If you are looking for a family-friendly activity in Chicago, heading to your local bowling alley can provide fun for people of all ages. While tournaments and league play are available if you take your bowling seriously, anyone can head out to their local lanes with their friends and family and attempt to throw a few strikes.
Benefits
Along with being a fun activity that's appropriate for friends and family of all ages, bowling can also be a healthy exercise and a way to lose weight. According to the Mayo Clinic, a 200-lb. person can burn 273 calories in one hour of bowling. This is as much as engaging in one hour of ballroom dancing or weightlifting.
Types
Bowling in Chicago can be done on a recreational or competitive level. There are both adult and youth leagues which provide a structured format if you are interested in bowling on a regular basis. In addition, lanes that are not being used for league or tournament play can also be rented for open play. For example, the Diversey River Bowl in Chicago has leagues throughout the week along with open play and a Rock and Bowl event on weekends which has a light show and loud rock music.
History
Bowling representatives from Chicago were among the first to embrace the American Bowling Congress in the early 20th century, which is now the premier amateur bowling organization in the U.S. In 1903, Chicago resident E.D. Peifer was the first person to develop a uniform handicap system for scoring which allows bowlers at different skills levels to compete against each other.
Size
According to the Chicagoland chapter of the United States Bowling Congress, there were 60 bowling alleys in the Chicago area certified by the organization as of June 2008. The Illinois State Bowling Proprietors Association lists 13 member bowling alleys within the Chicago city limits as of August 2010.
Tournaments
The Chicago area annually hosts many top amateur and professional bowling competitions. One of the largest and oldest is the AMF Peterson Bowling Classic, held in 2010 at the AMF Hoffman Lanes in the Hoffman Estates, Illinois. Bowlers Journal says that 12,419 people competed in the main tournament and various side events in 2009.
There also are other niche bowling tournaments to participate in throughout the Chicago area. The Chicago Pride Invitational was founded in 1988 for gay and lesbian bowlers and raises money for AIDS and women's cancer programs. Tournaments geared toward less competitive bowlers include events such as the Bowl for the Cure tournament which benefits breast cancer research.
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