The first time Suzie Feinauer tried bowling, she knocked down 16 pins.
Yes, over 10 frames.
“I really was proud of myself,” she recalled. “I think the ball weighed more than I did.”
The first time she stepped into a bowling alley, she was Suzie Fink, a seventh-grader on a trip to Yakima with the Shumway Middle School choir. That day, hitting the gutter more often than hitting the pins didn’t dampen the fun.
“I don’t think I knew what a bowling alley was,” she said. “Nobody told me what to do.”
Another thing she did not know on that day was that her first trip to a bowling alley became a life-defining moment. More than five decades later, the game continues to fascinate her.
“One year, the only day of the week I didn’t bowl was Friday,” she said.
Last season, she played in seven leagues. If bowlers handed out awards for attendance, Suzie would own a pile of them.
Instead, she received one very special honor. On Sunday, during the annual banquet for area league bowlers, Feinauer was inducted into the Clark County United States Bowling Congress Hall of Fame for service to the organization and the sport.
Not only does she bowl in multiple leagues, Feinauer runs one of them. A Clark County native who has lived most of her life here, she has been president of the 99 Strippers League at Hazel Dell Lanes (seems like forever, she said), and a secretary for other leagues. For the past 15 years has served as a board member for the organizations that oversee the sport in Clark County.
In her spare time, Feinauer likes to play pool — 9-ball is her game these days — and enjoys crochet. She contributes popular red, white and blue Afghans to the local bowlers’ annual efforts to assist area veterans.
Her work off the lanes — on Monday she helped with the annual USBC inspection at Husted’s Hazel Dell Lanes — earned her the hall of fame recognition. But the challenge of the game, and the social aspect of league bowling, keep Feinauer returning almost daily to give the game her best shot.
A natural right-hander, she bowled left-handed for more than six years because of tendonitis. She’s participated in the national tournament 22 times. Her best game is a 268. Her best series a 693.
So Feinauer still has milestones to shoot for. Even if she never rolls a 700 series, or flirts with a 300 game, she said bowling has given more to her than she has given to the game.
And the game helps her stay young.
“Whether it’s a 10-pound ball or a 16-pound ball you’re throwing down the lane, you’re going to use every muscle in your body,” she said, promoting the value of bowling for all ages.
On Sunday, Suzie Feinauer’s peers honored her for all that she has put into the sport she loves. On Wednesday, she turns 67, and she called being inducted into Clark County’s bowling hall of fame the best present she can imagine.
“This meant a lot to me,” she said.
Tournaments on tap
The Clark County USBC is hosting a pair of annual bowling tournaments in coming weeks.
The 22nd Clark County Adult-Youth Tournament begins on Sunday afternoon at Husted’s Hazel Dell Lanes. Times are noon and 2:30 p.m. on Oct. 31, Nov. 2, and Nov. 13-14. Cost is $10 per bowler.
The 39th Clark County Mixed Bowling Tournament, featuring pairs and teams of women and men, will be played during the last weekend of November and first two weekends of December at Bailey’s Classic Lanes. The entry fee is $20 per bowler, per event. Ron Walker, director of the Clark County USBC, said the organization will contribute and additional $400 to the team prize pool and another $200 to the doubles prize money.
Entry information for both tournaments is available at Clark County bowling centers, or by contacting the Clark County USBC at 360-694-6348.
Paul Danzer covers community sports for The Columbian. Contact him at 360-735-4521 or paul.danzer@columbian.com.
