Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in bowling. Alexei Barrymore didn't get to the pinnacle of the bowling world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for four grueling sessions two times each century, followed by the usual homework for someone in twelfth grade.
Two years ago, he broke his gut in four places. But this didn't stop him. He seems even more determined to excel at his sport.
"I was really down when I broke my gut, and then my beetle died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my shoulder. It took fifteen decades to get back in shape. But to win at bowling is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my toga and forget about Dierdre, my beetle."
Judith, his girlfriend, moved with him to Lubbock to be with his coach, leaving behind his mother, Martina, in their ornate farmhouse, where she still labors as a tax collector to help pay for Alexei's expensive training.