“Do you have your own shoes?” I often get that question after I’ve requested a lane at my favorite bowling alley. I somehow look like someone who has a pair of bowling shoes in his bag. Do I look that suspicious? Maybe they just recognize me.
Do you REALLY need bowling shoes? YES YOU DO. Bowling shoes are needed for safety first and performance second. Your shoes need to be clean with a smooth sole to allow you and all the other bowlers to walk up toward the pins and swing your ball into the lane without sticking or tripping on anything. Street shoes won’t do this. Standard alley shoes will and specialized bowling shoes will give you an even better experience and performance.
As a casual bowler the rental shoes are fine but within only a few visits to the bowling lanes you can save money by owning your own shoes. As you increase your skill, you can opt for better performing shoes. As a bonus you can be looking good on the lanes.
Your Feet at the Bowling Alley
When you first come into the bowling alley you are wearing street shoes. You are carrying the dirt and dust in from outside. If it’s been a rainy or snowy day, your shoes or boots will be wet. After you’ve been assigned your lane and before you walk down to the bench or chair in front of your lane, STOP!
Look around for a place to change into your bowling shoes. You want the floor where all the bowlers roam to be clean. I was chided once when I was in a hurry to get to my lane and walked right by the sign saying, “Please remove your street shoes before entering.” You don’t want to share my embarrassment. I don’t do that anymore.
Now that you have your bowling shoes on, you can prepare to bowl. Need a ball? Go find one or two. I can help you choose a house ball. Got your own? Great! You are ready to go. Scoring systems are pretty automatic these days. I just have to enter my name and start bowling. If you are a relatively infrequent bowler, you may find the slide your bowling shoes awkward. It’s much better than street shoes or socks.
Did I say socks? More on that later. As a more experienced bowler you may notice the quality of the approach, that is, the part of the lane you walk on before letting go of your ball at the pins. It may motivate you to think more about your shoes.
Sometimes while bowling you may feel the need to visit the washroom. (Some say bathroom or loo but I don’t plan on taking a bath and I’m in North America, so it’s washroom to me.) Remember your shoes. It’s better not to walk into the washroom with bowling shoes because people in street shoes are also using the facilities.
If it’s just too inconvenient then I highly advise you to carefully wipe off your shoes when you return to the lanes. This advice is also true when you are hungry and go to the snack bar or need to go to the front desk for help. Alternatively, you can get shoe covers to slip over them when walking off the lanes.
Choosing Bowling Shoes
It’s time to pick out some bowling shoes.
If you are renting shoes then size is the only choice. Make sure they are relatively comfortable and your feet don’t move around in them.
If you are ready to buy a pair then there are two main categories of bowling shoes, athletic and performance. How often do you bowl? If it’s twice a month or less, an athletic bowling shoe is probably you best choice. These look like running shoes or cross trainer shoes. There are variety of styles and price ranges so you have choice.
The sole is the difference. It is smooth for sliding. You want a comfortable fit, as with all shoes. Some have more traction than others so be aware of how much sliding you comfortably do when you are on the approach. A tip is that if you like to slide more you will want more heel on your shoe, allowing you to be on your sliding toe more. For those who want to control and brake more, a flatter shoe will provide more friction.
If you bowl once a week, are joining a league, or looking forward to competitive bowling, then you will want to step up to performance bowling shoes. This will cost you considerably more but you are committed, right? If this is your decision, you want to know what your bowling style is. Which foot do you slide on? Do you slide a lot or minimally. Do you need to brake at the foul line? Observe yourself, even in house shoes and determine your style and what you need to support.
Now you can choose a performance bowling shoe. These shoes have a sliding sole and a gripping sole so make sure you get it right. Bowlers slide on the foot opposite their ball carrying hand, right-handed bowlers slide on their left foot and left-handers slide on their right. We don’t want to drop the ball on our foot now do we?
The really serious bowlers who compete or bowl in different alleys buy performance shoes with interchangeable soles and heels. Some approaches are stickier than others. This allows you to adapt your shoe to different lanes and keep more consistent in your bowling style. Consistency is a key to better performance.
Adapting to Your Bowling Shoes
When you first get your shoes, take them home and walk around in them. Reduce the stiffness and break them in before you get on the lanes.
When you are on the lane, test the sliding on all parts of the approach, left, right, and center. Be aware of the conditions before you throw your first ball.
Cost of Bowling Shoes
You may find a bargain under $30 at Walmart but expect to pay $40- $80 US for athletic shoes and $120-$250 for performance shoes. Add tax and shipping onto that. If it’s your first time, and you are cautious, go to your local pro shop inside the bowling alley and get fitted with a popular brand. For the more adventurous or experienced, there are great online choices at bowlingball.com, dickssportinggoods.com, Amazon.com, and more. Bowlingball.com has a Sure Fit Plan for a few dollars that pays for the exchange and shipping of a pair that doesn’t fit.
Fine Tuning Your Bowling Shoes
The brand and style choices for bowling shoes is amazing, especially if you buy online. There are a dozen colors, at least 8 reliable brands, several performance series, and shoes for kids. Of course right and left-handed bowlers have specialized choices.
From a performance standpoint, you probably want to talk with other bowlers or at least check out the reviews on Amazon. The choices are overwhelming.
If you are looking at competition, you will want to move to interchangeable soles and heels. Different lanes, different alleys, different seasons, and different usage will require fine tuning of your shoes to perform your best.
Taking Care of Your Bowling Shoes
Once you decide to invest in your own bowling shoes, you need to take care of them. They will certainly last longer and look better. The first thing is to keep them in a shoe bag or your bowling bag when you’re not wearing them. It’s best to keep them in a cool, dry place. Just after bowling, let them air out so that moisture doesn’t accumulate. Get in the habit of completely untying the shoes. Don’t just slip in and out of them. They will hold up better.
It’s easy to clean the upper part of your shoes. You can dip a cloth in some warm soapy water and wipe around the edge and on the top of the shoe. A gentle scrubbing of any spots should be enough. Some bowlers have used a magic eraser on older white shoes if necessary. Try it with caution. You can likewise wipe off the heels and any non-sliding sole but if they are interchangeable be careful around the Velcro.
Keeping the sole, the slippery sole, in good shape requires special treatment. If it is dirty or oily, wipe it gently and focus on the dirty spots to minimize scrubbing the whole sole. The sliding sole is usually made of felt or micro fiber. Continuously sliding on it tends to compress the fibers changing your behavior over time. You can restore the performance by brushing the sole.
Brushes have one of three types of fibers, natural, synthetic, or metallic. The traditional bowling shoe brush has metallic bristles. Dexter, one of the main bowling shoe manufacturers, recommends non-metallic brushes on their soles.
To increase the slide, brush the sole from toe to heal. To increase the friction, brush from heel to toe. For an in-between effect, brush the sole side to side. This raises the fibers on the sole. These same techniques apply when you find yourself on new lanes and you want to change your sliding ability.
Related Questions
Can I wear bowling shoes as regular shoes?
Do not wear the same shoes on the street that you wear on the lanes. If you are making a style statement then go right ahead. Otherwise, bowling shoes are happiest on bowling lanes.
Can I bowl in socks?
They now have bowling shoes for kids and toddlers. Socks may be fun for 40 seconds on the lane but they are not safe or appropriate for bowling.
How much do bowling shoes make a difference?
One stroke can be the difference between a gutter ball and a strike, winning the game or coming up short, holding the trophy or shaking the winner’s hand. Your footing is the foundation of a good, consistent bowling experience. The bowling industry has progressed into better lanes, better balls, and better shoes. Choose wisely, join the action, and join the fun.