Midwest Petanque Alliance BLOG: 02/01/2006

Petanque Cubes in the French Riviera

Over 300 players joined for the "Circle of Friends" 26th World Championship for les boules carrees in Haut des Cagnes... They were originally devised for playing on very sloped surfaces. The Michigan Petanque Club will be holding their first "Cubed Boules Tournament" this year.

More Petanque Games at Campus Martius Park - at Lunchtime

James called me up today and we met at lunchtime to play a few games of boule. James won the first (though I had a good start) and I won the last (by a slim margin). James is using his Kung-Fu Boule techniques with great success. The weather is getting nicer and nicer - with some days pushing near 40 degrees. If you think the weather is nice during the week, give me a shout and I'll come down around noon to play petanque.

Petanque at Campus Martius Park with Lindsay, Joe & Jeff

Warm Weather at Campus Martius Park

With the warm weather on Thursday, I was able to toss the boules around at Campus Martius Park. The ground is nice and firm, ice/snow-free and there's no chairs/tables to move. An ideal setting for petanque.

I know we're going to have a great season and I want the members to pull their boules out of their closets, sand the rust off the surface and start practicing.

Joe and I are planning a season opener tournament and we want you to be ready.

Meet Celia - VP-Mascot of Detroit Petanque Club

The Detroit Petanque Club has an offical VP-Mascot, Celia. T'Choupi is more than happy to have a "back-up" Havanese - the two dogs got along very nicely.

Denise (left) is holding Celia. Cheryl is holding T'Choupi. Notice Celia's paws... she is going to be "silver tipped" when an adult.

Celia eating out of T'Choupi's water dish. It's not a problem -- the Detroit Petanque Club likes to share.

Joe shows us both his Blue Balls AND his Fanny

It was a night of firsts, including a first Fanny - as we see Joe's result in miniBOULE against Ken.

And here is Joe with his new boules (71mm 800 grams!!!) a very dangerous pointing set direct from Marsailles, France (La Boule Bleu). He'll have an easier time keeping an eye on his boules this year.

First miniBOULE Tournament at 227 Bistro

The first North American miniBOULE tournament was held on Saturday night at 227 Bistro in Rochester, Michigan. Though snow and ice fell throughout Detroit, this didn't keep the die-hard miniBOULE players away from the competition.

We marked off several courts in the very cozy "cigar room" of 227 Bistro. The paintings, soft lighting, and comfy furnishings really gave the miniBOULE experience a classy feeling. Between rounds we ate appetizers, drank wine, and socialized.

The complimentary steak dinners were delicious and huge! I especially enjoyed the 6-layer chocolate cake (Shhh don't tell my wife!) and we started off with great appetizers: Buffalo Mozzarella; Bruschetta; and fried Calamari.