What happens when 36 people put their minds together and wish for perfect outdoor conditions? A rough weather day including both torrential downpour and scorching sunlight of course.
The difference is, nothing was going to stop us from carrying out our Annual Summit Lawn Bowling Tournament this year. The gloves (and shoes) would be coming off rain or shine.
Excruciating shine.
The morning of August 5th, 2019 began as usual with the drafting of teams. Staff members gathered in our conference room to seal their fate and try to come up with team names more clever than their rivals. While some teams stuck to lawn bowling themes (Goldilawns, Balls on Turf, Rolling Thunder, and Incredibowls), other teams wanted to showcase the talents and similarities of their players (Sweet Babies, Cloudy with a Chance of Wins, Two Wheels > Four, and The Head, The Newlywed & The Redhead). As history has shown us, a team name is only as good as the talent backing it up though.
Brit’s Pub welcomed our return with a plethora of delicious foods including pretzel balls, flatbread, fresh fruit, egg rolls, and more. What exactly does food have to do with lawn bowling you ask? The answer is everything. Like many major sports, it is crucial to fuel your muscles with the right carbohydrates for the competition ahead. The extreme temperatures outside also meant we needed ample time to consume beverages that would keep us hydrated (sort of).
Still, unpredictable weather and proper nutrition weren’t the only adversities to overcome at this year’s tournament. An increase in employees at Summit meant we were adding a significant number of rookies to the game. These twelve newbies had no idea what was in store for them, but they knew they had something to prove. Some prepared by reading up on game rules, others spent time stretching or icing their arms. Whatever the staff was doing, it was clear they had been working on their form. Photographic evidence below:
If we’ve learned anything on the sales floor at Summit, it’s that our employees are competitive. As always, our lawn bowling tournament was no exception. In the end, it came down to teams Two Wheels > Four versus the Incredibowls. Each team contained their own rookie and showed a very promising push for 1st place throughout the day. When asked what gave their team the competitive edge overall, Kyle of Two Wheels > Four simply stated, “teamwork makes the dream work.”
However, it wasn’t all sad times for 2nd place team, the Incredibowls, as their team member Tiffany was awarded the coveted Rookie of the Year title. When asked how she felt about this accomplishment, she told sources, “Winning Rookie of the Year has been a lifelong goal of mine from the day I started at Summit. It’s an achievement my kids can be proud of, and it’s proved to me that you can do anything you set your mind to. Thank you to my teammates and coworkers. I couldn’t have done this without you.” Speaking of her teammates, would you look at those leg kicks? No wonder her partner Jordan was also named Lawn Bowling MVP this year!
Whether you were first or last on the field, the truth is at the end of the day we were all losers when we consider how much sweat we lost in the heat. Sunburns and all, that’s still a pretty good looking group.
Until next year!
