Hi to EXPN! 

First of all, thank you Diesel for the invitation to participate in sharing my bowling story. It feels special to be part of this bowling family. We all have commonalities; the passion for bowling, having a competitive nature, and striving to gain knowledge about all aspects of bowling to be the best bowler our abilities allow. 

About me, might as well know my full name, Janielle Tami Sakata. A native of Los Angeles, I grew up in the Crenshaw district and growing up in this part of the city of is an important part of who I am. My family moved to Monterey Park and I graduated from Schurr High School in Montebello, but I’m a Dorsey Donn in my heart!

I’ve lived in different parts of LA; Monterey Park, where I current live my mom who I’ll note later, Whittier, and in different cities in the Southbay including San Pedro, Torrance and Gardena. My ties to the Southbay runs deeps and has a very special place in my heart since I lived there for over 26 years, longer than anywhere. Most of you know, I had a long term relationship with Butch Nitahara so this makes the Southbay even more meaningful. He was a part of my bowling journey in a big way so it was important to note him. 

As far as bowling? I grew up in the game of bowling, literally being in bowling alleys before I was born. My Mother, Judy Kikuta was arguably one of, if not the best Japanese American bowlers in the 60’s and 70’s. She is the first woman who bowled a 300 west of the Mississippi in October, 1958 at Southbay Bowl. Back then, people received cars for this accomplishment. Hers was a 1958 Thunderbird. Funny thing was she didn’t know how to drive so her future husband, my father, Jim Sakata ended up with the car. He too was an accomplished bowler. So as you can tell, I was born into a family of bowlers, and I inherited my mother’s competitive nature and love of the game. 

Holiday Bowl…my second home growing up. When I was little, I was on almost every square foot in that place. I’m talking about running up and down the length of the lanes, going in behind the lanes, allowed in all of the offices. Running outside the landscaping like it was a special forest. My mom was sponsored by Holiday Bowl, so she was able to practice there every weekday. After school, that was my hangout. Best food in ANY Bowling Center…mike drop!

As for my personal journey of bowling…picked up my first bowling ball at the age of five. Ironically, I bowled two handed at first. Got my first bowling ball at eight. If people remembered back then, there were bowling balls with big yellow stars. Mine weighed 8lbs. Naturally, learned how to bowl from my mom. She actually gave lessons at Jefferson Bowl in Culver City. 

I wasn’t born with my mom’s passion for bowling. That developed over time. I remember distinctly I was about 30 years old and that’s when I decided I wanted to take the game seriously. Up until that point, I was throwing my aunt’s 14lb Columbia Yellow dot. The first ball I purchased was the Hammer Black Urethane. I still remember I didn’t know how to throw it right so my first shot out of the box, the ball slid down the lane like a hockey puck, LOL. My good fortune was being my mother’s daughter, all of the better bowlers wanted to give me pointers and my game really improved. Went from a 167 average to a 185 in less than a season bowling only one league. This is when bowling became to be a big part of my life. It’s how I met Butch. Plus, bowling being such a small community, there were so many people I got to meet, creating relationships that have spanned the decades. These relationships has lead me to this platform, OUR platform, lead by Diesel. It’s been a crazy ride from bowling pot games on Sundays with Joe Swift 🥹 to now being able to share my bowling story. You guys are my big brothers, my sisters, girl power to you ladies and hell ya, we throw the ball like girls! Girls that know what they’re doing!! I’m so thankful to be apart of this crazy game called bowling and have a wonderful group of people to share time with. And yes, time is precious; but it’s not promised so keep doing, keep loving this game. 

Bowling Accomplishments:

High average:  213

High game:  298

High Series:  803 

(Games: 248-257-298)

Need to note this 800 was the first 800 bowled by a woman in the Long Beach district. Bowled it at Cal Bowl in 1997(?) WIBC made it a big deal, so is this my 15 minutes of fame in my bowling career. It’s the only thing I have over my mom and Butch since neither of them bowled an 800. 

Random Stuff:

I AM A FOODIE! Proud to be a food snob when it comes to certain things.  Chinese food FTW and can eat Dim Sum at the drop of a hat. As long as it’s Keto, I’ll eat almost any ethnic food. But damn, French fries, potato chips, those are my kryptonite! Miss Asian noodles like crazy!

Yup, eat with hashi (Chop Sticks) with just about anything!

Keto-friendly:

Been eating Keto since January 2019. Can’t believe I’ve stuck to this for so long but I’m fortunate to have found a way of eating that suits me. I’m now able to ‘cheat’ with little consequence so I get my cake and eat it too!

The gym. Made a conscious decision to workout 2-3 days a week to fight father time though he’s ♾️ -1 with one being Jesus; staying physically fit to be my best self in this game.

My mom. I’m her caregiver. I live in Monterey Park with her. Bowling is not just my passion, but it’s a refuge and it’s my mental health, despite corner pins not falling, LOL. Everyone, our loved ones matter, but we all need to take care of ourselves first so we can take care of our loved ones!

Maybe a new passion? Going to take dance lessons. Going to try the West Coast Swing. Classes start at the end of this month and I can hardly wait!