I can say with all honesty that I really miss the days when you only had to own one or maybe two balls to cover most lane condtions. These days I feel obligated to lug around an inline 4 ball bag in hopes of having what I need on a given night.

After a poor showing at my monthly 5 game sweeper this month, I began to rethink what I've been carrying in my bag. Let me say up front, that I do enjoy buying a new ball when they're released. And I have 20 or so at my disposal at any given time. But what 4 balls to I load my bag with? That's the question I've been trying to answer since the advent of reactive bowling balls.

In the past it had been my desire to load up with the biggest hook monsters I could lay my hands on. And to lay them out the the most exotic drilling layouts available. But the longer I bowl and the older I get, I do believe I've seen the error of my ways. I now look at "control" as my primary need. So as of late, more traditional layouts have been used in laying out my bowling balls. The following list is what's filling my bag as of today.

• Ebonite - The One -- The One's arcing hook gives me the length I need with no big jump to the left when the ball hit's my break point.
• Hammer - Black Widow -- The Black Widow gives me more length than The One, but with a more angular break towards the pocket when I have to play in.
• Ebonite - XXXcel -- This ball does well for me when the condition is playing over/under. It's a smooth roll all the way.
• Lane #1 - XXXL Polyester -- For spares and extremely dry conditions. The only polyester ball sporting a huge weight block. I'n never afraid to attack the bucket with this one.

And there you have it. I'll just have to wait and see how my reasoning pays off as I head into the end of the season. I'm sure I'll probably do some more experimenting during the summer leagues. But I sure do wish there was a ball for all seasons.

I'll be perfectly honest and say that my primary reason for beginning this blog is to draw some attention to www.BBAMbowling.com. You can also use www.bowlingballsandmore.com. It's a bowling community website and it totally free in all respects. Being a professional web designer/developer and an avid bowler, the website was my way of giving back to a sport that has given me so much.

 Besides the forums, videos, news and articles posted on BBAM I have just implemented a new application for bowlers to use in tracking their bowling scores. But the program is much more. It offers an analysis of your game. It's interesting to see the stats of how you are bowling from house to house and even lane pair to lane pair. It will also display what you need to bowl to maintain your average as well as the consequences of bowling above or below your average. BSA Bowling Score Tracking and Analysis offers so much more than your league standing sheet. And like everything else on BBAM, it's totally free. So I hope all bowlers will log on and take a look.

BBAM is always evolving with new articles, news, forum discussions and features daily. And, you just might make some new friends along the way. Bye for now.