The Boules Artistes Petanque Club was originally formed in 1996 in the grounds of the Hyde Park Barracks, one of Sydney's most historic buildings. With good exposure and an article in the SMH we soon gained a regular crowd on a Sunday afternoon. We then helped organize the South Pacific Challenge, which drew over 200 people, many of them playing their first tournament, but unfortunately the Barracks management decided petanque was not suitable for the area as it was getting too popular!
Without a home ground the Artistes went dormant for a while but reformed in 2003 after discovering a superb area right on Sydney Harbour at Pyrmont Point Park. Soon we out grew the space and moved to Canterbury Bowling Club which had a disused rarely used boulodrome. We upgraded the facilities and for a while things were rosy! Sadly, we were forced to move again as the fortunes of the bowling club waned and we now share a ground at the Jets Club in Tempe with one of the 'traditional' clubs whose members are primarily French and Mauritian.
We have always been committed to growing the sport and to this end we have been lobbying councils to provide 'pistes' in public parks. It is our belief that we need to increase the spread of grounds to encourage local participation and natural growth. Some people can be intimidated by the formality of going to a bowling club to play petanque for the first time and for many, their 'vision' of petanque is as played in the villages France, not a bowling club!
We now have a number of superb areas in public parks with a growing number of local enthusiasts in Redfern, Kirribilli and South Coogee. There are thousands of people in Sydney that who own a set of boules, we just have to encourage them to come out to play!
As we find a new ground we go about the business of promoting it to the locals through leaflets, articles in papers and websites and just by being seen playing petanque! We want people to use the piste whether we are there or not.
We are however, a 'club' and this means we are committed to increasing our membership, organising competitions and improving the standard of play. To this end, we organise regular "C'mon, have a go!" days so that people can associate with players of all levels and learn more about the rules. We organise friendly tournaments to give new players a taste of competition. Some people are afraid of the word 'competition' but it provides a bit of focus and structure which helps people enjoy the game more (trust us!). These are generally played in an afternoon or evening and run for 3 to 4 hours.
As well, we conduct more serious 'SportPetanque' events as well that may last all day and are more intense!
Now we are at the Jets Club, we will be organising more of our 'Boules and Blues' events, combining a few hours of petanque followed by live music. Good fun!
Petanque is an ideal social sport for your class, group of friends, sports team or work colleagues. Introduce them to the quintessential French pastime! We can organise a special day for you! The Boules Artistes provide the equipment and tuition. We have great facilities for a really fun day. C'mon, have a go! Contact Gary on (02) 9665 9943 or bapetanque(at)gmail.com or the directors listed below for further details.
What Drives Us While we cater for both social and competitive petanque, we are committed to introduce the sport of petanque to the general public, to build and foster a healthy social atmosphere, and to improve playing standards and promoting a high level of sportsmanship.
Where We Play
Latham Park Boulodrome - Moverly Rd, South Coogee (next door to South Coogee Bowling Club) This is the closest thing to a 'French' style boulodrome as it is in a public area and well shaded with some large fig trees and shady gums. We run a casual 'picnic petanque' on the first Sunday of the month (excluding Easter) and the 'Village Doubles' competition on the 3rd Sunday. These are held in the afternoon. People can use the area at other times as well.
The Jets Club - Holbeach Ave, Tempe This is where we hold our more serious competitions (due to the facilities) but also where there are regular games to be had on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday afternoons. These are usually casual 'roll-ups' and if you are going for the first time we recommend that you contact us beforehand as we prefer to arrange someone to 'meet and greet'. We run a doubles competition on the 3rd Saturday of each month and in the warmer climes months we run a Friday night competition on the 4th Friday.
Kirribilli Piste - Alfred St South, Milsons Point Built by North Sydney Council, this is a very 'village square' type of piste in a lively area. Very closebetween to Milsons Point station and next door to the old bowling Kirribilli Bowling cClub. We play on the 4th Sunday of every month and in the summer we are planning one evening a week as well (day to be determined). People can use the area any time except market days (2nd Sunday and 4th Saturday of the month).
Redfern Piste - Redfern Oval, Chalmers St, Redfern Located in the grounds of Redfern Oval at the south end of the grandstand, there is a Parisian feel about this piste with the terrace houses and tree line streets! Hard and smooth, it is not as easy as it looks. Currently we have a casual Wednesday roll-up from 5:45 pm but this may change in the spring. We play occasional days in Pyrmont Point Park (North end) and Centennial Park (near the duck pond) as well. The best thing is to get on the email list and we will keep you informed!
President Terry Murphy - terrym(at)boulesartistes.org.au Vice President Darin Evans - darine(at)boulesartistes.org.au Secretary Sue Begley - sueb(at)boulesartistes.org.au
Coaches
Gary Hosie - garyh(at)boulesartistes.org.au Pierre Figon - pierref(at)boulesartistes.org.au
...about the Artistes 
