Irish bowling returns to New Milford
Nearly $15,000 was raised Saturday for the Mike Douskey family at the Mike Douskey Memorial Irish Road Bowling event in New Milford.
Two-hundred bowlers that made up 49 teams participated in the second annual event, this year co-sponsored by the Litchfield County Irish American Club and the Town of New Milford.
Irish road bowling is a sport traced back to the 1600s in Ireland and is still popular today in the counties of Cork and Armagh. It’s a combination of bowling and golf, with a 28-ounce cannon ball, also known as a bowl, is thrown underhanded over the course of a country road.
The team with the least number of bowls at the end of the course wins the contest.Players were taken by hay wagon from The Abbey off Sunny Valley Road to the start line near the intersection of Sunny Valley Lane and Jerusalem Hill. Finishers celebrated at The Abbey.
The event is named for the late Michael Douskey, who was born and raised in New Milford. Douskey met his wife, Jill, and in 1989. The couple married in 1997 and had three children. Douskey died of pancreatic cancer in February 2023. Jill fought her own battle with cancer in 2007.
Deborah Rose/Players for the second annual Irish Road Bowling tournament arrive by hay wagon.
Deborah Rose/A member of the Four Mike team swiftly releases the ball at the intersection of Sunny Valley Road and Sunny Valley Lane.
Deborah Rose/A player lines up his shot before throwing the ball across a field, from one road to another.
Deborah Rose/Jodi Chemero, sister of Jill Douskey, tallies up the score as her team moves along the course.
Deborah Rose/Jenny Van Rooyen of Washington happily makes her way along the route.
Deborah Rose/Paul Murphy oversees the first major turn along the route, communicating with other event volunteers.
Deborah Rose/A play releases the ball from his hand as his team continues on its way to the finish line.
Deborah Rose/Jeanne Looney, Dawn Marie Looney, and Mason Lynch, 3, enjoy their ride along Sunny Valley Road as they keep an eye on players.
