10 reasons that schools should support high school bowling

1. The league is free for schools to participate in. Bowlers may be charged a nominal annual athletic fee of $75.00 by their sponsoring bowling center, but that is a fraction of what they receive in return (uniforms, league administration, and dozens of hours of practice, competition, and coaching).

2. Minnesota High School Bowling (MHSB) is the biggest and best organized "club program" in Minnesota. In 2010 there were 138 varsity and 121 junior varsity teams in the league. 1750 bowlers in grades 7 - 12 participated in MHSB. Many of our rules are modeled after those set forth by the Minnesota State High School League. The league is very structured. There are clearly defined starting and ending dates.

3. More than 60 school districts in Minnesota now offer bowling as a school club (most award varsity club letters). And this number is expected to surpass 70 during the 2011 season.

4. For the past 10 years, bowling has been one of the two fastest growing varsity sports in the country. Twenty states have varsity bowling. Twenty-seven states have club bowling. In just the 20 states that offer varsity bowling, there are 52,000 bowlers.

5. Bowling is an official NCAA sport for women (many tournaments can be seen on ESPN). Both girls and boys are being awarded scholarships to bowl at the collegiate level. Nearly 100 schools are now offering scholarships at the collegiate level. 

6. Bowling often appeals to students that do not participate in other extracurricular activities (more true in the metro area than outstate). Students that do not feel that they are athletic enough to play football, basketball, baseball, etc. are generally interested in bowling.

7. Bowling is a lifetime sport. People ages 3 to 103 can bowl.

8. Bowling is a social sport, and engenders a level of sportsmanship not often seen among athletes.  It is common for a bowler to congratulate a competitor on a nice shot, even if it beats them for the game.

9. MHSB does not allow alcohol near the lanes during practices or competition.

10. Bowling is good exercise. Rolling an 8 to 16 pound bowling ball at 17 to 25 miles per hour down 60 feet of lane uses 134 muscles. Bowling 3 games at 2 balls per frame will produce the equivalent of a one mile walk and burn 198 calories per hour.

Updated on August 10, 2011