Yet Another New Bowling Record for Wheelchair Users Driving by Head Array

Mike Murach has done it again! :-)

Bowling with family and friends recently, Mike literally rolled to a 190 in his second game.

In his email to me with the good news, he pointed out the disparity between his first and second game (113 and 190) and later wished he had another chance at picking up his spare in the 10th frame (if he had converted it, nine pins with his bonus ball would have given him 200).

No worries – bowling 190 and setting a new record for oneself (and others) is a good day!

And bowling is always fun, but rolling a 190 in front of your wife and buddies is extra enjoyable when you are the one in the group who uses a wheelchair.

Here is the link for more info and their score sheet:

http://www.wheelchairbowlingrecords.com/Mike_Murach_record_190.htm

Way to Go Mike! :-)
 
Bill

William A. Miller, BSBA, ME
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 255 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net
 

Charitable Considerations: 4 Ways and Lots of Good Causes

Whether you are looking for good karma, to help your fellow man, or whatever your motivation may be, here are four ways and lots of good charitable causes to consider:

– One great way to make tax-deductible charitable donations (CharityNavigator.org)
– Three worthy individuals in need of direct help (David, Rhonda, and Peggy)
– 10 good causes you can help for free, for 1-2 min. of your time (GreaterGood.com)
– A fun, free way to learn and feed the hungry at the same time (FreeRice.com)

If you're looking to make a tax-deductible donation before this year officially ends, or in the future, CharityNavigator.org is a great way to vet the many different options and make a more informed decision.

If you want to help worthy individuals with disabilities who I know are legit, I list these three in order of urgency:

David Jayne was diagnosed with ALS about 30 years ago. He is a very smart, very accomplished man who has had quite a journey, and he is raising money on Kickstarter.com to help get his autobiography written. At the time of this writing, he already has pledges for more than $23,000 in a short timeframe – but the kicker is that he needs the project funded completely ($30,000) by late evening, January 7, 2015 or he GETS NOTHING, and will likely end up in some type of facility without the ability to finish what I believe could be a book that could cover many of his future expenses (and would be worth reading). There's a good video and more info here:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/625225387/the-unexpected-journey

Rhonda Reese is a personal friend who became a quadriplegic in 1991, and I met shortly after my injury in 1997. For more than 20 years, her mom, Jackie, was her primary caregiver in a small apartment they shared, but two years ago, Rhonda lost both her parents and is now trying to avoid going to a nursing home at the age of 48. We had a successful bowl-a-thon fundraiser for her last year, and we are planning to make it an annual event to help keep her out of a nursing home (we are currently trying to decide on the location and date of the next bowl-a-thon, but it should be in March 2015). If you want to help Rhonda, you could wait for the bowl-a-thon, or you could donate on her YouCaring.com page, which has more info here:
http://www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/help-for-rhonda/37633

Peggy Overbey is also a personal friend, and she was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (a form of muscular dystrophy) nearly 3 decades ago. She has lost many physical abilities in that timeframe, and would love to regain some of them with a fancy robotic arm. She knows the price tag is high, and she started a loom knitting business to try to raise funds, yet could still use help. Here is her link for more information and/or to donate:
http://www.gofundme.com/ecjw04

And anyone with Internet access can help 10 good causes for just 1-2 minutes of your time. To make a really significant impact you can visit GreaterGood.com daily, and click to make a sponsor paid donation on 10 different subpages. The Greater Good family of websites has tabs/links to:

TheVeteransSite.com – help provide meals for homeless Veterans with your daily click.

TheAutismSite.com – help fund therapy for children with autism with your daily click.

TheHungerSite.com – help fight hunger with your daily click.

TheBreastCancerSite.com – click daily to help fund free mammograms.

TheDiabetesSite.com – click daily to support the fight against diabetes.

TheLiteracySite.com – click daily to help give free books for children in need.

TheAnimalRescueSite.com – click daily to help give bowls of food for rescued animals.

TheRainforestSite.com – help protect and preserve habitat with your click.

TheAlzheimersSite.com – help support the fight against Alzheimer's with your click.

The above nine links will take you to separate tabs on the GreaterGood.com website. The Greater Good tab/link on the page has a special project to fund with your click. That's 10 different causes you can help in less than one minute (if you're fast:) daily.

FreeRice.com – A fantastic way to have some FUN, LEARN, and FEED THE HUNGRY! The default "game" is multiple choice English vocabulary words, but they also have many other grade school subjects, and you can even choose the level of difficulty in certain categories. And for each correct answer, sponsors will donate 10 grains of rice to the World Food Programme.

Thank you for your consideration in helping any of these or other good causes.

May God bless us all! On a related note, if you're interested in reading the Bible or listening to audio versions, BibleGateway.com has free reading plans (some of which start January 1 and are spread out over the year) which make reading it convenient.
  
Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 255 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

25 Things That Surprise the Public about What People with Spinal Cord Injury Can Do

Since this blog is about empowering wheelchair users, I have to share this list of "25 Things That Surprise the Public about What People with Spinal Cord Injury Can Do" from Shepherd Center, a specialty hospital where I rehabbed in 1997.

http://news.shepherd.org/25-things-that-surprise-the-public-about-what-people-with-spinal-cord-injury-can-do/

That's "just" 25 – I'm sure we could come up with quite a bit more.
 
Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 255 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

7 IKAN Bowler Users and a 23rd 200+ Game

At our central Florida Quad Squad outing on Saturday, September 14th, we had seven different power wheelchair users bowl with an IKAN Bowler.  The reasons for wheelchair use among the seven people include cerebral palsy, spinal cord injury, and spina bifida.  We also have had people with muscular dystrophy in our group, but not on that day.

Brenda, Julie, Lilian, Rhonda, Aaron, Doug, and I were the seven IKAN users.  If you're wondering how it works, the bowling alley typically has enough lanes that each wheelchair user can bowl on his/her own lane.  Most of us bowl 3-5 games in the roughly two hours that we are together with various family, friends, and our volunteer caddies who are now friends who have become like family.  We usually have a sizable group -- and we ALWAYS have a good time! :)

Bowling is always fun, whether the scores are particularly good or not.  A good score is subjective to the person bowling, but we all have a friendly competition for top score of the afternoon (my Dad started this by offering $20 for the top score -- if that score beats me; I'm not eligible as the prize money is supposed to be incentive for people to beat me and keep my "ego" in check, says my loving Dad:) and Aaron set the bar high with a really good 196 in his second game of the afternoon.

But my strike ball found its groove and I followed Aaron's 196 with a 205 to take the lead for the top score of the afternoon.  That was my 22nd game of 200 or better, so my caddy George tried to get a printout.  But my Aunt Jackie accidentally cleared my score before George could get the printout!  Jackie apologized and half-jokingly said, "you'll just have to do it again!"

That, of course, is MUCH easier said than done, but my strike ball was working well and I did break 200 again in the very next game, nearly matching the 205 with a 204.  So that's why the title of this post includes mention of a 23rd 200+ game -- for a person who happens to be a ventilator-dependent quadriplegic.  Here's my scoresheet:


 
All glory to God and God bless all!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 255 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

IKAN User Profile: JR Harding, Ed. D., Florida

I know "Dr. Harding" as JR.  He is a rare two-time quadriplegic.  JR has contributed to national, state and local disability policy as a two-time U.S. presidential appointee, seven-time gubernatorial appointee, and a community volunteer for all things related to the quality of life for persons with disabilities.

His community work secured $3.5 million of accessibility enhancements to Billy Joe Rish Park, a desirable and affordable vacation location designed with wheelchair users and people with disabilities in mind.  It's on the beach in Northwest Florida (www.RishPark.org).

JR's book, "Now What?" (available in paperback and ebook versions) chronicles his early journey from high school football star through two different spinal cord injuries.  It is an intense personal sharing of tragedy, triumph, failures and successes.

He's also had some fun and success bowling IKAN-style.

Here are JR's IKAN User Profile answers...

Name: JR Harding, Ed. D.
Age: 45
Location: Tallahassee, FL
Reason for Wheelchair Use: Two-time C5 Quadriplegic (1983 & 1998)
Onset or Injury date: (above)
Wheelchair Operation Method: Joystick for power chair primarily; I use a manual chair occasionally
High Bowling Score: 179
Approx Bowling Average: 130
Bowling Frequency: Every other month
Bowling Ball: 15 lb ball
Quote from JR: "Don't sit on the sidelines, get back in the game of life."

Thank you for your many contributions JR!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 255 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

New Record for a Female Using Sip-and-Puff!

My friend and fellow Quad Squad member Rhonda Reese set a new record for dynamic-style wheelchair bowling by a female driving her wheelchair by sip-and-puff. Rhonda bowled a very impressive 195 -- beating her previous best by whopping 25 pins!

Rhonda & I have been friends since long before the IKAN Bowler was invented, and I know she loves having upped the record to a lofty 195. I also know that she has wanted to beat me for the afternoon's high score for quite some time (I think she beat me once previously, but she doesn't recall doing so).

But she'll certainly remember the outcomes from Quad Squad Bowling on July 14th, 2012 (she has the scoresheets to prove it). Yes, she beat me. Technically, she beat me twice that afternoon (although highest overall game is what we go by).

Brenda, Lilian, Melissa, Aaron, Rhonda and I were the IKAN-style bowlers that day, and while everyone had fun, the high score competition would come down to Rhonda and me. I started with a solid game of 157, which Rhonda promptly topped with a 159. In hindsight, that appears to have been a harbinger of what was to come.

So I knew I had to at least beat 159 in order to have the afternoon's top score, and in my second game, I bowled a 194. That's not exactly shabby. I looked over at Rhonda, who was still finishing her second game, and (though I should've waited) I said, "Sorry, Rhonda" for beating her 159 by a good bit and taking over the high score.

Then I proceeded to watch Rhonda bowl a strike in the 9th frame, which gave her the possibility of catching me with another strike (at least) in the tenth frame. She got it. And with her second ball in the tenth, she knocked down 7 pins, giving her 195 regardless of what she did with her bonus ball -- and securing a likely victory over me and our Quad Squad friends on the afternoon (I managed a 184 in my third and final game of the day, which obviously fell short of her 195).

On a day of excellent bowling for Rhonda, the only "bad" news is that she was left to try to pickup a nasty 4-7-10 split with her last ball of her record game. That spare attempt, for us IKAN Users, is makeable probably one-percent of the time, if that. Rhonda went for it but missed. If Rhonda had an easier three pins remaining, she would've had a much better chance to break 200 (the three pins would've been added to her strike, essentially counting double, and would've given her 201), which she lamented later.

Nonetheless, Rhonda was (and is still) quite pleased with her 195, her new record, and with beating me (by one pin!:). And, though I'm quite competitive and don't like to lose, I'm quite happy for Rhonda too.

Click HERE for Rhonda's scoresheet.

CONGRATULATIONS RHONDA! :-)

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 255 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

New Overall World Record for Dynamic-Style Wheelchair Bowling

Vent-Dependent Quadriplegic Bill Miller Bowls a 255 in a 674 Series

I, Bill Miller, am blessed to have actually bowled a 255 and 245 in consecutive games in a 674 series.  The 255 is the new overall world record for dynamic-style wheelchair bowling, and the record for wheelchair users with spinal cord injuries, and also for sip-and-puff wheelchair users.  And, yes, I am paralyzed from my neck down and also a fulltime ventilator user.

For other categories of wheelchair bowling records, click HERE.

For the scoresheet, pictures, and details of my new records, click HERE.

Thanks and God bless!

Bill Miller :-)

C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 255 High Bowling Game

Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT

Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com

Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

A New Record for People Who Use Sip-and-Puff Wheelchairs

Bill Miller's 224 and 15th 200 Game -- and 585 Series

At our Central Florida Quad Squad Bowling outing on January 28th, I bowled my highest score to date -- a 224 -- which is a new record for wheelchair users who operate their chairs by sip-and-puff (mouth control). I also bowled my highest series of three games -- 179, 182, and 224 for a 585 series -- and the 224 was my 15th game of 200 or better.

Many people have bowled that well before -- but I happen to be a C1-2 quadriplegic who is paralyzed from my neck down and ventilator dependent. And using an IKAN Bowler (which is legit because it's sanctioned by the USBC) I've now had a 200, four 201s, two 202s, a 203, 205, 206, 210, 212, 221, 223 and 224.

Here's the link to my scoresheet and commentary is below:

http://www.wheelchairbowlingrecords.com/Bill_Miller_224_Story_and_Scoresheet.htm

Peggy, Aaron, and I were the three Quad Squad Bowlers / IKAN Users on this day, and we were assisted by volunteer caddies from LovExtension (Connie, Pat, Nancy, and Linda, who caddied my 224 game:). Peggy did well, considering it has been a couple months since she bowled, and Aaron did well too, considering he was using a brand new ball for the first time. We all had fun -- it's always a festive environment with a combination of caddies, caregivers, family and friends cheering us on.

I started out very well, bowling a 179 in my first game, and having only two open frames (a frame with no spare or strike). I managed to stay hot in game 2, bowling a 182 with just one open frame.

So, after just three open frames out of the twenty frames in my first two games, I actually had two open frames halfway through my third game and was sitting on 77 after the 5th frame. That doesn't sound like a start that would beat my previous high game of 223.

But when you roll six-consecutive strikes, the score adds up fast! :-)

Bowling is always fun, even if I don't score so high. But my goal is goal is to have a 500 (or better) series each time I bowl, which is a 166.7 average (or better). That's pretty solid bowling, because such an average usually requires us to have 8 or 9 marks (spares and strikes combined) out of 10 frames. I say that because we have limited ball speed (6 mph) compared to able-bodied bowlers (adult males usually average 15-20 mph ball speed) and the difference equals less "pin action" at impact. That means it's harder for us IKAN Users to get strikes. So I was certainly blessed to get six in a row.

Though I'm quite happy to have bowled 224, a small piece of me is "kicking myself" because had I made the two single-pin spares in my first and 5th frames, and then finished how I did, my score would've been a 246 -- and would've topped Jon Musgrave's 243, which is the overall world record for wheelchair bowlers bowling dynamically (IKAN style).

See, wheelchair users can be competitive too.

All glory to God.

Bill Miller  :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 224 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Vent-Dependent Quadriplegic Bowls a 212 and 14th Game of 200+

Recently at Quad Squad Bowling, I bowled my third highest score to date, a 212, which was my 14th game of 200 or better.  That's not bad, especially considering that I'm paralyzed from my neck down and use a ventilator to breathe.  I share this to show people, especially wheelchair users, what is possible.

If you're wondering how it's possible, the answer is called an IKAN Bowler, which is essentially a fancy bowling ramp that can attach to pretty much any wheelchair.  I'm actually credited with co-inventing the IKAN Bowler, and we got it approved by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) for league and tournament play -- any league or tournament, anywhere -- bowling with and/or against able-bodied bowlers or fellow IKAN Users.  Of course IKAN Users can also bowl just for fun, recreationally, too.

You can download my scoresheet as a PDF file (if you cannot open it, download free Adobe Reader HERE).

My strike ball was working well that day, but I had an unusually difficult time picking up spares (which is to say that I missed quite a few "easy" spares that I usually convert) especially in the first game.  I managed to bowl a turkey (i.e. three consecutive strikes) which helped me to a 161 in my first game, despite having just one spare.

My second game was the 212.  My strike ball continued to work well as I had another turkey and two non-consecutive strikes also.  I did much better with my spare attempts in game two, converting all five, including in the tenth frame.  I was particularly pleased with that spare pickup because had I missed it, I would've had a 202 -- for the third time.

I'll always be thrilled with any game of 200 or better -- and it's fun to bowl even if the scores aren't so high -- but I really wanted a score that I hadn't bowled before.  So picking up the spare in the tenth frame, and following it with 9 pins with the extra ball, that gave me a 212.  I've now had a 200, four 201s, two 202s, a 203, 205, 206, 210, 212, 221 and 223.

My third game was not-so-good, especially compared to what I'd just done.  Not to make excuses, but I had four splits and also missed two single-pin spare attempts.  That resulted in a 136, which I couldn't possibly end on, so I bowled a fourth game -- which could have been my 15th game of 200 or better.

Game four was good -- I actually had four consecutive strikes.  So I was certainly in good position to break 200 again, but in the tenth frame, I started my ball out too wide and it didn't come back into the headpin enough.  That left me with a difficult spare attempt (4-5-7-8; you can see the setup on the scoresheet) which requires perfectly splitting the 4 & 5 pins, and hoping the 7 & 8 will fall also.  I very nearly split the 4 & 5, just barely missing the 5 pin (the ball is just a bit bigger than the space between the two side-by-side pins, but a very accurate shot is required to get both pins).  And so I ended with a 195.

All in all, it was a whole lot of fun.  I thank my fellow bowlers, caddies, and everyone who was cheering me on, and also those who helped make it possible for a vent-dependent quadriplegic to not only go somewhere, but to physically and fairly compete in a sport.

I'm grateful.

All glory to God.

Sincerely,
 

Bill Miller :-)

C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 223 High Bowling Game

Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT

My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com

Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com

Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Quad Squad Bowling Photos 2011-07-10

We had five IKAN Users, myself included, at Quad Squad Bowling on July 10th.  Youth Group members from First Baptist Church of Umatilla caddied for us.

You can view the photos on Facebook HERE (a Facebook account is not required).

For details about Quad Squad Bowling and photos from an earlier outing, click HERE.

Thank you to everyone who helped make it fun & memorable -- and God bless!

Bill Miller :-)

C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 223 High Bowling Game

Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT

My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com

Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com

Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

BACK IN LIFE -- Zach Weinstein's Story

"In July of 2005, Zack Weinstein broke his neck while jumping into the Saco River in Maine.  He is now a C5-C6 Quadriplegic.  In service to other quadriplegics, we have teamed up with Zack to create "BACK IN LIFE".  Our hope is that by sharing Zack's powerful experiences in this film, it may provide others with needed strength in an oftentimes daunting struggle. Runtime: 15 Min."

Back In Life from Smooth Feather on Vimeo.

Video link: http://www.smoothfeather.org/index.php?pg=films

Video alternate link: http://vimeo.com/355371

Great story, great video -- thank you Zach & Co. for sharing!

God bless!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 221 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

IKAN User Profile: Ben Lux, Florida

My buddy Ben Lux is one of the original members of our Central Florida area Quad Squad group.  Ben actually had the top overall score for an IKAN User, a 183 on May 10, 2004.  Ben isn't able to bowl as frequently as he did back in 2004, but he still enjoys bowling when he can.  Aside from bowling, Ben particularly enjoys watching movies and his favorite football team, the Jacksonville Jaguars.  But, above all for Ben is his faith: God first, everything else second.  Amen, Ben!

Here are Ben's answers to the profile questions...

Name: Ben Lux

Age: 32

Location: Yalaha, Florida

Reason for Wheelchair Use: Quadriplegia

Onset or Injury Date: 7/4/93 Automobile Accident

Wheelchair Operation Method: Sip n' Puff

High Bowling Score: 183   

Approx Bowling Average: 100-130

Typical Range of Scores: 80-150

Bowling Frequency: Not as often as I'd like.

Bowling Ball(s): Columbia

Quote from Ben: "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds" - Emerson

Thanks Ben!  God bless!

Bill Miller :-)

C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 221 High Bowling Game

Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT

My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com

Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com

Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

From Vent to Diaphragmatic Pacing System -- Part 1

I, Bill Miller, am paralyzed from the neck down and ventilator dependent due to a high-level spinal cord injury (SCI) that I incurred in August of 1997.  Though I learned of Synapse Biomedical's NeuRx Diaphragm Pacing System (DPS) several years ago, I didn't feel like it could do much to improve my quality of life.  I actually thought it would decrease my quality of life, primarily because the DPS doesn't allow the user to initiate breaths.  Why is that important?

My voice is my primary tool to the world, so the better my speech, the better my quality of life.  Using a Passy-Muir (Speaking) Valve (PMV), I have nearly continuous speech while receiving 13 breaths per minute (BPM) at a volume of 900 cc (just less than half of a two liter soda bottle).  However, sometimes I do "run out" of air to speak with, before I finish my thought.  Fortunately, there are a couple of ventilator settings that enable me to initiate another breath, with just a slight "shrug" of my shoulders (I use my neck muscles to pull my chin down and chest up a little; that’s also how I can breathe when disconnected from the ventilator).

Initiating a breath enables me to shorten the pause in between "scheduled" breaths and continue speaking.  The DPS doesn't allow users to initiate breaths, hence my initial thought that it would decrease my speaking ability and thus my quality of life.  But there's a simple fix: just increase the breath rate.

I'm told that my volume when stimulated to breathe by the DPS should be around 800 cc, so with 14 or maybe 15 BPM, my guess is I won't need to initiate any breaths.  That's what I suspect I'll want during the day when I'm speaking, and I can decrease the BPM for sleeping.

I was also leery about only having battery power for the DPS.  It's comforting to know I have unlimited vent time when plugged-in to a standard outlet, but to also know I have batteries for my vent that give me roughly 12-14 hours on a full charge, and charge simply by being plugged-in.  But I have a friend who has used the DPS essentially 24/7 for over five years, and he hasn't had any issues with the batteries.

With those issues "solved" in my mind, I began to think how I could benefit from the DPS. 

* * * * *

I've heard DPS users' senses of smell and taste both improve, though I cannot imagine certain foods tasting any better than they do now (I enjoy eating:).  And I can smell fairly well when I actively try to take air in through my nose (and selective smelling can be a good thing!:).  So those are minimal benefits for me personally, but here are several that are not.

The biggest benefit I hope to gain from the DPS is being comfortable enough with it to remove the ventilator and vent tray from my wheelchair.  Actually, I'm in need of a new chair (this is my original chair, which is over 12 years old) and I would like to get a chair that can stand me up, so that I can both view the world from my natural height, and bear my weight much more frequently than I do now.  Bearing weight is highly beneficial for one's bones and entire body, I'm told.  Plus, I do speaking engagements, and plan to teach at the community college level upon completing my master's degree -- and how cool would it be for a quadriplegic to be able to stand up when speaking?

Not having a ventilator on my chair would also enable me to maneuver in tight spaces more easily.  And I could drive my wheelchair while standing -- I'd love to roll upright across the stage when I graduate (I rolled seated across the stage for my bachelor's degree, which can be seen on my website HERE).

The DPS would definitely improve my speech quality in bed, because it would be like using a speaking valve all the time.  (The PMV is a fantastic little one-way valve that enables one to take in air easily through one's trach, but seals off in the exhale direction, thus enabling the user to have air around his/her vocal cords even when the vent isn't giving a breath, which allows for more continuous speech.)  I don't currently use a speaking valve in bed because the valve tends to dry out my airway, so in bed, I re-humidify my airway.

Another benefit would be that the DPS should allow me to either cap my trach or use a small speaking valve, either of which would make getting dressed a bit easier, and also would make wearing certain clothes MUCH easier.  Right now, with the vent circuit attached to my trach, it protrudes about 1.5 to 2 inches, which makes wearing some dress shirts or a tie quite difficult.

I could also potentially wear a turtleneck or mock-turtleneck, which I cannot currently do (because they put pressure on my trach and stoma), and they could hide my trach altogether.  I'm not self-conscious about my trach or general appearance, but that would obscure a sign of my disability, which would be good because I try to not let my disability define what I can do -- despite being paralyzed from my neck down, I still feel like I have the ability to accomplish quite a bit (I thank the Good Lord for blessing me with good support systems).

Some DPS users have even had their trachs removed entirely.  Even if I'm able to build up to 24/7 DPS use, it would take me a while to even consider having my trach removed.  That's a big step -- that maybe I'll get to consider in six months or a year.  That said, my on-vent quality of life is high (many thanks to a CoughAssist machine, which you can read about on my website HERE) so I won't be too disappointed if I'm not able to use the DPS.  No worries!

This is the first of (hopefully) five entries I've been asked to submit for the International Ventilator User's Network (IVUN).  If all goes well with my efforts to become a DPS user, then here are the proposed entries: Column 1 (April 2010) Why I'm seeking a DPS; Column 2 (June 2010) Candidate screening / pre-surgery requirements; Column 3 (August 2010) DPS surgery; Column 4 (October 2010) Post surgery use; Column 5 (in 2011) Extended use.  IVUN's website is www.ventusers.org.

A PDF file of IVUN's newsletter is below; I'm on page 5 with a nicely edited version of what I wrote above:

http://www.lookmomnohands.net/objects/IVUN-val2010-24-2Nsec.pdf

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 221 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Quad Squad Year in Review (2009)

With this year in review, I'll recap the highlights of the past year for Quad Squad Bowling and share some additional news that isn't in any of my other blog entries.

In January, my young friend Alex McDonald set and reset the dynamic wheelchair bowling record for a male with muscular dystrophy by impressively bowling a 180 and 192 in back-to-back games. Click HERE for details, but as you'll see later in this recap, Alex went on to eclipse his record -- several (impressive) times.

In February, 65-year-young Angie Keiser became really the first paraplegic to take the IKAN "dynamic bowling challenge" and post a solid record score of 138. That might not sound like it's too high, but I believe dynamic bowling in a manual wheelchair is more difficult than with a power wheelchair. And we have yet to see any other paraplegics (younger or older) take the challenge and post a better score than Angie. So Angie officially holds the record. Click HERE for Angie's IKAN User profile and the scoresheet of her record game.

In March, 59-year-young Lilian Strandlund became THE top overall female dynamic wheelchair bowler with a joyous 189. I say joyous because she was SO HAPPY to not only become the top female bowler with cerebral palsy, and the top female bowler who drives her chair via joystick, in addition to the aforementioned overall top bowler -- but she beat her significant other Ed, who is able-bodied and can bowl real well. Just mentioning her record setting performance and beating Ed makes Lilian's whole face light up with a smile that beams! Click HERE for Lilian's profile and record scoresheet.

In April & May, I wrote a REALLY comprehensive (a.k.a. LONG:) blog called "Keys and Tips for Dynamic Wheelchair Bowling." Actually, in May I updated it with some new info, but if you're interested and haven't read it, I went back and included the May info in the April blog, so that someone only has to read my April entry to get everything, which is HERE.

In June, Rhonda Reese came out of hibernation to set a new record for a female wheelchair bowler who drives via sip-and-puff with an exciting 170 -- beating her previous best by 9 pins! I say "hibernation" in jest because Rhonda hadn't been able to bowl with us for about 6 months. So after such a long time in between bowling, it was impressive to see her have her best bowling day to date. Click HERE for details.

Apparently nothing particularly blog-worthy occurred with our Quad Squad Bowling in July, so I took the opportunity to introduce a new website I created to more legitimize our record bowling scores. To checkout WheelchairBowlingRecords.com, click HERE.

Alex McDonald heated up in August and broke his male with MD record by bowling 195 -- and if that wasn't impressive enough, he averaged 182.33 on his record-breaking day. His best bowling day (to that point:) came at a great time, because Alex was preparing to join his High School Bowling Team -- competing with and against able-bodied bowlers -- a few weeks later. Click HERE for details.

With September came a new record for male bowlers who drive via sip-and-puff... I bowled a 221 which topped my previous high game of 206 by 15 pins. The thing that surprised and amazed me is that I actually had two open frames in the game, and still managed to score that high (I had 7 strikes; 4 consecutive and 3 consecutive -- that's how I was lucky enough to score so high). Click HERE for details.

In October, Alex became the fourth IKAN User to enter the 200 Club -- and he did it TWICE with a 201 and 213! I was both quite impressed and proud of Alex's bowling accomplishments, despite our friendly rivalry. Click HERE for details.

In November, a ventilator-dependent quadriplegic who is paralyzed from the neck down bowled his 10th game of 200 or better. I wrote that to try to drive home the point that ANY wheelchair user who can safely operate a wheelchair, can bowl in dynamic fashion (by dynamic I mean using an IKAN Bowler and the movement of one's wheelchair to emulate the able-bodied bowling process). I control my wheelchair with my mouth, and yet I've bowled ten 200+ games. I don't write that to brag, but to show others what is possible. Click HERE for the details.

This is my December blog entry and I have one quite significant piece of news to share -- and sad news at that.

Shockingly, in late November at just 17 years of age, our friend and fellow Quad Squad member Alex McDonald passed away from complications of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. He went from seemingly healthy to no longer with us in about a week's time.

I share that here for two reasons: (1) so readers of this blog will know why additional bowling accomplishments from Alex aren't mentioned, and (2) as a reminder to LIVE life and try to enjoy each day, whatever it may bring. Not only that, but to make sure your loved ones know you love them.

With that, I wish everyone who reads this a healthy and happy 2010.

May God bless you and your loved ones.

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 221 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Vent-Dependent Quadriplegic Bowls 10th 200+ Game

I, Bill Miller, am paralyzed from my neck down and ventilator-dependent, yet I recently bowled my 10th legitimate game of 200 or better. I state that not to brag, but to help drive home the point that ANY WHEELCHAIR USER -- who can safely operate his/her wheelchair -- CAN BOWL in dynamic fashion with the IKAN ("I can") Bowler®.

I've now bowled a 200, four 201s, two 202s, a 203, 206, and 221, which is my personal record and the current record for a male who drives his chair via sip-and-puff. What makes the scores legitimate?

The IKAN Bowler® was sanctioned for league and tournament play -- any league or tournament any where, bowling with and/or against able-bodied bowlers or fellow IKAN Users -- by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC).

The USBC sanctioned the IKAN Bowler® because IKAN Users emulate the able-bodied bowling process, i.e. setup, then physically approach and release the ball while stopping short of the foul line. This is considered "dynamic" bowling because executing each shot involves the moving wheelchair. We state this to distinguish dynamic wheelchair bowling from stationary-ramp bowling.

There's nothing wrong with stationary-ramp bowling (and the IKAN Bowler® is great for stationary-ramp bowling) but that's essentially a different sport than dynamic wheelchair bowling, which is equivalent to traditional, able-bodied bowling.

* * * * *

My most recent 200+ game was my 4th 201.

I started off well with a spare, then a strike, and three more spares. Then came a turkey (three consecutive strikes) over my 6th, 7th, and 8th frames, followed by a spare in the 9th.

At this point, I had 184 plus whatever I bowl with my first ball in the 10th. So with a decent/good count (for example 8 pins) with my first ball, I'd have 192 in the 9th, and 200 in the 10th -- PLUS the opportunity for a spare (two more points) and an additional ball (likely 7-10 more points). Therefore, if all that happened, I most likely would've added an additional 17-20 points to my 9th frame score (so with the hypothetical 192, I was looking at potentially scoring 209-212).

The hypothetical 8 pins became 8 real pins and I had 192 in the 9th.

The problem is I was left with a nasty 4-10 split, which is extremely difficult to pickup. I tried, but got only the 4-pin and thus finished with a 201. I was really hoping I'd bowl a score I hadn't before (something in the range of 209-212, like I mentioned above) but it wasn't meant to be. No worries.

ANY score of 200 or better is something to be quite happy about -- and I am! :-)

The scoresheet for my 4th 201 and 10th 200+ game is HERE.

If you're curious, my 221 story & scoresheet are HERE.

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 221 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

A New Record for Male Sip-and-Puff Wheelchair Bowlers!

At Quad Squad Bowling this past Saturday, I bowled a 221, which beat my previous high game (206) by 15 pins! :-)

I must say, I had quite a bit of good luck. I opened with a spare, then four consecutive strikes, followed by two open frames, then three consecutive strikes (the third strike was the first ball of my 10th frame). I followed with split-7 and only got one of the remaining pins for a 221. If that's a bit confusing, see my scoresheet (link below).

It requires some luck (or heavenly help) to get that many strikes, and to get a consecutive group of four and another group of three (if strikes are not consecutive, the score doesn't compound nearly as fast). I scored that high -- yet missed two very makeable spares. The two open frames were single-pin attempts (7 and 10, respectively) and when I'm bowling really well, I typically pickup those single-pin spares. And if I had, my score would have been... drum roll please... 243 -- which would have tied Jon Musgrave for the overall world record.

But I'm NOT complaining! I'm slightly kicking myself that I didn't pickup those two single-pin spares, but I'm amazed that I scored 221 after missing those spares. That shows the power of compound strikes. I've actually bowled at least three games without having an open frame (I just checked some of my old scoresheets) and three of those totaled 202, 203, and 206. I had to work harder in those games because I had fewer strikes (so I had more spares to convert).

Not to make excuses, but the 221 came in my first game, and that's usually my warmup game where I try to get a feel for my strike ball and also my straight ball for spare attempts. I had one easy spare in the first frame (I think it was the 2-4, which is two pins offset but close enough to get by striking either side of the 2-pin) then four strikes, followed by the two corner single-pin spare attempts. I actually took some time to "compose myself" before those attempts, knowing I had only used my straight ball once. But I missed both.

I just knew missing those spares was going to hurt when I looked back at the game (at what my score could have been) but, at the same time, I recognize how uncommon it is to get that many consecutive strikes in a game (with our moderate ball speed, we don't generate a lot of pin action) and I'm grateful to now be able to say I bowled a 221. That's a new record for male wheelchair users who drive by sip-and-puff.

I lost some focus in my second game and had a 136, meaning I needed a 143 in my third game for a 500 series (that's actually my goal when I bowl). I bowled 171 in my third game for a 528 series.

Ok, my record scoresheet is HERE.

If you're curious, my previous best 206 (story & scoresheet) is HERE.

AND -- I get a new signature! See below...

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 221 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Another New Record for Wheelchair Bowlers with Muscular Dystrophy!

My friend and fellow Quad Squad Bowler, 17-year-old Alex McDonald topped his previous best (192, link below) with an impressive 195 at our recent Quad Squad outing. In doing so, he raised the bar for others with Muscular Dystrophy (MD) and increases his World Record for Dynamic Wheelchair Bowling for Bowlers with MD.

And he humbled me in the process! See, Alex and I -- and all of the Quad Squad -- have a friendly rivalry, and compete for top score of the day. But neither I nor any other Quad Squad Bowler could keep pace with Alex a few weeks ago. (And if you read previous blog entries about my poorly driving wheelchair, it is fixed and that wasn't the problem; I just struggled for some reason.)

I want to highlight a few points about Alex's scoresheet (which is linked below) in particular, his final three games (the first game was a warm-up and he had splits-itis).

In Alex's final three games, his average score was 182.33 and he averaged 8.33 marks per 10 frames. In those three games, i.e. 30 frames, Alex only had a total of three frames in which he had non-split open frames (splits are indicated by a circle on the scoresheet). In theory, every non-split (that isn't a strike) becomes a spare attempt that a "really good bowler typically converts."

Alex converted 2 of 3 in his second game, 4 of 5 in his third game, and 5 of 6 in his fourth game. And just for the heck of it, Alex converted two splits into spares (one of them was the nasty 6-7-10, which he converted beautifully; ok, I just checked the scoresheet and it shows no converted circled-7, which means the machine scored inaccurately, which can happen if a pin moves far enough from its usual position without falling over, or it was the 6-10 split, which is converted the same way as the 6-7-10 -- BUT it doesn't really matter because that was in game four, not Alex's MD record 195 game; click HERE to see a 6-7-10 split setup and how Alex converted it).

Altogether it was some high quality bowling by Alex -- AND great to see -- especially since Alex is about to start varsity bowling for his high school! The IKAN Bowler® is sanctioned for league and tournament play by the USBC, so Alex can compete with his able-bodied classmates on their varsity bowling team.

I hope the high quality bowling Alex demonstrated below continues and/or improves when he's in high school competition.

If you'd like to see Alex's previous high of 192, click HERE.

Alex's latest record (195) scoresheet is HERE.

GREAT JOB ALEX! :-)

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

New Website for Wheelchair Bowling Records!

The IKAN ("I can") Bowler can enable virtually any wheelchair user to bowl dynamically (involving the movement of the wheelchair; not stationary ramp bowling) and the sport of dynamic wheelchair bowling is legitimate, says the United States Bowling Congress (USBC). The USBC sanctioned the IKAN Bowler for league and tournament play -- any league or tournament anywhere in the U.S. -- bowling with and/or against able-bodied bowlers, or fellow IKAN Users.

Since the IKAN Bowler is the only wheelchair bowling device sanctioned by the USBC (which is a merger of the Women's International Bowling Congress and the American Bowling Congress) for league or tournament play, records achieved bowling dynamically with an IKAN Bowler are indeed legitimate world records for wheelchair bowling. Here's the website that shows the current master list and explains more if you're curious:

http://www.WheelchairBowlingRecords.com

You may have noticed that some links in previous blog entries go to the new website. If you're wondering how that is possible since this website is new, it's because I went back and updated those links after creating the above website. I thought the records should have a more legitimate Internet space on their own website, instead being on my personal website.

We look forward to increased competition and the setting of new records!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/

New Record for a Female Using Sip-and-Puff!

My friend and fellow Quad Squad member Rhonda Reese set a new record for dynamic wheelchair bowling by a female driving her chair by sip-and-puff. After not being able to bowl for about six months, Rhonda shook the rust off her bowling game and bowled an impressive 170 -- beating her previous best by a sizable margin -- nine pins!

Whenever we bowl, we have a friendly competition to try to have the top game of the day, and after game one, Rhonda was in the lead with a 142, ahead of both Lilian and me (the only Quad Squad Bowlers who could bowl that day). I managed to take the lead with a 170 in game two, despite my chair still being squirrelly (bowling a turkey, a.k.a. three consecutive strikes, really helps:).

Rhonda is a bit of a deliberate bowler, and I finished three games by the time she finished two. She was thinking of stopping, but I said, "Rhonda, you haven't bowled in six months -- enjoy yourself and bowl another game!" We were all rooting for Rhonda (we all cheer for everyone to do well, but we especially wanted to see Rhonda bowl well because she hadn't been able to bowl for a long time). To keep her company, I bowled a fourth game alongside her. But I finished faster than Rhonda, and she wound up being the ONLY person in Spanish Springs bowling!

It was too quiet, so I wanted to try to keep her from being nervous (she already was, because she knew she had a good game going -- and it's her nature to be nervous:). I was on lane one, she was on lane two, and Lilian was also finished bowling on lane three. So I asked Rhonda if I could distract her from being nervous if I crossed over in front of her and went to cheer for her by Lilian. She said "go for it" so I did, and I led the cheer, "Let's-go, Rhon-da" (clap clap, clap clap clap; the "clapping" I did vocally, of course:) from lane 4, but nobody was doing it with me (Jackie later said they didn't want to make Rhonda nervous:). I was trying to break the silence and tension and get Rhonda to relax a little.

It looked like Rhonda would fall a little short of her previous record (161) until the 10th frame. She had 122 in the 8th frame and a spare in the 9th (i.e. the potential to have 142 in the 9th and a chance to break her record, if she rolled a strike with her first ball in the 10th). So I said, "No pressure Rhonda, just three strikes -- just start with one!" :-)

Boom, STRIKE! :-)

And ANOTHER! :-)

After the double, she had 162 and another ball. I said, "Rhonda, there's REALLY no pressure now, because you already have a new record!" :-)

Rhonda replied, "Yeah, but I want to set it as high as I can -- so there's still pressure!" (She was killing me with all the pressure talk!:)

Anyway, she got 8 with her last ball for a 170 and her entrance into THE 170 CLUB! WOOHOO! Way to go Rhonda! :-)

Afterward, she was pleased with her new record, but lamented, "But now I have to break 170 to get a new record."

Dale, who caddied for Rhonda, was like, "Quit trying to find the dark side of a silver cloud!" It was funny.

Good times. Here's her scoresheet (at the below link, scroll down):

http://www.wheelchairbowlingrecords.com/Rhonda_Reese_Record_170.htm

CONGRATULATIONS RHONDA! :-)

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/

Keys & Tips for Dynamic Wheelchair Bowling

Dynamic wheelchair bowling is the sport that was created by the development of the IKAN ("I can") Bowler. The bowling is "dynamic" because it incorporates the movement of the wheelchair.

The bowling process with an IKAN Bowler is basically the same as what able-bodied bowlers perform: setup for the shot, then physically approach the foul line and release the ball as you stop short of the foul line. Because the two processes are essentially equivalent, the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) sanctioned the IKAN Bowler for league or tournament play -- any league or tournament, anywhere in the U.S. -- bowling with and/or against able-bodied bowlers or fellow IKAN Users.

This opened up the game/sport of bowling to wheelchair users, and especially power wheelchair users (who are typically thought of as society's most physically-limited people, yet we can compete on a fair "playing field" with able-bodied bowlers:).

With the formalities established above, I'll now discuss how to compete as effectively as possible, i.e. keys and tips for dynamic wheelchair bowling. To qualify myself to do so, Claude Giguere and I are the two people credited with co-inventing the IKAN Bowler, and I was also the first wheelchair user to break the 200-score barrier with an IKAN Bowler.

This is quite long, so here are the topics I discuss:

• PROPER IKAN BOWLER ATTACHMENT AND SETUP
• CHAIR IN (AT-LEAST) DECENT DRIVING CONDITION
--- UPDATE! 5/10/2009
--- UPDATE: 5/30/2009
--- STOPPING THE CHAIR WITH THE KILL SWITCH
--- UPDATE: 1/2/2012
 • KNOWING (AND LEARNING) YOUR BALL
• BUYING A BALL
• BOWLING STRATEGY
• WHEELCHAIR DRIVING TIPS (FOR BOWLING:)
• A DRIVE MODE FOR BOWLING
• MY DRIVE SETTINGS FOR BOWLING
• HOW TO KEEP SCORE
• HOW TO SCORE "BIG"
• IKAN BOWLER STORAGE AND TRANSPORTATION

You can scroll down to see the above topics.

* * * * *

Ok, in order to bowl to the best of your ability, there are three keys from a functional standpoint:

1. Your IKAN Bowler needs to be PROPERLY attached and setup for your chair.
2. Your wheelchair needs to be in at-least decent driving condition.
3. You need to know what your ball will do when it comes off your Bowler.

The above three components are necessary to give you the best opportunity to bowl well.

* * * * *

PROPER IKAN BOWLER ATTACHMENT AND SETUP

The IKAN Bowler has two main components: the Universal Mount and the IKAN Bowler Arm (the well-engineered "ramp" portion). Instructions for properly setting up the Universal Mount are available here: http://www.ikanbowler.com/UserGuides/0562UniversalMount.pdf

But I want to stress a few things. The clamps should be adjusted so they are as wide as the chair's legrests (and should not be attached to power-elevating legrests; contact us if your chair has them). And the clamps should snap securely in place, and hold the "V" grooves flush to the each legrest, without sliding. Also, the mounting bar (the bar that the clamps are attached to; see above file for a picture) should appear level (horizontal).

If the IKAN User sits with his/her head more to the right or left of center in his/her chair, then consider sliding the mounting bar toward that side, so the person is as "directly behind" the ball as possible. That's assuming he/she can see over the ball. If the person cannot see over the ball, ask if he/she would like the mounting bar centered or off to either side. Our instructions say to center the mounting bar, which is good general advice, but I'm pointing out that the mounting bar can go a little left or right if the user desires.

If your body is capable, I think it's best to be centered in your chair and sitting "as tall" as possible (i.e. not sliding or slouched down). To ensure this, I tilt all the way back in my chair, and have my caregiver pull me up by my armpits; this helps center me in the chair when I sit back up. Incidentally, I always tilt back for at least one minute in between games to relieve the pressure on my sitting bones and to help my circulation (click this link for the importance of doing so roughly every half hour: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/pressure_relief.htm).

Instructions for properly setting up the IKAN Bowler Arm are available here: http://www.ikanbowler.com/UserGuides/0565BowlingArm.pdf

Once setup, place the bowling ball on the "launcher surface" (at the top of the ramp) and put the "ball release" in locked position (so the ball won't come down). Now check both bubble levels again, and make sure the bottom caster is about one finger-width above the floor (between one-quarter and one-half inch, roughly).

The two levels are key. The front level determines if your Bowling Arm is perfectly straight up and down, i.e. perpendicular to the floor (and it needs to be, because it's more difficult to bowl with an askew ramp). When your chair is mostly upright, in the position in which you intend to bowl, the back/rear level needs to indicate that your bowler is slightly tilted back (see picture in above instructions). You don't want it perfectly level (if it was, your ball would roll off too early) but you don't want your Bowler to be tilted too far back either, because it would take too much speed to get the ball to come down when you stop.

The reason the caster needs to be properly positioned is because it supports the end of the Bowling Arm when the ball comes down. That does two important things: (1) it helps maximize ball speed (our patent-pending design features a parabolic shape which translates the inertia and gravitational down force into maximum ball speed); and (2) it also makes for a smooth delivery and minimizes the potential for wear and tear on your wheelchair.

Incidentally, if my ball is seemingly going off-mark, I'll have my front bubble checked, to see if the Bowling Arm is perpendicular (but there are other reasons your ball could go off-line from where you aim that I'll discuss in the next section). If your caddy accidentally kicks the end of the Bowler (hopefully they don't trip and fall) or if he/she sets the ball down atop your Bowler very hard, it could get the Bowler (and front bubble) out of whack. But it's easy for them to fix, so no worries. I often bowl 3-5 games without needing the Bowling Arm adjusted.

* * * * *

CHAIR IN (AT-LEAST) DECENT DRIVING CONDITION

I used to think my wheelchair needed to drive and stop perfectly straight, but that's not practical with most of us, and not totally necessary, I believe. Bowling success still comes down to the skill and knowledge of the driver, and how well we make adjustments.

Pay attention to what your chair does as you drive and when you stop. Does it pull right or left as you're going forward? Does it stop immediately? Does it tail off to the left or right when you stop?

Currently, my chair tends to pull to the right when I'm driving forward. So, as I approach the line, I just correct as I go. The key, obviously, is that you want to be aimed properly when you stop. It's kind of like sighting a gun, and aiming at a target. But also, my chair now tails off to the left when I stop (this makes for some challenging bowling:). So I have to aim further right than I would normally.

With my chair doing this, I have to share new info I just discovered. I've never bowled extensively with a hard tail off (it's a problem with the brakes & motors, which I think are combined in one unit for each drive wheel on most chairs). I've noticed that when it tails off to the left, if that causes my Bowler to be aimed too far left (and it will if I don't initially stop with it to the right of my target) I will try to make a quick correction to the right -- WHILE the ball is coming down. Sometimes this works, if the ball is still near the top, but a few times, when setup perfectly to bowl a straight ball, I was absolutely shocked to see my ball go significantly off-target (versus where my Bowler was pointed when finally stopped).

I realized that if I'm turning my chair while the ball is coming down, some of the inertia from the lateral movement "stays" with the ball, after it rolls off the end of the ramp -- even if I'm stopped before the ball reaches the end. I sat at the foul line in disbelief of what the ball did, so I asked my caddy to check the front bubble (which indicates an askew ramp and can cause the shot to travel a different path than expected). My bubble was fine and the knobs were tight; my clamps were flush, snug, and holding the Bowler level and with the caster just off the floor (see above regarding their setup). So then I paid more attention to my last-second lateral corrections and realized that unless the ball is near the top (and has enough ramp to travel to lose the lateral inertia) then it can affect the shot significantly.

So with my chair pulling right as I drive forward, and tailing left as I stop, that just barely qualifies as being in "at-least decent driving condition" -- but I managed a 179 in my 5th game (after I figured out how to adjust for it) which is always a good score (unless you're trying to beat someone who just scored higher:). I'm used to bowling without having to think about my driving; I've bowled enough that it's just natural. So accounting for the extra "left tail off" isn't an easy adjustment (I would say that sometimes it seems to tail more left than other times, but that messes with my head and if I think it's not consistent, it means I just have to get lucky with where I stop and how much it tails... "aaaaaaaahh!" he screams:).

So what is the fix? My chair acts as if the left brake is engaging too soon or the right brake isn't engaging (either would explain the left tail off). We can try to adjust how my brakes are programmed to stop, which might help, but most likely I need the brake/motor units replaced. But I'm sitting in a wheelchair that's 11.5 years old, and insurance companies and/or Medicare/Medicaid typically approve new chairs every five years. So I'm either getting a new chair, or getting the brakes & motors replaced on here (or both; my brakes & motors have been replaced before, but not in a long time). But until then, I just have to anticipate what my chair will do, and counteract it (by aiming significantly to the right of my target).

* * * * *

UPDATE! 5/10/2009

Ok, I wrote the above before bowling yesterday, and shared all that detail in case it might help someone with a similar problem.

Yesterday, I "fought" my chair for four games and gave great effort, but my scores ranged from 111-130 -- I simply couldn't get any consistency with my chair tailing off to the left when I would stop. Talking afterward about getting a new chair with my buddy Ben, who has a chair I'm considering and he is also a sip-and-puff user like me, I asked if he liked his chair because I'd heard that the sip-and-puff was somewhat slow to respond (e.g. the chair wouldn't stop immediately). He said he uses his kill switch to stop quickly. I hadn't tried that.

A kill switch is designed to stop one's chair if you lose your driving method, e.g. if I hit a bump and my sip-and-puff straw gets away from my mouth as I'm driving forward the kill switch can stop me from running into danger.

So in Publix after bowling, with nice, level aisles, I asked Jackie to put me in my bowling mode (more on that below) and I simulated bowling and stopping via my kill switch (in pictures on my website, it's the yellow switch next to my head) and to my amazement, my chair stopped quickly -- AND STRAIGHT! NO TAIL OFF!

So I started thinking about it, and the "stop" input is the same as "turn left" but it's a hard sip, not a soft sip. So I realized I must have a sip-and-puff problem, because my attempt to input a hard sip, i.e. stop, it was registering as a soft sip initially (which turned me left) before it finally stopped. That explains why the amount it would turn me was inconsistent (one time it would turn me so that I needed to aim two-feet right of my target pin, and the next time it wouldn't turn me as much -- very frustrating).

So Jackie looked at my sip-and-puff which has a section of relatively thin tubing -- and she noticed three small holes in my tubing (almost pin-sized, like the tube was pinched repeatedly; I'm not sure how). But we have almost identical tubing with my nebulizer setups, and they sent a kind I don't like, so Jackie cut the one I don't like (a fantastic use for the tubing) and fixed it! I noticed my sip-and-puff is is more responsive, and that's just doing weightshifts. But I'm 99.9% sure that she solved my tail-off problem, or at least, it's not my right brake that is causing it. It's my sip-and-puff, and I think it's fixed. The brake worked fine when I stopped via my kill switch in Publix, so this all makes perfect sense. WOOHOO! :-)

* * * * *

UPDATE: 5/30/2009

I thought my chair was fixed. It's a little better, but there's still something wrong with my sip-and-puff. It isn't as responsive as it used to be, or should be. My sip-and-puff control system has a difficult time recognizing a hard sip and a hard puff -- which, depending on whether I'm driving forward or in reverse -- those are my braking/stop inputs.

Sip-and-puff users have four different inputs available: hard sip, soft sip, hard puff, and soft puff. For the difference between a sip and a puff, think about drinking a glass of milk with a straw. Take a drink -- that's a sip. A puff would be "blowing milk bubbles" with your straw.

Even when I conscientiously sip or puff as hard as I can (my ability to do so is strong; that isn't the problem) the control unit doesn't immediately recognize the hard sip (or puff). Before it recognizes the sip (or puff) as hard, it first recognizes the sip (or puff) as soft -- and those are turning inputs. So as it "takes time" to recognize the sip (or puff) as hard, it turns me until it recognizes I am trying stop (by giving the correct hard input). Does that make sense?

That explains why I thought my right brake wasn't engaging. Because trying to stop while going forward, my hard sip was initially misinterpreted as a soft sip, which means turn left. So I would turn left for about a second, before stopping, and since I tried to stop with my Bowler aimed at my target, a second-worth of turning left would make me miss the shot by a LOT.

Granted, I have been trying to compensate for this left turn by aiming significantly to the right of my target, but I estimated one second of turning (i.e. soft sip recognition) before stopping (hard sip recognition) and I'm certain sometimes it would recognize the hard sip faster than others (meaning it could turn left anywhere from a half-second, to one and a half seconds, roughly). That means I simply had to get lucky and hope however far right I aimed would match how much left I would get turned before the stop was recognized.

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STOPPING THE CHAIR WITH THE KILL SWITCH

Ben mentioned stopping his chair with his kill switch. Since the kill switch is supposed to immediately stop the chair, I thought I could use it to stop straight (from my earlier thoughts on this, it seemed to work great in Publix). What I found when bowling, was that the kill switch seemed to have a slight delay before it stopped me. Again, from my earlier thoughts on this, you may remember my chair pulls to the right as I go forward. However, that is influenced by the direction of my casters. For example, with my chair pulling right, my casters are going to the right, and if I hit the kill switch, the slight delay would result in my chair "drifting" farther right than I wanted.

However, if I gave a left turn input and got my casters going a little left, and then hit the kill switch, with the short delay, the amount of "right drift" was significantly less than the scenario in the above paragraph. But to execute shots, I often am turning either right or left (slightly either way) as I approach, to get my chair and Bowler in the proper position. So there were times when I would turn slightly left before hitting the kill switch, and my chair would only drift back right slightly before it stopped. Then other times, if I made a slight right turn before hitting the kill switch, it would drift right more than the previous scenario. THAT DROVE ME NUTS! :-)

As you can imagine (if I described that well) I had an extremely difficult time trying to execute shots with any consistency, and of course, I missed many. I think my four scores ranged from like 109-128, and when my sip-and-puff stops me "immediately," my average game is usually about 150 (sometimes, when I'm bowling particularly well, my average can be quite a bit over 150, but there are times my average is under 150 even with a properly functioning chair).

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UPDATE: 1/2/2012

I eventually realized that my sip-and-puff tubing was super clogged and very little air could get through.  Once my sip-and-puff was replaced, my chair started stopping straight again.

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KNOWING (AND LEARNING) YOUR BALL

First off, you should want to use a 16-pound bowling ball. That's the heaviest legal size. The heavier the ball, the greater the force (impact) it will have on the pins, and the greater the "pin action" will be (and greater pin action equals greater scores). I'd be happy to elaborate on the physics of it if desired.

Ok, you have to know what your ball will do (curve left, right, how much, stay straight, etc) in order to know where you want to aim and how you want to setup for your next shot. You should have choices.

Every bowling ball has some type of weight inside of it, and depending on the ball's positioning, the weight inside will cause the ball to curve one way or another, or go straight.
My ball curves or goes straight according to this chart: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/sample_ball_position_chart.htm

But I know IKAN Users with the same brand & style of ball (mine is a Columbia White Dot, one of the least expensive bowling balls made) and their balls break/curve differently than mine (not according to the above chart).

You don't have to own your own ball, but I highly recommend it, because otherwise you have to learn a house ball (one from the bowling alley) every time you bowl.

To learn what a ball will do... I would use my above chart and position your chair with the end of the Bowling Arm just behind the foul line, aiming straight ahead, and straight at the center arrow on the bowling lane. Using my chart, put the ball in each of the positions shown on the chart, and roll it off the Bowler to see how it curves (or doesn't) in each position. Just keep your chair setup to roll straight down the middle of the lane and bowl as if you're using a stationary ramp. You could do this every time you go bowling with a house ball, or you could buy a ball.

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BUYING A BALL

If you're looking for the absolute least expensive option, some bowling alleys will sell you a used house ball right off the racks for probably something quite reasonable (like $20 or maybe even $10). But if you're going to buy a house ball, get a signed note from management describing the ball and stating they sold you the ball. This could be important if you're bowling at their bowling alley, or any alley, who might have the same type of house balls.

For reasons stated above, you should want a 16-pound ball. Any type should work with an IKAN Bowler, but please read the next three paragraphs.

Some Quad Squad Bowlers use undrilled bowling balls successfully. I personally think it's more difficult to learn an undrilled ball, and it's more difficult for a caddy to carry and setup for you. But if your primary caddy or caddies don't mind carrying an undrilled ball, and have the patience to help you learn the ball (there's a dot on every undrilled ball that supposedly identifies the center of gravity, I think, and between the dot and the ball's logo, that gives two identifying markers that you can use to test the ball in different positions) in theory, it would be better than a drilled ball (if for nothing else, without drilling three finger holes, the ball would have greater mass and therefore more force at impact).

I actually tried an undrilled ball when we were first developing the IKAN Bowler, and I couldn't keep the undrilled ball on the lane. However it was setup, it would typically go in one gutter or the other, even though I was attempting to roll it right down the middle. Then we tried a drilled house ball, and with my first shot, I hit the headpin and knocked down 9 total pins.

If I was buying a ball, I would go to a bowling alley with a Pro Shop (they sell balls) and simply start trying different balls in stationary fashion as described above. I would start with the cheapest balls (plastic covered balls) -- even used balls -- and if I found one that curved quite a bit both ways, and would also go straight, that's what I would get if cost was a concern.  If you don't find any you like, or if cost is a big concern, try a bunch of house balls until you find one you like and ask management if you can buy it (if so, get something in writing that says you own the ball, especially if you're going to bowl at that alley).

If cost wasn't a concern, I would try some more Pro Shop balls, especially some of the more expensive ones, because those balls, in theory, are better (the way they are made might make it spin faster). I would try to see if the better balls give better performance -- either by a ball speed increase, or a greater curve -- both of which would increase the impact between the ball and pins, and therefore increase pin action and your score.

I discuss buying a rolling ball bag in the "IKAN Bowler Storage and Transportation" section near the end of this blog entry.

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BOWLING STRATEGY
 
Some people bowl with every ball setup to go straight, no matter what the shot is (whether it's a strike or spare attempt, and no matter which pin or pins remain if it's a spare attempt). That's fine; some people are good at it, but for strike attempts, it's difficult to get the proper angle on the headpin, a.k.a. 1-pin, for a strike.

This link shows where you should aim for a strike attempt, and also how to pickup a particularly nasty split: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/dynamic_wheelchair_bowling_tips.htm

Personally, for a strike attempt, I like start the ball out to the right side of the lane and have a pretty big curve to the left, and hopefully it will hit right in the "pocket." The above link shows where the pocket is, and also where to hit the headpin for a Jersey or Brooklyn side strike (they mean the same thing; the link shows Jersey side for a right-handed bowler; it's the reverse for left-handed bowlers).

On strike attempts, right-handed professional bowlers almost always curve the ball from right to left into the pocket, so that's what I try to emulate (except my ball is traveling at about one-third of the speed of able-bodied male pros; what we IKAN Users lack in ball speed, we try to make up for with precision). If you hit directly on the nose of the headpin (between the two dots at the above link) that usually results in a nasty split (usually some combination of the 6, 7, 9, and 10 pins is left -- see the above link).

For spare attempts, my fellow Quad Squad Bowler Alex likes to use a moderate left or right curve, depending on what is left. I typically use a straight ball on every spare attempt. When we're both bowling well, we usually convert the majority of our of the makeable spares (everything but nasty splits, although as the above link says, I have picked up the 6-7-10 split six times, but considering how often I've had it, I convert it probably 2% of the time:).

Some splits are fairly makeable, and actually all but the 7-10 and 4-6-7-10 are possible (we don't have enough ball speed to slam either the 7 or the 10 off the side wall and over to the other corner pin on the 7-10 split; for the 4-6-7-10 split, it's possible to just shave the outer edge of the 6-pin and have it slide across the lane and hit the 7-pin while the ball gets the 10-pin, that's what the above link shows, but sliding across to get both the 4-pin and 7-pin doesn't work, and neither would the reverse shot).

Where to setup on the lane... that depends on what shot you are attempting and how you want to approach it. I like a long approach, so I always start back by the ball return. But some people use a shorter approach, which is ok (but it's not dynamic wheelchair bowling if your chair is stationary and you push the ball off -- that's another sport called, yep, stationary ramp bowling -- but the IKAN Bowler is great for it also, because the chair user can adjust the ramp him/herself, whereas some stationary ramp bowlers don't have the strength or arm ability to move the ramp themselves; they have to ask for assistance).

On my strike attempts, I usually position my chair roughly in line with the third arrow from the left -- but I drive toward the center arrow, and try to put the ball between the center arrow and the arrow to the right of center. My chair is usually angled slightly to the right after I stop. When I do it properly, it usually puts my ball out to the right pretty far (it probably gets to about 10-12 inches from the gutter, I'm guessing) and then it should come back and hopefully hit right "in the pocket" (see above link).

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WHEELCHAIR DRIVING TIPS (FOR BOWLING:)

I cannot emphasize bowling relatively "slow and in control" enough. By slow, I mean roughly the equivalent to an adult walking pace. You don't want to attempt to sprint from the short distance between the ball return and foul line. I tested that (I basically put my chair in sprint mode) and what little I gained in ball speed, I lost much more accuracy, and speed without accuracy means fast gutter balls (or errant shots).

If you're curious as to my speed tests... my chair will do about six mph. I setup Drive 4 to give me 100% speed in first gear (this is fun for an empty parking lot, but dangerous just about everywhere else:). Not only is it extremely difficult to stop at the right time (the total distance between where I start by the ball return to the foul line is about 12 feet, 15 at the most) but I had NO time to turn and essentially no accuracy. Additionally, it only took my ball speed up about one mph.

I tested the IKAN Bowler both as a stationary ramp and dynamically. As a stationary ramp it produced a ball speed of about 6.0 mph. When bowling dynamically, at appropriate driving speeds, the ball speeds range from roughly 6.1 to 6.5 mph. My ball speeds are usually closer to 6.1 mph, but my teenage buddy Alex likes to drive a little faster, and his ball speeds are closer to 6.5 mph.

When I tried crazy bowling at 100% speed (incidentally, I did this after hours with management's permission -- if they saw a chair user driving that fast they would definitely tell you to slow down -- or throw you out -- and they might not let another chair user come bowl if they think everyone might do that) AND the ball speed didn't even break 7.0 mph (it was like 6.8 or 6.9 mph). So it's best to drive at a speed at which you can aim and stop properly, i.e. relatively slow and in control.

Remember, the end of your Bowling Arm (ramp) should not cross the foul line. That means your wheels should never get real close to the foul line, so if you do happen to foul (by a few inches, or even a foot), only the Bowling Arm's caster should touch the lane. You also don't want your caster to be resting on the floor as you approach the foul line (the caster is designed to simply support the ramp when the ball comes down; after the ball leaves, the ramp should raise to the one-quarter to one-half inch range at which it was initially setup).

If your caster was touching the floor as you drive forward (you can hear it, it isn't designed to roll that fast) it could affect your ability to turn, but if you foul, you're going to pickup a fair amount of oil from the lane and drag it back and forth as you bowl. Bowling alleys won't appreciate that as other people could later get injured.

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A DRIVE MODE FOR BOWLING

I have a drive mode specifically programmed for bowling. I think most power wheelchairs have multiple driving modes (mine has four) that can be programmed for different conditions. For example, my default mode, Drive 1, is my safe "indoors" mode which is pretty slow and doesn't have continuous (latched) reverse, so I can navigate indoors without hitting things (or people:). Actually, Drive 2 and Drive 3 are both programmed for bowling. They both are a little faster than Drive 1 (I wanted "first gear" to be a little faster than my indoors setting) and I have reduced the turning speed quite a bit. The very slow turning speed means that I will only make small adjustments left or right as I approach the foul line.

Think about this: the end of my Bowling Arm (ramp) extends out I'm guessing a good three feet from my wheel base, so it's similar to how a shotgun or rifle would extend out. Turning your base a little would make the end of the gun move quite a bit. So to make small adjustments in how I'm aimed, I have very slow turning speeds.

My Drive 2 and Drive 3 are both very similar. I don't own the device that programs my chair, so I looked at the print out of my four drive modes, decided what adjustments I thought would be good for bowling, and had my wheelchair service technician put my two best guesses in Drive 2 and Drive 3. Then I tested both at the bowling alley and I like Drive 3 best.

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MY DRIVE SETTINGS FOR BOWLING

In the previous blog entry, I mentioned I initially setup two drive modes for bowling.

The below link shares roughly what my actual drive settings are.

Note of caution: depending on your motors and driving system, my settings may not be good for you.

I actually think the torque settings (the amount of "power" available for turning) is wrong on the below PDF, because that list was initially setup using my chair's original two-pole motors, not the more powerful four-pole motors that it currently has. The torque settings I think are about half (or even less than half) of the percentages shown in the file.

I think the key is the turning speed. I have my turning speed at only 20% in my bowling mode, whereas it's 35% in Drive 1, which is my safe/indoors mode.

If you aren't sure how to read that table, Drive 2 has my forward speed at 60%, but notice it's "latched type" is three speed. That means I have essentially three "gears" to get up to 60% of my chair's maximum speed. Maximum speed for my chair, I think is six mph. So when I am in Drive 2, one hard puff gets me rolling forward at probably 20% speed and that is essentially first gear (it's like an electronic gear). Another hard puff is essentially second gear and is probably about 40% speed. In order to reach the programmed setting of 60% speed in Drive 2, I have to give another hard puff to put it in third gear.

Now that you know what the three-speed gears are like, I bowl only in first gear. As described above, it's probably about 22% of my chair's maximum speed, but my moderately-paced approach allows me to adjust as I go forward and when my chair is behaving properly, I'm usually pretty accurate.

You might wonder what the alternative to "three speed" latched type is, and for my chair, I believe it's one-speed. That means that whatever speed percentage the Drive mode is set for, the chair will accelerate and reach that speed as fast as possible. This can be fun -- DANGEROUS -- but fun in the right situation. Just for fun, I had my wheelchair guy setup Drive 4 with 100% speed, on one-speed. With the vent on the back of my chair, if I tilted back a little from my most-upright seating position, I can actually pop wheelies and have my two front casters off the ground for about 8-10 feet before they come back down.

I actually don't know if my Drive 4 is still set on the dangerous 100% one-speed setting. It's dangerous because if I get put into Drive 4 and don't realize it, I could easily crash into something -- and that happened once. One time in my bedroom, I guess my nurse kept hitting the toggle switch which turns my chair on, but if it's pulled in the on-direction while it's already on, that advances the Drive mode. So I actually accelerated like a maniac and crashed into my bed. Fortunately I was wearing shoes and there was no damage to my body, chair, or bed.

If you're curious as to why the below file has two tables, the top is my current/previous/old settings. The blank table is so we can make note of any changes to new settings, if I want or need something changed. (Then I can later add the new/current settings to my file; I'll share the Word file if anyone wants to put their name and settings into a file like mine.)

Bill Miller's wheelchair settings (Drive 3 is my bowling mode):http://www.lookmomnohands.net/objects/BillMillerWheelchairSettings.pdf

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HOW TO KEEP SCORE 

Do you know how to calculate the score?

I know, "the machine does it for you, just look up." :-)

To add your score yourself, when you get a spare, you add the next ball to the frame in which you just got the spare. For example, in frame one, if you bowl your first ball and get 9 pins down, and pickup the single-pin spare with your next shot, notice the machine waits to fill in your score for that frame. And if you get 8 pins with your next shot (the first shot of your second frame) it will add the 8 pins to the 10 total pins (9 + 1) that you got in the first frame, and put "18" in frame one. If you get one of the two remaining pins in your second frame, your total that frame is 9 and your score after two frames will be 27.

If you have a strike, you add the next two balls, not just one. For example, with a strike in the first frame, followed by the 8 + 1 in the second frame (like the above example) then both the 8 and 1 would get added to the strike frame, giving 19 (10 + 8 + 1 = 19) in the first frame and 9 more total in the second, for a 28 after two frames.

Compound strikes REALLY add up. Three consecutive strikes adds 20 to the first strike (10 + 10) and consecutive strikes really can help you score big. With our moderate ball speed, getting strikes requires either near-perfect placement, or some luck -- but you absolutely MUST hit the headpin to have a chance for a strike. Consecutive strikes are a key to scoring "big" which I'll discuss more now.

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HOW TO SCORE "BIG" 

First, we have to define "big" and there are several ways to do so.

Each wheelchair user has different physical circumstances (including the driving method and condition of their chair; as I described above, it can make a huge difference) but breaking 100 should be every beginner's goal, and it's "big" for a beginner. Then I advocate trying to keep breaking your personal record, and in doing so, you could be setting category world records for dynamic wheelchair bowling, like these: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/wheelchair_bowling_records.htm.

"Big" is certainly any score you achieve that breaks your personal record. But, in a general sense, I'll define scores in the 150s as "pretty big" and 160-Club (a score in the 160s), 170-Club, 180-Club, and 190-Club denote progressively bigger achievements.

The REAL "BIG" that we can all agree on is 200. To break 200, you have to have some consecutive strikes -- usually at least two consecutive strikes, and if you only have two consecutive strikes, then you probably need marks in every other frame (a mark is a spare or a strike; a frame without a mark is called an open frame). With multiple consecutive strikes, it's possible to break 200 even with an open frame, or two, if you have enough consecutive strikes.

To my knowledge, there are presently three IKAN Users in the 200-Club: the overall world record holder, Jon Musgrave (see above link for record scores); a Veteran named Anthony who I believe had a high game of 214 before he passed away (he loved bowling, and his passing underscores the need for us wheelchair users to enjoy our days as much as possible); and me, with a current personal best of 206, as of 5/10/2009.

Strategy wise, you have to hit the headpin (preferably either cheek, as described above) in order to give yourself a chance at a strike. I try to put my ball in the pocket (the headpin's left cheek) but if I miss, hopefully it will cross over the nose of the headpin and hit Jersey (the right cheek of the headpin for a right-handed bowling approach). If you hit the nose, you have to get lucky and hope you're not left with a nasty split (hopefully you'll leave either one or two in one corner, not one or two in both corners). If you don't get a strike (I've gone as many as four full games without a strike) you have to convert your makeable spares.

I think I've had four total games with a mark in each frame. And since I've broken 200 seven times (I've bowled three 201s, two 202s, a 203, and a 206 as of 5/10/2009) that means I broke 200 several times while having an open frame. So make sure you hit the headpin, preferably in the pocket or Jersey side, and hopefully a strike will result. If not, hopefully you're left with a very makeable spare.

* * * * *

IKAN BOWLER STORAGE AND TRANSPORTATION 

My bowler sits on the front seat of my van; the Universal Mount on a towel on the seat, and the Bowling Arm leaning up against the seat -- not attached to the mount -- and all seatbelted in. After arriving at the bowling alley, my caregiver usually puts the Universal Mount on in the parking lot so I carry it in. If it it's a bowling alley I'm familiar with, I'll often carry the Bowling Arm in also. But if I have the Bowling Arm attached, I make sure I'm tilted back enough that the end of my Bowling Arm is off the ground roughly 6-8 inches until I get inside (the bowling alleys I frequent either have a curb cutout or speed bump to negotiate).

Incidentally, if you're planning to roll in with your full IKAN Bowler attached, and it's a bowling alley you aren't familiar with, have your caregiver check inside to see if you can navigate safely down to the bowling area. Some alleys are crowded either by design or with many people.

Your caregiver should also check to see if the bowling surface is accessible. Some older bowling alleys have a step near the ball return. If you choose to bowl there, you'll definitely need a ramp by the ball return, so if you back up too far, you start down a ramp instead of going off a step. In that scenario, have your caddy do a reverse count down as you backup 3... 2... 1... stop! That can help you stay away from the step.

If you buy your own ball (which I highly recommend, even if it's a used house ball; see above) chances are you'll want to also buy a ball-bag that has wheels and rolls in. If your primary caddy is someone who will also want to bowl with you, you might want to get a two-ball roller bag. But as a starting point for price, know that you can get a one-ball roller, brand new and delivered, for about $40 online. So if you buy one locally, try to do better than $40 if you just want a one-ball bag with wheels.

With a rolling ball bag, you can bungee cord your IKAN Bowler Arm to your ball bag, and roll it in. You can actually put the Universal Mount on the bag too. Of course if your caddy/caregiver is relatively young and strong, he/she can carry the equipment in. A less-able caregiver can always ask someone at the bowling alley for assistance, or you can invite a young & strong friend to bowl with you. I'm just pointing out the various options possible, so an IKAN Bowler owner can potentially bowl as often as desired.

With that -- I'm DONE with my "keys and tips for dynamic wheelchair bowling!"

I hope this helps. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at billmiller@ikanbowler.com.

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/