Developments were expected in New York this year. With new terrains in Brooklyn's Prospect Park coming on stream soon, and the space at Bryant Park getting cramped for the ever growing number of players, there would either be a Boule NY with several venues or a second club. It will be the latter.From what I understand the Prospect Park Club will concentrate on tournaments, and - given the ample space - large ones too, whereas La Boule NY will continue to be the jovial Manhattan meeting place and irreplaceable breeding ground for new players. Both missions are totally complementary and I can picture NY players playing at both locations throughout the year. Of course we wish both clubs the best of luck and continued growth.
Every petanque club worldwide goes through stages where some want to stress the competitive angle and others the social aspect. Some clubs have different types of membership. Other clubs split. Sometimes we forget that the sport is barely 100 years old and that growing pains are healthy.
The more clubs, the merrier. After all, NY has more inhabitants than Belgium or Holland. Each have hundreds of clubs.
Today's article in NY Magazine uses wildly exaggerated terms like "rebels" and "defectors" and highlights ethnicity and discord. That's what gossip columnists like. And surely explains the selective choice of the phrases they printed. The stock photo they used - 8 boules almost piled up - certainly was not taken in New York!Sacré Boule! New York Pétanque Team Gets Le Divorce - NY Magazine 2009-01-23
PS: the only good part of being "gossip" news is that the article was reprinted by several blogs, like Gossipmax.com, between celebrity tidbits. You see, petanque is going places.
