I'm quite the opposite, I can't think of a single wood house near where I am. My home house converted back in 1996, right when I started to really learn how to bowl, so most of my primary experience is on synthetic. Generally, I prefer the synthetic due to lack of experience on wood. I do wish I had more chances to bowl on wood.

Mark

I would favor bowling on Wood because my home alley is wood so I learned to bowl on wood, but there are some better reasons I have.

I prefer to play deeper than usual, and the high friction on wood helps me do that with good pin carry. On synthetics, a straight shot is a must. On the Cheetah, I can't play any deeper than 3 without hitting light. On wood, I pretty much rocket it to the right and hope it doesn't go high. Also, on longer patterns, wood is much more favorable because you don't have to play as deep as on synthetic. On Shark, I can play 10 boards shallower on wood compared to synthetic. In fact, I have trouble getting my ball to hook more than 5 boards on synthetic with a Shark.

People often ask me, "wouldn't you prefer the smooth reaction synthetics have to offer rather than the violent reaction wood provides?" I disagree. With a smoother roll on synthetics, I get much weaker pocket hits and leave lots of 10 pins. On wood, I find that more and more 6 pins slam to the side wall and kick the ten pin out, and on light hits, pins get slammed around. That's why I prefer wood.

I miss wood for the exact reason stated above... I love to play the whole lane...

well the game has changed, and I am now getting accustomed to synthetic houses... I am starting to like them.

I tool a 7 or 8 year absence and started back the second half last year on a full time basis... I shot 300 shortly after being back full time on wood lanes. However, the more I bowl now at a synthetic house, the easier the adjustments are getting.

I find that for the longest, I have over adjusted on synthetics... even with 3 or 4 guys playing near my lane, I haven't had to move more than two boards on the approach since realizing the over adjustment problem...

anyways, I am the king of ramble, so I will shut up by saying... bring on the synthetics!

and this coming from a guy who wants to bowl in tournaments where the only ball anyone can throw is a blue Hammer!

I much prefer synthetics to wood for 2 reasons, although both of them are impacted by the oil pattern laid down as well.

1) Wood tracks up more than synthetics, so it gets to the point that there is 1 spot to play on the lines. I hate that - I like options. On synthetics, I can actually move around on the lane and strike from multiple angles. That tends to not be the case with wood. Wood also tends to hook too much for my liking.
2) Wood houses put down [censored] for oil. One house near me is getting better - it used to be the case that I had to rocket my weakest stuff at 4th arrow to keep it on the right side long enough to hit the pocket. And they have above ground ball returns. Which makes playing 4th arrow kind of tough! Another place around here, nothing would keep my ball right of the headpin. And this is using an old Black Amber Zone with a 6 inch pin. The owner was there, and we talked afterwards - he complained about another wood house up the street because his ball didn't hook there, and he was proud of his 15 board hook here. He had about 4 revolutions on his old Brunswick zone. Never going there again. The other wood house around here (the one he couldn't hook at) actually puts down a good bit of oil, but I think they use a mop, because there's no pattern. It certainly puts a premium on accuracy, because if you don't roll the ball exactly the same, there is no telling what your ball might do.

The last few posts seem to express the exact opposite view. I believe it is what you have become accustomed to, and how you have built your arsenal as to whether you prefer one or the other.

My opinion is that synthetic scores higher than wood, and equipment is made for that. Bowling on wood takes an additional skill that most bowlers don't have. You cannot just bank the ball as on synthetics, you really have to read the lanes to bowl.

With that said, you can also carve a groove on wood with repeated shots that you can play for a longer time.

Since 99% of my bowling is on wood, am I going to have to change some of my equipment next year when my house is converted to synthetics?

You have a good range of equipment, so you should be fine. You will probably end up playing a different line, and you may want to adjust the surfaces on your balls to match up better with the new condition, but it's not like they make certain balls for wood vs. synthetic.

Thanks cgeorg,
I was just thinking that I may need to get an agressive "oiler" added to my arsenal. Something to get more traction on the slicker surface.

As for playing a new different line, lately I have been playing up the 5 board and loving it. I think that may help me when the synthetics are installed. From my brief experiences with synthetic lanes, I usually had to play more outside to get a good look.

Here are some good ole wood lanes.

what do you mean resurfacing?