Vernon’s Carol Skidmore literally did the shake, rattle and roll for a career-first 400 bowling game at Lincoln Lanes.
The fun-loving great grandmother needed to knock down the left corner pin with her final ball to get past 399 in the Tuesday 7-9 league.
It took her a while to actually throw the ball, but she nailed the shot and finished at 401, bringing the house down in the process.
“Seven strikes in a row and a 300, that’s all I wanted,” smiled Skidmore, a former Youth Bowling Council coach. “I looked up and saw the 399 and I was shaking so bad, and everybody was quiet, you could hear a pin drop.
“I said to my son, Lyle, ‘I can’t throw this ball. I’m shaking so bad. I need a drink of water.’ He said, ‘You can do it mom.’ I got up there and everything was kind of blurry, and I hit my spot and got it and everybody started cheering. It was pretty exciting. It took me 50 years go get it.”
Skidmore bowled 10 years in Medicine Hat before moving to Vernon, where she has rolled fivepin the last 40 years, scoring lots of 300 games and 800 series but never venturing too close to 400.
A mother of three who has 10 grandchildren and seven great grandchildren, Skidmore opened her series with a 222 and finished with a 325, for a sizzling 948.
“After it (401) was all over, I got congratulations from everybody. It was the most hugs I’ve ever got.”
Her Lincoln Loonies teammates, including her son Lyle, Donna Desmarais, Ernie Mykituik and Rick Ganzeveld, witnessed the big game.
“I love my bowling,” said Skidmore, who worked several years at the Vernon Veterinary Clinic and the old Vernon Daily News before her retirement. “It’s good exercise and I love to socialize.”
Skidmore, who also plays in the Wednesday Golden Age Club league, took a 191 average into her 401 game which earned her gift certificates from several businesses in town.
Carol, who also enjoys knitting and playing cards, is the first woman to join the Lincoln 400 Club this year. She joins Keith Hoggard, Kyle Beadman, Drew Soroka and Kane Ackeral, all of whom qualify for the provincial 400 tournament next fall in Vancouver.
