If my memory serves me well (it is not always the case), the game of pétanque was born in the South of France, where the temperature is usually mild, and where people play in light, comfortable garments.
But yesterday, in Marin County this is not what happened. It was cold and windy for most of the day, and despite my five layers of clothing I still felt ill at ease. This @#^$** weather didn’t prevent players from all over the Bay Area to attend, but for me personally, it was definitely not my cup of tea.
Still, 16 teams (48 players) showed up, eager to compete and pocket vast amounts of cash. I was supposed to team up with my friends Francois and Serge, but at the very last minute, due to acute shoulder pain, Serge (Tamalou) Hanne had to opt out of the game. Bleys Rose gracefully accepted to take his place and we were grateful for this, but being somewhat superstitious, I have always been averse to last-minute changes.
Despite this contretemps, we did fairly well and won 2 out of 3 games in the morning. But in the afternoon (having been selected to play in the Concours) we were quickly booted out of the tournament.
Even though nobody likes to lose, I was not greatly affected by this development. To me, pétanque and photography always go hand in hand. With the help of Sneaky Pete II, I devoted the rest of the afternoon to trying to capture interesting pictures. Pay close attention by the way to the electric pole and the woodpecker…
As usual, in this sort of tournament, you have a blend of heavyweight and light players, and soon or later, skills and experience will prevail. Yesterday, it became obvious very early that one team did not come all the way from Fresno to return empty-handed.
In the Concours Finals, By Vang, Kham Chounlamany, and Janice Bissonnette faced Tom Lee, Brendan Cohen and Tim Wetzel. The Fresno team showed great cohesion and skills, and very soon it was all over. The game ended fairly early by a score of 13/5 in favor of the Fresnans. Congratulations lady and gentlemen!
Concours:
1st place: By Vang, K. Chounlamany, J. Bissonnette ($171 to team)
2nd place: Tom Lee, Brendan Cohen, Tim Wetzel ($144 to team)
3rd place: Ed Porto, Louis Toulon, Wolfie Kurz ($114 to team)
Consolante:
1st place: P. Moua, Krystal Pulsipher, Tim Peppel ($84 to team)
2nd place: N. Marcovecchio, N. Semenenko, T. Efron ($57 to team)
Alain
PS: watch the pictures “Full Screen”