Boule Bag from Nicaragua

Ahhh the wonders of EBay... I just aquired this cool leather bottle carrier - and re-tasked it for carrying my boules to the petanque piste. It also has a handy case for measuring tape, coin tossing coin and cochonnet. And when playing triplettes, there's still room for a bottle of Pastis!

Petanque and the Compuware Corvette Pit Crew

Things were definitely roaring loud at Campus Martius Park this afternoon, with stock car pit crews giving displays of their fast tire changing amidst screeching, burning rubber corvettes and stock race cars.

Afterwards, the crew (about 10 guys in the yellow with checkered jerseys) watched us play some petanque.

Through it all, Wayne, Pat, Deric and Jeff played concentrated boule.

Boule is IN - Tour de France is OUT

Forgotten Tour de France

By John Moretti – New York Sun
July 23, 2007

ANTIBES - FRANCE - It was a rare sight these days: Two men having pastis at the bar and excitedly watching the Tour de France on television. They were clapping, even, when Tour leader Michael Rasmussen allowed Alberto Contador to pass him just before the finish line and win yesterday's stage. There had to be some sort of explanation for this odd behavior, and then it came as soon as the men started cheering — in Flemish.

It would take a lot, more than the recent doping inquiries and the ensuing suspensions and early retirements, to tear the Belgians away from their beloved cycling. The French, on the other hand, might be approaching that point quickly.

Once upon a time, well, even just two years ago, these same bars would be filled with gray-haired men clutching the sports daily, L'Equipe and nodding their heads in approval at every uphill attack. Not anymore. Even when the Tour passed through this corner of the hexagon last week, TVs in a few bars were tuned in to game shows. Yesterday, during one of the Tour's most critical stages, the natives were gathered in the park across the street, playing a game of petanque without even a radio to be heard.

"I just don't have time for it anymore," said Valerio Tomasino, as he crossed his legs on the park bench and watched an elderly man slowly crouch over the boules with a tape measure. "I used to watch all the mountain races and the time trials. This year, I haven't seen a single stage."

Detroit Petanque Club Gets Expert from Marseilles

Pat A., may not have been playing petanque for long, but boule is in his blood. His grandparents were major petanque players in Marseille years ago.

"They won all of their games," Pat boasted proudly, "and these were big money games. They even left me a set of boules which I plan to use to carry on their legacy."

With plenty of wins under his belt, Pat is well on his way to standing in the same circles as his relatives.

Today, teamed up with Mike D., he challenged Tim, Tom, and Jeff W. to a no-holds-barred match which ended in a 13/8 victory for Pat's team.

"When Pat finds himself in a squeeze - he doesn't crumble, but instead, turns up the heat by taking some risks - which usually result in a solid hit or point," woefully admitted Detroit Petanque club president, Jeff W. who was on the losing team today.

Check out Pat's boule stance, and challenge him and the others at the petanque games held each weekday (12-1pm) at Cadillac Square Park (right next to Campus Martius Park).

New and Old Faces Meet at Campus Martius Park's Pistes

Iron Mike is a Reliable Player

Always coming to the matches early, and last to leave, Mike has been a very dedicated player to petanque. I think he'll soon be beating us all.

Dan C., the patient coach

Whenever a new player to petanque enters the scene, Dan will always lend some good advice on the types of throws to be made.

Little Arrow Points in Nicely

a new player to the club, Little Arrow has made some nice progress today. She has taken up some pre-throw rituals which seems to steady her concentration and makes for some very close pointing.

Lost in Brooklyn

Not just petanque games were lost in Brooklyn, there were some other things as well. Namely, Philippe Boet's digital camera with hundreds of photos in the memory of the entire Bastille Day weekend, as well as Joe Z.'s cellphone which had hundreds of telephone numbers in it (probably 90% women) - kidding. So, if anyone back on Smith Street, or thereabouts sees a digital camera speaking in French, or a cellphone trying to shoot ... let me know!

Teaching Petanque in Albion, Michigan

Here are some great photos from Mark Anthony Arceno, taken during the petanque matches on French Day at Albion's Summer program run by Ms. Mueller.


While I have taught petanque to many adults over the years, never have I taught it to so many young adults. It was quite an experience, and everything went very smoothly.

Teaching to the 13 year olds was quite different from teaching to the 9 and 10 year olds. I also used different "petanque tools" for the younger children - one of which is a bright yellow golf ball in lieu of the cochonnet. I also placed down round rubber "placemats" for the younger kids to use as standing circles.

Ms. Mueller also hosted a group of visiting students from France who participated in the event. They assisted the students new to boule by showing them the different types of throws and strategy.

After a round or two, the kids really got into their games, being very friendly competitive and using the strategies learned from previous games.

At the conclusion of the day, I was invited into the school cafeteria where all of the students offered their thanks for the fun we had that day, and Ms. Mueller presented my with a bottle of Pastis from Marseille.

I really enjoyed myself that day, and after describing the event to the club members the following days, they too wish to participate the next time we're invited to Albion!

BAR TABAC - 2007 Bastille Day on Smith Street in Brooklyn, NY

Joe Z. and Denise B. attended the Bar Tabac Bastille Day Petanque Tournament. Also playing was Ken C. in from Alabama with his girlfriend who also played. As you can see there is quite a bit of set-up for the event, with the street closed down, sand dumped in and raked out, 2 x 4's laid out in court grids, court numbering plates, along with countless other preparations (booths, score table, boule sales) - not to mention all of the surrounding shops offering food and french delicacies. The band played French music, and there was even a guillotine (for the losers?)

Sunday in Royal Oak, Michigan

It was another beautiful day in Michigan. I'm not sure what they pay the local weather people, but their forecast (thankfully) was well OFF. Ziggy, from Chicago, joined us again with his wife, April. We played a host of games, Marley ran around the courts, and another glorious boule day completed.