NFR NFC 2017 - The friendly thread for lovely people

[Funkyfairy!]

10 minutes ago, grumpyhack said:

Spent the day going round various sites where our club could build a new boules piste (boules is the French version of bowls where you throw steel balls on a gravel surface).

We're in a league of forty clubs in Gwent and currently have two teams.  Our aim is to field a third team next season so we'll need more space to construct a bigger piste (playing area).

Once we've settled on a site it will be into helping hump and level forty tons of gravel and chippings to create the right playing surface.

Whats the difference between boules and petanque ? or is it the same thing/different name

We have a pentanque 'pitch' in our village and its always busy - especially on a sunday morning, infact I think most parishes have a pentanque pitch

[5co77ie]

we also have a petanque pitch next to the village green - i thought it was just a weird anachronism

[5co77ie]

I'm pretty sure they've had similar - on gravel at some greens I've visited in Cornwall - I guess maybe there's some '6 Nations' type affair with The Channel Islands

 

[5co77ie]

well I never:

http://www.devonpetanque.org.uk/about/about.htm

Edited November 16, 2016 by 5co77ie

[5co77ie]

Hmmm I feel the mastery of another sport may be on the cards

 

There's a national team - wonder if it's in the Olympics?

 

Edited November 16, 2016 by 5co77ie

[5co77ie]

Just now, Scruffylovemonster said:

You word that as if you've mastered loads

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/29/petanque-relaunches-campaign-to-get-olympic-recognition

 

Yeah unfortunately longbow isn't in the Olympics anymore - petanque on the other hand.....

[grumpyhack]

It's a variation, and there are many, of one of the oldest game principles in the world - you chuck a little ball and then teams try to get other bigger balls as close to it as possible,  You've got different surfaces - for example lawn/crown green bowling or curling on ice. Boules or Petanque is played with steel balls on a gravel surface. Some versions play first to 15 points, with ours we play first to 13.

It's a surprisingly well-developed sport in the UK.  Just in our corner of South Wales our league in Gwent has three divisions and over 40 teams.  In Cardiff there's an even bigger league.

There are regular International tournaments that some of our league players compete in, including the Celtic Challenge (Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Brittany/Normandy), a European and a World Championship.

It's supposed to be one of the fastest growing participant sports in the UK, though I've heard that said of many sports.  It's certainly one of the most inclusive.  No costs for kit, just a set of boules and we can usually lend sets to newcomers.  Men and women, young and old, play on equal terms (no juniors, seniors and veterens).  In our club members range in age from 15 to 78.  One club we play against has a guy who lost a leg in an accident and he plays on crutches - and is a superb player.  We play another club with a woman of 75 with serious physical and mental health issues, and she's one of their star players and stuffs the kids most of the time.

Most of the pistes (pitches) tend to be at pubs - in some cases they just board off part of the car park during matches.

I've also played in Guernsey, where they've converted a lot of the redundant glasshouses into indoor pistes.

In France if you want to make friends, just wander down to the village boules piste and you'll probably be able to join the locals for a game. Though they often still think of it as a French game and are quite surprised to find a Brit who can come along and give them a run for their money.

Our league organises an annual trip to France.  Our best weekend was probably in Paris where we played against the Montmartre Boules team who have a lovely piste alongside the Sacre Coeur.  At lunchtime our Welsh contingent were stuffing them so they made some frantic phone calls and within half an hour two 'ringers' turned up - the Paris Regional Champion and a French National Champion, who beat me in the final.

So it's cheap, inclusive and great fun.  Highly recommended.  If you've got a pub with a bit of a gravel car park, you're on your way.

[carlosj]

So who's bring their boules down to Somerset then?  Every place we've stopped in France has had loads of people playing boules in the campsites and towns. Last time we were in France I got us 2 sets (3 boules each) and then we found the local park back home had built a pitch. (We recreated France with a baguette, cheese and a bottle of red wine. Lush). Leeds has a serious league set up but I can't make time to join in yet.  Does everyone play with the basic set or have you gone serious with the competition weights and softness?

[grumpyhack]

37 minutes ago, carlosj said:

So who's bring their boules down to Somerset then?  Every place we've stopped in France has had loads of people playing boules in the campsites and towns. Last time we were in France I got us 2 sets (3 boules each) and then we found the local park back home had built a pitch. (We recreated France with a baguette, cheese and a bottle of red wine. Lush). Leeds has a serious league set up but I can't make time to join in yet.  Does everyone play with the basic set or have you gone serious with the competition weights and softness?

In the league we have to play with Competition Boules (normally from about £40 a set) as opposed to Leisure Boules (toy shops from a tenner).  It's not so much about being precious about weights and hardness but safety.  If you hit a leisure boule hard it can shatter and shards of flying steel are a bit of a risk. As it happens, like many competitive boules players, I have two sets with differing degrees of hardness and weight and diameter. But I won't go all nerdy and try to describe the different playing characteristics of 'hard' and 'soft' boules.  They are all made of steel and the headache you'd get if one hit you on the head are pretty much the same - hard or soft.

I have taken them to some festivals where I've seen people playing for a bit of fun and, if requested, I could bring some to Somerset.  Anyone for a boules melee in CV East?

[carlosj]

33 minutes ago, grumpyhack said:

 Anyone for a boules melee in CV East?

I'd be up for that, but will curry, boules and alcohol mix?

[mr gumby]

Don't you be bringin' yer fancy boules to Somerset now, this be skittles country! :) 

[carlosj]

2 hours ago, mr gumby said:

Don't you be bringin' yer fancy boules to Somerset now, this be skittles country!

I think it's going to be easier if we can apply for a pitch in the kids field and just spend the days playing skittles and boules. Add it to clashfinder.

[lucyginger]

My Dad plays petanque, I think Mum thinks it keeps him out of trouble! When I visited my friend in Nice last year, we went to the mountain villages nearby and there were people playing petanque. It was very French. Looked nice and relaxing and fun. 

Can I be one of the people that sits at the side drinking wine?

[Funkyfairy!]

57 minutes ago, lucyginger said:

My Dad plays petanque, I think Mum thinks it keeps him out of trouble! When I visited my friend in Nice last year, we went to the mountain villages nearby and there were people playing petanque. It was very French. Looked nice and relaxing and fun. 

Can I be one of the people that sits at the side drinking wine?

I'll join you - cheese and wine party at the Glastonbury pentanque pitch anyone ?

[Funkyfairy!]

Or make it a little more 'fun; and play on the hill of doom ! Does the pitch need to be flat ?

[lucyginger]

18 minutes ago, Funkyfairy! said:

I'll join you - cheese and wine party at the Glastonbury pentanque pitch anyone ?

I think we should see if Avalon will give us a space, they do things like that don't they? 

I'm def up for cheese and wine! 

[5co77ie]

12 hours ago, grumpyhack said:

Anyone for a boules melee in CV East?

sounds a good idea- or you can mix boules and skittles !. At End Of The Road they play Finska with 12 wooden pins (numbered 1-12) & a wooden throwing stick (the Finska). At the back of the stage crowds.

 

Edited November 17, 2016 by 5co77ie

[carlosj]

At this rate, it will turn into a triathlon - throwing sticks or boules at skittles, followed by longbow archery, finished by drinking a magnum of red wine and eating a truckle of cheese.

I'm in. Well, for the final part.

[Quark]

Afternoon all, been away from the boards a bit.  Mental at work at the moment, and forcing myself into a cold-turkey approach with electronic devices in the evenings and weekends!  Bit of an all or nothing approach really...

But clearly rejoined at the right time.  Any additions to the festival that involve low-impact garden games and cheese/wine are clearly a step in the right direction.  All sounds rather bloody splendid to me, although I would like to make a case for including dominoes round the big table when it gets later.  Do like a game of dominoes with a nice glass of something

So loads to catch up on, but clearly better news on the school front @dizzymoo and hope the move improves @Yoghurt on a Stick.  The rest of you seem to be bimbling along quite happily I hope!

[lucyginger]

4 minutes ago, Quark said:

Afternoon all, been away from the boards a bit.  Mental at work at the moment, and forcing myself into a cold-turkey approach with electronic devices in the evenings and weekends!  Bit of an all or nothing approach really...

But clearly rejoined at the right time.  Any additions to the festival that involve low-impact garden games and cheese/wine are clearly a step in the right direction.  All sounds rather bloody splendid to me, although I would like to make a case for including dominoes round the big table when it gets later.  Do like a game of dominoes with a nice glass of something

So loads to catch up on, but clearly better news on the school front @dizzymoo and hope the move improves @Yoghurt on a Stick.  The rest of you seem to be bimbling along quite happily I hope!

Ah, you know us! We're happy when things just tick along pleasantly

[mr gumby]

40 minutes ago, Quark said:

The rest of you seem to be bimbling along quite happily I hope!

You had to go and say it, didn't you Quark?

Gumby Jr is now ejecting yellow/green gunge from his mouth and nose, and it's all your fault!

[lucyginger]

15 minutes ago, mr gumby said:

You had to go and say it, didn't you Quark?

Gumby Jr is now ejecting yellow/green gunge from his mouth and nose, and it's all your fault!

Ugh! Good luck!!! 

[trevethin]

Afternoon.  I am having an I'm-hiding-from-the-weather day.  There were ponds in the lanes this morning.

I am envious of your weekend @lucyginger a gin festival sounds wonderful !

I can see how 32 years in a house could happen @dizzymoo , we said we'd only be here for 5 years, but have been here for 18 and, if we put it up for sale now, it would have to be marketed as a renovation project ... I just keep telling myself each thing we do is one more thing done.

I haven't seen any petanque happening Exmoor way @5co77ie but I shall be on the look out for it now.  Cheese & wine petanque sounds good @Funkyfairy!

In fact mentally I'm there now.  Cheese.  Wine.  In a field

[Funkyfairy!]

4 hours ago, Scruffylovemonster said:

You're our resident French person - you should know the rules!

erm throw little ball - then each person takes turns to throw big ball and then one that is closest wins (scores a point ?)

I can drink french wine and eat French cheese , and moule are moule not muscles, and the road I live in has a french name (but I cannot pronouce it) ... thats where my French finishes ... oh and I am taking the car over next weekend to stock up for Christmas and buy a new tent in decathlon in Rennes (its huge)

[Funkyfairy!]

4 hours ago, lucyginger said:

I think we should see if Avalon will give us a space, they do things like that don't they? 

I'm def up for cheese and wine! 

I think we are onto something - free tickets for setting up the pitch ?