Meet ice bowling ball candidates Greg Karst, Ph.D., and Tom O’Connor

KETV’s Melissa Fry and Bill Randby give a report on the weather for this weekend’s Skate-a-thon for Parkinson’s. Fry will be the emcee for the event’s opening ceremony on Friday at 5 p.m.

In advance of Friday’s Skate-a-thon for Parkinson’s Human Ice Bowling contest, we get to know two more bowling ball candidates — Greg Karst, Ph.D., and Tom O’Connor.

Dr. Karst: You can’t beat experience, so you can’t beat me

Experience is the best teacher.

And as we head into Friday’s contest, Greg Karst, Ph.D., seems to have the marked advantage over the seven other bowling ball candidates in the experience category.

Greg Karst, Ph.D., says his experience as a lawn bowling ball makes him the logical choice to win Friday night’s human ice bowling contest.

Dr. Karst has taken many turns, literally, inside of a gigantic inflatable lawn bowling ball in games with his family.

“My previous experience as a lawn bowling ball will give me the edge to win the contest,” Dr. Karst said.

Dr. Karst was particularly buoyed after he watched Tom O’Connor’s practice run video from Tuesday.

“I saw T.O.’s performance and thought it was ‘gutterly awful,'” Dr. Karst said.

O’Connor to opponents: Surrender now

Dr. Karst may have the edge in experience.

Tom O’Connor

But one look at Tom O’Connor’s head shows why he feels a deep kinship with bowling balls.

“I embrace my inner bowling ball more than my competitors do,” said the senior associate director for media relations in the public relations department. “Do I think that gives me an advantage? You bet your bowling shoes I do.”

As you may have seen on the practice video, O’Connor is ready for Friday’s contest.

“To be perfectly honest, the only thing that will keep me from winning will be the guys who send me down the lane,” O’Connor said. “Because if it’s just on me, well, game over, T.O. wins.”