LAFF Bowling

From WikiFur, the furry encyclopedia.

LAFF furs bowling

Every third Saturday of the month, Lake Area Furry Friends holds its monthly LAFF Bowling meet. Organized originally by "The Reverend" Ash Maurice Cairo and later chaired by Butterscotch Vixen and Shale Ari the bowling meet has been around since early 2004, the first meet only having 4 attendees. Since then, attendance has increased to an average of 85 each month, reaching over 100 on occasion. The current chairmanship of the event has been taken over by Timoran.

The evening begins with a welcoming dinner at a local Buona Beef. Once food and drinks are had, the task of shepherding furs towards their vehicles begins to head to the bowling alley. Traditionally, bowling is held at Fox Bowl in Glen Ellyn, IL, but other venues have hosted the event.

In 2006, due to several issues between LAFF and Fox Bowl's management, LAFF bowling shifted to a local Brunswick Zone in Glendale Heights, IL. Thanks to cooperation with staff, fursuiters were welcome to suit up and bowl in fursuits. A headless lounge is provided by both alleys free of charge. In the background, artists set up supplies on the tables and begin drawing, often offering free sketches to friends or those interested. After the first round, Fox Bowl often turns off the lights to begin Cosmic Bowling, where black lights illuminate balls, pins and even fursuits.

The event usually lasts 2 or 3 games before the after-parties begin. Popular venues have been Denny's, Steak and Shake and White Castle, home of SliderCon. Since moving to the Brunswick location, bowling went into decline, due to waning interest in the event and the new location. Attendance had been falling rapidly as a result. However, the introduction of an air hockey tournament in January 2007 combined with some basic solutions to the problems at hand and bowling became no longer in danger of fading away and Brunswick became a more permanent home for the bowling.

However, not all members of LAFF were pleased with the move, preferring the environment and amenities that Fox Bowl provided. In June 2007, a second bowling event was started, in hopes to return bowling to Fox Bowl, providing local furries a choice between bowling at Brunswick and Fox Bowl. This event was organized and run by Rayven Wolffe and Blazger and runs the week after the Brunswick Zone event, allowing furries to attend both if they choose.