204th Post

Summer is approaching.  Nineteen players today.  We welcomed back Michael and John.
Some players are on holidays or indisposed and we wish them well.

The six players on Piste 1 played three boules each, by agreement.  While observing from the piste alongside the clusters of boules seemed enormous at times and deciding on 'nearest the cosh' looked difficult also.  Interesting that they got two and a half games played where the group alongside got three and a half played in the same time frame. I think that for that reason playing two boules each if grouped in six would speed up the games and prevent too many blockers!  Interested to get the views of those who played today.

Today was the start of 'Competition B' 2019 and Patricia played wonderfully today with a variety of partners, because of a group of five, to amass a score of 42.

NAMES	Week 1
Date:	Wed. 24 /04 / 19
Game:	G.1	G.2	G.3	G.4	Tot.	R.T.
Bridget	9	7	7		23	23
Brogan	13	13	2		28	28
Catherine					0	0
Colm					0	0
Dave					0	0
Dolores	13	13	11		37	37
Don	9	7	7		23	23
Eileen	11	3	12		26	26
Jeanette	7	13	6	7	33	33
John C	13	13	2		28	28
John O	13	13	7		33	33
Kitty					0	0
Liam					0	0
Maeve	4	1	13		18	18
Maureen	4	1	13		18	18
Michael	11	3	12		26	26
Mike D	7	6	6	7	26	26
Nigel					0	0
Pat D					0	0
Patricia	13	13	13	3	42	42
Richard	13	13	7		33	33
Sean	4	1	13		18	18
Shay	13	13	7		33	33
Sheila					0	0
Tom D	13	6	13	7	39	39
Tom S					0	0
Tony	13	13	11		37	37
Yvonne	13	13	6	3	35	35

Dave sent a photo from a Boules area in Salou, Spain. Nice idea to share experiences from abroad. Thanks Dave

Some photos from today's play:

When you're just pumped and ready for action!

Eighteen boules...six players...decision time....check out the bottom left!!

As Beyonce is wont to sing...'Put a Ring on It!'

That's it!....I've had it with Boules...Next piste please!

Interested spectators Mary and Joe among the many who stop each Wednesday to enjoy the spectacle!  

The word is out ....Big Brother is watching us....They could have been more discrete as our antennae were up!  

P.S. Please try to be onsite by 9.50 a.m. so the cards can distributed and the groups sorted and all ready to play for 10.00 a.m.  

203rd. Post

Thirteen played today in warmish conditions.  No competition today.....just 'friendly' rivalry and in one instance 'girls' v 'boys' and we won't talk about the result!

Richie presented Shay with the trophy for winning the previous Competition A of 2019.  Great to have Sean and Maureen back playing...and playing very well I may add!
[Click on the photos to enlarge them..]

Check out this score, Maureen!

A perfect three...'lucky' Sean!

Who's the adoring one!

We reserved a table to mark the 200th Post on the Blog. Fionnuala, Jeanette and Kitty joined for the afters. Alan in Olive's Room looked after us well and served the tea and cake to the table.  You could get used to this!!!!

Credit Fionnuala for this photograph of the group at
Olive's Room.

Interesting article below........anyone got a 'box' hedge?

French pétanque jack factory threatened by caterpillar 

[Credit: FRENCH NEWS Connexion journalist
Sun 14 Apr 2019 

Box tree caterpillars have been found to be destroying the trees used by the Monneret family

The only manufacturer of traditional-style wooden boules (pétanque) jacks in France is becoming threatened by a type of caterpillar that is attacking the tree wood it uses for production.

Family production company Monneret in Jeurre (Jura, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté) has discovered that the forest it uses for its wood is under attack from animals known as “box tree caterpillars”.

Along with box tree moths, the insects can do severe damage to trees and in some cases can completely defoliate and destroy them.

Monneret produces around one million wooden jacks (known in French as “cochonnets”) per year, representing 35% of its annual business.

The small company - made up of five family members - then sells the jacks on to big brands and official boules competitions, and is also the supplier to boules association la Fédération Française de Pétanque.

Yet, the box tree caterpillar has been found to eat the leaves and destroy the trees from which the jacks are made.

The wooden jacks are used in traditional boules games (Pixabay / Pixabay License)

Jean-Yves Monneret, company head, said: “There will be no more of these trees in France within five to seven years.”

Usually, the company cuts 200 tonnes of the trees per year, cut from within a radius of 50km. This year, in an attempt to preserve the wood for future years, the company has cut down 500 tonnes to put into storage.

Similarly, it is hoping that in the next 10 years it may be able to import wood from other countries to continue this manufacturing tradition.

Box tree caterpillars and moths are native to East Asia, but were first noticed in Europe in 2007.

202nd Post

Eleven played 'Friendly' games today in the interim between Competion A and Competition B which will commence on Wed. 24th.
Shay was away today so we hope to present the trophy for Competition A next Wednesday at Olive's room after the boules.
Kitty joined us for coffee today and it was great to have Don back playing.

When all else fails...take a pic of yourself!

Three wise men........

Which of us is safer????

From my perspective we're winning......

Ten things you really need to know about Petanque:

The Local

news.france@thelocal.com
@thelocalfrance

22 September 2016
12:42 CEST+02:00

pétanquesportboules

1. Ancient Greek origins
The French would have you believe that they invented the game, but the origins of Pétanque can be traced as far back as Ancient Greece when people played games which involved tossing coins and stones. The Ancient Romans then came up with the idea of adding a target - which in the case of the French interpretation of the game is called a "cochonnet" (the literal translation being "piglet" in English). As for the name Pétanque – which is also used in English – it comes from the word “la petanca” in Provençal dialect, deriving from pès tancats or “feet together”.
2. Not just a sport for retired men
Yes, you are more likely to come across elderly men playing the sport but statistics show that more and more women are taking part. In this year’s Pétanque World Cup – in which women have only been allowed to compete since 2002 – a grand total of 456 women are taking part. Today around 14 percent of the sport’s 311,971 registered members in France are women. According to the President of the Ligue Paca, women bring a certain “sensibility” to the sport that the male players lack.

3. OK maybe some...
One of the best things about Pétanque is that practically anyone can play, regardless of sex or age. Last year, César Brauer competed in the Pétanque World Cup, over fifty years after winning in the first ever World Cup in 1962.
4. The rise of the "bouligans"
The term "Bouliganisme" was coined after numerous stories about rising incivility among French players. In 2007, the newspaper Midi-Libre reported: "Petanque is no longer a convivial sport. It is being undermined by constant incivility, verbal threats and gross insults. The non-respect of sporting rules by some players is driving others away, as well as referees who feel endangered." The Local France's story this week about death threats at the World Championships show's that "Bouliganism" is still afflicting the game.

5. Dangerous sport
Pétanque may be regarded by many as a gentle pastime but it has been known to get out of hand. In 2008 a man in the village of Adé in the Pyrenees was killed by a fellow player’s ball as he was checking how close his own was to the target – the tiny cochonnet ball. In another tragic accident – quite unrelated to the sport – a pensioner was trampled to death by a two-tonne runaway circus elephant as he played the game.

6. Don’t be a Fanny
If you’ve ever played Pétanque in Provence you may have wondered what a picture of a bare-bottomed woman called “Fanny” is doing there. She is basically the goddess of Pétanque. Tradition dictates that if a team fails to score a single point they must kiss Fanny’s bottom. So if you happen to be hopeless at the sport, don’t be surprised if your competitors exclaim: “Il est Fanny!” (he’s Fanny) or “Fanny paie à boire!” (Fanny pays for the drinks).
7. Asian fans
Pétanque may be culturally associated with France but the International Federation of Pétanque and Provençal Game estimates that the sport – which has around 10-12 million players worldwide in 160 countries – is in fact most popular in Asia. No surprise then that Thailand currently holds second place in the Pétanque World Championships ranking. An estimated 1.5 million Chinese children apparently play the game at school.
8. A bac in Pétanque?
As France’s tenth most popular sport it’s perhaps unsurprising that pétanque has crept its way into the French school system. A handful of high schools in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region now offer it as a sport for the Physical Education baccalauréat qualification.

9. Alcohol ban lifted
In 2007 the World Anti-Doping Agency, which fights against drugs in sport, finally responded to calls from French players of Pétanque to lift its draconian ban on alcohol for professional players. The president of the World Boules Federation, Romolo Rizzoli, had ridiculed the inclusion of alcohol on the list of banned substances for pétanque, complaining to Libération newspaper: "You can drive a car after drinking two glasses of wine, but you can't play boules?", according to Der Spiegel. Boules players still have a long list of substances they are barred from taking, including cocaine, steroids, hashish and growth hormones.
10. Olympic ambitions
A gentle pastime, you say? Well, don’t say that to the World Federation of the Sport of Boules. Founded in 1985 by three international boules organizations, the federation has fought for decades to get the game recognized as an Olympic sport. Will the world ever take them seriously? We live in hope.
Another version of this story was published in July 2014

201st Post

We had twelve hardy souls today on a wind-chilly morning.  The rain held off but a northerly breeze was a constant companion.

As this was the final game in Competition A 2019 we had to wait to find out the eventual winner as the top players were very evenly matched.

Congratulation to Shay who was tied with Colm on 351 points having both played nine games each.
However, when we calculated the best 6 of 9 scores Shay had a score of 275 to Colm's  264.

That is unbelievably, consistent scoring and interestingly the previous four competitions were won with scores of 233 [Shay], 219 [Mike],  243 [Colm], 237 [Richie].  So their scores in this competition are in a different league.

Nigel [227] was 3rd and Mike [218] and Richie [218] shared 4th.  The best-placed lady was Eileen, with a score of 210.

I know Shay and Colm are grateful for all our support in achieving these magnificent scores!!!  As Shay won't be at Boules next week we'll delay the presentation until Wed. 17th April.

The next two weeks are non-competition days.  The results table for this session is as follows.

NAMES
Date:
Game:	Tot.	Tot.	Tot.	Tot.	Tot.	Tot.	Tot.	Tot.	Tot.	R.T.	Best 6	Played	Rank
Bridget	30	23	0	34	44	27	0	25	37	220	197	7	6
Brogan	17	0	33	32	29	0	25	16	0	152	152	6	10
Catherine	31	34	0	32	29	0	0	0	0	126	126	4
Colm	30	37	25	43	44	32	43	52	45	351	264	9	2
Dave	0	23	0	0	0	0	18	14	37	92	92	4
Dolores	17	0	24	0	0	0	0	0	0	41	41	2
Don	17	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	17	1
Eileen	51	27	23	43	27	0	38	0	24	233	210	7	5
Jeanette	17	38	29	0	0	0	0	0	0	84	84	3
John	0	0	31	27	0	33	19	21	0	131	131	5
Kitty	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Liam	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Maeve	0	24	0	24	0	0	31	16	32	127	127	5
Maureen	0	0	0	24	0	0	0	0	24	48	48	2
Michael	0	27	0	51	0	0	0	0	0	78	78	2
Mike	31	27	31	27	25	31	27	49	49	297	218	9	4
Nigel	51	38	23	28	30	27	31	49	0	277	227	8	3
Pat	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Patricia	0	27	33	20	27	31	0	13	45	196	183	7	8
Richard	31	34	47	34	0	25	43	29	26	269	218	8	4
Sean	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Shay	28	37	47	51	29	19	39	52	49	351	275	9	1
Sheila	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Tom D	31	24	34	0	30	33	27	25	32	236	187	8	7
Tom S	28	23	34	0	0	25	0	29	0	139	139	7
Tony	44	27	29	28	0	0	23	14	26	191	177	7	9
Yvonne	44	16	15	20	20	22	23	14	0	174	145	8

"No matter how I look at it...... they're still losing, Shay!"

Where's Solomon when you need him?

Tablecloth and hands....all blue this morning!

The epitome of nonchalance!

When is a cluster not a cluster?
[Photo Courtesy of Dave ]