Warm Weather Brings Out The Boules

Melissa Helps Out Didierjean Family at Le Petit Prince

Melissa and Gregory share more than a passion for petanque. They also share out in the chores at the Didierjean family pastry shop in Birmingham. You should visit them at 124 W. 14 Mile, Birmingham. Melissa might even slip an extra cookie into your bag... (NOT!)

A Thief in our Midst???

Joyce brought along her curling iron bag, recently converted to her boule bag... so she says!. I think her eyes were on that Pinot Grigio. The bag and the bottle are ironically similar in size! Keep your eyes on her!!! ;-)

If Marley Can Do It, You Can Too!

Mascot Marley found his own way of keeping warm on Sunday! "These leaves may be bothersome on the piste, but they make a very comfy, warm bed off the piste!" If he can find a way to survive the cold, you can too! Put on that jacket, and those gloves, and stick it out a bit longer, soon we'll be playing indoors...

New Friends and Old Meet Up At Campus Martius Park

Experienced Players Sometimes Don't Get Results They Want

Don't get me wrong, these guys are excellent petanque players, but it shows that even the best players have unlucky moments.

No Boule Size Restrictions in Michigan

Actually, these are the ornaments for the 55 ft. tree installed at Campus Martius Park (where the Detroit Petanque Club plays). No petanque today - however - as all of the pathways are covered with chairs (and my hands were frozen anyway!) Tonight is the tree lighting ceremony, as well as the opening of the ice skating rink (upper left). See you there!

Next Year Mario Will Play Instead of Straining His Voice

New Mascot for Michigan & Detroit Petanque Clubs?

Miami's South Beach is a pretty wild area, here's Jeff and Joe - with a 106 pound boa constrictor around their necks (name of the snake: Ecstasy). "It felt like a giant garden hose, with something bumbpy moving beneath the outer layer. Ecstasy's head was moving uncomfortably close to the goodies..." scary!

Drink Mango Madness

Jeff and I surely had fun with our trip to South Beach! Just give us a few boules, add in a little Florida sun, top it off with a little Mango Madness, and look at those smiles it produces!

A "Priceless" Night On the Town!

Great games of petanque on Miami Beach... $0 Dollars
Pastis with lots and lots of friends... $500 Dollars
Hans charging the whole night of pastis to Tom's credit card... PRICELESS! ;-)

Dave Barry Can Play Petanque!

Philippe and I thought we were going to teach famous sports columnist, Dave Barry, a thing or two about Petanque. It turns out that he's a natural! Here I'm trying to show him where to land his boule, but he didn't need my advice afterall, he beat us 13-12. OK Dave, it won't be quite so pretty in la revenge!

You Have to Do What You Have to Do...

In between games in South Beach I just had to help out my friends, Hans and Tom. Their team, pictured here, Soledad (left) and Franserly (right), just needed a little help with keeping score for their favorite players... so naturally, as with all things petanque, I'm always happy to lend a helping hand! ;-)

MIAMI BEACH PHOTOS

We Played Teams from All Over the Country/World

Some Familiar Faces

It was wonderful to see (and play a game against) Michel and Jeannette who live in the area. Michel was impressed with Don and my playing, and it was nice to get away from the "official tournament play" for a while to cool down.

Michigan and Detroit Petanque Clubs Represent at Miami

Small but happy crowd

Small but happy crowd
Originally uploaded by mainegal.

It was a small but dedicated crowd played at Royal Oak. Cyrille, Cheryl, Camille, Gregory, Dan, James, Joyce and Melissa played round robin doublettes despite the strong wind. Jimmy stopped by to say hi but opted against playing.

Joe's already there, and Ken, Jeff & Don catch their flight tonight to meet up with him and 66 teams for the Petanque-America Open in Miami Beach this weekend. I heard the temperature is a chilly 85 degrees...

Remember... we return on Monday (Nov. 14th) at around 3pm... and are going up to the Bordine's Nursery in Rochester to clean-up/groom the greenhouses for petanque playing in the winter time. Come and join us, and play some indoor warm boule!