment: Spare

The Hootz Family Bowling Center has recently changed management from what was the Strike Zone in Ravena. The grand opening is this Friday, September 30th with a bowl-a-thon benefiting Breast Cancer starting at 7:30. The old Strike Zone’s wasn’t always inviting but when bowling it always felt good. The lanes were well taken care of and I always shot right around my average. It’s exciting to see it’s under new management and it’s always nice to see a business doing a benefit of any kind. Assessment: Gutter Ball (based on Strike Zone).

Then there’s Town ‘n Country lanes in Guilderland. Of these three lanes, this is the best. They have leagues and tournaments which include my favorite bowling game, Scotch Doubles. If you don’t know what that is, then look it up and find a local tournament because it’s a lot of fun. Parking offers the only difficulty at this bowling alley. A pleasant atmosphere accompanies great bowling lanes. Their version of cosmic bowling, “Rock n’ Bowl,” is on display Friday nights from 11pm to 2 am and Saturday nights from 10pm to 1am. And I can’t forget the free pizza to anyone that goes to Rock n’ Bowl. Overall, Town ‘n Country offers the best service with the best atmosphere. Assessment: Strike.

These three bowling alleys have a unique feel to them and offer a great experience and represent my top choices when I get that itch to go bowling.


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