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Injury can't slow Leap's Reno run

September 12, 2004

On June 9, Larry Leap shot 623 to help his Bowling Services Unlimited 2 team from Connecticut total 3,114 in the 2004 American Bowling Congress national tournament at the National Bowling Stadium in Reno, Nev.

It was the best the Lebanon, Ind., resident had done in the tournament and brought him a $1,120 prize after the team finished 14th. Making Leap's performance even more noteworthy was what he had to go through to make it to Reno.

On Jan. 28, while loosening up for the Wednesday Night League at Brownsburg Bowl, Leap crushed the end of the little finger on his right hand, which he uses to bowl. He took a practice backswing while talking to another bowler off the approaches and hit a table he didn't see.

"It was a stupid thing to do," said Leap, who averaged 214 in the Tuesday Doubles League at Expo Bowl this summer. "I turned to the guy I was talking to and said, 'Do you think my finger is supposed to do this?' I wiggled it and the end of the finger went down in a 90-degree angle."

Leap wrapped it in electrical tape and bowled that night in pain. He had a 536 series.

Two weeks later, Leap went on vacation. While in California, Leap's cousin, a chiropractor, X-rayed the finger and advised him the bones were not healing properly. He suggested Leap see a doctor.

Leap went to the Indiana Hand Center, where it was determined he needed surgery. On March 5 he had an operation. A bone graft was taken out of his right wrist and put in his finger. It was held in place by three pins.

Six weeks later the pins were removed and the finger was X-rayed. The finger still was not healing properly. He was advised to have another operation in which screws would be placed in the finger.

"My question was, 'Why didn't they do that in the first place?' " he said. "My option from the beginning was to take the tip of the finger off. I didn't want to do another operation. The doctor said, 'Give it four more weeks.' "

Two weeks later, her heard about cold laser therapy.

"Mostly chiropractors use it," Leap said. "I found one in Brownsburg who does it. I went to him eight times in two weeks. I then went to the hand center and had it X-rayed again. They said the finger was completely healed. I'm a firm believer in cold laser therapy."

By this time, Leap had not bowled since March 1. He got a phone call from Todd Lathrop, captain of the Bowling Service Unlimited 2 team, asking him if he'd like to bowl in Reno. "On May 17, I saw my doctor at the hand center and asked him about bowling. He said put a splint on it and bowl. I went to Reno and bowled three games of practice with Todd the day before the team event with a splint on my finger and a . . . finger grip over the tip," he said.

Leap, who at 59 was the oldest of 64 bowlers in the Masters Classic traveling league, competed with Lathrop in the ABC tournament from 1995, when he went to the event with a group of Indianapolis bowlers, through 2001. He did not bowl with Lathrop in 2002 and 2003.

IndyStar.com

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