Several local veterans and other military personnel recently participated in a national tournament, joining with others involved in the U.S. Armed Forces for some friendly bowling competition.

Bob Manning and Dan Umscheid recently spoke about their background in the military and their experience participating in the Military Bowling Championships, an annual competition that sees military personnel from around the country come together to knock down as many pins as they can.

Both Manning and Umscheid are transplants to Monroe County, though they’ve each lived in this area for some time now.

Manning said he grew up in Minnesota. With his father and uncles having served in the military, he joined the Air National Guard out of high school and is set to retire next month after about 37 years in the Air Force.

He’s worn several hats throughout his military career, starting out as a weather observer and assisting with flight plans.

A large chunk of his service – about 30 years – was spent as a navigator on a C-130 cargo aircraft. He’s also served as an inspector general.

With a job transfer to Illinois, Manning reached his final rank of O-6 “full bird” colonel.

He’s also served as a crew instructor with Northwest Airlines and Delta Airlines. With a degree in elementary education, he’s also worked as a substitute teacher.

Umscheid is retired from the Air Force, having moved here in 2000 but coming originally from Iowa.

He, too, joined the military out of high school, with his dad having served in the Navy and older sister serving in the Air Force. He recalled her inviting him to meet a recruiter.

Umscheid served as an aircraft mechanic for large planes, first being stationed at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska. He also worked on C-135s that had been heavily modified to do reconnaissance.

After 14 years at Offutt, he was transferred to Whiteman Air Force Base where he finished his career working on stealth bombers.

After his time in the Air Force, Umscheid did some work with AT&T.

Umscheid has recently worked in the Waterloo School District as a bowling coach, serving in various capacities at the high school and junior high as well as with the Waterloo Sports Association.

His background as a bowler stretches back into his time in the military as he worked part-time at a bowling alley during his time at Whiteman.

From getting some training from a professional bowler to working in a pro shop and participating as an amateur participant in pro bowling events over the years, Umscheid has developed quite a bit in the sport.

Through playing at West Park Bowl in Columbia, Umscheid found himself joining a number of other local military personnel as they’ve participated in the national competition in recent years.

“There have been veterans from West Park Bowl that have been going to this Military Bowling Championship tournament for a few years now,” Umscheid said. “The person who organizes this, his name is Rob Smith, decided to form a second team to take to this tournament, and I was asked by that group if I would be interested in becoming a part of that second team.”

It was Umscheid who invited Manning to join this second team.

The championships are, as previously mentioned, an annual event open to teams from all over the country consisting of active and retired military personnel.

The event’s venue has changed over the years, though it has lately taken place at South Point Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, with about 183 teams participating, each consisting of six bowlers.

Both Manning and Umscheid spoke highly about their recent experience at the competition, each emphasizing the sense of camaraderie they felt as they played alongside their fellow military members.

“It was really neat because we all had the common theme of the military which is service before self, and then everybody there had a common interest in bowling,” Manning said. “Getting to know the people on my team was really nice, and then some of the other people throughout the tournament were really neat.”

Manning said his performance was a bit shaky, though he was ultimately pleased to have gone.

“I didn’t bowl as well as I would have liked to, but I really had a great time just interacting with my fellow service members,” Manning said.

Umscheid said he’s looking forward to participating in the event again next year, having had a strong performance this time around.

He also spoke to how well put together the event is, with the opening ceremony for the tournament proving to be rather emotional for many participants.

“I had a great experience,” Umscheid said. “The organizers of the tournament organized a very touching and emotional opening ceremony that recognized all the different branches of the service. They had speakers speak to their appreciation for the number of teams and individuals. The bowling facilities at South Point are top notch.”