1. Drills
  2. Bowling
  3. Lane Reading

Parallel Move Practice

Move feet and target the same number of boards to keep the same angle.

By Coach Evan Waechtler Youth coach (U11, Cache Valley, Utah) and founder of SSTracker Updated October 30, 2026

Set up

Bowl 3 at your normal line.

Core: Two. Beat your own best reading.

Ages
11 and up
Time
12 min
Players
Just you
Space
Gym or court
Bring
Bowling ball, lane
Level · skill
Developing · Lane Reading

The steps

How it works

  1. Bowl 3 at your normal line.
  2. Move feet and target 2 boards left together.
  3. Bowl 3, then 2 boards right of normal.
  4. Note how the ball reacted on each.

Coaching point

Same angle, new spot.

Safety: Never step past the foul line; the lane is oily and slippery. Wait for the pinsetter to finish before you bowl, and never go down the lane.

Make it fun

Play it, don't drill it

Game version

Lane-reader pairs: roll once, say where the ball went and why, and your partner shares one thing they noticed. Swap.

Challenge

Pick a level: Less (one adjustment), Core (two), More (a plan for the next three rolls). Beat your own best reading.

Story

You are an explorer reading the map of the lane.

My best

Beat your own count

Beat your own best reading. Only your own number counts: today against last time.

Practice makes progress

Print it now, or save it free

Free for families and teams

Save this drill to your child or team, free

Sign up and the free bowling week for this age opens in your child's planner, kept to healthy limits. A coach can send this drill to the whole team as homework, and parents see every session logged.

14 days free for a family, no card · Running a team is always free

Does your child's coach know about this?

An email from you to the coach, with the words ready. Nothing is tracked and nobody is rewarded.