The sport of lawn bowling has a public relations problem.
The stereotype is that it is an almost sedentary activity for retirees with a predilection for wearing all white.
While there are certainly older, well-heeled folk who partake in the sport (and why not, they are allowed their fun, too), it is not the uptight, upper crust, exciting-as-watching-paint-dry sport some assume it is.
Just ask the Dunbar Lawn Bowling Club’s president, Wendy Primeau, who happens to be a 53-year-old, gainfully employed police officer.
Sgt. Primeau said lawn bowling is the perfect antidote to her stressful job in Vancouver law enforcement.
“I like to enjoy my time off,” she said, “and it is a wonderful release.”
The lawn bowling season in the Lower Mainland is from May to September, so getting out in the sunshine to play is a benefit in itself, she said.
For the uninitiated, lawn bowling is similar to both curling and the Italian game of bocce.
Popular in countries around the world, including Scotland, China and Japan, lawn bowling involves three or four players per team and three or four bowls — wooden balls.
Before the start of each game, a small white ball, called a jack, is thrown toward the opposing end of the green.
The idea is to throw the bowls as close to the jack as possible.
“It is a science,” said Primeau.
Bowler Ray Griffin, who has been at the Dunbar club for 10 years, said players can make it as simple or as complicated as they like.
“You don’t have to be an expert at it to have a lot of fun,” he said.
According to Griffin, the 90-year-old Dunbar club has members of all abilities from all walks of life.
The club has 60 members and 25 “associates” who come to play croquet or attend social functions.
“Every trade and profession is represented,” he said.
According to Griffin, 76, the club has members in their 30s, up to a few in their 90s.
Primeau started playing when in her early 40s more than 10 years ago, joining her parents who are longtime members.
The club has tried to bring kids into the mix, but unlike countries such as Australia, where schools have lawn bowl teams (a Young Australians Lawn Bowls Academy Facebook page describes lawn bowling as “a young persons sport, which older people can play), in Vancouver there hasn’t been much youth interest, Primeau said.
Many of her peers who have taken up the sport have regretted their late start.
“They wished they had started it younger,” Primeau said.
The best thing about lawn bowling is that it is “come-as-you-are” — the all-white attire is for Sundays, competitions or special events and not a daily occurrence.
The sport also doesn’t require a big commitment, which is great for busy professionals like Primeau, who’s a shift worker and unable to adhere to a strict schedule because of her job.
“If I can make it, I go, if I can’t, that is OK,” she said.
The Dunbar club will be having a free open house on May 10. For more information to go dunbarlawnbowling.com.
For an idea of how intense the sport of lawn bowling can be in Australia, check out this short video from the Australian Premier League, which has a $100,000 purse.
