Liverpool — Hoist a Guinness stout and cheer on your favorite Irish Road Bowlers Saturday morning, March 13, at Onondaga Lake Park. Gambling on the outcome is traditional, but not officially sanctioned here.
Jointly hosted by Onondaga County Parks and the Friends of Historic Onondaga Lake, the bowlers start tossing their “bullets” at 10:30 a.m. at Willow Bay’s Sawmill Creek Shelter and bowl their way east along the park trail to the finish line at the marina parking lot, just shy of the Salt Museum.
Irish Road Bowling competitors attempt to take the fewest throws to propel a 28-ounce metal cannonball — the “bowl” or “bullet” — along a predetermined course. The sport originated in 17th-century Ireland and is mainly played in counties Armagh and Cork.
In Ireland, spectators often wager on the outcome and offer advice to their favored competitors over the course of a match or “score.”
Ninety teams to compete
Friends of Historic Onondaga Lake President Joe Ostuni Jr. said that 90 teams will compete in Saturday’s event, the seventh annual. “We’re sold out,” he said. “Registration has been closed for this year, but registration for next year will open in February 2017 on the county parks website.”
The Onondaga Lake Park event is considered one of the largest Irish bowling tournaments in the U.S.A., according to Onondaga County Parks Commissioner Bill Lansley.
Teams consist of a thrower, a road shower who advises the thrower about the shot while another helper stands ahead of the thrower, feet apart, to indicate the best line or path in the road.
In the Northern or County Armagh style, the thrower extends the arm and bowl behind him as he runs. At the throwing mark the arm is snapped forward by arching the back and shoulders, releasing the bowl underhand before stepping over the mark. In the Southern or County Cork style, as the thrower runs to the mark the arm and bowl are lifted up and back, then whirled downward into an underhand throw, releasing the bullet before stepping over the mark.
continued — Prizes will be awarded for the three teams with the lowest scores. After the bowling is over, participants will enjoy a buffet lunch at the White Water Pub, 110 S. Willow St.
Concert costs questioned
On the other side of the lake, things aren’t looking quite so rosy.
Onondaga County Comptroller Robert Antonacci released an audit on March 4 alleging that the Lakeview Amphitheater’s initial concert by country star Miranda Lambert on Sept. 3, 2015, was “bailed out” by New York state to the tune of some $120,000.
Soon after the concert took place, county officials indicated that the event had actually cleared some $2,000.
“The state of New York bailed out the Miranda Lambert concert and provided in excess of $100,000 for items we cannot verify,” Antonacci said last week. “It appears there was an agreement after the concert was done to subsidize the concert by New York state.”
There are 18 concerts planned for the amphitheater on the western shore of Onondaga Lake for 2016, but Antonacci said he has not been provided with any financial details of each of those programs. The amphitheater has a capacity of 12,000, including 5,000 reserved seats under cover.
As questions linger about how the concerts are booked and paid for, our local county legislators are probably pretty glad they voted against the building of the $49.5 million structure. Back in 2014, Fourth District Onondaga County Legislator Judy Tassone and Fifth District Legislator Kathy Rapp, both of whom live in Liverpool, voted against construction of the Lakeview Amphitheater.
After the legislature voted in favor of the building, Tassone defended her “no” vote and vowed to make the best of the situation.
“I believed that the money spent on this project for economic development could have been spent more wisely in many other ways,” she said. “But now that the amphitheater is up and running, I’ll help to make sure that it is a success and not a burden on the taxpayers. We’re keeping a close eye on it to make sure it works the way it should.”
Stay tuned…
Cemetery meeting Thursday
The village of Liverpool’s citizen’s Cemetery Committee will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 10, at the Gleason Mansion, 314 Second St. The committee plans to resubmit an application for a state parks grant to support future maintenance and renovation of the Village Cemetery bounded by Tulip, Fifth, Sixth and Alder streets. All concerned village residents are welcome to attend the committee’s meetings, or contact the village clerk’s office at 457-3441.
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