Seniors enjoy virtual bowling game

Twice a week, competitors at Golden Hour Senior Center gather for a friendly game of 10-pin bowling.

Golden Hour doesn't have a private lane for bowlers, but it does have a large television and a copy of Wii Bowling.

Wii Bowling is a 2006 game packaged with Nintendo's "Wii Sports," a video game that was included with the company's Wii video game console. The game served as a demonstration for the Wii's motion sensing capabilities.

The game became a must-have title for many people who wouldn't normally play video games and "Wii Sports" helped propel the Wii to sell more than 101 million consoles worldwide. Seniors were among those who took to Wii Bowling, which resulted in senior centers throughout the United States, including Golden Hour and Young at Heart in Rock Springs, to offer the game to their patrons.

Although the Wii is now two generations behind the latest hardware offerings from Nintendo, it still sees heavy use at Golden Hour and still draws a crowd during scheduled Wii Bowling sessions.

"It's really a fun time," Carmen Tune said Thursday.

With the swing of a small, remote-control-looking device, Tune and two others tried their hand at earning a high score.

Tune stands out among the Wii Bowling competitors, being only the second person at GHSC to bowl a perfect 300 – a feat she accomplished two weeks ago. She admits it was a nerve-racking experience, as she said she became more anxious with each strike she bowled.

"I was shaking," she said.

Another bowler, Melinda Roundy, keeps a small notebook with her containing the scores and dates of every game she's played.

"I like to keep track of my own score," she said.

Roundy's note book includes dozens of entries, including scores from games she plays at home.

Wii Bowling takes place each Tuesday and Thursday at 9 a.m. at the GHSC cafeteria.