Cannonballs set to roll down the streets during inaugural Salina Irish Road Bowl

A new sport is set to hit the streets at Indian Rock Park this fall as Irish Road Bowling comes to Salina.

The inaugural Salina Irish Road Bowl event will be Sept. 7, with teams of four competing to see which one can throw the fewest number of "bullets," small cannonballs weighing 28 ounces, down the roads of the park while raising money to stock the initial hygiene pantry at Kansas Wesleyan University.

Jerry Lonergan welcomed a few Salinans to the park on Tuesday, June 25 to throw some shots themselves after he and fellow organizer John Maguire explained the history, rules and strategies of the game.

The first two to throw bullets at this pre-event were Salina Police Chief C.J. Wise and Fire Chief Tony Sneidar, with a Red vs. Blue Roll Off between teams from the Salina fire and police departments.

What is Irish Road Bowling and why bring it to Salina?

Lonergan said the origins of Irish Road Bowling date back as far as the 1600s and is full of unverified folklore.

"Irish rebels used to sneak into British forts to steal (cannonballs)," Lonergan said. "The story is, if you want to believe it, rather than carry these things back away from the fort, they would roll them down the street and that kind of evolved into a game."

While it seems that the early days of the game had those rebels compete for who could roll their bullet the furthest, today the game is more like golf, with a goal line marked on a road and teams competing for who can get their bullet to that line in the fewest throws.

Lonergan and Maguire previously competed as a bowling team in a Kansas City competition, and Lonergan said since moving back to Salina a few years ago, he wanted to bring the sport to his hometown and do something good for the community in the process.

When he heard about KWU opening a new hygiene pantry next semester, he decided this was the right thing to have this inaugural event support.

"The money we raise will go to stock the ... pantry with things like toothpaste, soap, deodorant and more," Lonergan said.

What will the first Salina Irish Road Bowl event look like?

The inaugural Salina Irish Road Bowl will begin at 9:15 a.m. Sept. 7. Registration for teams of four has already begun on the SIRB website.

This first event will feature up to 15 teams, each of which will pay a $100 entry fee, and will compete on a road course about three-quarters of a mile long beginning near the lower-level shelter on the north side of the park facing Gypsum Avenue.

Due to the nature of Indian Rock Park, which doesn't have a complete circuit of roads, the course will include a feature unique to this event, a section of trail path rather than a road.

While the competition is only open to limited number of teams this first year, the SIRB website said there will be plenty of places along the course for people interested in witnessing this unique sport.

Finally, as a fundraiser, SIRB is looking for sponsors to help put on the event. The organization has established a fund at the Greater Salina Community Foundation for tax-deductible donations.

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"The intent is for SIRB to be an annual activity with a goal to raise funds for selected causes," the SIRB website said.

For more information about Salina Irish Road Bowling, including to register, visit www.salinairishrb.com. Additional information and updates leading up to the Sept. 7 event can be found on the group's Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Salina Journal: Irish Road Bowling comes to Salina with inaugural event in September