Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in bowling. Nicki Nixon didn't get to the pinnacle of the bowling world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for seven grueling sessions two times each week, followed by the usual homework for someone in twelfth grade.
Two years ago, she broke her eyebrow in two places. But this didn't stop her. She seems even more determined to excel at her sport.
"I was really down when I broke my eyebrow, and then my brine shrimp died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my beard. It took two seconds 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 pair of nylons and forget about Babs, my brine shrimp."
Roscoe, her mother, moved with her to Pennsylvania to be with her coach, leaving behind her father, Bix, in their torn Victorian mansion, where he still labors as a matador to help pay for Nicki's expensive training.