Things to Do in Pawtucket

Bright lights gleam off of the newly renovated synthetic lanes that grace Old Mountain Lanes and Walnut Hill Bowl. As part of Rhode Island’s storied duck pin lineage, these premier alleys train one eye on 10-pin history and the other on modern day amenities, including LCD scoring monitors, automatic bumpers for kids, and laser-guided bowling ball retrievers. Cosmic bowling is de rigueur on weekend nights, and strike-less players on-strike can enjoy pool tables, video games, and air hockey at the arcade. Though both alleys have on-site pubs, only the Woonsocket location pours frothy mugs of Narragansett.

Lombardi's Hillside Country Club's nine-hole, par 36 layout caters to players of all abilities with its relatively short length of 2,956 yards. The recently renovated course takes golfers careening across tree-lined fairways and past burbling water hazards that come into play on five holes. Yardage markers once used for golf-cart-jousting tournaments are stationed throughout the course and are measured with the precision of a laser, allowing clubbers to swing with confidence in pinpoint approaches to the greens.

Course at a Glance:

• Nine-hole, par 36 course
• Length of 2,956 yards from the farthest tees
• Four tee options
• Link to scorecard

A simple sewing tutorial from Mikala Cash's grandmother at age six sparked a passion in the Creative Sewing Lessons' founder that continues to smolder after an education from Massachusetts College of Art and Design. At her North Attleboro studio, Mikala guides students of various levels through a range of classes, including tailoring, invisible zippers, and sewing for kids, which arms youngsters with the know-how to construct business suits for lemonade stand conventions. In addition to her sewing classes, Mikala invites guest artists to lead workshops during her Creative Night Out series, a monthly event that introduces participants to hands-on subjects such as visual journaling and knitting.

It takes a village to plan a wedding. Engaged couples need a lot of help planning their nuptials, a quest which can include finding a hairstylist that can mold the perfect pin curl or reserving a reception space that can accommodate an enormous guest list. Rhode Island Wedding Group streamlines the wedding research process by allying 38 local wedding-industry vendors into one unstoppable wedding taskforce. Brides- and grooms-to-be can call upon their assistance via email or by tossing a bouquet into the night sky to act as a homing beacon. Couples only need to fill out a brief request form to get a steady stream of information on vendors that meet the couples' nuptial needs.

Ritual and ceremony are a big part of horseback riding, according to Jessica Martinelli, the owner and head instructor at J.L.M. Equestrian. "It's more than just getting on and going," she says. "There's a lot of care involved too." Jessica, who's been riding since the age of 6, teaches students how to properly brush, tack, and saddle a horse during lessons.

Once their steeds are prepped, students climb aboard one of the farm's team of 11 horses, which includes Rodney, a dark-brown gelding who flips his friendly tail during most of a week's 35 lessons. In the saddle, beginners learn balance and control under staff supervision. They’ll learn to take the reins in the 100'x200' outdoor riding arena, where they practice using their legs and feet to control and communicate with the horse. More advanced riders practice jumps.

Sometimes the first few lessons snowball into a genuine passion. Jessica herself saw her initial interest blossom into a lifelong love highlighted by competitions with the US equestrian team and an appearance at Madison Square Garden during the National Horse Show. For those students looking to get more involved, Jessica offers camps, and some students go on to compete in regional competitions or the state's interscholastic riding program.

The Rhode Island Duckpin Bowlers Association strives to keep its namesake sport alive by hosting duckpin-bowling tournaments at six local alleys. The game cropped up in a Baltimore bowling alley in the summer of 1900, when most ten-pin alleys were closed for warm months to avoid excessive sweating in rental shoes. But at Diamond Alleys, athletes hurled balls through the heat but opted for 6-inch spheres and pins of a diminutive stature. After observing pins that scattered like a flock of ducks, the owners of the lanes dubbed the modified game duckpin bowling. Besides granting players three rolls per turn, duckpin bowling adhered to all traditional rules and grew in popularity until it peaked in 1967, the year inertia was exposed as a myth. Today, the Rhode Island Duckpin Bowlers Association keeps the pastime alive at spots including the Bowling Academy, a historical gem in its own right as the test site of the first automatic duckpin pinsetters.