Campus Martius Park on Sunday was Fun

We had plenty of folks playing, including Joe Z; Kitty; James; Dan C.; Mike; Jeff; Lindsey S.; and feather-bowling champ Joe of Cadieux Cafe...

Petanque at Campus Martius on Sunday

Sunday in the Park with Jeff

Rain is expected (40% chance) on Saturday, so let's just meet up on Sunday at Noon at Campus Martius Park.

Getting to the Point - the Intelligent Cochonnet

At the 9th Edition of Doctoriales of Grenoble on April 2, 2006, the innovative team of Mathieu Fenoll, Pierre-Alexandre Deveau, Loic Maisonnasse, and Remi Galland (all between the ages of 25 and 30) received second place Prize for Innovation with their doctoral project: “Getting To the Point” aimed at the development of an intelligent cochonnet.

The intelligent cochonnet changes color according to the nearest boule thanks to a system of electro-luminescent diodes, microcomponents and transmitters.

The cochonnet communicates with surrounding boules, distances are calculated, and the closest boule is designated by a changing color of the diodes inside the cochonnet. (For example: glowing red for one team, and blue for the other). Automatic posting of scores is also possible as the cochonnet relays information to a scoreboard.

What can this mean to petanque in the future? No longer will there be arguments among players of “who is closest?” or “what is the score?”

While some petanque players may respond, “I refuse to give up my measuring tape!”
others may welcome the intelligent cochonnet. After all, we could put an end to the sometimes heated arguments among players on who is “holding the point”

Mathieu Fenoll continues his research with the optimization of electronic microcomponents on flexible supports at Institut National Polytechnique de Grenoble.

Sunday at Campus Martius Park

The day started off with some humor from the Campus-Martius "Mussolini" whose draconian antics left us all in stitches.

Game play on the dry, hard surface beside the ice rink (being disassembled) went smoothly - and the sun on our back kept us warm (and our coats off).

Photos of Cadillac Square, Detroit

Here are photos from sunday in Cadillac Square which is adjacent to Campus Martius Park in Detroit. As you can see it has un-obstructed petanque playing on 10 pea-gravel smooth courts.

Joe, Cheryl, James, and I tested out the surfaces and they played marvelously.

We look forward to many tournaments on both terrain.

The "folly" at one end of the square seems to bear the names of famous Detroit figures (ex. "Bagley") and looks like a perfect place to distribute trophies and medals.

Sunday at Campus Martius/Cadillac Square Park

I just checked the WEBCAM for the parks (Cadillac Square can be seen at the upper left side of the screen) and they look dry and sunny.

So far I've spoken with a bunch of folks and we'll have some good games for today (Sunday 3/18/2007).

-Jeff

Cadillac Square Park gives DPC a total of 20 Courts!

Detroit's Cadillac Square Park, adjacent to Campus Martius Park, has recently opened to the public and it will provide petanquers with 10 more (making a total of 20) courts to play upon. The pea-gravel surface is flat, and obstruction-free. I've measured it out, and the 2 "H" shaped piste areas provide plenty of room for club meets and tournaments.

Personalized Boules by MaBoule-Design.com

First Doublette of the Season at Campus Martius Park

Juadell, a new player, stopped by and asked about petanque. In no time he was playing well, which was great because we were soon joined by James and Juan. We quickly set up the teams (James/Juan vs. Jeff/Juadell) and played an abbreviated (to 6 points) game.

The ground is pretty flat, and a bit fast, which took team James/Juan time to get used to, in the meantime Jeff/Juadell accumulated 3 to their 1 - then Juan laid in a key close boule, which was NOT removed easily - resulting in a 6/1 victory for Jeff & Juadell.

Come by tomorrow (unless it's raining) at Noon for some continued fun.

Petanque Lessons - Weekdays in Detroit

The Detroit Petanque Club is happy to teach you petanque at Campus Martus Park in Detroit, Michigan. The club normally has matches on Saturdays from 12-noon to 5pm, but during the week (if the weather is suitable) we will teach and play petanque along the pathways at the park from Noon until 1pm.

First Game of the Season - Tuesday 12-noon - Campus Martius Park

The weather report for Detroit says 70 degrees and partly sunny. Good enough weather to try for a lunch time (12pm to 1pm) try out of the boules at Campus Martius Park.

If you happen to catch this BLOG report in time and have a moment, stop by Campus Martius Park and reacquaint yourself with your pointing/shooting.

I'll probably situate myself alongside the ice-rink (which will soon be dismantled).

UPDATE: Just returned from Campus Martius Park. Conditions = PERFECT! The ground is dry, the balmy breezes and the sun on my back made it feel like June! We'll probably play on Saturday (if it doesn't snow!)

Escargot Playing Petanque

Funny animated video about snails who play petanque (and of course argue whether to point or shoot!)

VIDEO

Petanque SCOREshirt at the Midwest Alliance Shop

New Petanque merchandise at our shop: www.cafepress.com/boules

• Boast your skills with the 13-0 cap
• Pimp your ride with petanque gear
• Keep score with the new SCOREshirt

MICHIGAN PETANQUE CLUB WEBSITE GETS NEW LOOK

It is a new season, and the Michigan Petanque Club's website has a new look.

Check it out: www.michiganpetanque.com

(...and please let us know if there are any links/buttons that are malfunctioning)

MiniBoule and Mardi Gras 2007

The Detroit and Michigan Petanque Clubs attended the Alliance Francaise' Annual Mardi Gras celebration and of course they brought the entertainment with them: miniBOULE!

Attending were: Hal & Bridgitte; Jeff B.; Jeff W.; Kerry; Denise; Lindsey; and Joe

We immediately set-up a miniBoule court (4 ft. x 10 ft.) with masking tape and played a few games with the fellow party-goers.

"Anger Management" is ready for business!

Our great freinds, Juan, Mario, Loi, Freddie, Gile and guests are all set for the tournament next weekend in "House #1", but I can't contain my excitement about "House #2" dubbed "Anger Management" by the owners. Me and some MPC members, and some fellow petanquers from Canada will be more than comfortable here in our home-away-from-the-piste, and we'd like to invite anyone whose interested, to stop by for some Apres Petanque activities any time during the weekend...

"Anger Management" features include a 2 minute walk to the beach, a private backyard with pool and hot tub (pool toys!), mountain bikes, large screen TV, and foosball table! It should be a great time, and all of us are looking forward to it, and we hope that any fellow petanquers will stop by to join us! See you then!

Rocket City Petanque Club - Huntsville, Alabama

Ken Chance, having moved down to Alabama from Michigan, has started up the Rocket City Petanque Club.

Anyone who has dared to play against Ken knows that he is a determined player - and deadly shooter.

Next time you're down South, stop by his club and test out their rockets.

Call Joe Zajac for Seaside Petanque Event - He's Renting a House

Kiss the Pig Societe's Florida Cup is on for February 3rd & 4th in Seaside, Florida. If you're still looking for accomodations, or are trying to decide whether or not to attend, consider this... Joe Zajac of the Michigan Petanque Club is renting a whole house and splitting up the costs (which works out to approximately $15 per person per night (!!!). contact Joe Zajac for details (248) 935-4877

Winter 2007 is Mini-Boule time!

The Michigan and Detroit Petanque Clubs are organizing the first Mini-Boule tournament for 2007. We'll keep you informed of the details as we decide upon them.

Joe & Jeff