Thanks Sharon.
It really is a fun sport. It's the only one where teenagers compete
with 80 year olds (although the 80 year olds usually handle them
easily).
Its great for families. There are people I'm related to that I only
see during Bocce tourneys.
I actually gave it up about 4 years ago. Temporarily. My kids are
of the age where they have things to do, and I have to get them
there. Just no time for me to do Bocce. I really miss it.
I figure in about 10 years I'll be back on the circuit.
Play a game any chance you can get. It's very relaxing and fun!
--- In AsburyPark@yahoogroups.com, "2fine4u" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Tommy:
> American Legion Post 346, Gully Rd., Neptune, has their own Bocce
> Court, on their premises. The last Sunday in June, every year, The
> Legion begins it's year with a Memorial at High Point, Sussex
County.
> The Bocce balls are brought up to High Point and Monmouth County
> American Legion, has a "Y'all Come" match! I don't know how to
play,
> but I enjoy watching the others, yell and scream at each other,
when
> they lose! I also enjoy eating genuine "wedding soup", prepared by
> their Auxiliary Members! Yummm!
>
> --- In AsburyPark@yahoogroups.com, "justifiedright"
> <justifiedright@> wrote:
> >
> > BYE BYE TO BOCCE
> >
> > MATCH BETWEEN NEIGHBORING TOWNS' OFFICIALS ENDS 30-YEAR RUN
> > Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/12/07
> > BY CAROL GORGA WILLIAMS
> > COASTAL MONMOUTH BUREAU
> >
> >
> > NEPTUNE CITY The signature event will conclude with matches
among
> > 52 teams Friday and Saturday at Memorial Park. The event kicks
off
> > Friday at 6 p.m. with the traditional celebrity match. The
celebrity
> > teams will be comprised of officials from Asbury Park, Belmar,
Long
> > Branch and Neptune City, among others.
> >
> > It is time to retire the horse's butt.
> >
> > After 30 years including almost a decade of rivalry between
the
> > governing bodies of Long Branch and West Long Branch the
> > Anthony "Putt-Putt" Petillo National Bocce Tournament is fading
into
> > the sunset.
> >
> > The tournament, which began in 1977 in Asbury Park, is
> > saying "arrivederci," announced organizer Sal Caliendo of
Neptune
> > City, who added "never say never" about a reprieve in a written
> > history of the Shore tradition. Caliendo still will organize
mini
> > tournaments during the year to benefit local charities.
> >
> > The signature event will conclude with matches among 52 teams
Friday
> > and Saturday at Memorial Park. The event kicks off Friday at 6
p.m.
> > with the traditional celebrity match.
> >
> > The celebrity teams will be comprised of officials from Asbury
Park,
> > Belmar, Long Branch and Neptune City, among others.
> >
> > It has been two years since officials from Long Branch played
> > officials from West Long Branch, eight years of matches made
> > resonant because the then-mayor of West Long Branch, Paul
Zambrano
> > would challenge his brother, then-Long Branch City Councilman
> > John "Fazz" Zambrano.
> >
> > The losers would carry home reproductions of a horse's butt.
> >
> > But both men have since resigned their respective positions
after
> > being caught in a corruption sting and await sentencing to
prison
> > terms.
> >
> > Long Branch Mayor Adam Schneider said the city challenged West
Long
> > Branch last year but the borough could not field a team. Long
Branch
> > played Neptune City instead but the magic of the rivalry was
gone,
> > said Long Branch City Councilman Anthony Giordano.
> >
> > In office for more than 13 years, he said nothing resonated with
> > residents more than the annual bocce matches. Even he is at a
loss
> > to explain why.
> >
> > Giordano said it was an event that brought people together
rooting
> > for the home team no matter where on the political spectrum
> > viewers fell the rest of the year.
> >
> > "I loved it," said Schneider. "It was always a good time. People
> > wrote nice things about us, and that doesn't happen very often.
> > There was always more coverage about the tournament than
anything
> > else we did."
> >
> > "Those were great times," agreed Giordano.
> >
> > "Year-round, as I talked to people throughout Monmouth County,
> > people used to get a kick out of them," Giordano said of the
rivalry
> > games. "The years we lost, it was brutal around here for weeks.
We
> > used to joke that we got a harder time from constituents when we
> > lost the bocce match than we did in a bad budget year."
> >
> > The tournament is named after Caliendo's cousin, a former Asbury
> > Park police officer and special events director for the city who
> > passed away on the eve of the event in 1987. Then-Gov. Thomas H.
> > Kean declared it "the official bocce tournament of New Jersey,"
and
> > it attracted participants from as far away as Staten Island.
This
> > year, teams are coming from remote locations like Ridgefield
Park in
> > Bergen County and Northfield near Atlantic City.
> >
> > The current tournament is being played in memory of Caliendo's
> > brother, Ricky, who died Feb. 11 of amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis,
> > or ALS, also referred to as Lou Gehrig's Disease.
> >
> > Ricky Caliendo, 52, a former Asbury Park city worker, was one of
the
> > original tournament officials in 1977.
> >
> > Sal Caliendo will bring out one of those original courts to
serve as
> > the championship court this year, he said, along with an
original
> > scoreboard and bocce ball set. Sal's wife, Liz, has been
preparing
> > hundreds of photographs to display at the tournament. Those
> > photographs are available for the taking as the Caliendos, who
have
> > a collection of thousands, hope some of the attendees see
themselves
> > or a cherished relative in the displays.
> >
> > "If you see a memory you like, take the picture," Caliendo said.
> >
> > Although bocce has become increasingly popular along the Shore
in
> > the last 30 years, that wasn't always the case, recalled Sal
> > Caliendo, noting that at the time the tournament was created,
bocce
> > was largely confined to backyard barbecues at Italian households.
> >
> > The game mixes qualities of bowling, shuffleboard and marbles.
The
> > object is to roll colored balls as close as possible to a
smaller
> > white ball called the pallino, which is thrown first. In
addition to
> > smacking an opponent's ball out of the way, a strategic player
can
> > knock the white ball itself to a new location, redefining the
> > playing area.
> >
> > Caliendo, who also founded the Al Natale Men's League, a
softball
> > fixture for 25 years before it disbanded in 2002, said it was
> > Petillo who suggested the first bocce tournament.
> >
> > It proved more popular than organizers initially thought,
leading to
> > a second in 1978. They were held in Asbury Park and Belmar until
> > moving to Long Branch in 1998. (The tournament had been
cancelled in
> > 1997 when organizers could not afford costly liability
insurance.)
> >
> > In 1998, Long Branch invited the tournament to a new home in
West
> > End Park, building courts to accommodate players.
> >
> > The tournament was at home there until last year, when Neptune
City
> > gave it a place overlooking the Shark River.
> >
> > Everyone from congressmen, state legislators, mayors, council
> > members and sports figures have played in the tournaments, Sal
> > Caliendo said. Asbury Park's own Danny DeVito played one year.
> >
> > Among the more well known celebrity players have been John "The
> > Count" Montefusco, the former New York Yankees pitcher,
professional
> > soccer player Kevin Gannon, professional bowler Marc Roth,
former
> > Oakland Raiders linebacker Phil Villapiano and pro wrestler
> > Scott "Bamm Bamm" Bigelow.
> >
> > Caliendo said he will miss the tournaments but still plans on
> > playing a lot of bocce.
> >
> > "It was just great, just fantastic," he said of the last 30
> > years. "To go back and think of all the memories and the people
who
> > played (we know) it brought a lot of people together and a lot
of
> > friendships were made."
> >
>
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