As the year comes to an end and the aftereffects of the Kilauea breakout at Fissure 8 are still being dealt with, there is a small slice of good news for Hilo-side bowlers.
This was the year the largest bowling center on this part of the island officially went away, to never return. After the original ownership encountered financial difficulties, struggled to maintain necessary upgrades and finally sold out, for a reported $2.25 million, to Lorraine Shin, her son, BJ Penn will re-direct his gym from two blocks away into bigger, better venue for his purposes.
Shin told the Tribune-Herald in August that approximately 20,000 square feet on the 3.7-acre acquisition will be devoted to the new UFC Gym, BJ Penn, in what will be known as the 777 Kinoole Center.
It might be the biggest and best UFC-inspired training center anywhere, a big step forward for Penn and all his enthusiastic followers.
But what about the bowlers?
Bruce Taylor, the deputy director at Kilauea Military Camp, reminds folks that, after a few months down, the KMC bowling center — a tidy six lanes with an accompanying snack bar/restaurant — is back open for business and you don’t have to be an active member of the military, or a vet, to be able to use the facility.
“We are open again and we want people, especially groups, to make use of the facility,” Taylor said. “During the time we were closed down we didn’t stop working on the improvements we were making to the lanes. Everything is more efficient these days, lots of new equipment.”
There are a few groups in Hilo that have already made use of the venue rather than drive to Kona for the only other bowling center on the island, but there’s room for more at KMC, with certain conditions.
“We only have six lanes, but if the group isn’t too big, we can accommodate you,” Taylor said. “The big thing people need to keep in mind is that our veterans and our active duty personnel come first — they paid the price for that place in line, as it were — but you can still come here and use the facility, probably at a time your own choosing, if you schedule it ahead of time.
“We can set you up with food, let us know what pizza you want and how many, for instance, and we can open for you in the morning, though we normally open at 11. It’s a fun place to bowl, we can meet your needs, you just need to organize a little and schedule it with us.”
Groups that want to experience the unique atmosphere of the 6-lane bowling center in a military camp, are requested to call Denise Miller (808-967-8337), to make arrangements.
Best Ever — Turned out that all 14 members of Sunrise Athletics who ventured to California came home with personal bests in their first 5Ks at the Foot Locker Cross Country West Regional Championships held Dec. 1 at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif.
A good result? Probably more than anyone might have asked for such a large group in its first such big step at regional competition on a challenging, treacherous course.
Phoebe Wyatt (freshman girls division) took home a medal for finishing 38th (of 179) with a time of 21:24. All who finished in the Top 48 got medals.
Other results for Sunrise harriers:
Boys Open Division — Shane Tominaga – Age 10 20:17 (86 of 414).
Freshman Girls — Akemi Tominaga 23:41 (93 of 179), Teryn Tominaga 25:16 (121 of 179). Freshman boys — Kederang Ueda 19:01 (68 of 277).
Sophomore Boys — John Marrack 17:29 (51 of 427), Ayrton Takane 20:04 (249 of 427). Sophomore Girls — Kacie Tagawa 26:37 (209 of 275),
Cassidy Denault 27:49 (230 of 275).
Junior Girls — Jaeda Yamasaki 23:58 (136 ) of 273, Ella Johnson 24:05 (141), Violet Hart 25:16 (182). Junior Boys — Deylan Okinaka 18:59 (170 of 412).
Senior Girls — Sam Marrack 23:12 (103 of 250).
No Ifs, Just Butts — Those two Hilo surfing prodigies, Laurie Rumor Butts and her younger brother Diesel turned it up this year, both of them ranked at the top of their age groups in the Hawaii Surfing Association end of year result.
Rumor closed out the year atop the girls’ 12-17 division with an aggregate 3900 points, and 1100-point bulge over her next closest competitor. In the boys’ 12-13 division, Diesel had a battle, but finished with 3710 points, surpassing the 3182 accumulation of Jackson Dorian, according to official statistics from the Hawaii Surfing Association.
Christmas Pickle(ball) — The year ends with a special occasion, and an inaugural one for Hilo Pickleball enthusiasts on Dec. 30 from noon- 5pm.
Not just pickleball, but more of a pickle ball gathering of the tribes as it were, with a round robin tournament and a potluck to socialize the growing ohana.
Briefly, depending on the number of entrants, competition will be split into two skill-level based groups. The potluck is planned for 1 pm after registration is complete.
The competitive concept calls for round-robin matches by random number so there will be different partners for each game. Winners determined by highest individual score and most games won.
Questions? Email USAPA.org or call 808.731.6329.
The Scene is dedicated to the athletes on the Hilo side of the Big Island who compete in wide-ranging, non-school activities. Anything is eligible if you have statistics and particulars for ultra runs, tennis, swimming, paddling, boxing, just send info to barttribuneherald@gmail.com and include a phone number.