our powers eroded during the short 6-day layoff before last night's match with nemeses If You Want My Bocce, however. despite having no female representation due to meetings and illness, the boys started strong to take the first game with relative ease, 7-2. then i put myself into the game and the whole thing went down the shitter. we didn't really make any terrible shots, just not any really good ones, while they started making just about everything. the 2nd game finished at 3-7 and the rubber game was barely as close as the 1-7 score would indicate. frankly, i don't even want to dwell on this one bit longer. i think our losing streak to the Rodders has reached 5 consecutive matches including at least 2 in which we won the 1st game only to succumb in the end. this must stop.

next week we get defending champs ODB and the chance to take our revenge for the ouster in last year's playoffs.

record: 3-1
mood: surly

The Schweddy Balls were newcomers to the league (there's a similarly named team at Union Hall that my co-worker plays for), but they've got some talent. Once they get up to speed on the vagaries of the court, I expect them to make some noise in the playoffs.

Earlier in the evening, the Sweet Meats fell to Watch Your Balls, while defending champs ODB went to 0-2 after being demolished by a Brian-less Boccelism. Monday nights look to be exceedingly tough as always, and it doesn't help that we don't play another game until February 26th. But the season is off to a rollicking start, and I look forward to hoisting the trophy at season's end.

Go Terrors.

Jamie's the captain for this season and he just reminded the team about the schedule for the upcoming season - which starts very, very soon.

M 1/21 @ 9:30 vs. Mamalukes
T 1/29 @ 9:30 vs. Schweddy Balls
M 2/4 off
M 2/11 off
M 2/18 President's Day
T 2/26 @ 8:30 vs. Watch Your Balls
M 3/3 @ 7:30 vs. IYWMB
M 3/10 @ 7:30 vs. ODB
M 3/17 St. Patrick's Day
M 3/24 @ 7:30 vs. Boccelism
T 4/1 off
W 4/7 @ 8:30 vs. Sweet Meats

With no plans on my schedule, I figured this afternoon would be perfect for a tour around Northwest Queens. I took the N from Brooklyn to the end of the line in Astoria.

I didn't really plot my course other than by making the decision to visit the three potential courts in Astoria and then, probably, two more courts. I grabbed a Queens bus map once I got off the train.

Here's a rough sketch of how I spent my day:

Steinway Playground (aka Steinway Community?)

Was this a bocce court 20 years ago? I have no idea. When I looked at this court from Google Earth, I figured there was definitely a court here. I was surprised to find no such thing in person. I walked through this small park and couldn't find any hint that bocce had ever been played here, unless the court was leveled and paved over as possibly suggested by the photo below.

From here I walked a number of blocks toward the river and then headed south to find my next court.

Astoria Park

There were a few guys playing petanque on this surprisingly intact court.

The sideboards have seen better days and there's a strong breeze coming off the river but in the summer this would be a pretty swell place to play. If I play here, I'll need to remember to bring my own scoring mechanism.

After snapping a few photos, I dashed out of the park and picked up the 19A bus. It zipped me through Astoria and I was on Steinway Street in no time at all.

Ditmars Park

This place had an incredibly active bocce scene. Two games were going on when I arrived, with a number of people standing around and watching. These courts are in great shape.

The ball holders at this court were unlike any I'd seen before. The locals here fashioned a diagonal ledge intruding onto the court, from the top of the back sidewalls. It looked to be very effective.

One of the things I saw at this court that I'd never seen before was the ledge on top of the back wall rubber bumpers. It's about 10 inches deep and makes it easy to stand at the end of the court without getting in the way of play. It also makes it easy to sit on the back wall.

Because I had more courts to explore, I headed down Steinway Street to 30th Avenue where I caught the 18 bus. The bus left Astoria and wound through Woodside, heading toward Maspeth. I stepped off the bus just before it reached the LIE. I walked a few blocks west toward what I thought was Maurice Park.

Frank Principe Park (aka Maurice Park?)

The sign outside the park wasn't the one I was expecting, but there were bocce courts!

These two courts seem to be playable, but not ideal for bocce. The scoreboards have seen better days. Overall, the surfaces seem mostly level and all the sideboards are intact. I'd play here, but getting here using any means other than a bus or car is tough! I also didn't see any nearby bodegas.

I turned around and headed back toward the LIE, crossing it on my walk toward Juniper Valley Park. My face lit up when I saw a 7-11. I couldn't have been happier to pull myself a 22oz. Slurpee!

After a few blocks I found my next destination.

Juniper Valley Park (aka Juniper North)

These two courts were the home of the 2007 Citywide Bocce Tournament. Rumor has it there was some controversy with the bocce balls that were used! Scandal!

These two very nicely maintained courts featured a different scoring mechanism than I've seen at the other parks. Instead of a peg board, the folks here use a circular clock-type scoreboard.

I sat on one of the numerous benches, finishing my Slurpee. A few of the guys were talking about court maintenance and the different surfaces used. Apparently, the tennis clay stuff on the court the gentleman below can be seen smoothing out wasn't mixed with sand. One guy was adamant that a partial sand mixture was a necessity. He was also a believer in using a wide, heavy board coated with carpet on the underside. Apparently, that's the best way to keep the court smooth. I love that there's just as much arguing about court maintenance as there is about which ball is closer!

Speaking of court maintenance, here's where the locals keep their folding chairs, bocce balls and other goods locked away. Notice the use of large white pails for the carrying of bocce balls. The guys at Ditmars Park also used these.

Upon leaving Juniper Valley Park, which I kept calling Juniper Creek Park - thank you Big Love, I walked to the R train in Rego Park.

It was a good tour of a few of the bocce courts in Queens. There are still plenty of courts in the city to map and visit.

View Larger Map

Boccelism falls and Cap'n Terror awards the Hot Hand of the Day to himself!

(There's no scoring mechanism, so I made me own from a camera tripod and dry-erase board.)

I think this bocce on Sunday mornings/early afternoons may become a regular thing. Let me know if you're into playing on a semi-regular basis. I think we've got a few more weekends before the weather turns. This spot would be pretty great for night bocce, too. It looks like there are lights, but I'm not sure if they get turned on or not.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/expiredappliances/sets/72157602234615359/

This is the same court I took a look at in May 2006. Since that time I've played a lunchtime game there with some co-workers. I was nervous about the lack of wooden side rails. The hard packed dirt surface got muddy pretty easily. Basically, the fix-up the court underwent was much needed. It's possible my co-workers and I were the only ones to play bocce on this court all summer.

This afternoon I stopped by the court to check out the post-tournament condition. While not as nice as the courts at Dreier Offerman Park, it has definitely been improved. I took a few snapshots with my camera phone.

The surface material is much better. It's a little dusty for my tastes, and I'm not sure it's 100% flat. Also, I didn't notice any type of scoreboard. The throwing lines on the sides are poorly marked with bright green paint. It's going to be tough to call foot faults here.

Anyway, I'm rounding up some friends to gather here Sunday afternoon. I'll have some better pictures and a report of how the court plays after that.

In the semi-finals The Coffee Flats Terrors took on and defeated Boccelism.

The other semi-final game saw Jimbo's Sweet Meats All-Stars advance past If You Want My Bocce.

In game two of the finals, the Terrors rallied, scoring six unanswered points in order to win the match.

The Hot Hand of the Day award went to Cap'n Terror (not acting captain this season. That fine job was handled by Eco Terror).

Unfortunately, two Terrors weren't able to share in the celebrations. The following photo should also include Dani (Tasty Terror) and Matt (Ono Terror).

(nine more photos available here)

The Coffee Flats Terrors faced Balls Deep in Round One. Round Two, saw the Terrors against The Notorious BRF. Both teams were defeated, with the Terrors advancing to play the following weekend.

Eco Terror, aka This Season's Captain, captured the Hot Hand of the Day Award with some fine play. He's seen here using that oven-mitted hand to attach the team name to the tournament bracket.

A few weeks ago Chili Terror won the Hot Hand of the Day. I forgot to take a picture at the time. Here she is, oven-mitted. Or is it oven-bemitted?

It goes down to the wire and If You Want My Bocce takes the match, despite support from Lenny.

The winning streak ends.