Inauguration of New Bolo Andaluz Facility - Cazorla, Jaen - June 2011

Report & Photos by John Carr

Question: What was an Englishman, steeped in the sport of Lawn Bowling, doing attending the inauguration of a bowling complex at Cazorla, bordering the incredibly beautiful nature park located in northern Jaen?

Firstly, it was not a Lawn Bowling green, as found in almost every village in England and here liberally scattered along the south eastern coasts of Spain. No, it was a bowling variation called “Bolo Andaluz”, (mountain version), a traditional sport popular in the rural mountainous areas of principally Jaen. Basically, the game consists of hurling a heavy stone bowl at a smaller ball, (“mingo”), placed several metres away, with the object of propelling it a greater distance as possible along an unpaved lane. Points are given according to the distance travelled by the mingo.

How did I get involved? Simple : recently I was asked to introduce the newly appointed President of the Andalusian Bowls Federation, (FAB), José Miguel Nieto Ojeda, to the sport of Lawn Bowls, which was as foreign to him as his speciality, Bolo Andaluz, was to me. José Miguel wanted to learn about Lawn Bowls because it was one of categories of bowling sports included in the FAB. The other types of bowling are: Ten Pin Bowling, (“Bowling”), Bolo Andaluz & Bolo Palma. For reasons too complicated to explain here, Patanca, probably the nearest “relative” to Lawn Bowls and a natural candidate for inclusion, has its own separate Federation.

So it was that I invited the President, and accompanied by his wife, Paqui, to a brief visit to Benavista Bowls club, situated near Estepona, Malaga, to find out what a Lawn Bowls Green looked like and learn the basics of the game. Both showed great interest in the club and the manner in which the game was played. I gave them a brief coaching session, followed by 3 cornered 2 end game. I must have done a reasonable job on the coaching, as José Miguel beat me into second place, in front of a large group of fellow club members!

Use the Navigation Buttons to Pause/Play/Forward/Back as required.
You need Adobe Flash Player to see slideshow.
Click here to download, (free).

After a very scenic drive from Estepona, (including some perplexing battles with my Sat. Nav.), I arrived at the historic town of Cazorla, on the edge of the Nature Park and booked into the very well situated Hotel Sierra de Cazorla. In the evening I sampled some local hospitality in one of the excellent restaurants in the centre of town, hosted by José Miguel, wife Paqui, Pablo Medina Mora & representative of Andalusian Ten Pin Bowling, Pablo Ortega Ribera. Waste line issues reared as plate after plate of delicious tapas appeared before my eyes and mysteriously found their way to my stomach!

Next day was Inauguration day at the new facility, located near the village of Iruela, very near to Cazorla. The President, committee and club members and families were very occupied getting the new club ready for the opening in the evening. I took advantage of the time to briefly revisit the Nature Park & explore on foot the narrow back streets of Cazorla, (not at all vehicle friendly!).

The opening ceremony commenced with brief speeches by the President, José Miguel, and the Mayor of Cazorla, Antonio José Rodríguez Viñas. Then followed a match between the Andalusian team and a representative team from Valencia. The competition was fierce and the bowling both energetic & skilful, but the Andalusian team eventually came through. After presentation of the prizes, a host of local bowlers battled it out until the early hours of the next morning.

I have to confess I did not stay to the end, but instead spent a very pleasant evening at the hotel bar rear terrace, looking out on endless scenic kilometers of rolling hills, carpeted with olive groves, supping drinks and swapping tales with, Pablo Ortega Ribera – not a bad way to end an unforgettable trip.

On the return journey back to Malaga, driving through magnificent countryside, I had time to reflect with pleasure on the good people I had met at Cazorla, how welcome they had made me, a complete stranger from another culture, who plays a form of bowling completely different from there own. All in all it was a very memorable experience.