Tuesday, April 18, 2017

EASTER





































Despite the fact that the courts are not ideal for petanque-- too soft-- the Charlotte crowds continue to grow. We had somewhere around 30 to 35 players for Easter Sunday afternoon at Nevin Park. Thanks to all the hard work and continued support and attendance Jeanne and Denyse have put forth, people keep coming out to play. We hope we can do a little more towards making the courts better before the July Bastille Day Remembrance Festival.

We will also be playing Saturday, April 22, at Nevin Park. Make the effort to join us and you'll be glad you did.

Western NC

Danny and Sue drove down from Crossnore

Shirley and I decided to travel to Morganton to check on the progress at the new terrain. We came away with mixed emotions. They have semi-completed two of the four terrains, each of which is designed to host four games. There are problems, however. They have had some erosion issues that will have to be corrected, but the biggest problem is that we're afraid the courts may be too soft to play on without significant rework. Our repeated warnings that the base has to be VERY firm and the top dressing VERY minimal don't seem to have been communicated to all concerned. Some areas are somewhat playable, but they are really too soft. Other areas are completely unplayable. On the positive side, the park management people seem to be very cooperative and we hope they can turn things around. Morganton parks are first class, and we know they want the petanque to be first class as well. We'll go back and forth as much as it takes to work with them.


Then, on our way back to our Lincolnton place, we stopped in Hildebran to play a few games with Marc Quilici and Juan Hernandez. They were too tough on their home courts. We lost three in a row! Looking forward to revenging ourselves soon.

Hildebran









Wednesday play








Though I really don't want to abandon play at Griffith Park-- our usual Wednesday morning play area for the last couple of years-- the new terrains near the shade at Miller Park are just too nice not to be our hot weather destination. We had a dozen players! On a Wednesday morning!