In petanque the key is to Keep looking. Now we know where to stand

In petanque the key is to Keep looking

Last session we looked at where to stand. Here we look at why it is important to stand up where the action is happening. SO YOU CAN LOOK!

Just keep shooting, just one hit and it is game.

Any management or self improvement expert will tell the sad story of Flight 401. In December 29, 1972, an Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 was coming in to land in the dark the cockpit crew noticed one of the landing gear warning light down lights did not come on as all the others had. While they struggled to fix the problem no one noticed they had turned off the auto pilot and the aircraft slowly lost height as they tried to fix the landing gear. 101 people were killed when the aircraft hit the ground. The problem? The bulb had blown and the landing gear had come down and locked correctly. This example is used to show how easy it is to fixate on a task without noticing the obvious.

It is used in staff training. The main aim of the story is to educate people not to be carried away by the wrong thing and be distracted from the task in hand. It is also very handy in sport. People moving are a distraction, the odd cough here and there can be ignored if you are focused but the main danger in sport is to get distracted by yourself. I watched a game the other day which highlighted the point perfectly. A strong team arrived to the final unbeaten. They took an early lead and looked to dominate the game but the perceived weaker team, who had lost a couple of games earlier in the day, just kept plugging away. At 7-2 down it looked to be over but a chink of light kept them in the game and gave them hope. They kept going and soon the score was a predictable 12-9 and the game looked to be over. They played their last boule and carreaued a boule 6 inches in front of the jack. A shot from nowhere saved the game but the opposition had three boule left. It looked like curtains. All the opposition had to do was hit the front boule or kill the jack for game.

They shot and missed, they shot and missed again. If they could only hit the target boule the game would be won. They shot again and missed again. What a let off for the unfancied team. But wait, every boule has an exit route from the head it has been thrown into. Amazingly each time they had shot the target boule, the boule  they had thrown had not missed everything on it path. It had taken out one of their own boule from the head each time they had shot. They were so focused on the task they had not seen the changing situation in the head. When they shot the last time they were no longer in second place in the head, they did not have third either. It is true, a spot carreau would have won the game but they did not see the danger that was creeping up on them.

Would any of us 12-9 up still shoot if the opposition were holding three, maybe, but maybe not. A closer look would have seen the only boule stopping game the other way was directly behind the target boule. They shot and missed the target boule but guess what? They hit their own boule and it happily went on its way to seal a brilliant victory. Maybe a tragic loss! So next time you think you are in a safe position, take a glance around you, things can change. Ask the question, what is happening here? You may be just about to lose.