Glow-in- the-dark film for bowling lanes

A method for playing a bowling game, comprising:

• providing a bowling establishment including an enclosure containing at least one bowling lane having a pit end, an opposite approach end, and gutters on either side thereof;
• providing a conventional source of illumination for lighting the interior of the enclosure and the bowling lane;
• incorporating an ultraviolet light fluorescing dye or pigment in at least a portion of the upper surface of the bowling lane, so that the same will visibly fluoresce when exposed to ultraviolet light;
• providing a UV light source of illumination for the interior of the enclosure that provides light in the ultraviolet light range, so as to cause the ultraviolet light fluorescing dye or pigment to visibly fluoresce within the enclosure;
• and
• deactivating the conventional source of illumination for substantially the entirety of at least one bowling game, while operating the UV light source of illumination continuously during the course of the bowling game, so that the bowling game is played in the dark on a fluorescing bowling lane.

A UV light fluorescing film for bowling lanes, comprising:

• a thin transparent film of a material selected from the group consisting of polyesters, polycarbonates, polyurethane, polystyrenes, polypropylene, polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, acrylics, polyurethane, fluorocarbon polymers and nylon;
• a pressure sensitive adhesive on one side of said film selected from the group consisting of acrylic, vinyl acrylic copolymer, rubber resin and silicone pressure sensitive adhesives;
• and
• an ultraviolet light sensitive dye or pigment that is essentially colorless in daylight but fluoresces in ultraviolet light dispersed in said adhesive.

A method for making a bowling establishment, comprising:

• erecting an enclosure having an interior configured to play a bowling game therein;
• positioning ambient lighting in the enclosure for normally illuminating the interior of the same, which ambient lighting is adapted to be dimmed or turned off to selectively darken the interior of the enclosure;
• forming at least one bowling lane in the interior of the enclosure, having an elongate, substantially flat upper surface defining a pit end thereof, and an approach end thereof opposite said pit end, and an intermediate area disposed between said approach end and said pit end of the bowling lane upper surface;
• incorporating a UV light sensitive dye or pigment in at least a predetermined portion of the intermediate area of the bowling lane upper surface;
• positioning a plurality of bowling pins adjacent the pit end of the bowling lane upper surface in a preselected pattern;
• providing at least one bowling ball configured to be rolled by one or more players over the upper surface of the bowling lane from the approach end thereof to the pit end thereof in an attempt to knock down the bowling pins;
• providing at least one gutter alongside the bowling lane, which is configured to rollingly receive the bowling ball therein to transport the bowling ball between the pit end and the approach end of the bowling lane upper surface;
• positioning a UV light source in the enclosure generally above the bowling lane;
• and
• selectively activating the UV light source to direct UV light onto the upper surface of the bowling lane, thereby causing the light sensitive dye or pigment exposed to the UV light to fluoresce and emit visible light, whereby at least a majority of the ambient lighting is turned off or dimmed to darken at least that portion of the enclosure interior disposed adjacent to the bowling lane, and the UV light source is turned on causing the UV sensitive dye or pigment on the bowling lane to emit visible light sufficient to enable the players to see the bowling lane, and accurately roll the bowling ball at the bowling pins.