Annual bocce tournament has roots in Sunnyland

Tom McNutt of Bellingham’s Sunnyland Neighborhood never thought bocce would end up becoming his career and hobby. One evening at a party in 2001, McNutt said he learned how this ancient sport could bring people together.

“They were barbequing salmon, had good beer and a bocce court. By the end of the evening, everyone that had been strangers felt like friends,” he said. “It was one of those peak experiences in life that you can’t just ignore.”

           

Several days after the party, McNutt decided to build his own bocce court. His backyard, however, was dedicated to a large garden. With the city’s permission, McNutt built a public court between the sidewalk and the curb with his own money. He began experimenting with dirt for the new court. A year and a half later, he created his own blend called Boccemon Rain Country Blend made from rendered oyster shells. After hiring his friend David Donohue to create a website, McNutt was able to sell this product all over the United States, Canada and world. One court was sent to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

           

McNutt’s court also created a bocce team in Sunnyland Neighborhood. In front of his home on Carolina Street, across from Youngstock's Country Farms Produce, the Bellingham Bocce Club meets every Wednesday afternoon, rain or shine.

Games often go on long after the sun sets, according to Lee Kincaid, a long-time player of bocce at McNutt’s court. Lights have been installed in McNutt’s front yard so the game can continue even when it is dark.

           

“Anyone, even passersby, is invited to join in,” said Kincaid. “Nobody is ever unhappy while playing bocce and that can attract people to check it out.”

          

Bocce is a proximity sport. Scores are based upon how close each team gets its balls to the pallino, which is a small ball rolled into the court at the beginning of each round. The game is generally played until a team reaches 13 points.

           

“Bocce was played by the Romans ages ago,” said Kincaid. “It’s the grandfather of games like billiards and golf.”

            

The growing popularity of Boccemon.com products made McNutt want to give back to the community. He began searching for a way to combine his love for bocce with charity. A tournament seemed like the perfect way to accomplish this.

"I knew I had creative energy to contribute to a cause that would help a person in the community. I didn’t have any money but I had the time and energy,” said McNutt.

           

Local business such as Avenue Bread, Boundary Bay Brewery and Dick’s Drive-In sponsor teams to compete in the annual tournament. This helped pay for the tournament while also raising money for a chosen non-profit organization.

           

The Ninth Annual Bellingham Bocce Tournament’s proceeds will go to the Whatcom Dispute Resolution Center (WDRC).

            

All 128 players, split up into 32 teams, showed up at the tournament. This was an unprecedented turnout according to Moonwater, who goes by one name and is the executive director of the WDRC.

           

“It’s wonderful to see people of different ages, backgrounds, ethnicities and skill levels coming together to support this cause, even when the economy is bad,” she said.

           

The tournament on April 16 was the third time the WDRC has been a part of the Bellingham Bocce Tournament, said Anderson.

           

Marty Mitchell had been playing bocce for only six months when he was invited to participate in the event at the Sportsplex.

           

“I think a lot of the players here are a lot better than I am,” said Mitchell. “The idea here though is to have fun and raise money for the mediation center.”

           

Bocce is meant to be played in a low-walled rectangular court where players roll the bocce balls. The tournament is played on the indoor soccer field of the Bellingham Sportsplex, which is laid with synthetic grass. To avoid damaging the field, flat white ropes were laid out in a rectangular shape as individual courts and acrylic balls were used. The balls move differently on the grass, which often shortens the skill gap between bocce veterans and rookies, according to Kincaid.

          

The event was also streamed live on the Livestream website. The host, Peter Di Turi, runs Puget Sound Bocce, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting bocce. Di Turi films, keeps track of scores and acts as game announcer to viewers online. The videos are then edited and posted on the Puget Sound Bocce Livestream website (http://www.livestream.com/pugetsoundbocce).