Balmy Bournemouth bowling tales, part 2....

After a few bevvies, and a night in comfortable, if not hot and sticky slumber, we all met up in the dining room at breakfast. There were accommodation conversations to be had over the full English. Kim and John had a fridge and a ceiling fan! Terry and Wendy's window could not be seen through.

Breakfast was just as good as the previous night's dinner, with plenty of coffee to wake up those who'd had just a little too much wine, or a couple of whiskies too many. It is a sad fact, lamented loudly by a few the night before, that the bar in the Elstead does not serve club doubles..... More of this story in part 3 of our saga.

Read on now to find out who deserved the donkey on day 2 in Bournemouth.

Getting to the Match

We were heading for Brockenhurst Bowling Club, across the nearby Dorset border into Hampshire. The tour document described it as 30 minutes' drive, and we looked forward to starting the match at the earlier than normal time of 13.00. Some of the group decided to make a day of it, teaming up into shared cars and driving to Brockenhurst after breakfast. Others sat outside the hotel, sipping coffee and enjoying the sun, or walked to Bournemouth town centre to get a view of the beach or the shops.

The Brockenhurst postcode was provided, and people relied on the sat nav to negotiate the New Forest. Nearby Lymington was a lovely place to visit.

While one group walked down to Lymington Haven yacht club, and sat with a beer overlooking the estuary, another had a gentle walk around Brockenhust - a very pretty village with a thriving high street.

The time came for us all to make our way to the bowling club. It was behind a high fence at the end of the village car park. We were welcomed in by one of the Brockenhurst members who had finished cutting the green only 20 minutes before!

Captain Kevin had already arrived and was in the clubhouse, sorting out the teams. As usual, people drifted in, changed their shoes and sat down with a drink from the bar. The Brockenhurst team joined in with friendly conversation,

But wait! There were Banwell members missing....

Better late than never

The minutes ticked away, and members found themselves looking for mobile phone numbers to contact our wayward friends. Sue and Rob Taylor were travelling with Dom and his wife. SueT answered a whatsapp call as their car drew into the car park, just in time for the start of the match. Seems like there was a bit of sat nav confusion which elongated the route.

Jon Amos and President Barry Taylor had a lift with Gerry and Lee Bean. Jon's mobile was switched off, Barry does not own a mobile and no-one knew Gerry or Lee's number. Oh b#@**! In desperation, the match was hastily reconfigured and the leads went off to get an extra wood each.

Maybe a paper map next time

Just as the match was about to make a rather late start, someone spotted a Banwell cap making its way along the top of the car park side of the fence. Hurray! The guys braved the jeers and clapping as they made their way up the path to the clubhouse. Turns out that someone's printer created a fuzzy postcode, which was misread and put into the sat nav, resulting in a destination 15 minutes away.

There is an obvious conclusion to be gleaned from this story - perhaps technology and bowling do not mix.....?

And the donkey goes to....?

Paul cuddling his new friend

We fared better in this match than the day before, but the skip of the team that lost by the most points - Paul Aldus - got quite friendly with the donkey.

Now, yesterday I mentioned a bug-on-a -stick. To explain, our Captain and his wife decided that the losing skip should not have to carry the donkey burden alone. Each team member received a bug to be kept on their person at all times.

This was not entirely a punishment, as the cute little insects were pretty to look at, but it was still a relief when it buzzed off to the next person!

Look out for Part 3 of our bowling tales, concerning the final day - and final evening - of the 2022 tour.