March 2020

Well what troubled times we are in!! Sadly, like everything else our bowls club will be seriously impacted by COVID 19 and the government guidance. We have now had updates/guidance from Bowls England and Kent Bowls and our committee have been communicating so here we go!!

Biddenden Bowls Club Actions

Postponed:

11th April – Preseason Meeting

26th April – Open Day

30th April – Fun Day Afternoon

26th March and 2nd April – 2 coaching social sessions which were being planned

18th May – 2 Coach Bowls Courses which were to be run at Biddenden

Friendlies and Club Competitions – under review

Suspended

2020 Friday night Maidstone Mens Triples League and Wednesday night Weald Triples League

Activity at the Green

Our team of volunteers have continued working at the green respecting the government guidance on social distancing. Slab laying, lock fitting, mowing, spiking, planting, clearing, blind fitting, painting and of course brushing are all happening/planned. This is of course good exercise for them (!) and means that the green will be ready as soon as we can get started. There is no pressure on anyone to do this and it is very much a personal decision and the government guidance is paramount.

We are hoping that we will be able to open the green later in April. To quote guidance from Kent Bowls “rolling up or practising on an outdoor green may not pose the same risks providing the green is not crowded and a reasonable space is kept from others, it really should be reasonably safe especially for those at low risk”. This will be reviewed nearer the time.

County Competitions and Affiliation Fees

All county competitions for the 2020 season have been cancelled. There is some confusion over exactly what is happening with fees paid to Kent Bowls and Bowls England. It seems that they will be held by Kent Bowls and carried over to 2021 but we await clarification.

Keeping in Touch

Whilst we will all miss as a minimum the early season meetups and games it is vital that we all keep in touch and up to speed with bowls!! To facilitate this, we will be keeping the website up to date with news and photos. If there is anything you wold like to share please email biddendenbowlsclub@gmail.com

We had planned some early season coaching/fun sessions on a wide range of aspects. To keep this moving, we are planning to put a series of quizzes and puzzles on the web site and send them out by email to those who “sign up” for them. A new page titled QUIZZES, PUZZLES & GAMES has been set up. Bowls Terms, Rules and Etiquette will all be amongst the type of things which we will cover. These will be targeted at newer bowlers but will hopefully be a good tester/revision for all members as well as being a bit of fun!! If you would like to sign up please email to biddendenbowlsclub@gmail.com and/or watch the website www.biddendenbowlsclub.org A starter for ten Word Search has already been added to the QUIZZES, PUZZLES & GAMES page.

The committee and many members are always ready for a chat (as evidenced when we are all at the green) and if you are feeling a bit low or need some practical help please contact someone. Also, if you have any concerns about bowls or ideas get in touch. A few committee phone numbers are given below

Jeannette (and Jim) 01580 291463 Denise and Brian 01580 292052

Laurie (and Maggie) 01580 720250 Paul and Kim 01233 860335

Norman and Sue 07554 001717 or 01580 291918

David (and Pat) 01580 292577 Barbara 01580 291469

Fish and Chip Supper with Horseracing on 14th March

Well we had a last hoorah when some 60 people came along for what was a really enjoyable evening. The fish and chips were tasty, the racing was exciting, the bar flowed freely and some even came out ahead! Although numbers were down a bit for very understandable reasons, we are delighted to report that we raised over £700 for club funds which is a great result. Really well done to the organisers and a huge thank you to all who came along (bringing friends and family) or who supported the event.

Now for a smile

Ron was at the green last week (doing some door painting) when it turned cold and began to hail! The picture at the top shows the green covered with hail stones. Apparently, it took nearly 2 hours for the stones to melt away!!

Sean has provided a poem to make us smile

“When I was young by Sean Mitchell”

I remember years ago when I was young

With three good mates we had so much fun

We made our games up as we went along

The girls would skip and sing a song

The football we played with a tin can

And go-carting down a hill like Desperate Dan

Catch a girl kiss a girl was great fun you know

You catch a girl and kiss her and then let her go

Table tennis we played in our local hall

Smashing hell out of little white ball

At billiards too we had a go

Though half the rules we didn’t know

Now darts another game we played in

With darts like javelins thick not thin

To hit the board was hit and miss

Nowadays it’s not like this

Hand ball too was a game we played

And points to win were easily made

Hitting the ball so hard and fast

Outrun your opponent to win at last

But these days are gone I have to say

And times have changed in every way

With all the modern things our kids engage

It’s a whole new world a brand new stage.