The Bike Rambler - Asphalt Ruminations

Hello Everyone,

It seems that getting around to another "The Bike Rambler" update is difficult at best for me on this extended my bike trip of the Pacific Northwest. For now, it is increasingly looking like I will only be able to give you these brief e-mail updates. If that is all I can do on the Northwest Bike tour, I will write a travelogue for all of you when I return home.

I am having a great time. I have logged about 200 miles so far on my trip and will be cycling from Portland to Astoria, Oregon today, click here. It will be one of my long bike days at about 100 miles.

Since I last communicated with you, I have cycled from Eugene to Corvallis to Portland, Oregon. I have met so many wonderful people on this trip.

And oh the places I have seen. From the 4 million dollar bike bridges in Eugene, the mowed wheat field as the sun rises at 6 :30 a.m., the Brigittine Monastery in Amity that makes amazing chocolate, to the United States Petanque National Championship in Portland, Oregon.

Their are to many people to individually thank right now in this missive for the food, lodging, conversations, washing machine uses, computer services, etc. They know who they are. Merci to dozens of you.

Until next time, Carpe Diem.

Tim,

The Bike Rambler

Wooden Balls, Metal Balls - Bowling Fever Grips Lamorinda

There's clanking and clattering all over Lamorinda as the locals turn out to play variations of an ancient sport. And somehow, there's always a nice Merlot within reach.

Growing up in the Midwest – I won't say exactly when, but if the name Ozzie Nelson rings a bell, you're in the ballpark – indoor bowling was hugely popular. Bowling places were popping up all over, so much so that it was difficult to keep one's mind out of the gutter. Brunswick, maker of mechanical pin-setting machines, was a brand better known at the time than McDonalds… although Brunswick fries weren't nearly as tasty.

Nowadays, bowling alleys are hard to find as cheap real estate in Lamorinda. According to the Yellow Pages, the closest to us is in Costco Country, on Monument Boulevard in Concord.

Although alleys may be on life support, bowling remains alive and well. It's simply moved outdoors. Think of the sport of bowling al fresco. Hereabouts, it is being lapped up in two European flavors: French and Italian.

The former is called petanque (PE-tonk, as in "Honk If You Like Petanque"); the latter, bocce (BOCH-ee) ball. In Italian bocce means kiss, or so I'm told. What do I know, I'm Irish. Both derive from a game originated eons ago by Greeks.

The current form of petanque originated in Provence, France, more than a century ago. An estimated 17 million French play the sport in the homeland.

Click here for the complete article.

2010 Emile Furlan Memorial Tournament

The Emile Furlan Memorial Tournament will take place this year on Labor Day weekend at the Furlan Ranch just outside of Knights Landing, north of Woodland, Ca. If you have never participated in this event, it is surely one you don't want to miss.
Bring your R.V., or tent and sleeping bag and sleep under the wonderful canopy of walnut trees, or if you prefer something a bit less rustic, there are several hotels in nearby Woodland.

All of the details are in the 2010 Furlan Tournament Flier.

There is also a slideshow from a previous tournament.

Even if you don't have a team member, there are people looking to play. Call Kevin Mcgill to assist you in forming a team.

Since it does take place on the Labor Day weekend, it is advisable to book your hotel now, since availability may be hard to come by.

Don't forget the insect repellent, since their is nearby water. Pretty during the day, yet home to some voracious little creatures at night...

The Bike Rambler - “Visage of America”

One of the most driving forces behind pétanque in the last few years has been a humble, self effacing young man, Tim Channel, of the Fresno Pétanque Club. Tim is a real mover and shaker, partly to blame for the fact that the Fresno Club is the largest and fastest growing club in the nation! Although this post really doesn't have to do with pétanque, it is all about one man's energy and determination. We wish him well on his journey and look forward to future dispatches.

Hello Everyone,

Many of you have heard that I was planning an 800 mile bicycle tour through Oregon, Washington State and Victoria, British Columbia. This tour starts this evening when I board an amtrak train for Oregon. Click here for the bike route.

I do not want to blog about this bike tour. It takes too much time. Many of you, however, have asked that I write something that tells them about the bicycle journey. So, I will occasionally be writing a brief little summary on some of the trip highlights. These highlights will be encapsulated in "The Bike Rambler."

Thanks for all your support. I'll be back soon.

Regards,
Tim

....So It Begins - The Bicycle Journey
An occasional journal by Tim Channell during his 800 mile bike tour In Oregon, Washington & Victoria, BC.

...nothing so liberalizes a man and expands the kindly instincts that nature put in him as travel and contact with many kinds of people. - Mark Twain, 1867

Road Statistics: Today, I boxed my bike for transit to Eugene. My 4 panniers are packed and I am ready.
Route: Fresno, Sacramento, Eugene
Total Bike Miles: 0
Dispatch #1 - Fresno, August 12, 2010


I begin my bicycle journey this evening with an overnight train to Eugene, Oregon. It will change me.
America has always been discontented. In a land of wealth and plenty, America’s people are always striving and seeking new horizons, new changes. We Americans fervently believe that a new town, a new house, new friends or a new marriage will make us happy. For a while, it works, but never for long. Yet, we continue searching for the holy grail of happiness. We believe it is our destiny. It is a wishful and dreamy ideology, and simultaneously a strange national psychosis.
I am an American. I start this bicycle journey believing that I will find Americans along the way that will enrich my life. This optimism is so very American. I plan to briefly chronicle in this short column some of America’s people that I meet along the way. I will be looking for their optimism and telling you about it.

ASPHALT RUMINATIONS
When my friends found out I was planning an 800 mile solo bicycle tour of America’s Northwest, their usual response was “Why?” These sentiments, however, ranged from “that’s dangerous,” “you’ll be lonely,” “there are bears out there,” “carry a gun,” “This will change your life,” and so on. I just smiled at their insight.
What motivates someone? It’s a mystery to me. I have no good reasoning for going on this journey, other than I think it will be a delightful time. I suspect I will learn something about my country, my home and most likely about myself. In this short column “Asphalt Ruminations,” I will briefly describe some insights I find along America’s byways.

Thanks to Ms. Terry for her help in getting me physically and emotionally trained for this long bicycle tour. Terry has been my wife and partner for almost 26 years. She is a dynamic force in my life, and our community. Unlike me, she seems to always know what to do. I will always be enamored with her perkiness and patience. She is a bicyclist also and one day will bike around the world with me. She is my love.
And So It Begins

County negotiates to buy Marin Commons complex

Nels Johnson

Posted: 08/11/2010 03:47:00 PM PDT

County officials are negotiating with the owners of the 35-acre, 455,000-square-foot Marin Commons complex in San Rafael to determine what it would cost to buy the facility.

Acquiring the complex and turning it into a public safety center instead of constructing a building next to the Marin Civic Center is among proposals under consideration by the county board.

County supervisors met behind closed doors Tuesday to discuss what an agenda called "price and terms of payment" with negotiators, apparently including representatives of Corac LLC of Delaware and its managing member, Connecticut General Life Insurance Co., owners of the Marin Commons at 1600 and 1650 Los Gamos Road. The complex reverted to its lender in a $62 million foreclosure last year.

Although the county board's agenda disclosed the purpose of the closed meeting, and an official pointed it out to a reporter, all were mum when emerging from the private talks.

"We gave instructions to our real estate negotiator," said board president Judy Arnold, declining to elaborate.

"We're seriously looking at all our options," added Supervisor Steve Kinsey. "I can't say any more."

A plan to build a $100 million-plus public safety center near a dog park next to the Civic Center has been a political hot potato in Santa Venetia, where residents fear the move would ruin the neighborhood.

Former Assemblywoman Kerry Mazzoni, who lost a bid to unseat Supervisor Susan Adams in June, made abandoning the Civic Center

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site a cornerstone of her campaign, saying it was crazy to erect a new building when the Marin Commons site could be acquired for about half as much.

Acquisition and retrofitting of the earthquake-safe complex would save money and provide more than enough space for public safety facilities, allowing consolidation of other county leased facilities as well as the lease of unused areas.

At last report, the "preferred alternative" of the Board of Supervisors was the dog park site, where officials have long envisioned the first phase of an 85,000-square-foot public safety complex costing an initial $58 million. An environmental analysis will review several sites, including the Marin Commons complex.

UBK Studios at Amelia Island

With the Pétanque America Open coming up in November, UBK Studios, a low or "no funded" group of cinematographers is trying to raise enough funds for travel expenses from Chicago, IL to Amelia Island, Florida for 3-4 crew members. Equipment rental (Canon DSLR Cameras, audio equipment, lighting kits), music licensing rights and DVD Duplication.
Their goal is to film the entire tournament proceedings and general atmosphere at the competition, but there is a catch...
they need your help. As you may know pétanque in English is not very common as there are few videos around. After looking at LUDO it was blatantly apparent that these guys know their stuff and through their proposed dvd, will give pétanque a huge shot in the arm here in the states by showing pétanque in all of its social and competitive facets.

Visit UBK Studios Pétanque Promo to watch the pétanque promo. For information on how you can contribute to this worthwhile cause, visit Indiegogo

Fresno Hmong take World

As you may have heard by now, the trio of fine youngsters from Fresno, have won the World Qualifier Competition and are headed next year to the Junior World Championships. What was interesting to see during the competition was the extreme sportsmanship on both sides of the battle. Congratulations on winning shots or points could be heard from one team across the court to the other. A breath of fresh air to be sure when in some competitions, the fact that a game is being played seems to be lost amongst those competing. It could be said that their quality of sportsmanship and playing ethics is due in large part to their parents and other elder relatives. Fine, hard-working, dedicated people teaching their youngsters how to be the best while retaining dignity and respect for their adversaries.

It also comes from their Hmong, or Mong heritage. The terms Hmong (IPA:[m̥ɔ̃ŋ]) and Mong ([mɔ̃ŋ]) both refer to an Asian ethnic group in the mountainous regions of southern China. There, they remain one of the largest sub-groups in the Miao (Chinese:苗族) minzu (nationality) along with other related ethnic minorities. Beginning in the eighteenth century, conflict with Han Chinese settlers migrating to the south caused Hmong groups began a gradual mass migration to Southeast Asia. As a result, Hmong currently live in several countries in Southeast Asia, including northern Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar. Traditionally, the Hmong practice subsistence agriculture and the harvesting of timber.



During the last century, the Hmong have been caught up in the political instability which affected Southeast Asian nations. Many Hmong people in Laos fought against the communist-nationalist Pathet Lao during the Secret War. When the Pathet Lao took over the government in 1975, Hmong people were singled out for retribution, and a large number fled to Thailand. Many were resettled in Western countries, including the United States, Australia, France, French Guiana, and Canada. Others were returned to Laos under United Nations-sponsored repatriation programs. Around 8,000 Hmong refugees remain in Thailand.

Today, approximately 270,000 Hmong/Mong people reside in the United States, the majority of whom live in CaliforniaMinnesota (41,800), and Wisconsin (33,791). (65,095 according to the 2000 U.S. census), Fresno, Merced, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Eau Claire, La Crosse, Madison, Milwaukee, and Wausau, Wisconsin have especially high concentrations of Hmong/Mong people. There are also smaller Hmong/Mong populations scattered across the country, including Western North Carolina (Hickory, Morganton, Charlotte), Linda Vista, California, Sacramento, California, Stockton, California, Winooski, Vermont, and Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, centered around the towns of Ephrata, Pennsylvania and Denver, Pennsylvania. There is also a small community of several thousand Hmong who migrated to French Guyana in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

La Pétanque Marinière would like to congratulate Kenny, Hai & Pengsue in winning the Junior World Qualifier and wish them all the best in their travels abroad and in the actual competition. Carley Stasak from Eugene. Oregon will accompany the team as an alternate

Lentils & Sausage Picnic

SUNDAY AUGUST 8th

The Marin Lentils and Sausage Picnic and tournament a la melée

Registration ends at 10:30 a.m. Lunch served at 11:30. Games begin at 12:30

Lunch Menu: Lentils, Sausage, Salad, Brie & Bread

Lunch $11.- Tournament $7.-

Prizes to be awarded in Cash . Melée for members & newcomers.

A limited number of 3 boule starter sets will be available for sale

Reservations mandatory by Thursday August 5th!!!

Please call Alain Efron, 415.479.5820 or lutecemeister@gmail.com

It Promises to be a fun day of Pétanque and Culinary goodies.
Bring your friends and family, plates and utensils and
anyone who you feel might be interested in playing or watching.
After all, it is an open tournament. The perfect venue to welcome newcomers to pétanque.

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!

Oak hurst Pétanque Club

The Oakhurst Petanque Club will host its annual "Hot August Night" tournament Aug. 14 and the Oakhurst Petanque Charity Tournament Sept. 11. The club is located between the Fresno River and Oak Creek in Oakhurst. The team generally hosts open play 9 a.m. Saturdays and 5 p.m. Wednesdays during Daylight Savings Time.

Details: oakhurstpetanque.org

Pétanque, Picnic and a nice bottle of wine....

....but you forgot the corkscrew!!! What is one to do???

Well, help is close at hand. Just click on video to watch detailed instructions on how to get the little bugger out of the bottle.

Game of Life

Boules and its provençal cousin pétanque are synonymous
with France. Jon Bryant saunters out to find the nearest village
square and discover the history of an iconic game

The cracking of two boules together is one of the great sounds of France. Five men staring at the gravelly ground of a village square while a friend tosses another steel ball into the shaded mêlée is a scene that paces out afternoon life.
It also creates a feeling of closeness in communities that like a spot of competition when neighbours come for a visit.
Boules has become a national sport in Thailand, Taiwan and Madagascar. Japanese executives use it to relax and Germans play it in miniature on carpets. Yet in France it is something you are brought up with, it is in your Gallic soul.
In the south of the country there are two variations: pétanque and jeu provençal. The metal boules are the same but in pétanque the feet don’t move (from pèd tanco – ‘feet fixed’ in provençal) and the court is ten to 12 metres long, while in jeu
provençal (or longue as it’s known in the French Midi), the court can be anything up to 25 metres in length (a school swimming pool) and you can take three giant steps to generate a more fulsome launch of the boule.
The rules are easy; the object is to finish with your balls closer to the jack – or cochonnet (piglet in French) – than your opponent’s. Players pointe – put a boule closer to the jack – or tire – hit the opponent’s boule away from the jack (also known as le bouchon, the cork). The first to 13 points is the winner. The most prestigious tournament of the year by far
is the Mondial la Marseillaise which, besides the finals that are held in a specially constructed court alongside the Old Port, all takes place in the city’s enormous Parc Borély. For five days it is full of dogs, pushchairs and men and women walking around in triplettes (teams of three) clasping their boules satchels, bottles of water and pastis – all enquiring
about the location of a distant court and hoping that it’s in the shade. Among the 4,592 triplettes registered for the tournament was a team from England made up of Sofiane Lachani, Jerôme Rousseau and Hervé Bavazano. They may not sound very English but as they explained, teams from ‘abroad’ are often made up of ex-pats. “The main problems about playing in England are the courts and, of course, the weather. We often practice in pubs,” says Jerôme, who is based in Rugby and has played at the Mondial 11 times. “We’ve been playing together in England for 12 years and play in all the North Sea tournaments… you have to be
dedicated. I’ve just built a practice court in my garden!” “The Mondial is like the Wimbledon of boules. It’s the place to be and a great social event too,” says Sofiane, England’s main tireur, who actually met his wife playing pétanque. “Yes, we’re based in England and we can’t play every day as they do in France but a few weeks ago we thrashed the current world champion at a competition in Ibiza!” Sofiane held up his balls to show me his weapons and the three, dressed in their white polo shirts with the cross of St George on their breasts, headed off for round two in the park. I didn’t ask if the English team had nicknames but it used to be a big thing in boules. In most provençal villages, there will be a man known as Le Pendule (presumably for his regular arm swing) or Le Vieux (presumably as he’s been playing longer than anyone can remember) who was undefeated for over a decade and is still talked about by the locals. Armand Vidal, who has written a dictionary of boule terms, laments the loss of the nickname. He
writes that in the final of the Provençal tournament in 1909, all six men carried an official nickname, there was Le Blond, Petit Paul, Parpelet, Le Mecanicien. By 1931, only three of the six finalists had a recognisable sobriquet and by 1976, only one finalist – so-called Bambi – was so distinguished. Is the game getting more serious? Is too much money involved? Has the pace of life changed so much that there’s no impetus to label someone as anything but their own surname? Learn the lingo Nicknames may be disappearing but there’s a still a vibrant vocabulary surrounding the game and pocket dictionaries can help the amateur when a
shrug and a grimace are not enough. A gratton is any tiny obstacle, stone, fragment of wood which forces the boule off-course. A lunette is made when two balls are touching each other – to form a pair of glasses. A pate is the piece of cloth, usually kept in a back pocket, that all boule players carry to wipe the boule or their forehead and there’s even a verb used to celebrate a boules victory too enthusiastically – cacalejer.
However, of all the phrases associated with boules, the best known by far is La Fanny. It’s an expression that defies grammar, it can be: ‘C’est La Fanny!’, ‘Il a fait fanny’ or ‘Nous sommes Fanny’ or ‘Faites le baiser à Fanny’ and it comes in to play – or is demanded –
when a team loses a game without scoring a single point – usually 13-0. Just after World War I, so the story goes, a waitress in a café in the town of Le Grand-Lemps would allow customers who had lost a game of boules without scoring a single point to give her a kiss as a consolation. One day however, the village mayor lost but when he approached Fanny to collect his ‘prize’, she offered him her bare buttocks instead which he proceeded to kiss – twice. La Fanny happens frequently and not just in provençal villages. The French B team beat Estonia 13-0 in the quarter finals of this year’s European Nations Cup so in the absence of a waitress called Fanny who is willing to remove her pants, a moulded, naked bottom is always made available in tournaments, usually hanging on the wall of the boulodrome clubhouse. Modern boules has its origins in ancient games where soldiers (when not practising hopscotch) would throw rounded rocks at a target. Banned and reinstated over the centuries by royal and papal edicts, the game evolved across Europe to use wooden, clay and then metal balls and diverged into bowls in England and a throwing game in southern Europe where the French covered their wooden balls with nails and the Italians painted theirs with varnish. The coastal town of La Ciotat near Marseille claims to be the birthplace of the current form of pétanque because a player of boule Lyonnaise (a variation of the game) named Jules Le Noir said his rheumatism prevented him from running with the boule so he would, from that moment on, just throw it from a standing position. It was 1907 and there’s a commemorative plaque in La Ciotat to prove it. The first official pétanque tournament was held in the same place three years later. In 2009 the French team of Suchaud, Lacroix and La Boursicaud won the European Nations Cup in Nice, having had already won the World Championship earlier in the year. At the Mondial la Marseillaise, an event sponsored, of course, by Ricard (every boule player traditionally has a glass of pastis somewhere near the circle), it was Quintais, Pécoul and Suchaud who won. All named Philippe, they won 13-3 against another fancied French team in exactly an hour, and in the ladies’ final, Foyot, Scuderi and Chapus beat another French team 13-12 and the game lasted two and a quarter hours. In boule Lyonnaise, the boules are much larger and are thrown from a five step run-up, or there’s the lazy version, pétanque assise, where competitors throw their boules while sitting in a chair. Boules last a long time but most boules players at some point in their lives will have purchased a set from La Boule Bleue, Marseille’s most celebrated manufacturer. Professional sets can cost up to €200 but the firm also makes two sizes of bas-relief Fanny as well as a kit bisou which has a magnet on the end of a string to grip the boule so you don’t have to bend down to pick it up.
Out of the blue La Boule Bleue started back in 1904 when an Alsatian sailor named Félix Rofritsch, decided to stay in Marseille instead of returning to his homeland, occupied since 1871 by the Germans. He opened a shop in the centre and began to make wooden boules, hand-studding them with nails. He only made two pairs a day, but as the game took off, so did his boules. In 1937, his two sons, Fortuné and Marcel joined the company and ten years later developed the first carbon-tempered steel boules. The heat
treatment gave them a bluish hue, hence the name La Boule Bleue. Hervé Rofritsch, the fourth generation, is now head of the company and continues to manufacture blue boules (as well as plain-coloured steel ones). “The boule starts off from a cylindrical stump of steel which is then heat forged to form a metal plate,” he explains. The plate is then shaped into a hemispherical shell and two such shells are welded together before being machined, balanced and weighed.” Boules are then engraved and grooved and fired in a furnace for half an hour before being cooled in a cold salt bath. “The process takes just under a week,” says Rofritsch. The rest of the manufacturing is a family secret although the company admits that the bright blue colour of some of its boules does wear off in the end. It offers around 30 different engravings from a simple transglobal line to a complex grooved tartan of spheres and squares. You can even have your initials stamped on them. One of the great things about boules is that anyone can play at
any age. Mondial competitor Jerôme Rousseau played with his first set of boules when he was seven and his first partner was aged 84. One triplette team at this year’s Mondial la Marseillaise had a combined age of 231 and for another, it was just 33. Boules is even starting to be played where the terrain is not flat. A new tournament was inaugurated this year in the village of Ansouis in the Luberon called Extreme Boules. Organised by local resident Jamie Ivey in the grounds of Château Saint Estève-de-Néri, teams played pétanque through the vineyards, down steep slopes (relying mainly on grattons to stop the boules) and across the stony driveways of the estate. The Swedish national boules champion was there but the tournament was, of course, won by a local team, more used to gazing down at their boules from a relatively low centre of gravity and under the shade of a beret. Ricard even sponsored a London boules tournament last July in Battersea Park to mark Bastille Day and there were thousands of people
there, including men dressed as musketeers to make sure the scoring was correct and no one drank too much pastis or cacalejé-d too excessively. In 1792, 38 people did actually die in Marseille when a game was held in a convent where kegs of gunpowder were being stored and the solders used cannon balls as boules. Anyone who has seen grown men and womenarguing about the findings of a telescopic measuring stick will know the game can be explosive. Yet generally pétanque has a calmness about it which means you can smoke and talk and argue and laugh and drink and play at the same time. You can be world champion at 18 or 80. You can play with monk in a seminary or against your grandmother on the beach. Best though if you can play in a shady square in Provence. As Marcel Pagnol wrote in his autobiography: “La preuve que Dieu est ami des jouers de boules, c’est que les feuilles des platanes sont proportionnées a la force du soleil.” (“The proof that God is the boules players' friend is that the leaves of plane tree spread forth to match the power of the sun.”)

Reprinted with permission from FRANCE MAGAZINE www.francemag.com

Kudos and Saludos

It was a truly wonderful time this past weekend to see all the juniors and women competing to see who will go to the World championships. There were plenty of people from several parts of the country competing and also quite a few players in the separate open tournaments organised on the side.
One of the very high points of the event was Sunday's lunch which was provided by the more than generous folks over at Sol Food in downtown San Rafael. Thanks to the owner Sol Hernandez, the competitors and spectators were treated to a taste of Puerto Rico with pollo al horno (boneless, skinless chicken thighs marinated with oregano and garlic then baked) , rice, black beans, pinto beans, fried plantains and salad.
So, like Bryant Park, San Rafael had it's own co-mingling of cultures on Sunday. The results seemd to speak for themselves and here is hoping that we may see more of it in the future.

French Game Draws Melange To New York City Park

July 21, 2010

In Bryant Park, only a block from Times Square, there is a little corner where people play petanque (pronounced "pay-TAHNK"). The game started in France about 100 years ago. It's not so different from the Italian bowling game called bocce, but this game uses metal balls. What's striking is how international the players are: Africans, Latinos, Europeans — and they hail from every class and profession.

Listen to the segment of the National Public Radio show, All Things Considered

2010 Women's and Junior World Qualifier Early Report

After two days of intense petanque competition, the winning teams are decided! From the nine teams entered, Diana Jacobs, Antonia Paulsen and Phym Nielsen are the women players who will represent the US at the scheduled International Championship.

There were two junior teams competing for the honor of representing the US. On the team from Eugene, Oregon there was Jackson Bedbury, Carly Stasack and Rio O'Mary with coaches Michael Stasack and Ryan Baker. From Fresno, California there was Pengsue Normen, Hai Normen and Kenny Yang with coach Paul Yang. After four well-played games, each team had two wins. In the final game the team from Fresno took the title. View the first short slideshow with photos by Larry Cragg. Look for a full report and a longer slide show to follow.

Click slideshow 2 for a look at some more fotos of the weekend event.

Pétanque setting the trend in London

New boules please - the trendiest game in London

Richard Mellor
12.07.10

Guerrilla pétanque. It's not a phrase I ever expected to hear. Yet that's exactly what Olly Dixon, one third of electro-dance poppers Filthy Dukes, has just arranged for the Garden Festival in Croatia, an annual magnet for partying Londoners that wound up yesterday.

As well as being a Duke, Dixon is a co-founder of the East London Pétanque Association, a group of like-minded lobbers from the music, fashion and lifestyle networks in which he moves. These are dapper, deck-shoed twenty- and thirtysomethings who love nothing better than a gravel strip and some small metal balls.

Read the complete article

Brunei Pétanque Tournament

Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin
Bandar Seri Begawan - The Brunei Darussalam Petanque Federation (BPF) held a Doubles Mixed Tournament recently with 32 teams competing for the Secretary General Cup. Mohd Abdillah bin Tamin and Mohd Ariffin bin Hj Abd Rahman emerged champion and second were Mazlan bin Hj Yahya/Hj Amli bin Hj Gafar. Sharing third place were Abd Muthalib bin Abdullah/ Ramnah bte Abit and Wadi bin Sahrun/Siti Mariana bte Hj Makhbar. Hj Rosmin bin Hj Hassan, BPF Secretary-General presented the prizes to the winners. Photo shows the petanque players with Hj Rosmin.--

Interclub Tournament

Marin players -
don't miss out on playing in this year's Interclub Tournament.

Information below with more information in the attachment.

Fourth-Annual

Interclub Tournament

July 25, 2010

La Pétanque Marinière Members

You must

Pre-register

To play in this tournament!

There will only be sixteen players allowed from each club. Players will be accepted in the order they register.

Register early – don’t get left out!

To register

Contact

Christine Cragg

by

Thursday, July 22

By email: petanque.marin@gmail.com

Or by phone: 415-302-5069

Sponsored by Bank of the West

Eugene Pétanque International Club in the News

EUGENE, Ore. --

The popular French ball-toss game Pétanque has made its way to Eugene.

The Eugene Pétanque International Club started in Eugene as a club sport in the four high schools in Eugene, Oregon. They became the first youth-based varsity club sport in the country.

Marist, Thurston, and Willamette High Schools joined soon after our inception in 1998. Due to budget cuts, Thurston, Willamette and North Eugene High School have not participated for several years.

Mike Stasack was interviewed by Eugene's ABC News affiliate KEZI 9. Click here to watch the segment.

Bastille Day in Texas

Mussels, go-go girls: Plans for Oak Cliff's Bastille Day bash picking up steam

4:56 PM Wed, Jun 23, 2010 | Permalink
Roy Appleton/Reporter Bio | E-mail | News tips
Reporter Roy Appleton covers Oak Cliff and southern Dallas.
The community is encouraged to contribute by joining the conversation on this blog

We've had a suggestion that Oak Cliff's Bastille Day bash should include a storming of Cliff Manor led by Councilman Dave Neumann and the Fort Worth Avenue Development Group's Scott Griggs.

But since that might not happen, we'll just report the latest plans for the French national holiday celebration July 14 in (where else but) the Bishop Arts District.

A center of the action will be a mussels cookoff featuring top area chefs, including Bolsa's Graham Dodds, Tim Byers from Smoke, Nova's Kelly Hightower and David Uygur from Lucia.

Here's the DMN restaurant critic/dining editor Leslie Brenner's take on the event.

Plus live music, wine tasting, food, a petanque ("pay-tonk") court (similar to lawn bowling or bocce), go-go dancers (say what?), a French maid costumed relay. Hatmaking featuring Oak Cliff milliner Cassie MacGregor of The House of MacGregor. And much-much more. All sponsored by Go Oak Cliff.

Time: 6 to 10 p.m. Place: Bishop Avenue between 7th and 8th streets.

Free admission. Proceeds from food and drink sales will benefit the non-profit Alliance Francaise.

Willits Tournaments

Check out these pictures! Looks like it was a beautiful petanque weekend in Willits.

Our own Antonia Chavez, Verena Rytter and David Spangenberg were there representing LPM - with Antonia taking home the silver!!

Christine

Sunday's opening game between Cliff and Louis vs Dave and Verena seemed very long until the Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday Wimbledon match between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut (6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (9), 7-6 (3), 70-68; 11 hours 5 minutes). How long would Cliff, Dave, Louis, and Verena played if their game had to be won by two points? How long will their record of 2 hours 5 minutes hold?

update; 6.25.10

Read about the weekends tournaments as reported by The Willits News

Teach The Trainers

On May 20-23, Tim Channell, Joyce Simpson and the rest of the wonderful members of the Fresno Pétanque Club, in association with the Fresno Chamber of Commerce and Englemann Winery played host to 32 FPUSA members from throughout the country as part of Teach The Trainers seminar, or TTT as it came to be referred. As a special treat for the eager students, Victor Nataf, of the International Federation of Pétanque and Jeu Provençal (FIPJP), was flown in from Marseille, France to conduct the seminar. TTT was three days of all-out pétanque including theory, strategy, training, technique and history. The 32 students were filled with information which combined with their previous knowledge, will enable them to return to their clubs and teach new members about the sport. As if studying the ins and outs of pétanque from 8-5 couldn't satiate anyone, there were a few die-hards in the group who, inspite of the ever-present Fresno mistral, played until the wee hours of the morning.
For a look at all those who successfully graduated and are now recognised by the International Center for the Teaching of Pétanque (CIEP), in association with the FIPJP, as Level One Trainers, click here and then click on the American flag.
To watch a slideshow of the days events, click here

Women's and Junior World Qualifiers

Greetings all,

On July 17 & 18, Marin will be hosting the Women’s World Qualifier and Junior’s World Qualifier. Attached, you will find the entry form, tournament rules, meal reservation form and hotel information.
The attached entry form and tournament rules apply to the Women’s Qualifier.
All junior candidates should declare their intention to participate with Sport Director, Ed Porto, by email edporto@sbcglobal.net by email
no later than July 1st.
*Please note: While the Junior Tournament registration is being handled by Ed Porto,
we will need the food reservation for Juniors and accompanying adults made through Marin at the address on the meal reservation form.
In addition to the Qualifiers, there will be “Open” Tournaments held both days. There will be a Select Doubles on Saturday and Select Triples on Sunday.
* Registration for the Open Tournaments end at 10:00 AM both days.
* Entry fee will be $8.00 with 100% returned as prize.
LPM will provide coffee and pastry each morning. Lunch information is on the attached flyer – and is available to participants and guests – by pre-paid reservation.
The Saturday dinner is also open to participants and guests – by pre-paid reservation.
If you have any questions, you can contact me by email at petanque.marin@gmail.com or by phone (415) 302-5069.
Registration and reservations will be made through our Secretary/Treasurer, Alain Efron, at the address on the attached entry and reservation forms.
Tournament registration and food reservation deadline: Monday, July 12, 2010.
Please pass this on to any of your members who may wish to participate.

Best regards,

Christine Cragg
President, La Pétanque Marinière

P.S. Please be sure to bring your club banner to display at the terrain.

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OFFICIAL 2010 FPUSA TITLE TOURNAMENT ENTRY FORM

EVENT: Women’s World Championship Qualification Tournament
HOST: La Petanque Mariniere DATE: July 17-18, 2010
PLACE: Pierre Joske Courts, Armory Drive @ Civic Center Drive, Marin County Civic Center, San Rafael, CA
This event will determine the U.S. Team for the F.I.P.J.P. 2011 Women’s World Championship.*
1. All participants must have been an FPUSA member for 3 months prior to the event AND must not have been a member of any other Federation since 2006. Members who did not renew by April 17 are not eligible.
2. Each team must include at least 2 U.S. citizens by birth or naturalization. The 3rd member may be a non-citizen provided that s/he has not been a member of any other Federation since 2006, and s/he is in possession of official documentation showing that his/her principal residence is the United States.
3. Pre-Registration with full payment is required for this event by the closing date noted above.
4. Every non-citizen participant must submit a copy of his/her official INS residency documentation with this form. All players must sign this form below verifying US Citizenship or Residency before the tournament begins. There will be no exceptions. In the event any contestant falsifies the Pre-Registration Form, she will be disqualified and will be suspended from participation in any FPUSA Title Tournament for a period of 3 years.
5. Every Participant must bring his/her Federation Card and can be asked to produce it before or during play.
*6. Winners have the honor and obligation to represent the U.S.A. at the 2011 Women’s World
Championship. (Please refer to FPUSA Bylaw regulations for more details.)
NOTE: As of the release date of this entry form, the 2011 Women’s World Championship is TENTATIVELY scheduled for Vietnam (host city & dates TBD). Updates will be released as information becomes available.
CLOSING DATE: Received by Monday, July 12, 2010.
(Late registrations accepted solely at discretion of the Tournament Director.)
ENTRY FEE: $ 105.00 per team (Check payable to: La Pétanque Marinière)
CHECK-IN: 8:00-8:30 A.M. (All Players must be present)

All players are required to wear team shirts of the same color and style for the second day of the competition. Teams shirts on the first day are encouraged but optional. Please see complete set of rules and guidelines for this competition.
Host questions? Please contact: Christine Cragg, 415.302.5069, or email petanque.marin@gmail.com
Sport questions? Please contact: Ed Porto 707.953.5497, or email edporto@sbcglobal.net
Please detach and complete this form and remit, with team entry fee and proof of residency if required, to:
Alain Efron, 23 WINDSTONE DRIVE, San Rafael CA 94903

CAPTAIN PLAYER 1 PLAYER 2

NAME_________________________________________________________________________

CITIZEN RESIDENT_______________________________________________________________

SIGNATURE (req’d by July 17)______________________________________________________

CLUB__________________________________________________________________________

PHONE_________________________________________________________________________

EMAIL_________________________________________________________________________



Host questions? Please contact: Christine Cragg, 415.302.5069, or email petanque.marin@gmail.com
Sport questions? Please contact: Ed Porto 707.953.5497, or email edporto@sbcglobal.net
All players are required to wear team shirts of the same color and style for the second day of the competition. Teams shirts on the first day are encouraged but optional. Please see complete set of rules and guidelines for this competition.
Please detach and complete this form and remit, with team entry fee and proof of residency if required, to:
Alain Efron, 23 Windstone DRIVE, San Rafael, CA 94903

FPUSA WWCQT 2010
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Hotel Information for the Women’s World Qualifier and Junior World Qualifier

July 17 & 18, 2010
Hotels are listed in order of their proximity to the Courts.
1) Embassy Suites
101 McInnis Pkwy
San Rafael, CA
415-499-9222
www.embassysuites.com (location San Rafael)

2) Four Points Sheraton
1010 Northgate Dr
San Rafael, CA
415-479-8800
www.fourpoints.com (location San Rafael)

3) Villa Inn
1600 Lincoln Ave
San Rafael, CA
415-456-4975
www.villainn.com

4) Colonial Inn
1735 Lincoln Ave
San Rafael, CA
415-453-9188
reservation: 888-785-2111
www.colonialinnmarin.com

5) Courtyard by Marriott
2500 Larkspur Landing Circle
Larkspur, CA
415-925-1800
reservation: 800-321-2211
www.marriott.com/SFOLL

6) Marin Suites Hotel
45 Tamal Vista Blvd
Corte Madera, CA
415-924-3608
reservation: 800-362-3372
www.marinsuites.com

7) Best Western Petaluma
http://www.bestwesterncalifornia.com/hotels/best-western-petaluma-inn

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Women’s World Qualifier and Junior World Qualifier July 17 – 18, 2010 Meal Reservations

This reservation form is for Saturday and Sunday lunch and Saturday dinner. All meals must be reserved – for players and guests.
Please indicate number of meals required, beside player or guest.
* If a vegetarian meal is desired please circle the ‘V’ next to the number of meals ordered.
There will be water and sodas available for purchase during both days of tournaments – please bring change.
Saturday Dinner Menu
Rotisserie Chicken + Vegetarian Pasta + Green Bean Salad
Mixed Salad + Fromage + Baguette
Wine + Sodas
Please mark all meal reservations on the form below and mail to:
Alain Efron at 23 Windstone Drive, San Rafael, CA 94903
Print this page, Detach here, and send along with your check made payable to La Pétanque Marinière.
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Saturday Lunch # of Meals Cost per meal Total
Free for Qualifier Participants _______ V x free =
Open Tournament Participants
and Guests $5.00 _______ V x 5.00 = __________
Sunday Lunch # of Meals Cost per meal Total
Lunch Available for Purchase
$5.00 per person _______ V x 5.00 = __________
Saturday Dinner # of Meals Cost per meal Total
Adults _______ V x 15.00 = __________
Juniors _______ V x 10.00 = __________

Pétanque may come to parks

Kennebec Journal - Augusta, Maine

By Staff Writer Keith Edwards
kedwards@centralmaine.com

AUGUSTA -- Anyone for petanque?

The Augusta City Council is scheduled to hear a presentation on creating courts at Mill Park to play petanque, a traditional French game.

Petanque, pronounced "pay-tonk," is one of Europe's most popular outdoor games, according to www.petanqueamerica.com. It is similar to both horseshoes and the Italian lawn bowling game bocce.

The game originated in France in the early 1900s. The aim is to toss, or roll a number of hollow steel balls as close as possible to a small wooden target ball.

Mayor Roger Katz said the courts could be installed at the city-owned, riverside Mill Park for little or no cost.

Mill Park is the former site of Edwards Mill which, through the years, drew many French workers to the surrounding neighborhood in Augusta. The city continues to have a strong French community.

"It'd be a wonderful addition to Mill Park, bring more people there, and would be particularly meaningful due to its connection to French culture," Katz said. "Petanque has a rich history to it, it goes back centuries. It's a great, leisurely game."

Raymond Fecteau, an Augusta resident active in Le Club Calumet and a member of the Franco-American Hall of Fame, is expected to give the Augusta City Council a presentation on the proposal Park at councilors' meeting Thursday, 7 p.m. in council chambers at Augusta City Center.

Councilors are also scheduled to:

* hold three public hearings on Community Development Block Grant-funded projects, including a previously-approved business assistance grant for Augusta-based manufacturer Kenway Corporation, funds to help pay for a major Greater Augusta Utility District sewer line replacement project, and a Bread of Life day shelter project;

* recognize Augusta police Officer Eric Dos Santos for his service with the Army in Afghanistan and his receipt of the Bronze Star Medal;

* present the 2010 Edwards Dam Scholarship to James Neff;

* consider borrowing $500,000 for public infrastructure projects including street and sidewalk repair, and the city's share of the cost of replacing Blair Road Bridge; and

* consider authorizing City Manager William Bridgeo to apply to the Maine Department of Transportation for funds to extend the Kennebec River Rail Trail a short distance to the city's waterfront park, install sidewalks on Civic Center Drive, and improve a walking trail between Cony High School and Farrington Elementary School.

Reading the comments about the article were somewhat humorous:

Scholar said....

Petanque is a johnny-come-lately version of bocce. To be fair, a bocce court should be included at Mill Park so petanque players can see how a real game is played.

Qm9jY2Vtb24%3D said...

Bocce is the up and coming sport. Petanque went out with the turn of the last century. Good luck buying petanque balls anywhere. If bocce courts are built, there are local trophy winners that would provide the competition.

BASTILLE DAY LOS ANGELES FESTIVAL

THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES Hosts a Fusion of French and American Culture to celebrate the Ninth Annual BASTILLE DAY LOS ANGELES FESTIVAL

By Pascale
Event date: July 11, 2010


The BASTILLE DAY LOS ANGELES FESTIVAL 2010 promotes the French heritage and culture, and celebrates the undying ties between French and American citizens. In France, Bastille Day commemorates the storming of the Bastille in 1789, marking the beginning of the French revolution.

In its ninth year, this event promises to be one of the city’s best cultural events with all-day festivities. Throughout the day, attendees experience the sights, sounds, and flavors of France right in their own backyard. They thrive on French ‘joie de vivre ‘, play the famous game of pétanque, sample food and wine from France, enjoy spectacular live entertainment, dance, or just sit back and relax while having a French-style 'open air picnic'.

French organizations and city officials have supported the Bastille Day Festival for the past eight years, and encouraged Angelenos to participate in the event since it helps foster a better understanding among citizens of both French and American cultures.

The gorgeous Elysian Park -- Bastille Day Los Angeles Festival venue -- is the city's oldest public park and is home to numerous historic sites. It was once home to the Yang-Na Indian village and dates back to Native American history.

WHEN: Sunday, July 11, 2010

TIME: Noon to 9:00 PM

WHERE: Elysian Park – Monticello Old Lodge
Corner of Stadium Way and Scott Avenue (next to the Dodgers Stadium)

MORE: As always the Bastille Day Festival 2010 will feature a variety of entertainment including: a Parisian Waiters Race, street performers, Tahitian dancers, a Pétanque Tournament, comedians, singers, dancers and a host of surprises amidst a delightful French setting of market vendors.

The Event is FREE for kids. Adults: $5

contact: info@passionsproductions.com

www.bastilledaylosangeles.com

Pétanque a la Côte d'Azur

Sunday June 13 - Steak Picnic and OPEN tournament

Panaché Tournament OPEN TO ALL regardless of ability

Bring family and friends.

Mini pétanque clinic for beginners to be held between 10 and 11

Registration ends at 11:00 a.m. Lunch at 11:30

Cost of lunch is $13.00 per person. Please bring tables/chairs and plates/utensils etc.

Cost of Tournament is $7.00. All games start after lunch. (1pm or before)

No Cash Prizes. Prizes to be awarded by raffle.

Reservations mandatory by Thursday June 11!!!

Please Contact Alain Efron at 415.479.5820 or lutecemeister@gmail.com

TTT 2010 - Fresno Pétanque

Here is the slideshow from the Teach the Trainers event held May 20th-23 in Fresno at the Englemann Winery. The attendees from LPM would like to thank VICTOR NATAF OF THE FIPJP, JOE MARTIN PRESIDENT OF THE FPUSA, THE FRESNO CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAU, TIM CHANNELL, JOYCE SIMPSON, AND ALL THE MEMBERS OF THE FRESNO PÉTANQUE CLUB FOR PUTTING TOGETHER SUCH A GREAT TRAINING EVENT. SEE YOU IN FRESNO FOR THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS IN 20??

LPM Video Log: Montpellier

Here in the capital of the Languedoc-Roussillon region, you’ll discover a little piece of another world. Come take a walk through the town’s center, which is open only to pedestrian traffic – no cars allowed – and hums with terrace cafés, shopping, and parks. Then, soak up some culture with an impromptu performance at the city’s opera house. We’ll even get a crash course in the traditional French game of Pétanque from some locals. You’ll be amazed how fresh and exciting this thousand-year-old city can be!