Chris Barnes Makes a Wish Come True
PBA star converts “Flying Eagle” trick shot for four-year-old with muscular dystrophy

SEATTLE (Feb. 15, 2008) — Denny’s Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour star Chris Barnes fulfilled the dream of a four-year-old boy Friday at Thunder-Alley in Omaha, Neb., meeting up with Hunter Edwards and converting the “Flying Eagle” trick shot for the young boy as part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Edwards, who has muscular dystrophy, dreamed of meeting Barnes and seeing him convert the difficult shot, in which a 7-pin is placed in its correct position on the left lane and a 10-pin is placed in its position on the right lane while a third pin is placed on the right side of the left lane approximately 50-feet down lane. Barnes fires the ball at the third pin which flies off and knocks over the 10-pin while the ball continues on its path and knocks down the 7-pin.

After Barnes talked with Edwards and presented him with a framed autographed jersey, Barnes set up the shot. After missing the target pin on his first try, Barnes successfully completed the shot on his second try, much to the delight of Edwards and the entire crowd gathered around at Thunder-Alley.

Barnes and Edwards spent the next hour together with Edwards – who is wheelchair bound – bowling with the assistance of a ramp. Gradually more bowlers appeared to brighten Edwards’ day, including PBA Hall of Famer Parker Bohn III, who performed another one of Edwards’ favorite trick shots: a strike through chairs set up on the lanes.

Edwards and his family will conclude their dream week by attending Sunday’s live ESPN-televised finals of the 2008 Pepsi Championship at Thunder-Alley, which get underway at 12:30 p.m. ET. Five bowlers will compete for $25,000 and an exemption for the 2008-09 season.

About the PBA
The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) features the best bowlers in the world competing in National, Regional and Senior Tour events. The organization has more than 4,000 members spanning 13 countries, and nearly one million viewers tune-in to watch the Denny’s PBA Tour every Sunday on ESPN throughout the season. PBA sponsors include Aaron Rents, Bayer, Brunswick, CLR, ConstructionJobs.com, Denny's, Etonic, Flomax, GEICO, Go RVing, H&R Block, Lumber Liquidators, Motel 6, Pepsi-Cola and the USBC, among others. For more information on the PBA, log on to www.pba.com.