LIFESTYLE
73- ON THE BALL
year difference
Written by Debi Bonds Photography by Kira Weisz
owling ball in hand, Noah stares down the gleaming lane at the Sunset Station Strike Zone as his coach, Phil Del Monte, gently corrects his approach. Although at nine pounds the ball is one fifth of his weight, Noah rolls it with the grace of a gymnast. His follow-through ends like a bird taking flight. The ball skirts the gutter before curving toward the pocket. Strike! To the clatter of falling pins Noah turns toward his coach, arms raised in triumph to give him a double high-five.
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They make quite a pair: Phil is 81, and Noah is 8. “Coach Pill,” as Noah calls him, remains patient throughout the lesson even when Noah flops onto the floor after a gutter ball or races around following a spare. Phil works hard to guide Noah’s “wildhorse” energy toward the movements leading up to the ball’s release. They are making progress. Phil began bowling when he was in his teens over 60 years ago. After seeing the legendary Andy Varipapa perform incredible bowling stunts, Phil was hooked. A fast learner, Phil soon found he could compete with anyone. He rolled his first 300 game in his second year. When I asked what he remembers about it, he said, “The smell of the paper on which I recorded the score!” But Phil’s life changed in the 1970s when he moved to Hawaii and began coaching young bowlers. In helping others achieve, he had found his true calling. Coach Phil considers himself a “tool” who guides bowlers in the direction of improvement. “My focus has to be on them,” he says. He mentions the benefits of grandparent participation adding, “Bowling is an unusual sport in which different
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Rolling with Coach Phil—In helping others achieve, he had found his true calling.
generations can often perform equally well.” But as Noah’s grandmother, I predict that the equalizing aspect of the game will disappear as Noah advances. With “Coach Pill’s” help, Noah will soon be out of my league.