International Bowling Industry Magazine December 2013

CONTENTS

VOL 21.12

6 ISSUE AT HAND

24 COVER STORY

Surrounded by Greatness

A Pirate’s Life for Camp Casey!

At the U.S. Army post in Dong Du Chon City, South Korea, Gerald Keener transforms a “garbage barge” of a center into a pirate-themed treasure.

By Scott Frager

8 SHORTS

•Swanton Sports Center, a center that wouldn't die!

• Kegel donates bowling balls to Sebring High School's Blue Streaks.

• BVL once again increased its yearly participation with centers and associations.

By Fred Groh 16

32 PROFILE

Meet Carl Richard The legendary bowler and proprietor looks back on his long,, storied career.

By Mark Miller

40 OPERATIONS

16 CENTER STAGE “V” is for Vision

A Day at the Races 24

Proprietor Tom Cristi in Santa Clarita, CA, places a bet on off-track horse racing.

By Fred Groh

By Anna Littles

54 REMEMBER WHEN

A Christmas Interlude

By Patty Heath

20 FEATURE

Bowling 101

Bowling gets a grade as more colleges and universities offer bowling for credit.

45 Showcase 46 Datebook 47 Classifieds

By Mark Miller 40

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December 2013

frager@bowlingindustry.com Skype: scottfrager

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Chris Holmes

holmes@bowlingindustry.com

OFFICE MANAGER Patty Heath

heath@bowlingindustry.com

CONTRIBUTORS Fred Groh Patty Heath Anna Littles Mark Miller

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Jackie Fisher

Compiled by Patty Heath

At The V in Omaha, Mike Zabawa’s vision of family entertainment in an upscale environment has become a reality.

PUBLISHER & EDITOR Scott Frager

fisher@bowlingindustry.com

ART DIRECTION & PRODUCTION Designworks www.dzynwrx.com (818) 735-9424

FOUNDER Allen Crown (1933-2002)

12655 Ventura Boulevard Studio City, CA 91604 (818) 789-2695(BOWL) Fax (818) 789-2812 info@bowlingindustry.com

www.BowlingIndustry.com

HOTLINE: 888-424-2695

SUBSCRIPTION RATES: One copy of International Bowling Industry is sent free to every bowling center, independently owned pro shop and collegiate bowling center in the U.S., and every military bowling center and pro shop worldwide. Publisher reserves the right to provide free subscriptions to those individuals who meet publication qualifications. Additional subscriptions may be purchased for delivery in the U.S. for $50 per year. Subscriptions for Canada and Mexico are $65 per year, all other foreign subscriptions are $80 per year. All foreign subscriptions should be paid in U.S. funds using International Money Orders.

POSTMASTER: Please send new as well as old address to International Bowling Industry, 12655 Ventura Boulevard, Studio City, CA 91604 USA. If possible, please furnish address mailing label.

Printed in U.S.A. Copyright 2013, B2B Media, Inc. No part of this magazine may be reprinted without the publisher’s permission.

MEMBER AND/OR SUPPORTER OF:

THE ISSUE AT HAND

Surrounded by Greatness One never knows whom you get a chance to meet at your bowling center. On this Veterans Day, our team had the good fortune of running into two great American heroes. While neither of them would dare apply that moniker to their name, we stood humbly knowing that we were in the midst of some of America’s finest.

Our first encounter was a WWII vet who came in to bowl with his grandson. No fanfare or pomp and circumstance for this gentleman.

He proudly wore his U.S. Navy hat bestowing the name of the ship on which he served during his service to the country and the world. As he was about to pay, and even before our staff was able to offer his time here at the center comped, a young woman came out from the behind the line and asked if she could have the honor of buying the first two games. It was a moving experience for everyone involved. The veteran and his grandson, the staff and the fellow bowlers all stood a little taller after that moment.

We were all proud to recognize his service and that this positive “pay-it-forward” energy was being generated right here at our center.

Then, a little later in the day, as I was making my rounds up and down the concourse, I introduced myself to a man who looked a little “lost.” He wasn’t bowling and didn’t seem like bowling was on his mind. So, I went up to introduce myself. It turns out that he was born in this area and used to come here in the early 60s with his parents. He really loved his

memories in this place. We talked for a few minutes about the center, its history and his childhood. Then, like a ton of bricks, he laid out why he left the city.

On February 28th, 1997 my new friend, John Caprarelli, was senior lead officer for the Los Angeles Police Department, North Hollywood Division. On that day, two heavily-armed and fullyfortified madmen robbed a nearby Bank of America branch and proceeded to terrorize the local community in an all-out gunfight.

For hours, more than 2,000 rounds were spent while the bad guys were fighting to flee. Neither of them got their chance thankfully.

Both died at the scene. Eleven police officers and seven civilians were injured but none died.

Officer John Caprarelli received the LAPD Medal of Honor and National Top Cop award after he bravely, and without regard to his own personal safety, confronted the two gunmen many times and helped bring that horrific event to a close.

It made me take pause and realize that every day within our centers we are in the midst of greatness. Our guests, staff and vendors all have amazing stories to tell and we have an opportunity to meet someone special.

Take a look around and see the amazing stories that surround us. One of our missions at IBI is to explore the stories of the people in bowling and share them with you; you’ll see quite a few examples in the very issue you hold in your hands.

Here’s to greatness.

– SCOTT FRAGER, PUBLISHER AND EDITOR frager@bowlingindustry.com

THIS MONTH AT www.BowlingIndustry.com IBI Online members, this is an invitation to turn that “blue head”, your avatar that represents you, into a photo. It can be you, your center’s logo OR anything your heart desires. We are not on Pandora nor are we Na’Vi. It is time to end the year with a clear photo. Bruce Hergenroeder and Susan Fairbanks used retro pin up bowling pics while Cynthia Winterhalter of Switch uploaded a photo of the company’s products. Be creative! There should be no blue in bowling!

Go to your home page and at the upper right, click on settings and then click on upload your photo.

It will walk you through. The goal should just be smiling faces in 2014.

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SHORTS

AN EARLY CHRISTMAS PRESENT FOR THE SEBRING BLUE STREAKS It was October, but for the Sebring High School’s Blue Streaks, it was Christmas. Jonathan Davis, president of Kegel, Inc and an accomplished bowler who began bowling in youth leagues in Sebring, FL, has been a mentor of the Blue Streak bowling program since it began four years ago. During that time he has provided the teams with new bowling bags with custom embroidery, training modules to help develop player skills, and practice sessions at the world renowned Kegel Training Center.

Heartland Bowl in Sebring is the home center for the team and Rick Wiltse of Kegel Training Center is the coach and guiding force.

On October 7, Davis surprised the Blue Streaks with brand new Storm bowling balls just in time to help prepare the team for the district and state championships. He told them that he was proud of their performance and passion for the sport of bowling.

Jonathan Davis (R) shakes hands with Coach Rick Wiltse (L) while Heartland Bowl manager Jack Kordusky and the Sebring Blue Streaks look on with their brand new Storm bowling balls.

BRUNSWICK BOWLING EXPANDS DISTRIBUTORSHIP IN ASIA Brunswick Bowling & Billiards announced that it has partnered with New Hwanan Corporation and Advance Bowling Management to expand its coverage of bowling center products in Taiwan and Malaysia, respectively.

New Hwanan will be servicing the Taiwan market for Brunswick as a distributor of capital equipment to modernize or build new bowling centers as well as after-market to service customers.

“With our history in Taiwan, New Hwanan has been servicing the country longer than any other bowling company,” said Adam Wei, president of New Hwanan. “We are very glad to join the Brunswick family.”

Advance Bowling Management sells after-market products and other products while managing and consulting with bowling center operators. Established in the 1990s, it has worked with Brunswick since 2004. “We look forward to exciting times ahead being a distributor for Brunswick Bowling, covering its full line of supplies, including capital equipment and after-market products.”

Both companies have a strong business background and solid relationships within the bowling industry. “They are a great asset to our team,” said Gary Smith, vice president of international sales.”We are looking forward to both companies expanding the Brunswick presence and strengthening the sport of bowling within Asia.”

BOWLING PIN ART SURVIVES DEMOLITION

When Route 66 was the main drag across the U.S., oversized, pop art signs began to flourish.

Most of us can remember Vegas Vic waving to visitors as they entered Las Vegas. There were also wigwams, dinosaurs and, of course, Paul Bunyon and Bob’s Big Boy which graced all of Bob’s Southern California eateries.

Bowling was a perfect match for these types of signs, and there are still remnants of neon pins reaching to the sky. One such pin had adorned the top of Ridge Theatre in Vancouver, Canada, since 1950. It was the perfect advertisement for a 15-lane bowling center in the basement of the theatre complex.

However, with a new condo development taking over the space, the pin was pretty much marked for demolition. Yosef Wosk, a philanthropist who has funded several heritage

preservation initiatives, said, “It’s a landmark. We used to bowl here as kids, and I brought my kids here, so it’s multi-generational. It’s a piece of Vancouver folk art; it’s not just commercial… [and] it makes me and other people happy.” With the help of Eric Cohen, owner of Renew Gallery, Wosk was able to buy the pin for $5,000.

That was just the beginning. The pin itself was not light aluminum but constructed of concrete and weighed a ton. The bill for moving it will be about $13,000 and will be carried out by Kerr Construction.

After restoration, Wosk approximates the final tab will come to about $25,000. That’s quite a price for lawn art as the final home will be his backyard!

“I’ve got to balance it with other sculptures, and a calm garden,” Wost said. “This will be in a fun place. Now all we need is a carousel.”

Dismantling the pin for removal to Yosef Wosk’s backyard.

Photo credit: Ward Perrin, PNG, Vancouver Sun.

Note: www.bowlingindustry.com has examples of bowling pin signage. Visit the site and view the photos.

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SHORTS

EXPANSIONS, OPENINGS & NEW BEGINNINGS According to a press release from Sandy Hansell and Associates, Inc., Bowl New England, a well-known, multi-regional bowling chain, has purchased Lighting Strikes, a 40-lane center in Trussville, AL, with RCH Capital, LLC as the seller. Bowl New England now will operate 16 centers. David Driscoll, an associate of Sandy Hansell and Associates, Inc., served as the broker in the transaction.

Sometimes you just can’t buck fate!

KC Lanes, a 20-lane center including a bar and grill and a large banquet hall, in Swanton, OH, closed in 2010. It stayed that way until August 2012 when Tracy Ratliff spied it as a potential home for his body and engine repair shop and his collection of antique cars.

This is where fate took hold. Son Boyd Ratliff and grandson Kevin Ford were given the task to get the crumbling structure in shape.

This included extensive roofing, electrical and plumbing repairs and

Max Bowl North, Humble, TX, is planning an expansion, which will include a laser tag center, an expanded arcade and an upgraded bar and grill. The laser tag and arcade add a shift in the business model and is similar to the project at Max Bowl’s location in Port Arthur which General Manger Doug Davidson said saved that struggling location.

The laser tag game will consist of two stories of blacklit terrain while the new arcade will contain a selection of 40 to 50 different games and an entirely new prize redemption counter. The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year.

After a devastating fire which was complicated by a blizzard last February, AMF Smithtown Lanes in Smithtown, NY, has finally reopened. At the time, a 75-foot section of the building collapsed due to the weight of the snow. After six months of rebuilding, the community can once again get things rolling!

When Patrick Dingman and Jamie Etu decided to reinvent B&C Lanes in Hudson Falls, NY, it was 16 lanes of litter, soaked-through ceiling tiles and battered floors to name just a few things. It is now Hudson Falls Bowling Center and Lounge à la a 1960s and early 70s bowling alley. Jeff Stockwell, who started bowling at B&C when he was eight years old, is now 33 and is a key employee.

Etu shared, “He knows the machines here inside and out. He made all this possible.”

He Shoots, He Scores!

The 2013 World Air Hockey Championships were completed Oct. 17-20 at the Brunswick Zone in Naperville, IL. Gold Standard Games/Shelti was the main sponsor for the event. The tournament was played exclusively on Gold Standard coin-op tables. Other sponsors included World Championship Air Hockey of Houston and Brunswick Zone. Cash was awarded to 32 places and each player received a commemorative T-shirt. The tournament was sanctioned by the U. S. Air Hockey Association (USAA), and attracted players from around the U.S. as well as from Spain and Venezuela.

Winning his record-tying 11th world title was Danny Hynes of Houston. He came through the losers bracket to defeat runner-up Davis Lee of Sunnyvale, CA, a two-time champion. Third place went to Venezuela's top player, Pedro Otero. Billy Stubbs of Chicago, the 2012 World Champion, took 4th. In the Friday 10

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Photo Credit: Drew Stambaugh with Swanton Enterprise & FC News.org.

cleaning and painting. However, as the work began, residents caught sight of the activity and all asked the same question, “When are you going to open up the bowling alley.” It didn’t take too many of these stop-bys and questions to get Ratliff to change course and begin to restore the building to its original purpose.

Swanton Sports Center opened its doors in October with a ribbon cutting ceremony and many happy customers. The center has a sports bar and grill, an arcade room and adjacent pool room and a spacious banquet hall with a meeting room next to it.

The first event at the center was a tribute to former owner Dick Slawinski who owned the business from 1956–1992 and who cultivated the joy and fond memories which guided Ratliff to restore the center.

night doubles competition, Danny Hynes and Ehab Shoukry of Houston took top honors. Chris Aston of Dallas won the handicap (point-spot) event, and Colin Cummings of Houston was junior champion.

Media coverage of the event included articles in the Chicago Sun-Times and Naperville Sun; radio coverage on WBBM/CBS Radio; and a TV segment on NCTV, channel 17 in Naperville.

Mark Robbins of Gold Standard Games noted that this was the first World Championship to be played on Gold Standard tables. He said, "Players liked some of the advanced features and player-friendly design, as well as the speed of the tables. We intend to sponsor more promotional events with an eye toward growing the player base and expanding the market for air hockey. The game has universal appeal but promotion serves to create more dedicated players playing more games more often."

For information on future promotions go to www.goldstandardairhockey.com or www.gold-standard-games.com.

SHORTS

BOWLING BOOK CORNER Laurie Keller, an acclaimed authorillustrator of children’s books, has brought her character, Arnie the doughnut, back in a “who-donut” chapter book which is the first in a series that is sure to please all who venture within the pages.

In Bowling Alley Bandit, Mr. Bing has a new pet “doughnut dog,” Arnie. When he Bing joins a bowling league, Arnie gets to go along to practices and competitions. It is here that Arnie realizes that something or someone is behind

Mr. Bing’s gutter balls. Together with his team of goofball friends, Arnie, with sleuthiness and some magic, comes to the rescue.

The New York Time Book Review said, “Laurie Keller is a goofball.

She’s a genius. She’s a goofball and a genius.” One more quote to whet your appetite comes from the Bookpage. “Arnie is one of the cleverest and funniest books I’ve seen in a long time.”

Christmas present? I’m just sayin…

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PEOPLE WATCHING Brunswick’s recently acquired Radical Bowling Technologies announced the addition of its first pro bowler, Mike DeVaney.

DeVaney of Winchester, CA, joined the PBA in 1995 and has career earnings of $75,000, with two PBA career titles and 14 PBA regional titles to his credit.

“I feel very lucky and blessed to be given the opportunity to represent a brand that will grow and prove to be a strong name in the industry,” DeVaney said. “I cannot wait to get out there and Mike DeVaney do my thing with these Radical products!”

Radical Bowling recently became a full PBA registered product company. Phil Cardinale, president, shared, “Radical Bowling is thrilled to welcome Mike as its original pro staff bowler. His personality is a perfect fit for the Radical brand. He has the technical edge and understanding of the brand that allows him to connect with bowlers.”

Former Miss USA, Kimberly Pressler, will once again be on the sidelines reporting on the PBA World Series of Bowling to be held at South Point Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV. She has worked with the World Series of Bowling since 2010.

“It’ll [be] great to be part of ESPN’s coverage of the World Series of Bowling,” Pressler told PBA.com. The PBA’s COO and Deputy Commissioner, Tom Clarke, added: “Kimberly will bring another special touch to our World Series shows emanating from Las Kimberly Pressler Vegas. The World Series of Bowling has grown extremely fast and has sponsors, fans and players excited about the possibilities.

Kimberly will help Rob Stone and Randy Pedersen to bring bowling’s ultimate festival to life on ESPN.” Each year the BBIA presents the Industry Service Award to a leading personality in the billiard and bowling industry who has contributed to the promotion of their respective sport. This year’s recipients are the owners of Storm Bowling Products, Inc., Bill and Barbara Chrisman. The Chrismans are known throughout the industry for their generosity and efforts to grow the sport of bowling.

The Chrismans have been in the industry since 1985 with their first company High Score Products which became Bill & Barbara Chrisman Storm Products, Inc. in 1994. Since then Storm has grown to become a leading manufacturer of high performance bowling balls. In the past they have been awarded the William Landgraf Memorial Award for Distinguished Service, the John Davis Memorial Award, and the International Bowling Pro Shops and Instructors of America’s Friendship Award.

Creative Works, Inc. of Indianapolis, IN, has recently welcomed Carolyn Goettsch as its new director of marketing. Goettsch received her Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from Olivet Nazarene University. She has over four years of experience working in freelance graphic design and marketing consulting and has built client relationships throughout the Chicago and metro-Detroit area.

“We are pleased to bring Carolyn on board; she brings not only marketing experience but unique skills and fresh ideas to Creative Works,” commented Jeff Schilling, president.

Carolyn Goettsch

GOODWILL CENTRAL

SHORTS

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There is no end to the role bowling centers play in the support of people, communities and organizations.

Celebrities, athletes and philanthropists gathered at Suburban Lanes in Decatur, GA, for Bowling to Fight Leukemia.

“Wings and Rings” was the Special Olympics fundraising event held at Toot’s restaurant followed by a two-day bowling tournament at Smyrna Bowling Center. It was chicken wings, onion rings and then bowling!

Big Al’s in Vancouver, WA, has joined forces with the “Dine Out for No Kid Hungry” campaign to help end childhood hunger in America. For the whole month of September and for guests who visited any Big Al’s location and ordered a dessert, except milkshakes, Big Al’s donated $1 to the campaign.

Darcy Novick, founder of Bosom Buddies, held a “Bowl for a Cure” event at Plainview Bowling Center in Plainview, NY. Hundreds of supporters, dressed in pink, bowled to help. Novick, a breast cancer survivor, hosts several events in Nassau County and the New York City area. Since 2011, she has raised $75,000 and $5,000 so far this year.

Kingston Lanes in Woodstock, IL, was the choice for Turning Point’s fundraiser, “Bowling and ‘Da Bears.” The goal was bringing focus to domestic violence in McHenry County.

Bowling for Buddy fundraiser was held at Arlington Lanes, IL, by the Buddy Foundation, a nonprofit, all volunteer, no-kill animal shelter dedicated to the welfare of stray, abused and abandoned cats and dogs. Scout troops and children’s groups were encouraged to participate. The child that raised the most donations would win a personalized “Engraved Buddy Brick” for the entryway of the shelter.

The fifth annual “Strike” Out Child Abuse Bowling Tournament put together by the Exchange Club Family Resource Center was held at Classic Lanes in West Rome, NY. The funds received will help provide in-home support and education to at-risk families.

To heighten awareness of breast and prostate cancers, two bowling centers participated in fundraisers. One was Devon Lanes in Devon, PA where the seventh annual Bowling for Boobs took place. The other was 10pin Bowling Lounge Chicago where Phusion Projects, a Chicago-based, multibrand alcoholic beverage company along with Prostate Conditions Education Council (PCEC) hosted Project Blue Balls. This is part of a larger campaign called BE BLUE. Last year, this event raised more than $14,000.

What is your center doing? Email Patty Heath at heath@bowlingindustry.com.

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HONORS

FOR

The Bowlers to Veterans Link’s 2012-2013 season realized increasing participation from bowling proprietors and associations with donations rising from $796,000 in 2011-2012 to $843,000 this season. It marks the fifth consecutive year of growth for the sport of bowling’s oldest and most successful charity.

“We truly benefited by the outstanding support of three key industry players,” explained BVL Board Chair Darlene Baker. “With the wonderful contribution from the Billiard and Bowling Institute of America for $35,000; the Brunswick Bowling Centers ‘Bowl for Freedom’ program which generated $27,000; and a generous gift from Bowling Business Builders International of $10,000.

All our veterans programs – that help brighten veterans lives—will be preserved and enhanced.”

State-wise, Texas produced an 80% uptick in donations, and Michigan’s rose 55%. California again hit the top mark with $129,766.33. All of this helped BVL garner the honor of 2013 Top-Rated Award by GreatNonprofits, the leading provider of user reviews about nonprofit organizations.

“We are proud of our accomplishments this year, including recreation grants to VA Medical Centers, programs for wounded warriors at Walter Reed National Medical Center, and our support of the VA national veteran’s competitions.”

“Savvy donors want to see the impact of their donations more than ever,” said Perla Ni, CEO of GreatNonprofits. “People with direct experience with BVL have voted that the organization is making a real difference.”

Editor’s Note In the Beyond Bowling section of IBI’s November issue, Bowl New England’s Spare Time in Greensboro, NC, was highlighted. BNE purchased the property with the idea of transforming it into a “hybrid FEC.” Creative Works, an attractions supplier and theme specialist, was given a nod for its design and development of Earth Quest, a laser tag game. However, it is also important to note that the designs for the total renovation were done

by Howard Ellman and Dynamic Designs Ltd. of Birmingham, MI.

CENTER STAGE

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CENTER STAGE

Owner Mike Zabawa (left) with manager Joe Rosner.

By Anna M. Littles

M

ike Zabawa cut his teeth working in the world of corporate development for 21 years, specifically for Fortune 500 companies. Zabawa loves bowling with his family but realized that he had an axe to grind with the current state of bowling alleys in his area. He was under-whelmed with the service and felt that the league business was a hindrance to his family's bowling experience. So, he did what any visionary would do: he revolutionized the sport in Omaha.

The result, The V, a startup entertainment complex. It’s the only one of its kind in the area. Zabawa explains that The V is a unique twist of what's going on in the entertainment business regarding the world of bowling, "We have taken the concept up to the next level. . . even our lane configuration is unique." Zabawa goes on to define the space as a perfect blend of an "executive conference meeting space with a VIP level of service."

According to Zabawa, one unique aspect of the new entertainment center is the upscale, casual restaurant Skrach. It's all about midwest American cuisine that is made from scratch every day. Cashing in on the national trend of “from the farm to the table,” the fresh and excellent quality of the produce elevates the dining experience.

Additionally, guests can enjoy dinner any place in the building as The V is IBI

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CENTER STAGE

designed in a way that people can sit anywhere and enjoy a great meal.

The lanes are not laid out in a traditional rectangle; the floor plan is in the shape of a V. For Zabawa, it maximizes the opportunity for the guest to spend many comfortable hours of entertainment, cocktails, dining and socializing.

The equipment is AMF's latest bowling system with lights, scoring, and HD 42� monitors. The lighting is very sophisticated and preset seven 18

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days of the week. It's a great tool to create ambiance and define family time. The music during the week is from DirecTV. However, on weekends they have a DJ service that jams Top 40 hits from 9 p.m. until midnight, offering a great time for young adults.

The demographics for the area support the initial investment in The V. It's suburban Omaha, with a population of about 450,000. The V is located across from Oak View Mall, the largest indoor mall in the region. With the average household income of $80,000, and unemployment under 4%, this is a prosperous and stable community. The area enjoys a broad based economy with several Fortune 500 companies, such as Mutual of Omaha and Berkshire Hathaway. Insurance companies, agriculture and light industry keep the area booming. It doesn't hurt that the cost of living is very affordable.

The V is a perfect fit for this progressive community.

Within the 15,000 square foot complex, The V offers bowling, Atomic Rush Laser Tag, mini bowling and an arcade. Modern, fresh, unique and happening, The V is a vision that's kicking up the game we all love to a whole new level.v Anna M. Littles, a screenplay and freelance writer and producer originally from the Bronx, New York, now resides in Santa Monica, California.You can see her work on YouTube, IMDB, or on her website at www.alittleLA.com.

FEATURE

Students at Central Missouri State University practice during bowling class. The class falls under the Department of Kinesiology and is taught by professor and head bowling coach Ron Holmes.

BOWLING 101 College students earn physical education credits while participating centers earn extra, unexpected income. It’s a basic win/win.

By Mark Miller

M

ark Lewis can count on at least one student each semester asking the question: “Can they have a beer since they bowl better with one in their hand on the weekends,” he said. “I tell them they can't have a beer during class. Until the physics or engineering departments allow you to have a beer in their classes, you can't have one in mine.”

Lewis does his best to quell all such negative stereotypes in his KSS 102-C class, more commonly known as Beginning Bowling, at Wichita State University. A former Team USA member, 1988 Olympic exhibition participant, and a coach for the famed Shocker bowling program, he is paid to teach as an adjunct professor by the school's kinesiology department.

Previously part of the physical education program, bowling classes were elevated to the human performance studies group about four years ago. That program includes traditional sports like golf and baseball and non-traditional activities like fitness and training. “Most students are looking

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for an activity class because they have 11 credits and need one more to be considered full-time,” Lewis said. “It's usually pretty diverse. We'll get some international students who have never bowled, some who are limited to casual bowling and some who bowled on their high school team but did not try out for us. Some bowl in leagues in town and occasionally someone comes to class where I've told them they should try out for the team.

We have a very wide range from the true beginner to someone who can walk and swing the ball to really skilled players who just need to know how to hook a ball.”

Between 24 and 32 students meet for 50 minutes either Mondays and Wednesdays or Tuesdays and Thursdays in both semesters. Lewis has taught the course since 1999, mostly on the lanes at the Rhatigan Student Center on the Wichita State campus. “It's evolved from someone in a pro shop teaching in a commercial center,” Lewis said. “We give three quizzes and a final exam.

We review everything. If they bowl outside of class they can earn extra credit.

Nothing is based on score or how much they've improved.”

Lewis is among a handful of collegiate bowling coaches who teach the typically one-credit course on school lanes. While it is offered at many other schools, how it is taught and by whom varies. In some places, a commercial bowling center staff member is the instructor. In others, a bowling pro shop person is the teacher. For too many, it's a member of the physical education faculty or even a graduate student. At Wichita State, bowling is regarded so highly, it is included in a class for those studying to be physical education teachers.

FEATURE “We know these people will teach a lot of kids so we try to give them correct information and not just from a book,” Lewis said. “We get them to understand how challenging this is with the hand-eye coordination and the physical skills required. It's not just about chucking the ball down the lanes.”

Indiana University has long featured bowling program members as the primary bowling class teachers on the lanes at the Indiana Memorial Union Recreation Center. Among them were Gary Brown and Tim Robben, now with the United States Bowling Congress in Arlington, Texas, who worked together to upgrade the program in 1999. “Before we did it, a graduate student had to do it as part of getting a degree,” Robben said. “He taught it out of a book. He had no idea what he was doing. We were the first real bowlers who asked why don't we have actual bowlers teaching these classes. We created an atmosphere of students wanting to learn as opposed to a grad student reading a book and trying to teach the four-step approach.”

Brown taught for one year while earning his Master’s degree while Robben did so as Indiana's head bowling coach through 2003.

With seven classes of about 24 students each on Mondays and Wednesdays and seven more on Tuesdays and Thursdays, they were on the lanes from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. each day. An advanced class on Fridays was added in Robben's later years with 12-18 students for more personal attention. “Having someone with the bowling program teach it gave it some credibility,” Brown said. “All of our classes were full and we even had waiting lists. It was an extremely popular class at Indiana.”

The classes continue today as part of the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation. “It was about 50-50: some people were just there to get a credit and some who wanted to learn how to bowl better,” said Brown, who served as the center's mechanic when not teaching. “Lots of kids asked questions. A lot wanted to learn but not many were serious. Now they take it more seriously because of the growth of high school bowling. There was no high school bowling then. We taught the basic fundamentals including scoring, how to release the ball and the terminology of the sport. Most of their grade was determined on a written, multiple-choice test. It's hard to grade kids who are using plastic balls and house shoes.”

Among Brown's students was Jared Fogle, better known as the Subway Guy for his commercials for the sandwich chain. “He worked hard,” Brown said. “You could tell he had bowled before.”

For the past 11 years, the University of Central Missouri bowling coach Ron Holmes has taught two levels of bowling classes on the school's lanes. A former health education instructor, he's now a professor in the school's Department of Kinesiology. Beginner classes draw between 30 and 35 students while the advanced level draws 15 to 20, each lasting eight weeks. “We use various books for our

Central Missouri State University professor and head bowling coach Ron Holmes offers personalized attention to his students.

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FEATURE curriculum,” Holmes said “The biggest thing we try to do is provide the information on the game including how to score and league play. We have them do mock league paperwork. They learn about etiquette, the facilities, the machines and even no-tap scoring. There's a written test with true/false and multiple choice questions. They can use different resources and can take the exam online.”

Holmes said 30 percent of each student's grade is based on attendance, 20 percent on league information and the rest a combination of on-lanes action and written tests. “A few team members will take it toward the end of their careers. I tell them if they are looking to refine their game they won't in the beginning class but yes in the advanced. We talk about lane play and equipment.” Wichita State bowling team members are strongly discouraged from taking Lewis' classes as they have other opportunities to work on their games and earn credits.

Beginning bowling or Bowling 101 courses are not new. For example, Texas A&M University bowling coach Mike Cook remembers taking it at the school in 1975. “I needed three or four credits of physical education and one was bowling,” he said. “I could probably still find my How to Bowl book.”

Cook's son Gregory took the class as a sophomore for fun and liked it so much he enrolled in the intermediate class while competing on the school's club team.

While part of the physical education curriculum at A&M, the course is taught

by Dave Schakel, who operates the pro shop at Grand Station Entertainment.

“There's about 20 to 25 people in class,” Gregory Cook said. “We bowled three games each class and had assigned reading from a book. There was a written test with about 25 questions. You could tell some of the students had bowled and some hadn't but all of them improved.”

Bowling classes at Louisiana Tech University also are part of the kinesiology program. That puts it at the same level as sports like racquetball and golf. But for many it's still considered a blow-off class taught by a graduate student.

“They don't teach much of anything,” said sophomore Ryne Daigle. “If you are into bowling, it's good to do for more practice. You see a lot of football players in it.

“There is one test on the rules and ethics. I wrote a paper about the sport and the ethics of the sport but other than that you just show up and bowl. The only problem was they never oiled the lanes which was kind of a waste of time for me when you don't get to practice on good lanes.”

The bowling class at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette also meets twice a week with both on-lane and written testing. Unlike most others, it is good for two credits. "People take it as a blow-off course,” said junior Meredith Stokes.

“I kind of knew the teacher already and he helped me stay down and follow through. I definitely improved.”

“Many take it to push up their grade-point average,” said senior Drew Schambough. “It was about an 80-20 non-bowler vs. bowler ratio and everyone ended up taking it seriously.

“I wanted to learn how to improve. I was a bowler and took it to get extra practice. I worked on my balance and to find my break point. It helped me a lot.”

Students at Alabama State University learn about bowling as part of a onecredit hybrid class that also includes archery and golf. At traditional bowling powerhouse schools like West Texas A&M University and the University of Nebraska, beginning bowling is nothing more than a one-credit physical education class taught by non-bowlers. That's better than Vincennes University 22

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Gary Brown (left) and Tim Robben were the first members of the Indiana University bowling team to teach bowling at their alma mater.

in Indiana which hasn't offered a bowling class on campus in nearly a decade.

“We've tried to get a regular bowling class but they want to keep it as physical education,” said West Texas A&M bowling coach Mark Scroggins.

Besides teaching everything about bowling the right way, collegiate bowling classes can provide a new revenue source for commercial centers.

Brown said bowling centers with colleges nearby should seriously consider hosting bowling classes themselves, especially if their schools don't have their own lanes. “The centers can partner up with the schools in their area to bring in extra revenue at an off time during the daytimes,” Brown said. “Centers already have staff there so why not bring in a class.”

Current Arkansas State University and former Nebraska coach Kelly Stevens did that when he owned an eight-lane center in Centralia, WA, from 2006-09. He partnered with Centralia Community College to properly teach the sport.

How much income can centers reap? Brown said Indiana students were charged $25 each.

With 400 participants the center added $10,000 per semester in unexpected income for the campus recreation center.

So consider talking to your local college about establishing a program. It’s good for business now… and down the road. v Mark Miller is a freelance writer, editor, and public relations specialist from Flower Mound, Texas. He's the author of "Bowling: America's Greatest Indoor Pastime" available at Amazon.com or directly from him at markmywordstexas@gmail.com.

COVER STORY

h d Gro

By Fre

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d dele l s mo “That’l i

g skin day, e ma s some h t

on retire s. dog sea hen he e told u

d l r. W ” h he o of t ” Keene e there, e c a F Fish of m on “ e a part leav

COVER STORY

G

erald Keener’s remodeled center is all about pirates and his nickname is Fish, but that’s coincidence. When he was growing up, he liked nothing better than pirates unless maybe it was bowling. He would set up Carnation milk containers in the basement and roll a softball at them, bowling-style, “because we were a long way from any bowling center when I was a kid.” And he was taken with Long John Silver of Treasure Island and a ’50s TV saga called The Buccaneers.

The first time Fish sized up his 14-lane center at Camp Casey, a U.S. Army post in Dong Du Chon city, South Korea, he thought it looked like “an old garbage barge.” That was seven years ago. As the new manager he knew he could get the soldiers’ trade because of the center’s programs, but there was nothing that would draw families. Fish also confesses he likes to “dress up and act funny.”

So a buccaneer theme for a thorough remodeling of Casey Lanes was a natural, with a name to match. When the shiny new house opened in August after five years of dreaming, entreaty and narrow escapes, it was called Buccaneer Bowl. To top it off, Fish had created a pirate dress-up character for special events, especially when kids come on board, named Captain Barnabas A. Yarfish. n n n The higher-up links in Fish’s chain of command hadn’t been so excited about Brunswick Lanescape Ultimate turning the center into a pirates’ hangout. That was a naval theme, after all. lanes and approaches. Graphics on They also weren’t sure the center needed a renovation. It was doing the approaches extend ship’s deck pretty well and other activities on post were deemed needier of to the lanes. Lane graphics show sunlight patterns on the sea bottom, funding. Fish began putting in for renovation as soon as he could masts of sunken ships, and a anyway—and every year when time for command purchase variety of sea creatures. contracts rolled around.

He’d been at Casey Lanes two or three years when Army MWR, which provides support and leisure services for soldiers and families and commands the bowling center, got a new business manager.

David Roudybush turned out to be one of four people who manned the tiller at times to help steer the project through.

With books, poems and pictures he’d gathered, Fish sold him on the themed renovation, but Roudybush was turned down by his superior, Chris Bradford, the first year. Fish speculates

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COVER STORY that Bradford got tired of Roudybush making the same request the next year and the next and challenged him to come up with a reason Bradford hadn’t heard yet. “Roudybush called me [and I said,] ‘Anything we get is better than what we’ve got.’” Bradford signed on.

Fish goes to Vegas every year to play poker.

At a Bowl Expo there, he met Dave Wilson at the Complete Bowling Service booth. They talked briefly but inconclusively abut Fish doing something imaginative with Casey Lanes. When Wilson next made a business trip to Korea, they got together to look over sketches Fish had drawn up and brainstorm. They made a game plan. “I worked the San Antonio side, he worked his side,” Wilson says, referring to the Texas headquarters for MWR in the military.

Where the Army was thinking about closing some bowling centers, Wilson proposed to MWR officials just the opposite: turn the centers into money-makers by giving the troops what they want. “Centers of the ’60s and ’70s are not appealing to today’s 18- to 25-year-old. They’re based in Yokohama or whatever, and they go to a local center. They don’t stay on post, and that’s not what we want them to do,” he told MWR officials. “My pitch was: let’s make it an entertainment center, not a league bowling house for retired people.”

As the project advanced, Wilson kept up an email campaign to hold the vision before Army officials’ eyes. He helped Fish formulate a business plan based on the concept and lent a hand negotiating prices on the basis that the remodeled center would be a first of its kind in the military. The message filtered down to purchasing, and helped “grease the wheels for Fish’s dream to come true from his side,” says Wilson. He supplied the lanes, seating and masking units. n n n The idea for the remodel was that landlubbers would walk into the center and find themselves on the deck of an old pirate ship under sail. Bowlers would fire their balls out over the water, like balls shot from a ship’s cannons.

The carpet pattern suggests the planking of a ship’s deck and the bowlers’ furniture is special Brunswick Frameworx in an appropriate brown. No pirate ship would be complete without masts and sails, so the bowlers’ area has three.

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Keener dressed as his alter-­‐‑ego Captain Barnabas A. Yarfish surrounded by his dedicated staff.

“Lanescape Ultimate” lanes, recently introduced by Brunswick, continue the ship’s deck onto the approaches. Cannons fire on the head sections, with one gun ensnared by an octopus tentacle.

The graphics will be unique to Buccaneer Bowl.

Behind the center’s reception counter is the bridge (Fish’s office), fitted out with sextants and compasses, where he can scan customers with his spyglass. That may be the first thing they see when they come in to get a lane, but it won’t be long before they sight the flash of a staffer’s smile over the counter. Fish’s policy is 60 seconds, tops, to recognize and greet each customer.

A multi-purpose room seating 20 or so features a 60-inch 3D TV and a heavy table specially ordered to give the room “a Caribbean Spanish-type look. I use it for table display of prizes; they can use it for a pizza party; it has multiple uses,” Fish says, “but it’s all part of drawing them into the [design] concept.”

A card room has three casino-quality tables and a wet bar inspired by an on-shore pub where a pirate might drop in for grog. On the lanes, bowlers are served from a portable mini bar.

Two interior decorators quit the project cold, convinced that manager Fish was “crazy,” according to Fish. Design Da Na Ham, a Korean sub-contractor, was a happier pairing. Its chairman watched every DVD in the Pirates of the Caribbean series, and while the lead designer, Ms. Yi Chong Hui, “speaks a little English [she] understands Pirate well.”

At both ends of the center’s masking, where masking and sidewalls meet, hang two banners. One set of banners conceals the employees’ break room, the other a storage area. If customers see into either area, says Fish, “it ruins the effect. I don’t like anything that breaks the hypnotic spell of being on the ship.” n n n Half-way through the project,

COVER STORY

Masts and sails, with reception counter at right. Many decor items were easy to find at an international market in Seoul.

its most distinctive items hung in suspense. Roudybush had departed for a new assignment in Hawaii and was replaced by a temporary business chief, Michael Vail.

In December and January, 2012-2013, MWR “started cutting funds and headed for my bowling center to cut the packages, like the masking, the furniture,” Fish reports. To Vail he said, “If you kill the internal decoration package, you’ve killed it.” “He bought off on it. [He] was able to show that potential return on investment and customer acceptance of the Buccaneer concept would enhance bowling and bring new patrons [in]. He got with Roudybush and between the two of them, they saved my funding.”

The total was $1.6 million. For $1.2 million, Fish would have ended up with a bare-bones, new but traditional-looking center. “It wouldn’t have that wild factor when someone walked in—the [graphic] lanes, the masking, the special furniture I wanted with the brown tops, the home theater unit [multi-purpose room], the murals on the walls, the Captain Hook—the stuff that when you come in accentuates the rest of the building.” That cost another $400,000.

Comparing sales and revenue the month before the center closed for remodeling and the month after the new Buccaneer Bowl opened, Fish reports a “huge difference.

The food and the incidental income [are] remaining the same [but] bowling is running 40-45% higher, number of games and revenue. Families, which are my target audience, are in there beyond my expectations.”

Bookings by family-support organizations on post fill the week. “Birthday parties have jumped through the roof. We’d have one or two birthday parties a week. Now, five or six [birthday and other parties]. We have something going on every day. Weekends [are] insane.

“Revenue,” he sums up, “went from 30

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$30-35,000, which held pretty even for the previous years, to almost $50,000.” n n n Buccaneer Bowl is not finished. It’s not clear that it ever will be.

“The idea is to keep it alive,” says Fish, “morph it, so that every couple of months, ‘I didn’t notice that!’”

When we talked, a bronze ship’s wheel, 4½ feet in diameter, was due to arrive any day. It will be fixed to the announcement board. Outside there was no sign naming the center. A logo’ed ‘Buccaneer Bowl’ for the main entrance was in the works.

If he ever runs out of plans for the building, Fish would probably add to his pirate-themed programs.

He already has “Walk the Plank” Bowling, where tournament players’ progress is marked on a miniature plank. If a player bowls less than his average, a pirate avatar moves out along the plank one step; if he loses a game, he moves two steps.

After seven steps, he falls off the plank and is eliminated from the tournament.

“Walk the Plank” Poker is a variant of Texas hold ’em, “King of the Pirates” is the Fish version of a kingof-the-hill tourney format, and quarterly “Scavenger Hunts” echo the treasure map that is part of the masking design.

After 26 years in the Army, the last six in Korea, Fish became a Department of Defense civilian employee when a position opened at another camp to help run the bowling leagues. He applied and got the job. He came to Camp Casey as one of several interim managers of the bowling center while the search was on for a permanent man. Instead, Fish was made the permanent cap’n.

He loves it, and Korea, too, though he’s had his share of frustrations. He became “Fish” for his habit of saying at moments of annoyance, “F— it, s— happens.”

These days, “Finally I’m so happy” is more like it. v

Fred Groh is a regular contributor to IBI and former managing editor of the magazine.

PROFILE

rk

By Ma

O

Miller

n the walls and above the vinyl semi-circle seats in the once-busiest bar in Joplin, MO, are numerous black-and-white photos that help tell the story of one of bowling's forgotten icons.

Mementos of days competing with some of the world's most famous keglers depict the tales of this classic American inside the 4th Street Bowl that still bears his name.

Admittedly a hustler and an excellent bowler who once owned five centers, Carl Richard was known as “Cowboy” even though he never considered himself one.

“I had a ranch with horses (and many other animals) but it was real estate,” the 90-year-old recalled. “Any money I made was in real estate. Anything I got was made in real estate.” Bowling center real estate certainly has been part of that success as Richard and his family have had a small empire in Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas for more than 50 years. The genesis of it all began on September 23, 1923 in the small southeast Kansas town of Erie. Just a short drive north is Parsons, where he was raised, and where he first learned about bowling, making 2.5 cents per pin at the town's old four-lane establishment. “I started setting pins when I was 10 years old,” he said. “Then they had me culling files and later put me at the counter. When I was a senior in high school, I was managing those bowling lanes.”

Richard's bowling career went on hiatus as he served in the Merchant Marines during World War II with most of his duty spent in the Pacific Theatre. Shortly after coming home, he married his childhood sweetheart, Norma Lee, with whom he'd have four sons and a daughter. Though he returned to working at the new 32

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PROFILE

eight-lane Parsons center, life as a married man with children had him reassess his future with proprietor J.B. Phipps. “That guy always told me he thought of me as if he had a son of his own,” Richard said. “I told him 'if you loved me so much how come you don't pay me enough?' By then I had two kids. 'You need to pay me

enough to take care of my family.' So I just quit and went to Dallas.”

Richard spent less than a year in the Metroplex earning what he could bowling in pot games and match play tournaments. He and area legend J.B. Solomon were backed by a liquor store owner named Abe Sussman.

“Those were the good old days,” Richard said. “I did real well.” Richard's talent prompted Phipps to invite him to bowl an exhibition match against then-ABC (now USBC) Hall of Famer Joe Wilman the night 4th Street Bowl opened in 1946. Richard doesn't remember his winning margin but said Phipps sold him the Parsons center soon after that match. A few years later, Richard added a six-lane establishment in nearby Pittsburg.

But Richard's on-lanes competitive drive and success often kept him away. In 1949, he was recruited to bowl with a team in his first ABC Championships Tournament in Atlantic City, where he rolled 657 to finish second in doubles with Jimmy Vaughn. “Jimmy could throw the ball as well through his legs as he could regular,” Richard said. “He was a hustler, that's what he did. We would have won doubles, but he shot the last ball through his legs and left an 8-10.”

Richard soon was recruited by Hall of Famer Buddy Bomar to substitute for Hall of Famer Ned Day on the Chicago Falstaff team. After continuing to show his prowess, Bomar convinced Richard to become a regular member with teammates such as future Hall of Famers Bill Lillard, Bill Bunetta and Don Ellis along with Stan Gifford as regular team members.

That meant selling his centers and moving to Chicago to barnstorm the country as the beer-era teams of the day often did.

A year later the team was fired, but Richard was asked to join a new Falstaff group being formed in St. Louis. Captained by Hall of Famer Buzz

The way Richard sees it...

While Carl Richard's bowling centers have fared well through the years, he's not fond of the changes he's seen during that time.

“I don't recognize the game any more,” he said. “It's a gimmick sport now. In our place right here (4th Street Bowl in Joplin, MO), if we didn't have a bunch of gimmicks, we wouldn't have any business outside of our leagues.”

The way Richard sees it, the sport changed with the advent of the System of Bowling by the former ABC and WIBC in the mid-1980s. He represented Missouri and Arkansas on a BPAA System of Bowling committee, so he was in on the discussions.

“I blame ABC,” he said. “This easy bowling condition just ruined the open bowling. Why do you want to come in here and practice when you can come in here in a league and average 220?

“You see it all over. I blame our association [BPAA] too. We helped ruin open bowling. You hear it from everybody. There is no open bowling. Unless you have a gimmick or some kind of event, people don't bowl.”

So what would Richard do if he were the czar of bowling for one day? First, stop giving away bowling. “You can't give away what you're trying to sell,” he said. “We have it right here. I'm 100 percent against 34

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it.” For many years, Richard would host summer picnics for his bowlers providing free food and refreshments and additional goodies during the winter holidays. “I'll go out and buy a carload of pizzas, and if they bowl three games at regular price, I'll fix them a free pizza. I believe in giving away somebody else's product but not mine.”

Richard also believes bowling needs more qualified coaching. “When I came here to Joplin, I was one of the high-end bowling instructors,” he said. “I had people come from Kansas City, Tulsa, and Wichita, good bowlers who wanted me to look at their games. I charged $50 for 30 minutes. But now, we're giving away so much of this free stuff, they're wanting to get instruction for free where I believe in charging. This is not a non-profit organization we're running here.”

What else would he do? “We need to get the 'used-to' bowlers back,” he said. “I bet there's 5,000 of them here in Joplin. Everyone I talk to says 'I used to bowl.' They're thinking about it but how do you get them in here? I haven't figured out how to get them in here. There's probably millions of them out there, but I'm not smart enough to figure it out.”

Despite the changes, Richard still loves the business. “Bowling is such a wonderful sport for people to meet people and exercise,” he said.

“It's a lifetime sport. We have bowlers in here from 3 to 93.”

PROFILE Fazio, it featured future members Harry Smith, Steve Nagy and Billy Welu, plus local bowler Woody Halsey. They were there the night the famous Budweisers rolled their then-record 3,858 series.

They also won the team and team all-events titles in the 1958 ABC tournament.

By 1959, Richard decided it was time to do something more stable for his family including declining to become a regular member of the fledgling PBA which he joined as a charter member.

“I had five children with me when I was in Chicago; they were just little tykes,” he said. “That was kind of stupid, wasn't it, going around trying to make a living bowling well? You have to have guts to do that. When the PBA was formed, I had already left the Falstaffs and was down here. I bowled a few events but had to raise my family and run a business.”

Richard ended that nomadic life when he bought the Joplin 4th Street Bowl from Phipps. Within two months he turned the business around which he said was going downhill. This turn-around allowed him to expand to the current 40 lanes by the early 1980s. It also helped him build the 32-lane Carl Richard Bowl East in Joplin in 1987. This coincided with the death of his wife at age 62.

The empire expanded into Arkansas with the purchase of Bowling World in Fort Smith. With 72 lanes, it was one of the biggest installations in the early 1990s.

He added Pike Bowl and Sherwood Bowl in the Little Rock area to the portfolio

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giving him and his family five centers with a total of 206 lanes.

“My family is one reason I've been able to stay in the bowling business,” he said. “They helped me do it. My son Dave ran the Little Rock centers, Randy the Fort Smith operation and my other two, Ron and Barry, were up here so I had pretty good help, damn good help.”

Richard sold the Arkansas centers within a few years and concentrated on the remaining three establishments which he sold five years ago to his sons, including Ron, a former Joplin

PROFILE mayor and now majority floor leader for the Missouri state senate.

“I gave them a deal they couldn't refuse,” he said. “When my wife and I owned it, we had two corporations (called C & N Bowl Corp.) with stock which we'd been giving them for 20 years. My accountant said maybe it was time to sell out to them and that's what I wanted to do.”

Even though he's no longer an owner, Richard can usually be found at one of the Joplin centers. “I just come in and work when someone doesn't show up which is about every day,” said the grandfather of 14 and great grandfather of 6. “Plus, I need someplace to go.”

Through the years, Richard still found ways to feed his old competitive juices. He was a member of the Kansas City Stars of the National Bowling League that lasted the 1961-62 season. His teammates included captain and Hall of Famer Joe Joseph, Bob Kelley, Loy Countryman, Glen Blakesley, Bill Pace, John Fulgard, and Hall of Famer Mike Totsky. “We had a great team,” said the 1970 Joplin bowling Hall of Famer and charter member of the Missouri Bowling Hall of Fame in 1985.

His most proud moment, however, was in 1971 when he and his sons won the Missouri Bowling Association open team title in Kansas City. He also captured doubles and all-events.

Richard bowled in about 35 ABC tournaments but none in more than 20 years, after numerous operations on his legs and concentrating on running his businesses. Does he miss those old competitive days? Absolutely. “I won a lot of tournaments, not any major tournaments, but I was more of a hustler,” he said. “To make a living I had to hustle. I had to beat somebody bowling. I never

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did practice. I did my practice bowling pot games and match games.”

Richard has fond memories of bowling as an individual. “I did real good in the [ABC] Masters,” he said, whose best finish was fifth in 1956. “I had a real good average but never won. I finished fourth in the [1958] All-Star Tournament and made the finals of the World's Invitational but never did win it. I was up in the stands making bets on bowlers. I never did go to the hotel room and rest.”

His on-lanes ability netted him the biggest honor of his eight decades in bowling on January 15, 1996 when he was the first Joplin resident inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.

Among those joining him were baseball's Bob Gibson and football's Hank Stram, Dan Devine and Jan Stenerud. It was truly a grand night for one of the best athletes in any state. v Mark Miller is a freelance writer, editor, and public relations specialist from Flower Mound, Texas. He's the author of "Bowling: America's Greatest Indoor Pastime" available at Amazon.com or directly from him at markmywordstexas@gmail.com.

OPERATIONS

P L A C E YO U R B E T S Tom Cristi’s customers do, and he’s a winner

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every time.

OPERATIONS

By Fred Groh

I

f you’re a stand-up comedian on the West Coast and you want to make it big time, chances are you sack out in L.A. So when Tom Cristi got the inspiration to install a comedy club at his bowling center half an hour north of Hollywood, he had no trouble recruiting a comic to headline it.

Vic Dunlop (recently deceased) was his name.

Every six weeks, he and a troupe of three or four other comedians he knew would do their routines for an after-dinner crowd in Cristi’s banquet room.

A three-course dinner and a two-hour show, altogether a slice of Sunset Strip nightlife in Santa Clarita, CA. Cristi, who ran the comedy club very successfully for three years, had done it again. Two other examples: In 2008, he went to Expo and discovered a line of equipment new to the U.S., Switch. It was time to upgrade and he liked everything he saw, “the graphics, the way it moved for tournaments.

We loved the back office. So I took a chance.”

“I’m not keen on taking chances. I’m a traditional guy,” he says. “I hated scorekeepers [auto scoring] when they first came out. I was the last guy to go to automatics.”

He was helped to his decision for Switch by a surprise endorsement from a rep for another manufacturer, and this was the first time Cristi “took a chance” with scoring, but it was typical of the way he does business. Becoming the first bowling center in the U.S. to install the company’s scoring (four years later he remains as happy as a clam), he was again “outside the box,” in his words.

Second example: he set up some of his league bowlers this year for a murder. Dinner and tickets to a murder-mystery show, that is.

He runs a league called Theme Parks and More, where players can pick up tickets to any So Cal theme park, such as Disneyland, Six Flags, Knott’s and Legoland, and Taste of the Town, where they get restaurant gift cards. A 30-week league this season will see players off to Hawaii for a week; $45 per session covers round-trip air and accommodations.

Tom Cristi is off to the races with his off-track betting business.

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OPERATIONS “When you’re forming leagues, besides bowling you have to entwine other things with it,” he says.

Cristi closed the comedy club in April 2012 because he had another offbeat idea.

“From noon to 5 in most bowling centers you could shoot a cannon. You might have a couple of senior leagues and a couple of youth programs,” but that’s it. He wanted something to fill the time. And by happy coincidence, most horseraces are

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run during those hours.

Cristi used to race horses.

Confessing “I’ve always been a racehorse fan,” he says he bought what he could afford, quarter horses.

You can get a good one for $5,000.

Thoroughbreds run $30,000 and up, “a whole different world.”

From 1983 to 1993, while he managed the former Kirkwood Bowl (today Pinz) a few miles from Hollywood, he raced his quarter horses at Los Alamitos, a track ten miles from Disneyland.

In 2012, “I called a couple of friends that work for the California Horse Racing Board and told them what I had in mind.

They told me it was do-able as long as I had an owner’s license, which I already had [as a past-owner of racehorses], and approval from the City of Santa Clarita.”

The city liked his idea because the city would net 0.5% of every wager made.

Cristi wanted to install “Watch and Wager,” a state-licensed hub for off-track betting, in his former comedy club/former banquet room. It would allow Cristi’s customers to wager at tracks as close as Los Alamitos or Hollywood Park (where thoroughbreds race) and as distant as Hong Kong and Australia.

“They check you inside and out,” he says, referring to the California Horse Racing Board, which regulates all horseracing in the state and controls Watch and Wager locations. “Just like those guys that have casinos in Vegas.

Like there’s no tomorrow. They go back 20 years on you.” They took three months to do it in Cristi’s case. He opened in July 2012.

Cristi gets 2% of every wager, the rest going to the tracks where the bets are placed, to the horses, and to the government. He takes 100% of all the food and beverage revenue, which reflects a slight upgrading of his bowling center menu.

He has three tellers on duty and a dozen self-service voucher machines.

Long tables seat 100, while another 20 can relax at a full bar that features nine

OPERATIONS

draft beers. Along the walls and just below the ceiling, 30 TV screens, all 42 inches across, show the racetrack action as it happens.

Below the monitors are pictures of big-name jockeys and top racetracks.

“It’s like going to the clubhouse at any racetrack,” Cristi says.

“That was my concept: to have a clubhouse atmosphere.”

He opens the room every day at 10 a.m., and the bettors are off and running. “In the morning, you can bet the tracks back East. In the daytime, you can bet the tracks back East and in the western United States. In the evenings we do harness racing from all over the country. On a Saturday afternoon, you could be betting 15 tracks.”

A meeting room just off the main entrance to the bowl is used

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to handle customer overflow when needed.

Cristi doesn’t know exactly why he got away from racing.

“I just got a little more involved in business. You go through phases in life. Would I buy a horse today?

Absolutely, but I like what I’m doing now.”

He doesn’t have to go to the track any more, he says.

“Got it right here. I have the atmosphere. It’s like being at the racetrack.”

He likes the competitive advantage he figures he has over a track. “When you go to the track you’ve got to drive, pay to park, pay to go in. All that’s on me here.”

And he loves the returns to date.

When he presented the idea to his partner in the bowling center, Scott Weiss, Cristi “had pretty tough projections. My goal was for the bettors to bet $100,000 a week, because that would give me $2,000 a week.

“In the first year we were open, they wagered $9,000,000.” v

Fred Groh is a regular contributor to IBI and former managing editor of the magazine.

SHOWCASE PLAN A PARTY PIN

Done-Rite Pins & Capital Equipment revolutionizes marketing material. Flyers get lost but a bowling pin stays around.

The idea behind “Leave a Pin to Plan a Party” is to leave a pin instead of a flyer or brochure with your customer; they bring it back in to your center for a FREE bowling party. This marketing package includes 10 sets of pins including artwork, print plate and set up. Call 800-222-2695 for more information.

MOTIV’S CRUEL INTENT

The Cruel Intent ™ is a dominating power pearl for heavy oil. It is the cleanest and most angular asymmetric ball MOTIV™ has ever produced. At the heart of the ball is the huge Sinister ™ core. It harnesses asymmetry to boost track flare and promote proper transition in very low friction environments. MOTIV™ brand bowling balls are manufactured in the USA. For more information, visit www.motivbowling.com or contact Scott Hewitt at shewitt@techlineproducts.com.

BALL STORAGE CABINETS

US Bowling Corporation’s ball storage cabinets offer stylish designs for your ball storage needs. Choose from several different wood-grain finishes or custom graphics for the best looking ball storage tables on the market. Match them with bar stools for additional seating. For more information, call toll free 877-858-2695 or email sales@usbowing.com. For a full range of products, visit www.usbowling.com.

KIDS BOWL FREE®

Bowling Business Builders International (BBBI), Kids Bowl Free ® presents its next step in an evolving marketing movement, BAMS—Bowling’s Automated Marketing System. It includes automated emails on a monthly basis; emails for national and school holidays; expanded database segments; a data collection system designed to capture data from current customers; and promotions to present to low frequency customers. For more information call 800-720-0410.

COSMIC SOCKS

Berry Cutler Hosiery has just introduced the next best thing—NEON socks. All styles, colors, sizes and designs are now available. 10,000 pair were pre-sold just from photos! “No comparison in quality or patterns to anything on the market for the money.”

Contact Berry Cutler Hosiery, Your #1 Source for Socks, Head Gear & Winter Wear, at 708-410-2500 for samples or additional information.

TWO-WAY RADIOS

Motorola two-way radios offered by PMI Radios is a must in center communication: faster team member communication; instant front end to back end communication with technicians; more efficient event coordination; eliminates overhead paging; and reduces customer wait times.

Special Buy 6 and Save! is available through December 31, 2013. For more information, call 800-215-5160 or email pmi@pmiradios.com.

PEDESTALS

Twelve Strike, a full-service company offering a wide-range of integrated system components, automatic scoring computers, pedestal units, stereo LCD overheads, graphics and 3D animation, and furniture, highlights its newly designed pedestals with touch screen 17” monitors, upgradeable, user friendly visual interface and steel tube frames. For further information, visit www.twelvestrike.com or call 562-984-6240.

KENWOOD PROTALK

AC RadioCom, an authorized Kenwood Master ProTalk® distributor, offers Kenwood’s ProTalk® two-way radio which boasts exceptional clarity, the quality of Military Standards for its durability , and a two-year warranty.

Every center needs the ease of communication which ProTalk® can deliver. To get additional information on the ProTalk XLS, call AC RadioCom at 888-271-0647 or email sales@acradiocom.com.

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DATEBOOK

JANUARY 2014

19-23 BPAA Bowling Summit Omni Hotel, San Diego, CA bpaa.com/Meetings.asp

MAY

29 – June 1 3rd Annual Hall of Fame Xtravaganza Red Rock Lanes, Las Vegas www.bowlingmuseum.com/Xtrava ganza.aspx

APRIL

22-25 USBC Convention and Annual Meeting Silver Legacy Resort & Casino, Reno Bowl.com/convention

28 – May 9 A-2 Pinsetter Training Program Moline, IL Frank Miroballi 540-325-7684; Frankm1441@aol.com

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JUNE

2-13 A-2 Pinsetter Training Program Moline, IL Frank Miroballi 540-325-7684; Frankm1441@aol.com 22-27 Bowl Expo 2014 Rosen Shingle Creek Resort & Orange County Convention Center Orlando, Florida www.bowlexpo.com

JULY

14-25 A-2 Pinsetter Training Program Moline, IL Frank Miroballi 540-325-7684; Frankm1441@aol.com

24-26 BCA Carolinas/Georgia Annual Convention Sea Trail Resort Sunset Beach, NC Howard Baum, 910-484-5178

OCTOBER

27 – November 7 A-2 Pinsetter Training Program Moline, IL Frank Miroballi 540-325-7684; Frankm1441@aol.com

C L A S S I F I E D S

EQUIPMENT FOR SALE REPAIR & EXCHANGE. Call for details (248) 375-2751.

NEW & USED Pro Shop Equipment.

Jayhawk Bowling Supply. 800-2556436 or jayhawkbowling.com.

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EQUIPMENT FOR SALE

C L A S S I F I E D S

See redline-products.com for replacement foul lights. Home of bowlingtrader.com.

FOR SALE: (2) ZOT (completely) Reconditioned Gloss Bosses - $2750/ea. 32+ lanes AMF SPL + install. Call for quote. 24 lanes Super Helix Steltronic w/ flat screens.

24 lanes Excel Scoring w/ flat screens. Parts out the wazoo! Complete installs/packages available. Contact Knotrite LLC @ (970) 946-9933; knotritellc@gmail.com.

AMF • BRUNSWICK EQUIPMENT COMPLETE PACKAGES WORLDʼS LARGEST NEW – USED SPARE PARTS INVENTORY ALL AMF BUMPER PARTS, XS Q-BUMP, DURABOWL AND GEN II IN STOCK

SEL

BUY

Danny & Daryl Tucker

Tucker Bowling Equipment Co. 609 N.E. 3rd St. Tulia, Texas 79088 Call (806) 995-4018 Fax (806) 995-4767

Bowling Parts, Inc. P.O. Box 801 Tulia, Texas 79088 Call (806) 995-3635 Email - daryl@tuckerbowling.com

www.tuckerbowling.com

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FOR SALE: 16 lanes & 8 lanes (combined 24 lanes) Steltronic auto scoring Super Helix with flat screens; 24 lanes AMF SPL synthetic panels; 24 lanes Pro Anvil, full lane; ZOT reconditioned Gloss Boss; 24 lanes XL scoroing. Installation available. knotritellc@gmail.com or (970) 946-9933.

FOR SALE: “The Sanction Machine” by Kegel. Great shape; works well. Wickless technology. Center out of business. Call (404) 804-5404.

WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/BOWLINGFAN

EQUIPMENT WANTED LANE MACHINES WANTED. We will purchase your KEGEL-built machine, any age or condition. Call (608) 764-1464.

MANAGER WANTED Don't miss your chance to grow with an Industry Leader! Looking for Experienced, Service-Oriented General Managers for our U.S. bowling retail center locations.

Please check us out at www.brunswickcareers.apply2jobs.c om for more details on our current openings. Act Now! Apply Today!

Looking for manager for New Jersey center. Must have strong team, customer service & marketing skills, plus be able to build a strong team. Send resume to (818) 789-2695.

POSITION WANTED Accomplished District Manager with unique Operational, Team Building/Leadership and Marketing skills seeking comparable position.

Very organized, self-motivated, multi-task master with a “can do” attitude. Open to relocation. Johnmillen@optonline.net or (201) 657-4684.

MANAGEMENT POSITION: strong, allaround center experience, including operating and maintaining equipment, leagues, tournaments & specialty events, and YBA coaching. Also a background in business and communications. Resume available. Kim Manley (910) 918-9832 or gesith@gmail.com.

"Bowling Center Construction Specialists" New Center Construction Family Entertainment Centers Residential Bowling Lanes Modernization Mini Bowling Lanes Automatic Scoring CONTACT

For FLORIDA CENTERS Call DAVID DRISCOLL & ASSOCIATES 1-800-444-BOWL 3800 Lake Center Loop, Suite B1, Mount Dora, FL 32757-2208 AN AFFILIATE OF SANDY HANSELL & ASSOCIATES

C L A S S I F I E D S

BRIAN ESTES

Toll Free: (866) 961-7633 Office: (734) 469-4293 Email: build@capitalbowlingservice.com

www.CapitalBowlingService.com

PROPRIETORS WITH AMF 82-70 S.S. & M.P. MACHINES Save $$ on Chassis & P.C. Board Exchange & Repair!

A reasonable alternative for Chassis and P.C. Board Exchanges MIKE BARRETT Call for Price List

Tel: (714) 871-7843 • Fax: (714) 522-0576

SELL YOUR CENTER

(818) 789-2695

SERVICES AVAILABLE Drill Bit Sharpening and Measuring Ball Repair. Jayhawk Bowling Supply. 800255-6436 or Jayhawkbowling.com.

AMF 5850 & 6525 CHASSIS. Exchange your tired or damaged chassis for an upgraded, rewired, cleaned, painted and ready-to-run chassis. Fast turn around.

Lifetime guarantee. References available.

CHASSIS DOCTOR (330) 314-8951.

SELL YOUR CENTER

(818) 789-2695

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C L A S S I F I E D S

CENTERS FOR SALE ALABAMA: 30-lane, well-established, profitable center with kitchen, lounge & pro shop. Real estate included. Located in thriving Huntsville. Russ Russell Commercial Real Estate (256) 536-7777.

WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA: One of the top five places to move! Remodeled 32-lane center. Good numbers. $3.1m gets it all. Fax qualified inquiries to (828) 253-0362.

GEORGIA: busy 32-lane center, real estate included. Great location in one of fastest growing counties in metro Atlanta.

5 years new with all the amenities.

Excellent numbers. Call (770) 356-8751.

CENTERS FOR SALE CENTRAL MINNESOTA: 6-lane center.

Owner retiring. $99,900.

Hartmann@midwestinfo.net. (320) 760-3377.

CENTRAL IDAHO: 8-lane center and restaurant in central Idaho mountains.

Small town. Only center within 60-mile radius. Brunswick A-2 machines; Anvilane lane beds; automatic scoring.

(208) 879-4448.

NE MINNESOTA: Food, Liquor & Bowling. Established 8 lanes between Mpls & Duluth w/ large bar, dining room, banquet area. Two large State employment facilities nearby. High six figure gross. Call Bryan (218) 380-8089. www.majesticpine.com.

EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA: 6-lane Brunswick center, bar & grill, drive-thru liquor store in small college town. Also, 3 apartment buildings with 40 units, good rental history. Call (701) 330-7757 or (701) 430-1490.

MINIATURE GOLF COURSES Indoor/Outdoor. Portable/Pre-Fab. Black Light/Traditional/Pro Putter.

202 Bridge Street Jessup, PA 18434 570-489-8623 www.minigolfinc.com

LOCKER KEYS FAST!

•Keys & Combo Locks for all Types of Lockers.

•One week turnaround on most orders.

•New locks All types

All keys done by code #.

No keys necessary.

•Used locks 1/2 price of new

E-mail: huff@inreach.com CALL TOLL FREE

1-800-700-4KEY Orange County Security Consultants

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CENTERS FOR SALE NW KANSAS: 12-lane center, AS-80s, Lane Shield, snack bar, pro shop, game & pool rooms.

See pics and info @ www.visitcolby.com or contact Charles (785) 443-3477.

SOUTHWEST KANSAS: well-maintained 8-lane center, A-2s, full-service restaurant.

Includes business and real estate. Nice, smaller community. Owner retiring. $212,000. Leave message (620) 397-5828.

16-lane center in Southern Colorado mountains. Great condition. 18,000 s/f building w/ restaurant & lounge.

Paved parking 100 + vehicles.

Established leagues & tournaments. $950,000 or make offer.

Kipp (719) 852-0155.

CENTRAL ILLINOIS: PRICED TO SELL!! 8-lane center with AMF 82-70s, full service restaurant, pro shop. Plus pool tables, karaoke machine & DJ system.

Asking $125,000.00 with RE. (217) 3515152 or toms-uvl@sbcglobal.net.

CENTERS FOR SALE

C L A S S I F I E D S

EASTERN OKLAHOMA: Newly remodeled & upgraded 20-lane center with laser tag, large game room and thriving lounge.

Option to purchase shopping center available. Owner financing possible.

(719) 251-1616.

NEW YORK STATE: Thousand Island region. 8-lane Brunswick center w/ cosmic bowling, auto scoring. Established leagues + many improvements. $309,000. Call Jill @ Lori Gervera Real Estate (315) 771-9302.

NW NEVADA: Retiring Owner-Financed.

12-Lanes + Leased CafĂŠ + Large Bar/Lounge + Arcade. Established Bowling Leagues + Pool Leagues/Tournaments + Slots. A-2s, Synthetic Lanes, Auto-Scoring, 13,000 s/f Building, 2 Acres, All Equipment. $950K; $50K Down; 5% Interest. (775) 867-5551 or Email: oasisbowlcasino@yahoo.com.

SELL YOUR CENTER OR EQUIPMENT

(818) 789-2695

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C L A S S I F I E D S

SERVICE CALLS WORLDWIDE • PRE-SHIPS • WE SELL

AS80/90 • BOARD REPAIR • Frameworx NEW KEYPADS • FRONT DESK LCD MONITORS

Michael P. Davies (321) 254-7849

291 Sandy Run, Melbourne, FL 32940

on the web: bowlingscorer.com email: mike@bowlingscorer.com

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SELL YOUR CENTER

(818) 789-2695

3

EASY WAYS

C L A S S I F I E D S

to place your Classified Ad in International Bowling Industry Magazine

Call

(818) 789-2695

Fax

(818) 789-2812

E-mail your ad to: info@bowlingindustry.com

INTEGRATED SOLUTIONS FOR OPTIMIZING CASH FLOW

Expense Reduction Solutions • • • • •

Credit Card Processing Fees Lease/Rent Restructuring Telecom Rate Savings Business Insurance Premiums Payroll Processing Savings CONTACT:

Andrew Nadler,

CEO

(240) 821 - 6900

anadler@summit-strategies.com www.summit-strategies.com Clients include: AMF and some BRUNSWICK PC board repair/exchange. 6-month warranty, fast turnaround. Call or write: WB8YJF Service 5586 Babbitt Road, New Albany, Ohio 43054 Toll Free: 888-902-BOWL (2695) Ph./Fax: (614) 855-3022 (Jon) E-mail: wb8yjf@earthlink.net Visit us on the WEB! http://home.earthlink.net/~wb8yjf/

ARE YOU A FAN OF BOWLING?

www.Facebook.com/BowlingFan IBI

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REMEMBER WHEN

olidays? during the h d e w o sn When there hen it always ur wish list? emember w yo n o g in th r? When ot every put togethe e b When you g to d e d e f? When y that ne on your roo r e e wasn’t one to d in re re you heard ishap? you were su ithout one m w r e ing fun. th e g to ays from be lid mily got o fa h e le o th h p w o e card to th n’t st ared this old But that did sh o r! n e a h it zz e e n P e M huck takes a ling writer C ason, Santa w se o y b a ry lid a o d h n e e Leg e rush of th at even in th point out th urs a very bowl. h you and yo is w to t moment to n e a mom And, we take S ay eason. v Happy Holid

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