International Bowling Industry Magazine 06/11

THE WORLD'S ONLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY TO THE BUSINESS OF BOWLING

CONTENTS

VOL 19.6

6 ISSUE AT HAND

38 COVER STORY

Romancing Bowling

Knuckleheads

By Scott Frager

Making a splash in the Waterpark Capital of the World

By Robin Breuner

8 SHORTS Inspirational read Lebowski Fest hits Ohio “Twilight” celebrity bowling Ebonite picks Pete Moyer

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46 OPERATIONS Kicking the Habit, an update on smoking legislation

By Mark Miller

PUBLISHER & EDITOR Scott Frager frager@bowlingindustry.com Skype: scottfrager

DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING Chris Holmes holmes@bowlingindustry.com

EDITORIAL CONSULTANT Gregory Keer keer@bowlingindustry.com

OFFICE MANAGER Patty Heath heath@bowlingindustry.com

CONTRIBUTORS Robin Breuner Bree Gutierrez Patty Heath Evan Henerson Mark Miller Ken Paton Lydia Rypcinski Joan Taylor SPECIAL PROJECTS Jackie Fisher fisher@bowlingindustry.com

52 OFF THE CLOCK

18 OPERATIONS

Rich Sheldon of Saratoga Strike Zone scores Yukon Gold

Revisiting league bowling Proprietors share their secrets

By Ken Paton

By Bree Gutierrez

55 WHAT BOWLING MEANS TO ME

22 CENTER STAGE

Al Jones

Kids Bowl Free The “wonder bus” hits 35 states, 50 cities and 101 centers

38

Life lessons on and off the lanes

By Joan Taylor

66 REMEMBER WHEN

24 PROFILE

1936

Agawam Bowl

A symbolic competition?

Mark Fleming, after 27 tenpin centers, goes back to candlepin

By Evan Henerson

54 Showcase 55 Datebook 56 Classifieds

30 PROMOTIONS Backhaul Direct Driving bowling sponsorships in new directions

By Lydia Rypcinski

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

FOUNDER Allen Crown (1933-2002)

13245 Riverside Dr., Suite 501 Sherman Oaks, CA 91423 (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, 13245 Riverside Drive, Suite 501, Sherman Oaks, CA 91423 USA. If possible, please furnish address mailing label.

Printed in U.S.A. Copyright 2010, 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

Romancing Bowling We’ve all heard the saying “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.”

This wedding tradition was started in Victorian times to provide good luck to the bride.

Since my wife, Jackie, and I are celebrating our 16th anniversary this month, I felt it might be fun, even a challenge, to turn this column into my very own good luck charm. Who couldn’t use a little good luck these days, right?

Something Old What goes together better than bowling and leagues? Like film’s Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, storybook’s Sleeping Beauty and Prince Charming, history’s John Smith and Pocahontas and even tragically Romeo and Juliet, bowling and leagues are just simply meant to be together.

Sure, every great relationship goes through stages of development. There are good times, bad times, and times that require a lot of work and effort to push through the challenges. There’s little doubt that league bowling has passed its honeymoon stage and could probably use a little marriage counseling.

This month, we welcome back our long-time contributor, Ken Paton, who has interviewed top proprietors on how they’ve reinvigorated their relationships with leagues.

Something New If variety is the spice of life, consider what “honeymooner-proprietor” Rich Sheldon of Saratoga Strike Zone in Saratoga, New York does when he’s not busy working at his newly remodeled

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center. His Off-the-Clock product comes in different flavors and very well may transport you back to when Queen Victoria ruled the United Kingdom and the theme of this column, “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue” was born.

Something Borrowed In order to clear the air about the current state of bowling and smoking, we’ve borrowed a story from our past. Not a lot has been written about the no smoking trend since the early 2000’s.

Sure, many states and industries have been trying to buck the restrictive trends but their fights have been somewhat futile. This report sheds some light on how U.S. bowling centers are coping with having to kick the habit.

Something Blue Our cover story this month features a center located in the heart of Wisconsin called Knuckleheads. Colloquially known as the “Waterpark Capital of the World,” the Wisconsin Dells is a summer wonderland with more activities than one can shake a stick at, including bowling. The modern Brunswick-equipped center has 24 lanes under an 80,000 square foot roof and is packed with entertainment amenities beyond compare. With warm blue water all around it in the summer, this center faces unique challenges staying busy when the Midwest loses its sizzle and turns ice-cold.

Like any good relationship, clear communication and a lot of giveand-take are keys to success. I’ve enjoyed bringing IBI to you every month for close to 19 years now. I thank you for your support, and I also thank IBI’s advertisers for their dedication through the years.

I would be remiss in not thanking my bride and good luck charm, Jackie, for the past 16 years of marriage! .

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

SHORTS

Refusing to Lose ….

C E L E B R I T Y

Hope and perseverance are often forged from the most difficult of situations.

Olivia Davis, daughter of Bruce Davis and Stephanie Davis, a Certified Professional Life Coach, was diagnosed at seven years of age with Rasmussen Encephalitis, a degenerative disease creating inflammation in the brain which, in turn, causes seizures. Five surgeries and 100 seizures a day later, Olivia and her family opted for a hemispherectomy removing the diseased half of her brain.

This family’s journey and the fears and joys it has brought are now shared by Stephanie in her inspirational book, “Refusing to Lose.”

Through these pages not only is Olivia’s optimism and courage displayed but also the life lessons from which everyone can benefit.

One year after her hemispherectomy, Olivia has earned a spot on her school’s volleyball team as an excellent server and spiker; all with one good arm and leg.

In March, Stephanie and Olivia traveled to Washington D.C. for the National Epilepsy Foundation. Stephanie spoke at the Public Policy Institute to affiliates, parents and doctors throughout the U.S. sharing her experiences and insights in what they could do to support the Foundation in their areas.

At the same time, Olivia was invited to speak to legislators on behalf of the Kids Speak Up program, gaining “ears and hearts for funding that is so crucial.”

Visit Stephanie’s website at: www.refusingtolosebook.com to order Stephanie Davis and Olivia in Washington D.C. in March 2011 your copy.

BOWLING EVENT “Twilight” brightens Oak Bowl, Washington Rain did not dampen spirits of those who came to Oak Bowl in Oak Harbor, WA to meet and greet Kiowa Gordon who plays Embry Call in the motion picture series “The Twilight Saga.” Young kids, old “kids” and teens all chatted with and got autographs from the generous actor who, to rest his writing hand, took a break and went into the kitchen and helped prepare and toss pizzas.

Proprietors Jason and John Youngsman who have been around bowling and promotion in the nightclub industry, use their expertise to find new, creative ways to market to the young crowd. Kiowa, one might say, was almost a pre-rally for Kids Bowl Free in which Oak Bowl will participate this summer.

John said that getting kids in the doors and creating a database from which to promote bowling is “gold.” Possible car shows and bike demonstrations in their large parking lot are other events on their “to do” list.

PEOPLEWATCHING

Pete Moyer joins Ebonite Bowling Center Direct Randy Schickert, CEO of Ebonite International has announced that Pete Moyer (pictured), formerly Business Development Manager for Blitz USA, is Pete Moyer the new Director of Ebonite Bowling Center Direct.

“Pete brings a great deal of leadership experience to his new role at Bowling Center Direct,” said Schickert.

“His understanding of and experience with commercial industries will be a huge 8

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asset to Ebonite International as we build our bowling center-focused business segment.”

Prior to joining Blitz USA, Moyer served as VP of Marketing for DESA International. In his new role, he will oversee the development, sales and marketing of products specifically for bowling centers. He will also direct the bowling bag product development and business for each of Ebonite International’s ball brands.

A Syracuse native and graduate of Clarkston University, Moyer and his wife now reside in Joplin, MO.

SHORTS

Charity Begins on the Lanes Bowling is more than just a business; it is an adjunct to the community. As you read below, centers focus time and effort to helping charitable events.

In Parkersburg, West Virginia, Emerson Lanes hosted the West Virginia Symphony League’s “Strike Out for Music” fundraiser. Hoping to bolster the orchestra’s music education programs, center manager John Fazio designated 46 lanes for the event.

Supporting the Special Olympics, the Wilkes-Barre Fire Department Athletic Association sponsored a tournament at Chacko’s Lanes in Wilkes-Barre, Pennyslvania. The young athletes bowled for a chance to compete in the state tournament later in the year.

In Holland, Michigan, Kandu Inc. threw a bowling fundraiser at Century Lanes. Kandu is a nonprofit agency providing opportunities for people with barriers to employment. According to the Holland Sentinel, more than 1,200 people each year benefit from these services.

AMF Town and Country Lanes in Columbia, Missouri, was the venue for “Bowling for Autism.”

The program has raised more than $150,000 over the past seven years. According to the organizers, this year’s event was expected to sell out with over 140 bowlers participating.

The Orphan Foundation established its 1st Annual New England “Best Ball” Bowling Challenge at Bradley Bowl in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. “We’re hoping to provide grants to as many as 10 families as a result of this one event,” stated Joe DiDonato, co-founder of the foundation.

Options for Independence, an organization that helps needy individuals and families get essential products such as shampoo, soap and diapers sponsored a bowla-thon at Falcons Lanes in Auburn, New York. The event was definitely a strike as more than $2,000 was raised from the combined donations, registration fees and raffles. Auburnpub quoted Sara Douglass of Options for Independence as saying, “We love bowling so much we just thought everybody could come out and have a good time.”

Twenty teams competed at Jett Bowl North, Laredo, Texas for trophies while raising money for families and older people who go to community centers in rural areas in and around Webb, Texas.

In every city across the country, bowling centers are facilitating events in their communities to help those in need. Our hats are off to all of you! Let us know what you’re center is doing.

MORTARBOARDS IN THE AIR FOR CURRENT MANAGEMENT GRADUATES Graduates from the current BPAA Bowling University Management School completed their course April 15 and now are returning home to their respective centers to put in place all the revenue growing and cost reduction ideas they learned.

Topics, to name only a few, were Revenue Management, Center Demographics, Hiring and Training Employees, Party Planning, Operating Practices and many more applicable segments.

Ken Blanchard’s Leadership and the One Minute Manager series and Franklin Covey’s FOCUS: Achieving Your Highest Priorities curriculum were also conducted.

The next available session will be held November 11th at the International Bowling Campus. Contact Education@bpaa.com or (800) 343-1329, Ext. 8462.

Front row, left to right: Bart Burger, Corine Oliver, Mike Peden, Georganne Morris, Richard Fraielli and Margaret Perry. Back row, left to right: Chris Johnson, Bill Anderson, Chris Skillings, Paula Hohnstein, Mike Cannington, Michael Rowe, Tracy Peltier and Kelly Bednar

NAIR RECEIVES HONOR NAIR was recently honored with a place in the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame. Eric Kearney (right), the acting director, presented to Gregg Pasdiora (left), president of NAIR, a plaque which hangs in the room dedicated to technology in bowling. This event preceeds NAIR’s celebration of its 40th anniversary which will be held September 19 - 21 at the Lincolnshire Resort north of Chicago.

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SHORTS

Media

WATCH

BOWLING MADE EASY It’s not every day that bowling gets a front page, feature article in the New York Times.

However, the Friday, April 29th Weekend Arts section made a point of getting down and getting real through David Belcher’s article, “Back-to-Basics Bowling (No Fancy-Pants Stuff).”

His lament is more common than one might think. “Why can’t I just go bowling the way it was meant to be: unpretentious, inexpensive and accompanied by greasy food and old T-shirts.”

With all the new, high-end venues cropping up, Belcher’s goal was to find just plain bowling centers.

And he did!

Traditional bowling, family-friendly, is alive and well throughout the U.S. In his nostalgic journey, Belcher takes us to four centers making bowling fun in four New York boroughs: Queens – Whitestone Lanes; Brooklyn – Melody Lanes; Harlem – Harlem Lanes; The Bronx – Van Nest Lanes. The reader gets the impression that it doesn’t have to be complicated; the choices are many and the experience satisfying no matter how it is approached.

The Lebowski Fest hits Columbus A bathrobe, sunglasses, and a black Russian could mean only one thing, the Coen brothers’ film “The Big Lebowski.”

Columbus fans came in droves to participate in the Lebowski Fest held at Columbus Square Bowling Palace this April. While the movie was released in 1998, its fame and fortune have had a slow climb to cult popularity.

The Fest began in Louisville, Kentucky in 2002. And according to Matt Kraus of The Lantern, Will Russell and Scott Shuffitt, who co-founded the celebration, never expected the event to become as big as it has. Lebowski Fests have been held in Las Vegas, New York City, Los Angeles and several other American cities plus the United Kingdom in 2007.

The event in Columbus was the 42nd Lebowski Fest.

Participants dressed in various shades of Jeff Bridges’ The Dude, Walter Sobchak, the ill-tempered Vietnam veteran played by John Goodman and Steve Buscemi’s character, Donny to name just a few. High-end bowling or low-end bowling, The Dude abides.

BillGreenStudios.com 12

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WOMEN EARN CHANCE TO WIN $1,000,000!

BPAA announced the details for what is tapped as a game-changing 2011 Bowling’s U.S. Women’s Open that will set new standards for the industry and capture a spot for the Women’s Open in the pages of professional sports lore.

The event, which is sponsored by The Brands of Ebonite International, Jani King and Gatorade G2, will take place in Cowboys Stadium on June 30.

Capping the event and one of the many “firsts”, the BPAA will award a competitor who rolls a perfect game of 300 in the 2011 Bowling’s U.S. Women’s Open Championship Match one million dollars, an amount that is unprecedented in the history of bowling along with a $50,000 championship purse and $5,000 to worldrenowned Tiffany & Co. to commemorate the achievement.

The Open Finals will feature the world’s top five women bowlers who advance through the tournament. The Finals will be broadcast on ESPN2’s “Best and the Brightest” on Saturday, July 2, 2011.

SHORTS

BOWLMOR LANES TOUTS US Bowling and Gametrade Cinch Deal SEXIER SIDE OF BOWLING The shot opens with a couple engaged in a passionate, no holds barred kiss. The camera pulls out to reveal that the couple is on one of the lanes at Bowlmore. What follows is a montage in reverse motion set to seductive electronic music depicting the entire evening preceding the kiss. The final shot is on the street outside Bowlmor Lanes as the young man waits for his date to arrive.

“Bowl the Perfect First Date” is the first of a series of 60second, local market television spots promoting Bowlmor Lanes.

Some of the networks include Comedy Central, E!, Spike, CNBC, MTV, FX, TNT, TBS and A&E. The campaign will also showcase corporate events and kid parties and will be supported in print and through social media. To view “Bowl the Perfect First Date” go to www.bowlingindustry.com and scroll down to videos.

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In April, US Bowling Corporation entered into a distributor agreement with Gametrade Group, which will represent US Bowling products in the Ukraine and Russian territories. “This has been a growing territory for US

On the left, Yaroslav Sobko, CEO of Gametrade Group with Mark Marchido of US Bowling Corporation

Bowling for many years and it was important for us to create a relationship with the right company to distribute our products. We are truly excited to add Gametrade to our growing worldwide distributor network,” says Mark Marchido, Vice President of Sales.

OPERATIONS

BY

KEN PATON

W

hen I talk to proprietors about how and why they got into the bowling business, the universal story starts with participating in junior and then adult leagues, working at one or more centers, and finally buying a center of their own. The consistent themes in these stories are the enjoyment and challenge that come from competing in a league environment. But despite most proprietors’ personal history of league bowling, today the vast majority of the financial statements that I have seen show a decline in league revenue over several years.

Each proprietor who lost revenue had an explanation for the decline, but the common thread was that many focused heavily on increasing open play or their food and bar operations while only working on leagues during the fall. Most of their marketing dollars, as well as their time, were spent on generating more glow bowling, birthday parties, and corporate events. While these areas are important and often generate higher margins than leagues, these all involve discretionary spending which has been cut back as a result of the recession. League revenue has traditionally been much more resistant to the effect of recessions due to the strong tie league bowlers have to their sport.

I talked to several proprietors, who were able to increase their league revenue over the past two years, to find out what techniques and promotions they found successful. Not surprisingly, many relied on traditional techniques but several tried new promotions. Each of these proprietors had one or more specific goals for each promotion or activity: retaining existing bowlers, converting casual bowlers to league bowlers, or adding new leagues. Some techniques overlap into one or more of these categories, but the key was that these proprietors focused on league revenue throughout the year.

Retain Existing Bowlers The cost of gaining a new customer is generally considered to be five times the cost of retaining an old one. A study by the American Society for Quality found that 68% of customers who left one business for another were turned away by poor 16

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customer service while 14% were dissatisfied with the product and only 9% were lured away by the competition. No research has been done to see if this is valid in bowling, but it appears to hold true.

Grand Station Entertainment, a 40-lane center in College Station, Texas is nearly full with leagues during weeknight evenings. Mike Logan feels that although they do a good job of recruiting new league bowlers, their success has primarily been the result of retaining a high percentage of their bowlers each year. Focusing all employees on customer service is a critical part of the plan. Each employee is regularly evaluated on his or her customer service skills. Promotions and raises are decided, to a great extent, on these evaluations. However, he admits that his oil pattern that produces higher scores also contributes to his high retention rate since few of his bowlers are interested in participating in tournaments.

Jamie Brooks feels that “a consistently good bowling experience” is behind the success of Plano Super Bowl, a 40lane center in Plano, Texas. Plano has substantially more competition as a Dallas suburb than does College Jamie Brooks, Plano Super Bowl Station which is more isolated. Despite this, Plano was able to grow its league revenue substantially between 2007 and 2010. Part of its customer service consists of simple items like making sure that “everything runs” due to constant maintenance.

Other factors include equipment and building upgrades plus more complex items such as hiring and training good staff and simple items such as a friendly environment. Jamie said that

OPERATIONS the staff maintains a high level of communication with the bowlers, and creates a friendly atmosphere that encourages bowlers to want to return – and to encourage their friends to bowl at Plano Super Bowl.

Convert Casual Bowlers to League Bowlers Casual bowlers provide an ideal opportunity for generating league bowlers. First, they have already shown their interest in bowling. Second, they are already in your center making them an easy target for low cost marketing using flyers and personal contact. Finally, you get several opportunities to get information in front of them because they return on a regular basis.

Debbie Williams from Crossroads Bowl, a 32lane center in Beaumont, Texas talked about their success with classic activities that have been used to convert casual Debbie Williams, Crossroads Bowl bowlers into league bowlers. One is keeping flyers on the floor promoting leagues. However, Debbie felt the most effective method was direct personal contact with the bowlers. She and her staff approach bowlers on a regular basis to promote leagues, and they provide information on how leagues work to “take the scary” out of trying something new.

Alan Stanford uses daytime Monte Carlo and No Tap tournaments to attract seniors to Spare Time Lanes, a 24-lane center in Pasco, Washington. These seniors generally come an hour early to socialize, and Alan joins them to promote daytime senior leagues. Each day he talks about league opportunities and the low cost of bowling in a senior league.

Primarily as a result of his socializing, the number of senior league bowlers has risen more than 300% since 2006 when he acquired the center.

Jean Brund made junior bowling a major focus as soon as she and her husband Kent purchased Freedom Lanes, a 24-lane center in Duncan, Oklahoma. Using coaching as the primary tool, she was able to increase the junior program from three 18

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to twenty-five bowlers during her first year in the center. The increased interest in junior bowling then led to an increased interest in their family tournament which in turn led to higher pro shop sales as well as more food and beverage sales.

Max Cook, who is a consultant to the bowling industry as well as an owner of North Bowl in Spokane, Washington, talked about how some proprietors are uncomfortable with making cold calls. Others get so busy with “firefighting” inside the building that they have no time to make outside calls.

For these proprietors he recommends making regular contact with casual bowlers in the center by opening a conversation with “Is there anything I can do?” and then leading to “How did you start bowling?” to develop a relationship with the bowlers. The key is to get the bowler talking about his or her positive experience with bowling and then ask, “Would you like to join a league?”

Form New Leagues New leagues have traditionally been a popular way to increase league revenue. One or more sales calls to a local business or organization could generate a new league made up of employees of the company or members of the organization. Today, fewer proprietors seem to be taking the time to make cold calls in the community. However, there are other opportunities to form new leagues.

League bowlers filled Spare Time Bowl in Pasco Monday through Friday but there appeared to be a demand for a scratch league. Despite the demand, Alan Stanford had no room without creatively reorganizing the existing leagues. To make room, he approached his Tuesday night league about splitting into two leagues. Teams would be reduced from four to three bowlers to allow the leagues to finish in less time. One would start at 5:45 and finish at 7:30 while the other would start

TODAY, FEWER PROPRIETORS SEEM TO BE TAKING THE TIME TO MAKE COLD CALLS IN THE COMMUNITY. at 7:45 and end at 10:00. A lower price encouraged the bowlers to agree to the change. This reduced the number of lanes in use on Tuesday night and created space for the scratch league. All of the lanes were re-oiled between shifts with a different shot for each league. A sponsor was found to

OPERATIONS contribute $4,000 to the scratch league prize fund while Spare Time contributed another $2,000. Word of mouth advertising was sufficient to fill the league with no other out of pocket costs.

Bill Ross used a cruise league to attract new bowlers to The Bowling Barn in Big Bear Lake, California. He offered three and seven day cruises as prizes and used in-house flyers and the local newspaper as well as radio and TV to advertise the Bill Ross, The Bowling Barn leagues. He also paid $50 to each bowler who referred a friend who bowled the entire season. As a result of this promotion, he added two new leagues. 55% to 60% of the new bowlers had never bowled in a league prior to this.

Partnering with a local travel agency helped generate a discount on the price of the cruises.

Bowl New England added an “8 for 8” promotion in all of their eighteen centers last fall, reports Tim Corley. Eight weeks of non-sanctioned bowling for $8 per week attracted new bowlers to their centers. Tim felt that a shorter schedule coupled with a new ball at the Tim Corley, Bowl New England completion of the sessions would attract more bowlers than a twelve week session. They used cable TV advertising as well as outside sales calls to generate interest. This resulted in roughly 70% of the bowlers being new to the centers. Traditional in-house promotions such as flyers and personal contact generated the remaining 30% from existing casual bowlers.

They were able to convert 65% to 70% of the initial league to a second eight week league using ten free game coupons and coaching tips as additional incentives.

2010

League Lineage A BPAA study in the fall of 2010 found that 12.4% of the centers that responded had league lineage that was up 5% or more. 15.8% reported lineage that was up 1% to 4% while 17.4% reported lineage that was flat from 2009. 32.4% of the centers reported lineage that was down 1% to 5% but 21.6% reported league lineage down 5% or more.

Thus, more than half of the centers reported league lineage that was down from the previous year. However, this study may understate the situation since a high proportion of strong centers normally respond to these surveys while weaker centers are underrepresented. By comparison, the USBC reports that the number of sanctioned league bowlers declined by 6.4% in both 2009 and 2010.

Every center is going to lose league bowlers. Divorces, job transfers, loss of a job, time commitments to family, and medical problems are some of the reasons that bowlers drop out of leagues. Filling those positions often requires the use of any and all of the outlined techniques available to a proprietor.

In a soft economy people have a variety of places to spend their entertainment and recreation dollars. Recreational bowling appears to continue to grow in popularity, but league revenue has steadily declined at many centers. Part of bowling’s success during the last fifty years has been the commitment league bowlers have had to the sport. Many proprietors have found that one way to combat the weak economy is with a renewed emphasis on league bowling. They have found that today’s league bowler has the same commitment to the sport as in previous years. Using traditional, as well as new, techniques to add and retain league bowlers can provide substantial dividends for your center with increased revenue as well as more satisfied bowlers to spread the word about your center. ❖

Ken Paton is a financial consultant to the bowling industry with more than 30 years experience working with small business. He practices in Portland, OR, and can be reached at 503-645-5630.

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CENTER STAGE

he Kids Bowl Free motor coach crossed the U.S. on a 36-day trek to 35 states, 50 cities and 101 centers on a mission to spread the gospel of youth bowling. At each stop, interest and excitement permeated the crowds of bowlers and on-lookers.

FUN, HEALTHY, STAYING BUSY were the words that not only thrilled parents, but kids thought they were good ideas too.

Darrin Spindler and Andy O’Mara of Kids Bowl Free called the big, blue bus which had a rock star, “On the Road Again” feel to it home, as they traveled hither and yon taking the message of summer bowling to kids.

The tour, a huge undertaking and one of the more innovative promotions to capture the youth market, was totally underwritten by the Kids Bowl Free program. ❖

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CENTER STAGE

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PROFILE

A JOURNEY BACK TO

CANDLEPIN 27 centers and counting, Mark Fleming rediscovers his roots with Agawam Bowl.

BY

F

24

EVAN HENERSON rom a young age, Mark Fleming discovered he had a knack not only for the sport of bowling, but for purchasing failing centers, modernizing and fixing them up, attracting a

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steady clientele and then moving on to repeat the same process with another facility. His first 20 bowling centers were traditional tenpin facilities scattered throughout central and southern Minnesota and North Dakota.

Fleming’s 21st center, however, was different.

In acquiring and revamping Agawam Bowl, a two story, 22-lane center in the town of Agawam, Fleming returned to live in his home state of Massachusetts for the first time in 20 years. He also bought a center where the game is played in a way that many traditionalists won’t recognize: the ball is smaller and lighter, the pins are odd-looking with straight vertical lines, and the scores – computed differently – are lower, with the highest recorded score being 245.

For those readers who can’t place a sport that fits this description, know that Agawam is a candlepin bowling center, which is sort of fitting since its new owner was raised on the less often played, small ball sport of candlepin and bowled it through his mid teens.

“I hadn’t bowled candlepin in 25 years,” recalls Fleming.

“My first season back, I averaged 127. It’s like it came back

PROFILE to me like riding a bike.”

Or maybe like riding a tricycle. Candlepin, the lowestscoring of all the small ball games, consists of 10 frames, three roles each, and the toppled pins – called wood - are not cleared away, but remain in the field of play and can be used strategically. The balls measure four and a half inches in diameter and max out at two pounds, seven ounces.

“It’s a great sport and, it seems to me, a good form of exercise,” says Anna Daudelin, a regular at Agawam Bowl for 30 years who bowls candlepin in large part because of a muscular disease that makes a smaller ball a necessity. “With tenpin, it may be more of a challenge with a bigger ball and bigger pins.

With candlepin, it’s more like you have to know how to hit the pins, and have a lot of luck.”

The sport itself could use some good fortune if future generations are going to be joining leagues and aiming to topple high scores. Candlepin was developed in 1880 in Worcester, Mass., and is now found almost exclusively on the east coast, in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New Brunswick. The International Candlepin Bowling Association (ICBA) consists of 67 centers (Agawam Bowl

is not one of them).

“The sport is holding its own,” reports Dan Murphy, ICBA’s managing director. “They’re all mom and pop, niche organizations. Now it’s the second generation, and they have to work 24/7 to make it go.”

“It seems to attract blue collar people a lot of the time, not that we don’t have our doctors and lawyers,” continues Murphy. “And now we’re skewing more toward open play with the complete package of bowling, lounge and restaurant.”

Even after a two decade absence, Fleming knew what his center - and to some extent, the sport - were up against, and he didn’t come in simply to patch up the roof or slap on a new coat of paint. Having spent more than $1 million to buy and refurbish the center – doing everything from revamping the outdoor neon sign to installing computer scoring – Fleming reports that with the new look, Agawam Bowl is well on its way. Center #21 could indeed be a lucky number, although one very much suspects that Mark Fleming is not a man who believes in luck.

At the age of 20, Fleming survived a car accident that he claims “should have killed me” and was left with damage to his pancreas that requires 10 shots of insulin daily. He’s a man who, shortly after the death of his father, struck out for Minnesota with $8,000 to his name, $6,000 of which he used to buy his first center in Breckenridge, Minn. Shortly thereafter, he acquired bowling center #2 for just under $11,000 (building and all) in Gwinner, North Dakota. Proprietors of small, failing bowling alleys mostly in Minnesota would learn of Fleming’s business prowess, offer to sell for a low price, and he would buy them out.

He amassed 27 centers, sold six, and picked up two bars and supper clubs as well.

“So now I have experience with liquor licenses,” he says.

When he drives one of his prized Corvettes to work, Fleming makes a point of parking it down the street so his center’s regulars won’t feel intimidated. The denim and t-shirt wearing proprietor insists that he smokes, mingles and – yes – bowls with his customers. Daudelin calls him “one of the bowlers. He fits in really nice.”

“It’s all about perception and image and making your customers feel comfortable,” says Fleming, 43. “It is my customers’ money that paid for that stuff, and I’m not here to flash stuff in their faces.”

Like so many owners, Fleming grew up around the sport. His parents bowled candlepin, and Fleming family lore recalls a then

At the age of 20, Fleming survived a car accident that he claims “should have killed me.”

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PROFILE 2-year-old Mark positioning one of those light weight balls between his legs for the first time in his life and giving it a good solid heave…

And getting a strike.

“My first ball was a strike,” he says, “and I wouldn’t keep another ball on the lane for another year and a half.”

At age 8, Fleming invited the neighborhood kids to bowl in the basement of his parents’ house which had a 12 foot lane and a few pinball machines. He would charge 25 cents per game. Meanwhile, displaying an unusual hand-eye aptitude for such a young age, Fleming averaged 139 at candlepin. When he turned 17, he tired of the low scores and switched to tenpin. He has worked as a pin chaser and bowled as an amateur in a couple of PBA tournaments. While Fleming continues to bowl in a Wednesday night league (run by Daudelin), the business end of running a center – and of being a perfectionist - has left him little time to relax.

He hadn’t planned to come back.

Prosperous in Minnesota, Fleming returned to Massachusetts every summer to visit his mother, and to occasionally check out some of his childhood bowling haunts which were still standing. Although he insists he was in no way looking to acquire another center, much less a candlepin facility, Fleming had a conversation with Agawam Bowl’s former owner Frank Montagna in 2005. Montagna was contemplating retirement, and he asked whether Fleming had any interest in buying him out. Logistics would need to be worked out since Montagna owned the business, not the building, and if Fleming was going to take over, he wanted both.

“The visit was supposed to be one hour; it ended up being six or seven hours,” recalls Fleming. “Next thing I know, I’m making plans to come back in eight months to buy this place. While I’m in Minnesota, I’m e-mailing pictures of homes listed to my mother. One advantage I had was having family in the area.”

Fleming returned for good in March of 2008 and closed on Agawam Bowl in July of the same year. Under Montagna’s ownership, the two-story center with 10 lanes on the top level and 12 downstairs had been run “old school:” no food, no liquor, no computerized scoring.

The picture, Fleming decided, would need to change, and it would change in much the same ways that Fleming had gone about sprucing up his tenpin centers. He improved the neon sign on the center’s exterior, put in new masking units to hide the pinsetting machines, and had the center repainted. Out

went the battleship gray, in with a Picasso-esque yellow and green design. The addition of cosmic bowling is also in the works.

Instead of shelling out large sums on a steak dinner to fete tournament winners, Fleming expects to increase the purse size.

This year’s take will be $5,000.

“I’m phasing out expensive, unnecessary things,” he says.

“If you win $5,000, you can go out and have a steak dinner every night of the week. This gives them the reason to come back and practice. Before, open bowling was sporadic. Now it’s packed.”

“It’s all about researching and being smart,” he continues.

“I made my share of mistakes. I have tripped up many a time.

I’m 43, and I don’t know half of what there is to learn.”

Fleming also brought in some pinball, pool tables and a skill crane so the younger set would have options beyond bowling. With its Internet linking potential, the jukebox can play more than a million songs. All told, Fleming estimates that he has sunk close to $200,000 in renovations and improvements alone, none of which he took out of the center itself.

“I took the whole facility into the 21st century,” Fleming says.

“Probably 35% of my clientele are between the ages of 18 and 60. I’m starting to get the kids interested again.”

That last part is probably key for any candlepin proprietor, given that the sport skews toward an older demographic. For candlepin to survive and thrive, ICBA’s Murphy maintains the sport has to be made appealing to the younger generation through such features as cosmic bowl, and through surrounding amenities like arcades and restaurants. In April, ICBA sponsored its first annual Candlepin Bumper Bowl tournament that pitted bowlers ages 4 to 9 from Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire against each other. First prize was a Nintendo Wii Game System and second prize an iPod Nano.

“I look back at my history. The reason I bowl is because my parents bowled, and the line goes all the way down,” says Murphy. “The crux of all bowling - not just candlepin – is adults have to get their offspring interested.” ❖

Instead of shelling out large sums on a steak dinner to fete tournament winners, Fleming expects to increase the purse size. This year’s take will be $5,000.

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Evan Henerson is a features and lifestyle journalist who lives in Los Angeles. His work has appeared in TV Guide, American Theatre, Orange Coast and the Los Angeles Daily News where he was a staff writer and critic for nine years.

PROMOTIONS

BACKHAUL DIRECT PUTS BOWLING INTO THE FAST LANE

BY

LYDIA RYPCINSKI

A

third-party freight brokerage company is proving that if bowlingfriendly people become marketing decision-makers in non-industry companies, bowling can be the better – and richer – for it.

Backhaul Direct, a subsidiary of Harris Diversified LLC, has one of the most bowling-friendly cultures in the corporate world, thanks to the vision and passion of founder Greg Harris.

The Kokomo, Ind., native bowled for Indiana University in the late 1990s, as did the people he selected for his upper management team.

Most of them now bowl together in leagues in Indianapolis, where the corporate headquarters are located. Several of the 55 other Backhaul Direct employees bowl recreationally.

Backhaul Direct’s CEO Greg Harris is featured in Indianapolis Business Journal, 2008

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The company also sponsors Chris Barnes, Ronnie Russell and Anthony LaCaze on the PBA Tour as well as the annual Hoosier Classic, the richest collegiate scholarship tournament in the country.

Nick Hoagland, formerly of the PBA and Columbia 300 and now Backhaul Direct’s chief operating officer, is point man for the Classic, which attracted 120 men’s and women’s teams to Western Bowl in February.

“Because of Greg’s graciousness, I spend a week of my life [each year] planning, organizing and running the tournament,” Hoagland said. “We have about 40 employees who volunteer. They get no benefit [other than] an official jersey and some lunch. They just enjoy seeing our brand on the event.”

Creating a successful business that can help bowling is a dream come true for Harris because, as he put it, “I was actually kicked out of business school at Indiana University and achieved my degree in general studies.

“I guess I just have an entrepreneurial spirit,” the 35-year-old CEO said. “I looked forward to doing my own thing.”

Harris moved to Chicago soon after graduating in 1998 to work in transportation logistics. Six years and two companies later, he moved home to Indiana to start Backhaul Direct.

It was no coincidence that Harris set up shop in the Indianapolis area. Many of his Hoosier teammates were living there. Harris knew from bowling with them that he could rely on them in a crunch.

“You can get no better social education than bowling collegiately,” Harris said. “You learn about budgets, about being competitive, about interacting with students from all over the country.”

In short order he made his old team captain, Lee Johnson, director of operations. Harris also tapped teammates Jim Hale to be vice president of brokerage operations and Jeff Clark and former PBA touring pro Jack Laffey to be sales representatives.

Hoagland, who returned to Indianapolis in 2005 to pursue a graduate degree in athletic management and sports marketing, came on board in 2008.

“It just kind of fell into place,” the former PBA assistant tournament director said. “I was bowling in

PROMOTIONS league with Greg and Lee. I saw they were doing well [with the company] and having a good time. The business was growing, and Greg needed someone to help him steer the ship. It was a perfect opportunity.”

Harris, in turn, credits Hoagland with helping Backhaul Direct become one of Indianapolis’s fastest-growing private companies since 2007.

“Nick is the perfect yin to my yang,” Harris said. “I’m more the salesman, the one to entertain the client, the one who tries to land the big deal. Nick’s studious and a smart guy. He’s the one I want in the room when we’re talking to financiers and big clients.”

As a third-party freight broker, Backhaul Direct connects shippers to receivers through a network of preferred carriers.

Harris said the company generated just under $30 million in revenue in 2010 and is targeting between $40 million and $50 million in gross sales this year. Most loads consist of food and beverage items or raw materials, but it also helps get highly sensitive military materials to places such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

Things are going so well that the company announced in January it expects to hire another 324 employees over the next four years. The new hires will allow Backhaul Direct to pursue more international freighting opportunities as well as bowling business-oriented partnerships; Storm Products and Columbia

Greg & Katie Harris with Nick Hoagland

300 are already on the client list.

That’s not bad for a transportation company with nary a cab or trailer or driver on its books.

“Our niche is, we don’t own trucks,” Harris said. “We don’t buy a gallon of diesel fuel. Our assets are our computers, our networks and our phone systems. Our core of business is returning empty semi-trailers home with an order to create revenue on an otherwise empty run, or ‘backhaul.’”

No business, of course, will invest huge sums into a pet cause or project unless management thinks it will get something in

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PROMOTIONS

Left to right: Jack Laffey, Greg Harris, Jeff Clark, Nick Hoagland and Lee Johnson

return. Harris says bowling is doing that for Backhaul Direct.

“Payoff? Absolutely,” he said. “Even this conversation [with IBI] – if we don’t have that tie to bowling, to Chris Barnes, to the Hoosier Classic and these things we invest in, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. It definitely is paying off for us.”

“We do get the occasional phone call from a customer or carrier that saw our logo on Chris Barnes’ jersey, or someone who struck up a conversation with Ronnie Russell at a pro-am,” Hoagland said. “We get

the occasional client from that.”

The bowling angle has been a story hook for media outlets such as Indy.com, an online partner of the Indianapolis Star and IndyStar.com; The Capital Times of Madison, Wis.; the Indianapolis Business Journal; and WISH TV-8 in Indianapolis.

That kind of free advertising creates brand awareness in the marketplace.

The Hoosier Classic, which Hoagland says Backhaul Direct gives “quite a lot of money to,” generates value in another way.

“We use the Classic as a recruiting and marketing tool,” Hoagland said. “There’s a lot of very well-educated, Type-A aggressive collegiate bowlers, and those are the guys we want. If we can pluck a couple of great seniors out of the tournament and have them come work in a culture that likes bowling, then it will be good for them, too.

“What we’re really excited about is sponsors like [presenting sponsor] Columbia 300, Kegel, Hi-5 Graphics and Royal Pin Leisure Centers [whose centers host the Classic] all want to be part of this,” he continued. “They see that if bowling is going to

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PROMOTIONS

THE BACKHAUL CHALLENGE Backhaul Direct wants to issue a formal challenge right here, right now, to the folks at USBC: a three-game match to see who has the best office bowling team.

Backhaul Direct’s main office in Indianapolis, IN

become a great sport again, we need to inspire kids in high school and college.”

Backhaul Direct’s full-speed-ahead way of doing business has hit relatively few speed bumps to date.

One came in 2009. Indiana University rebuffed the company when it offered a $300,000 donation to preserve the bowling lanes at the school’s student union. Rumors had been circulating that the lanes would be removed and replaced with office space.

“We made certain conditions to the donation, [like] maintaining a university bowling team, making the lanes available for the students, [requesting] a promissory note not to destroy the bowling center, to put in a computer lab, something to that effect,” Harris said. “And they turned us down. I think they felt like we were forcing their hand.”

Hoagland said that, though spurned, the offer brought the matter to the attention of the local media and students. As a result, the bowling lanes are still at Indiana Memorial Union.

“We just felt that the student union is not where you sit in offices and put up walls,” Hoagland said. “It’s a

“It could be a Baker match,” said company founder Greg Harris. “I’ll put my best five against their best five. I’ll bring my guys down there to bowl on their turf, at the training center in Arlington, during Bowl Expo.”

There’s an element of sibling rivalry in the challenge. Both teams are rife with what Backhaul COO Nick Hoagland calls “the IU bowling tree.” Backhaul boasts Harris, Hoagland, Jeff Clark, Jim Hale, Lee Johnson, and Jack Laffey.

The USBC staff includes former Hoosiers Gary Brown, who manages USBC Collegiate; Tim Robbin, USBC rules manager, and Pete Tredwell, USBC vice president of media.

Besides bragging rights, Harris has another reason for throwing down the gantlet.

“I would love to have us bowling each other for $100,000 in either prize fund or sponsorship money, for scholarships and charity, just to prove that if you have the right people in place, seeing the right sponsors, that number can be attained,” Harris said.

“In fact, I will issue the challenge to anyone who would like to take us on.”

Potential takers can scout some of the Backhaul bowlers online at www.youtube.com and type in Backhaul-Direct. place where you connect with [other] students.”

The U.S. Bowling Congress also passed on Harris’s offers to volunteer his time and services to the membership organization.

“I actually had an interview in Arlington for the USBC board of directors,” Harris said. “And to be quite honest with you, I don’t think they’re ready for me yet! Someone who’s animated and who didn’t come up as the league secretary in Detroit.”

“Greg is very passionate about bowling,” said Hoagland, who will begin a three-year term on the USBC board in July. “I would love to see that attitude, that energy, that level of salesmanship actually be a positive for us within bowling.

“It’s just that what’s comfortable is sometimes the easiest thing to do, and we [in bowling] tend to follow that path,” he continued. “We tend to accept that it’s OK to lose 10 percent of our membership each year. And it’s not OK.” Such minor setbacks are unlikely to deter Backhaul Direct from promoting bowling while achieving its goal of business excellence through cutting-edge technology.

“We all love bowling here,” Harris said. “We love the competitive conversations. It’s fun for us. And if we can make a buck while doing it, while increasing the core for the sport of bowling, then we will.” ❖

Cecily King in the main office reception area.

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A frequent contributor to IBI, Lydia Rypcinski has been writing for and about bowling for more than 30 years. She has won writing and photography awards in and outside the sport for her coverage, which has taken her to six continents and more than 20 countries. She co-authored Revolutions: The Changing Game with Chip Zielke in 1998 and Sports Traveler Chicago with Anbritt Stengele in 2009.

COVER STORY

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COVER STORY BY

ROBIN BREUNER

owling balls fly down brightly lit lanes as a roller coaster careens overhead in the near distance. Other colorful rides, arcade games, and various other forms of entertainment light up the scene all around.

Such zaniness represents a typical day at Knuckleheads Bowling and Indoor Amusement Park in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin.

Self-proclaimed as “The Water Park Capital of the World,” Wisconsin Dells is located in South Central Wisconsin between the Wisconsin River and Lake Delton. The area has evolved into a year-round tourist destination with over 70 acres of indoor and outdoor waterparks and amusements in a city that covers just 4.4 acres. According to the Wisconsin Dells Visitor and Convention Bureau, approximately three million visitors each year are welcomed to the area. The total economic impact topped $1 billion in 2008, the most current figures available.

Knuckleheads sits prominently among the region’s fun destinations. The 80,000 square foot facility opened in 2007. When combined with Buffalo Phil’s Grille, the company’s restaurant partner next door, the entire $20 million center comprises a total of 115,000 square feet.

The bowling center has 24 lanes, 14 of which are dedicated to Cosmic Bowling, the other 10 are classic. The AV infrastructure is also impressive, with 12 large projection screens and at least 40 LCD monitors spanning the state-of-the art lanes.

Impressive as all that is, what makes the center unique is its massive, amusement park/arcade combination, easily the largest in Wisconsin Dells. The arcade has over 125 prize redemption and video games, directly adjacent to a sophisticated indoor amusement park that is constantly exploding with activity. The amusement rides include go-karts, a roller coaster, a 4D theater ride, bumper cars, and experiences with colorful names like the Tornado, the Himalayan, the Flying Tigers, Junior Racers, Ballocity, and the Spring Ride, among others.

For small children, Knuckleheads has a soft play area called Ballocity. Generally, though, according to General Manager Kelly Dallman, “we have amusements for all ages, but the scope of what we have to offer is for “tweens” – youths between 8 and 12.

All that said, Dallman adds that the real focus is in marketing the facility as a place for the entire family, with serious fun available no matter your age.

“You’ll get a lot of adults coming in and wanting to drive the gokarts,” she chuckles.

B

Since its doors opened a few years ago, Knuckleheads has been a particularly popular and perfect fit for the Wisconsin Dells region, which is part of the Western Great Lakes region and one of the most IBI

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COVER STORY gorgeous and interesting parts of Wisconsin. Originally founded as Kilbourn City, the area has been drawing visitors for over 150 years—people who come from near and far to enjoy the beauty of Lake Delton, the Wisconsin River, and the stunning sandstone formations along its bluffs.

Ironically, the area’s rise as an amusement region generally has its roots in the bowling business in the person of Turk Waterman, whose family owns Knuckleheads and other amusement facilities in the region. In the 1930s, the name was changed to Wisconsin Dells after the French-Canadian word Dalles, which refers to river rapids in a gorge running between steep rock walls. Around that time, a boy named Turk Waterman got his first taste of the gaming and entertainment industry with a little job sorting bottles in the basement of the old Wenk’s bowling alley. His father, Andrew “Poppy” Waterman, was the town’s Justice of the Peace, and he was also responsible for bringing the first bingo, slot machines, and jukeboxes to the area.

Many years later that early introduction to the amusement world helped Turk Waterman become an industry leader with some innovative business moves.

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In 1979, Waterman, his wife Judy, brother Jack, and sister-in-law Mary opened Noah’s Ark, the first waterpark in the region. That event transformed Wisconsin Dells from a rustic, seasonal tourist spot to the major year-round destination that it is today.

“Turk Waterman developed Noah’s Ark—the original Noah’s Ark,” says Randy Sosinski, bowling manager at Knuckleheads. “It’s kind of a fitting name for a waterpark with an owner named Waterman. Their destiny was fulfilled with their last name.”

Sosinski claims there are now more waterparks in Wisconsin Dells than anywhere else in the world. He says the area used to be a summertime

COVER STORY only destination that basically rolled up its sidewalks after Labor Day. In recent years, there has been an explosion in the development of large hotels with their own indoor water and amusement parks in the area, along with shopping and restaurants—a transformation that has turned the town into a year-round draw.

The Waterman family has been the vision and the driving force behind the success of these ongoing developments.

Illustrative of this success is the fact that the travel website site TripAdvisor awarded Wisconsin Dells the 2010 Traveler’s Choice Award for the Top Family Destination in the U.S.

Sosinski only took over as manager of the center in June of 2010, but he’s a lifelong resident of the region—specifically Baraboo, a town just south of the Dells. He adds that he has been bowling in the area for 45 years. The Waterman family has therefore given him a green light to make changes as necessary to accommodate industry and regional changes, of which there are many.

“I understand the Dells philosophy here,” he says. “Things are a little different in Wisconsin Dells than other smaller communities around Wisconsin and around the Midwest.”

Sosinski says that Knuckleheads was originally created to operate in sync with a huge influx of summer tourists to the area—about three million visitors annually.

“If you are up here in the middle of the summertime, and it’s packed and it rains outside, the line starts forming out the door,” he explains “It’s a very popular place here. We’ve had waiting lists for upwards over an hour.”

However, in the winter, when the huge crowds recede, the area has a core resident population of less than 5,000 people, plus the snow-bunny tourists.

Sosinski says this is a major challenge for the center, which the Watermans have asked him to address. That challenge revolves around the question of how best to elevate the bowling business during the week in the fall/winter off-season by luring in more locals. Sosinski is working to use his knowledge of local leagues and bowlers to address this issue.

“For a small town, there’s another bowling center across the street over here, and there’s another one uptown, so in a population of 5,000 people, we have 60 bowling lanes,” he explains, citing a highly out-of-the-ordinary statistic compared to average communities.

Part of the problem, according to Sosinski, is that many locals who haven’t been to Knuckleheads view it strictly as a bowling destination for tourists. Thus, he suggests, part of his mission is to promote the notion that the amusement park portion of the business should not be viewed as mitigating the serious bowling facility that lies within. Indeed, he suggests, it’s a positive—if bowlers want to bring their kids, they will have no

The Watermans and The Dells go hand in hand The growth of Wisconsin Dells as a destination and tourist attraction spans the history of the Waterman family beginning with Andrew Shepherd Waterman who moved to The Dells during the Civil War to great-greatgreat grandson Andrew Rider Waterman.

While the early Watermans including Andrew Victor, “Poppy”, set the stage, it was Andrew John, “Turk”, along with his brother Jack who jettisoned Wisconsin Dells to an amusement area with the building of Noah’s Ark, the first major waterslide in 1979. All five generations have been involved in the local businesses, starting with the hotel all the way up to Noah’s Ark, Great Wolf Lodge, Buffalo Phils, Tanger Mall and Knuckleheads.

Andrew Rider, who is four and the sixth generation, will be sure to make his mark for the Waterman family and The Dells as well.

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Andrew Shepherd Waterman settled in area and served during the Civil War

1906 1850 Andrew Shepherd and son Andrew Seth owned and ran the Waterman Hotel. $1.50 per night/$7 per week.

Poppy is boy on porch.

COVER STORY worries about them being bored.

Another strategy involves personal outreach to many of the local people Sosinski has personally bowled with over the years, and their extended families and friends. He’s doing that by starting up new fall and winter leagues that appeal to their demographic. For instance, he’s launched a Scratch League for the first time in years. Bowlers are now starting to come from Madison (about 45 minutes away) to participate, he says. Knuckleheads is also the first bowling center in the region to offer PBA Bowling Cheetah pattern competitions.

The growth of league bowling options at Knuckleheads is, in fact, central to Sosinski’s strategy. He has also started a progression of leagues, which is novel for the area. This move offers a chance for interested local bowlers to progress from beginner to intermediate to a professional league.

Sosinski has also been actively organizing and promoting various charity tournaments at the facility. Examples of such tournaments in 2010 included a Dells versus Baraboo teachers’ tournament designed to raise money for each town’s junior bowling program, a women’s tournament for cancer research, and a veterans’ tournament to raise money for homeless veterans and for care packages to send to soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Some of the tournaments have been televised locally, which has been another way to spread the word about Knuckleheads

bowling pedigree to citizens throughout the region.

Another enticement, of course, involves upgrading food options. To that end, Dallman reports that the facility is upgrading its snack bar into more of a real restaurant. Many customers currently take advantage of Buffalo Phil’s Grille’s full service restaurant next door, particularly for combo bowling/banquet parties, and that option will always be available. But, Dallman says, upgrading the snack bar is another enticement for locals whose time and resources are limited during their bowling forays.

Sosinski credits the Waterman family for supporting all these initiatives. He says they have always been generous with their money locally and in their businesses, and that they are focusing on continuing that tradition with the Knuckleheads’ bowling center. That’s why, even before many of these additional offerings or improvements were put in place, the facility was performing strongly even though it opened just before the recession cast its dark cloud over all entrepreneurial business enterprises. Dallman suggests that is because Knuckleheads has become a true “value” destination.

“Obviously, people are a little more conservative with their discretionary spending,” she says. “That’s why we’re really trying to market ourselves as having a lot of value in that we’ve got something for just about every level. We’re trying to make sure (customers) get the most bang for their buck.”

Andrew Victor, “Poppy”, bowler/entrepreneur and Justice of the Peace is second from the right.

He also introduced coin machines and bingo.

Jack & Turk left to right, open Noah’s Ark, the first waterslide.

1973 1946

1979 Poppy’s family (left to right): Mary & Jack, Poppy, and Judy and Andrew John, “Turk”, Waterman

TripAdvisor Award 2010 Traveler’s Choice Award Top Family Destination in the U.S.

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COVER STORY

For example, one key enticement is an all day play pass. Customers can purchase a wristband, which varies in price depending on age and height, that allows them to play all activities all day for one value price.

Other specials include Play Free on Your Birthday, $2 Tuesdays, “A” Day for students who bring in a report card with an “A” on it to earn free play, Knuckleheads Nights (customers can bowl, dance, eat, and play for $12 from 9-11 P.M. on Saturdays), Twilight Wristbands (purchased after 7 p.m., and are good for the entire next day), Printable Coupons, VIP Cards, and more.

Even as the facility works to improve its attractiveness to local bowlers, it retains a solid focus on the importance of tourism. Thus, another focus point is to promote the Dells area, and Knuckleheads within it, as an affordable destination to a wider region, comparable in quality to higher-profile amusements travelers might find in faraway tourist spots.

The Dells has always been a destination for Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota families, certainly. Some visitors also come from Indiana, but the majority comes from Madison and Chicago, which is about a three hour-drive. Dallman suggests people from these areas are discovering that The Dells can provide the same kind of entertainment options they might have needed to fly to Florida to find in the past, minus the airfare.

“The Dells have been a travel destination for so long, and every year, we and the whole area try to step up and bring in new and exciting things, so people who are repeat travelers have something fresh and new,” she says.

Some of the ways that Knuckleheads is joining this promotional bandwagon is by partnering with some smaller local hotels that don’t already have amusement or waterparks associated with them. They provide those hotels with wristbands to incorporate into stay and play packages for visitors. Currently, their primary partner is the Great Wolf Lodge located across the parking lot from Knuckleheads. The lodge has its own waterpark, so it offers a package deal for both the waterpark and Knuckleheads.

Knuckleheads is also located next to the Tanger Outlet Mall, a 44

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264,000 square foot mall with over 60 stores like Coach Factory Outlet, Polo Ralph Lauren, Nike Factory Outlet, and the Disney Store Outlet, among others.

Knuckleheads does a lot of marketing at the mall, frequently providing incentives to families shopping there to consider coming over afterward and have some fun with their kids.

Another great marketing resource is the Dells Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, which markets heavily throughout the region, including in Chicago and Minnesota. The Bureau offers visitors a City Pass, which provides access to various amusements in the area.

Meanwhile, additional outreach from Knuckleheads is done the old-fashioned way—community outreach.

Sosinski comes from a sales background, which serves him well in his position at the center. He frequently fans out into the community, at least three days a week, and visits various local businesses and schools.

Bowling, after all, is by its nature a social business, and being sociable, he suggests, is therefore a good way to spread the word.

“It’s a people business, and it’s a sales business to get people out here, but I’ve made a lot of friends over the years in bowling,” he says. “All of us have talked over the years about how many contacts we’ve made just by meeting people while we’re bowling.”

That’s why Sosinski regularly communicates with the human resources departments at local companies about using Knuckleheads to host their corporate parties and fundraisers. That strategy is all part of a simple, old-fashioned philosophy on Sosinski’s part— go to the customer, rather than waiting for him to come to you.

“In the old days, proprietors just opened their doors in September and hoped that all the bowlers would file in and sign up for their leagues,” he says.

“Well, that doesn’t happen anymore. You need to go out and earn their business, and you need to make sure they get value for when they do come out to spend some money in your bowling center, so that’s what I’m concentrating on.” ❖ Thanks to Kelly Dallman, General Manger of Knuckleheads, and also thanks to Judy Waterman for pictures and background on the Waterman family.

Robin Breuner is a freelance writer who lives on Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County, California with her husband, two kids and two dogs.

OPERATIONS

BY

MARK MILLER

ver since bowling came to America in the 1800s, it has been synonymous with smoking.

At first, it was played in smoke-filled taverns with lanes. Even when numerous stand alone establishments were built in the 1900s, there nearly always was a bar. After all, anywhere drinking was popular, so too was smoking.

Smoking was considered an every day pastime for nearly 200 years as people partook in theaters, restaurants, airplanes and other public places. Not coincidentally, bowling’s boom years following World War II through the 1970s corresponded with this time when nearly half of American adults smoked.

But attitudes started changing in 1964 with the famous U.S. Surgeon General’s report that

E

cigarette smoking was a health hazard. Later, studies talked about the effects of secondhand smoke. Suddenly, smoking became a health issue with changes in public opinion, warning labels on smoking materials, cigarette advertising restrictions and anti-smoking campaigns.

To accommodate the new landscape, some public places, including bowling centers, began offering smoking and non-smoking accommodations. Major broad bans came later like smoking on long airplane flights in 1989 and on all domestic routes in 2000.

It wasn’t until California legislators fully enacted the nation’s first statewide workplace ban in indoor public places in 1998 that all businesses were forced to make changes. Since then, more than half of U.S. states have followed suit. And most states without widespread bans allow cities or counties to enact their own bans. Only Oklahoma has no kind of legislated ban.

As smoking became less cool and done in fewer places, the adult smoking rate dropped to 20 percent. Yet some bowling centers chose to keep catering to smokers while others opted to go smoke-free.

“For me, the switch started in the mid-80s,” said Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America Vice President, Business Development Bart Burger, who worked 25 years for Brunswick. “Until then, there were predominantly league bases and in leagues as much as 35 to 40 percent were smokers. Smoking was accepted as part of the league.

“The challenge for the proprietor is where the center is like a second home and you are told you can’t do something. You’ve created a Cheersfriendly environment and now you’ve changed their world.”

For some, the decision was made easier as league bowling participation continued dropping until open/recreational play became

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OPERATIONS

the predominant form of bowling. Yet because a vocal league base remained, some proprietors still were reluctant to change.

“Proprietors are astute business people, so imagine if they think 4050 percent of their business is at risk because of the change,” Burger said.

“It’s not because of the change but the fear of the change. They depend on that income. It’s a gap between what is guaranteed and new business.

“For the proprietor, when a smoking ban is enacted it takes a long time to understand what it means to them. There’s a gap they have to fill. It takes time and money to get new customers.”

Burger said the dilemma only applies to existing centers as he knows of no facility being built today that allows smoking.

Before California enacted its statewide ban, proprietors like Ted Hoffman of Earl Anthony’s Dublin Bowl had to deal with sporadic city laws. While Dublin enacted some restrictions, some neighboring cities didn’t.

“It was an unfair playing field,” Hoffman recalled. “We lost about 35 bowlers, customers who couldn’t smoke while relaxing. “The best thing was when we went statewide. It made it the same for everyone and brought in more families and more kids into the center.”

Centers in New York State went through similar challenges in 2003 when smoke-free legislation went into effect. Some, like Frank Wilkinson, proprietor of Rab’s Country Lanes on Staten Island, embraced the change.

“It probably was one of the best things that happened,” Wilkinson said. “I remember walking into the center on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday night and you couldn’t even see the front desk. There was a cloud of smoke and a smell of cigarettes.

“We ended up with a clean center. The ceiling tiles improved

tremendously from dark yellow to bright white. The lockers were yellow and ugly.

When we pulled up the carpet there was quite a stench.”

Before the laws, Rab’s had nonsmoking times and smoke “eaters” which Wilkinson said didn’t do much to help. The center initially lost bar business to centers in nearby New Jersey which didn’t go non-smoking until 2006.

“People started to think about the high gas and bridge toll costs and began coming back,” Wilkinson said. “The smoking ban did hurt our bar business which we’ve slowly brought back. You get used to it.

“What we started to see was more families. I’m not saying we didn’t have them before but a lot of new families and people who wouldn’t bring their kids before because they didn’t want them around smoking.”

Similar happenings occurred in Illinois which started its statewide, workplace smoking ban in 2008. With 2025 percent of its customers smoking, Illinois Bowling Proprietors’ Association Executive Director Bill Duff said there was an initial large drop in lounge sales.

“While the overall bar business still hasn’t gone back to what it was before, the centers have been pleasantly surprised with all the new customers coming in,” Duff said. “There’re more casual bowlers and families who had stayed away from the smoking environment. If we had to do it again, the owners

As smoking became less cool and done in fewer places, the adult smoking rate dropped to 20 percent.

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overall wouldn’t have been against it.”

Kansas enacted its statewide ban in 2010 much to the delight of proprietors like Darren Needham of The Alley in Wichita. “Our open play customers appreciated it immediately,” said Needham, whose center previously was non-smoking on weekends. “If we had complaints they were from the older league bowlers. We didn’t lose any bowlers. There was some grumbling but nobody quit bowling.”

In Missouri, smoking bans are a local decision. St.

OPERATIONS Louis enacted one in January with exemptions for establishments that don’t have at least 25 percent of their revenues come from food sales. Greater St. Louis Bowling Proprietors’ Association Executive Director Gary Voss said 11 of the 18 centers in St. Louis County applied for and received initial exemptions.

“The problem we have is three centers around me allow smoke,” said Voss, who owns West County Lanes in Ellsville. “We have all kinds of ordinances. The only ones who win are the lawyers.”

Voss began voluntarily limiting smoking to his bar area in 1988 so he’s had few problems with the broader ban.

“I can’t see anyone who smokes a pack of cigarettes who will quit the game,” he said. “It’s the best thing that ever happened to our business. Yes, some centers have lost some business for awhile but they get it back with new business.”

Among the centers that secured an exception is Show Me Lanes, a 24-lane establishment with a strong league base that co-owner Nora Hoechstenbach estimates includes about 50 percent smokers. To comply with the new laws, she spent $5,000 to install doors to close off the bar and keep all her customers happy.

Unfortunately, the law bans anyone under age 21 from entering the bar and her young adult customers, those age 18-21, have gone elsewhere.

“We have all kinds of ordinances. The only ones who win are the lawyers.”

“We’ve lost about 10 percent of our business in the first six weeks,” she said. “We have centers five or six miles away in Jefferson County that allow smoking. All we want is a level playing field.”

Because St. Louis County rules seem to change daily, Hoechstenbach concentrates on complying with current laws and will worry about potential bigger bans later. And she knows those bigger bans will come. Whether it’s one, five or 10 years away, every state eventually will have a smoking ban. Will proprietors choose to fight or work to obtain the eventual growth in their business most have experienced?

Proprietors Rob Caputa and Neal Gehring of Sunrise Lanes in Casper, Wyo., chose the latter. As of May 1, they voluntarily went non-smoking knowing full well their smoking customers can bowl elsewhere in the city.

“You wouldn’t believe the number of people who say they don’t bowl because of the smoke,” Caputa told Joshua Wolfson of the Star-Tribune. “Our children are our future, and we don’t want to expose them to this atmosphere. I think parents realize that and will bring their kids up here.”

History is on Caputa and Gehring’s side. When their restaurant next door went nonsmoking in 2009, sales initially dropped by nearly a third. By the end of the year, new customers helped push business up 35 percent.

“It’s difficult for proprietors to deal with it,” Burger said. “Ultimately, I think proprietors who fight this may benefit in the short term but hurt themselves in the long term.”

Ultimately, it’s a decision proprietors must make for themselves. ❖

Mark Miller is a freelance writer from Flower Mound, Texas. He is the national and Dallas-Fort Worth bowling writer for Examiner.com and a columnist for the Bowling News Network.

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OFF THE CLOCK Rich and his wife Jody at the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for Strike Zone’s renovation.

STRIKING

YUKON

GOLD!

Saratoga Springs, NY proprietor Rich Sheldon divides his time between bowling and potato chips.

BY

BREE GUTIERREZ

W

hile Rich Sheldon is plenty busy reinventing his new bowling center, Saratoga Strike Zone in Saratoga Springs, NY, he’s also renovating his newly acquired potato chip company, Saratoga Specialties Company. “I do believe in it,” Rich said.

“I think it’s a great product, a great story, and obviously a lot of upside potential.”

Saratoga Strike Zone had its grand re-opening

in June 2010 after a multi-million dollar renovation that included the addition of bumper cars and Ballocity, a redemption arcade, a full restaurant and a six–lane private VIP suite. It was through his new center that Rich met the co-owner of Saratoga Specialties, Danny Jameson, whose children bowled at Saratoga Strike Zone. Saratoga Specialties “was a startup company…it had only been going for about one year,” Rich explained. “They were struggling a little bit; it was trying to get off the ground. They asked if I might be interested.” Rich brought his father-in-law, Joe Stanislowsky, in on the deal and, “now we all own a third of the company.”

As of November 2010, the new ownership team of Saratoga Specialties has been working hard to turn business around. “In a relatively short period

OFF THE CLOCK of time we have revisited all of the existing customers, changed routing, and we’ve expanded,” Rich said. “We’ve taken on two national accounts, and now we are all over the country.” Expanding their clientele to national retailers such as Williams–Sonoma and Cracker Barrel Restaurants has been a big factor in their newfound success.

The flagship product? Potato chips. Rich explained that the product’s packaging is reminiscent of its history. The potato chip was invented in a restaurant in Saratoga Springs, NY and was, at that time, originally packaged in boxes. “Well, our chips are sold in boxes, rather than the bags that people are accustomed to,” he said. The other unique element is the seasoning, which is sold separately. “Instead of buying two (different) bags of chips, you buy one box of chips and two different seasonings,” Rich

To avoid burning, the chips are watched carefully as they fry.

“

Instead of buying two [different] bags of chips, you buy one box of chips and two different seasonings," Rich said.

"And that way you season it to your taste...your chip, your way.

”

said. “And that way you season it to your taste…your chip, your way.”

Saratoga Specialties is also working on new product development and revamping their packaging.

Taking over a new bowling center and starting a new business venture are definitely not part time jobs. “It certainly is long days, but it’s exciting,” Rich said. “So when things are exciting and going well, you’re willing to do whatever it takes.” ❖

Bree Gutierrez, holding a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Journalism, is a freelance writer and preschool teacher residing in Southern California with her husband and son.

Potato chips going into the fryer.

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For years, Brunswick A/A-2 and GS® Pinsetters have served as the backbone for bowling centers worldwide.

The performance and value of Genuine Brunswick Parts are built on precision engineering, real-world experience and reliable customer service. Only Brunswick can provide parts specially designed for your pinsetter. To learn how to improve the performance of your pinsetters and for tips on pinsetter maintenance, go to www.brunswickbowling.com/parts or contact your Brunswick Product Specialist today.

eBowl.biz has just released their new Instant Contest feature as part of their text message service.

Now centers can run prize giveaways and contests using their cell phone – PLUS build a list of cell numbers to use in future promotions. No more printing forms and coupons and distributing them – step into the digital age and save dollars! Call 877-326-9599 for a demo or stop by booth #2001 at Bowl Expo.

Joe Schumacker, past BPAA President and proprietor of SpareZ, a modern 64-lane center in Florida, has been using his Profit Platform for numerous, charitable/community functions that hold exclusive events using all 64 lanes generating significant profits. In Joe’s words, here’s how he does it using the Profit Platform, “If you want to raise the bar on the impact created by your events, purchase a GKM Profit Platform.” For more information on the Profit Platform go to www.profitplatform.biz and call GKM Int’l at 310-791-7092.

Mad Lanes by QubicaAMF deliver an unforgettable glow-in-the-dark bowling experience with high impact glow designs covering the approach lane. Choose from two exciting patterns, Highway or Spider, or mix them in your center for added uniqueness and excitement.

Visit us today at www.qubicaamf.com or contact your local sales representative.

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Industrial Lighting and Sound offers integrated video, audio and lighting systems for your center.

These automated systems can be custom designed and installed. Please call today for Bowl Expo specials! (800) 875-9006 or visit them online at www.industriallightingandsound.com.

Redemption Plus introduces its new exclusive line of CosmoGlo toys and novelties that will light up your redemption center! These high-quality and lowcost glow pieces arrive in retail-quality packaging to help create an attention-grabbing redemption counter and boost sales. Items available include assorted lightsticks, bracelets, headbands, mouthpieces and more.

Visit Redemption Plus in booth #1221 at Bowl Expo or view our full selection of redemption prizes, crane and merchandiser kits, and party goods at www.RedemptionPlus.com.

Every 16 minutes a bowler spends searching for a ball that feels good costs you a game of revenue. With the Smart Ball System you’ll get your bowlers to the lanes faster, they’ll bowl longer and return to your center more often. We offer the fastest ball selection, the most comfortable grip, and guaranteed quality.

The world’s most comfortable house ball system with 50% more bevel, 100% more comfort. For Bowl Expo specials call 1-866-460-7263, option 2.

Cash in on your party business with cool bowling shirts. Bowlingshirt.com has made it easy for Bowling Centers to add revenue AND add more to your customer’s party experience. Bowlingshirt.com has been making the world renowned CruisinUSA brand of retro styled bowling shirt for over 35 years. We will handle all the details of your customers shirt needs.

Stop by our booth at BowlExpo #2004 to learn more!

WHAT BOWLING MEANS TO ME

BOWLING'S "ROLL" MODEL

Cystic fibrosis doesn’t stop Al Jones, a PBA member, Bronze level coach and pro shop owner.

BY

JOAN TAYLOR

A

l Jones was born with cystic fibrosis 44 years ago. Like most young boys, he wanted to participate in sports, but the only one that wouldn’t literally take his breath away was bowling. So he started bowling at age five, going to the center with his parents.

And he just kept going.

Now a PBA member and pro shop owner living in Sparta, NJ, Jones was an early poster child for a “Bowl For Breath” fundraiser in Morris County, New Jersey. While the life expectancy of a CF infant born in the late 1960s was about 17 or 18 years, Jones has already beaten those odds several times over.

It hasn’t always been easy, though.

Jones developed severe breathing problems when he was 21 years old.

“It’s like being born with emphysema without ever having smoked,” he said.

In 1996, Jones’ doctor suggested he get on a waiting list for a double lung transplant. When a donor became available three long years later, he trekked to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, which he said, “transplants everything— livers, kidneys, lungs.” The operation took place on December 26, 1999. Jones says he was up and walking three days later.

A little less than one year later, he shot 300-838 at Rockaway Lanes in Rockaway, NJ, nearly besting the house record of 857.

While donors in the transplant program remain anonymous, Jones said he sent his 300 ring to the transplant recordkeepers to forward to the donor family as a “thank you.”

He later opened up two pro shops with fellow PBA member and Gold level certified coach, Ken Yokobosky. Jones IBI

June 2011

55

WHAT BOWLING MEANS TO ME sisters die. So my goal as a kid was to live to age 30.

That was a big deal [for cystic newborns], to see that many years.

“I have faith in God and try to live life to the fullest,” he said.

Jones admits it makes him happy when people tell

Al focusing on coaching

also never let his condition get in the way of bowling in PBA regional events in the next several years, finishing as high as third in one tournament. He also bowled in the U.S. Transplant Games in 2002 and 2004, winning both times.

“It was more difficult than I thought [it would be],” said Jones, who likened being in the Parade of Athletes and medal ceremonies to taking part in the Olympics.

In 2008 at age 42, however, Jones developed new complications and went on a waiting list for a second double-lung transplant.

“Fortunately, it was a shorter wait list for a repeat patient,” Jones said.

“The doctors didn’t know why my lungs started being rejected.”

If the waiting list was shorter the second time, recovery was longer.

No three-days-and-out. Four months of physical therapy followed the second operation.

“It was a tougher surgery this time,” Jones said. “The first three months, I stayed in the hospital on my back.”

Bowling helped Jones get back on his feet. He couldn’t wait to get back to the pro shop, back on the lanes, and back to being a Bronze level coach. With renewed determination, Jones won his county all-events and singles in 2010, just 11 months after surgery. He posted an even 800 in singles and 2,192 over nine games in all-events.

What does bowling mean to Al Jones?

“Bowling for me has always been a passion,” he said. “It helped define me as a person, more than [being] a person who is ill. Most people don’t know me as the sick kid, but more as the good bowler.

“It gave me inspiration,” Jones continued. “Bowling was something I lived for. I was supposed to die when I was 18, as I had seen my two

Ball drilling at one of the pro shops Al co-owns with Ken Yokobosky.

him that he inspired them to become organ donors.

“Not only me, but also the 100,000 people a year waiting for transplants,” he said. “You never know who can use the organs. It may even be someone in your own family.

“I take one day at a time because I never know what’s going to happen next. I just want to be a good person and help people along the way.” ❖

Joan Taylor is a multi-award winning bowling writer based in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.

DATEBOOK

JUNE 6-8 Kansas State BPA Annual Meeting Courtyard by Marriott, Junction City, includes table top exhibits & KSBPA Hall of Fame inductions Mary Thurber 913-638-1817

13-17 GS Series Pinsetter Training Brunswick Training Center Muskegon, MI Email: schools@brunbowl.com 800-937-2695

20-24 Vector Scorer Maintenance Training Brunswick Training Center Muskegon, MI Email: schools@brunbowl.com 800-937-2695

26-7/1 Bowl Expo Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center, Grapevine, TX. 888-649-5685

JULY 11-12 Iowa BPA Summer Annual Meeting and Trade Show Econolodge, Newton, IA Jenny Duede, 515-255-0808, www.iowabpa.com

13-15 Intl Billiard & Home Recreation Expo Sands Expo & Convention Ctr. Las Vegas, NV www.bcaexpo.com

18-22 GS Series Pinsetter Training Brunswick Training Center Muskegon, MI Email: schools@brunbowl.com 800-937-2695

30-8/6 National Bowling Week Register to participate Ron DeRoxtra, 817-633-2940 Ron@bpaa.com

SEPTEMBER 21 Montana BPA Annual Board and Membership Meeting Fairmont Hot Springs, MT Tom Brendgord t.brendgord@att.net

16-18 Wyoming Bowling Council Jamboree Hilton Garden Inn, Laramie WY Charlene Abbott kcabbott@bresnan.net

23-24 Oregon Bowling Summit Lincoln City, OR Christy Herman 877-567-6374

22 BCA of Ohio Executive Board Meeting Embassy Suites, Columbus, OH Pat Marazzi, 937-433-8363

24 Illinois State BPA Board of Directors Meeting with Bowling Centers Association of Michigan Convention and Trade Show Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort, Mt. Pleasant, MI Bill Duff, 847-982-1305, billduff@bowlillinois.com

24-27 Bowling Centers Assoc. of Michigan 2011 Convention & Trade Show The Soaring Eagle Resort, Mount Pleasant, MI 248-559-5207 www.mibowl.com

25-29 Vector Scorer Maintenance Training Brunswick Training Center Muskegon, MI Email: schools@brunbowl.com 800-937-2695

OCTOBER 2–4 West Coast Bowling Centers Convention Silver Legacy Hotel, Reno, NV Sandi Thompson, 925-485-1855 Sandi@norcalbowling.com IBI

4-5 Kansas State BPA Annual Meeting Pittsburg, KS Mary Thurber 913-638-1817 IBI

10-12 East Coast Bowling Centers Convention Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, NJ Lee Ann Norton, 800-343-1329 Leeann@bpaa.com 10-14 GS Series Pinsetter Training Brunswick Training Center Muskegon, MI Email: schools@burnbowl.com 800-937-2695 IBI

June 2011

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DATEBOOK

CLASSIFIEDS

17-21 Vector Scorer Maintenance Training Brunswick Training Center Muskegon, MI Email: schools@brunbowl.com 800-937-2695 IBI 26 Bowling Centers of Southern CA Annual Meeting and Partner Fair Cal State Fullerton, Fullerton CA Scott Frager, 818-789-0900 ScottF@SoCalBowling.com

NOVEMBER 9-10 BCA of Ohio Seminars & Meeting Embassy Suites, Columbus, OH Pat Marazzi, 937-433-8363 6-11 Bowling University School For Bowling Center Management International Bowling Campus Arlington TX Email: education@bpaa.com; 800-343-1329 www.BowlingUniversity.net 30-12/7 QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup Northcliff Bowling Centre Anne-Marie Board amboard@qubicaamf.com www.qubicaamf.com IBI

Official magazine of the convention

WWW.FACEBOOKBOWLING.COM 58

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CLASSIFIEDS

BUY

AMF • BRUNSWICK EQUIPMENT COMPLETE PACKAGES WORLD’S LARGEST NEW – USED SPARE PARTS INVENTORY

SEL L

Danny & Daryl Tucker EQUIPMENT FOR SALE USED BRUNSWICK PARTS, A2 parts and assemblies. Large Inventory. www.usedpinsetterparts.com.

NEW & USED Pro Shop Equipment.

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

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 - bpitx@texasonline.net

www.bowlingpartsandequipment.com

WWW.FACEBOOKBOWLING.COM

Pinsetter Parts New from ALL major manufacturers. HUGE IN STOCK inventory.

USED Brunswick Scoring parts, AS90 cameras, processors, lane cables, monitors, and PC boards. Order online @ 888SBIBOWL.com or (888) 724-2695.

The Mechanics Choice!

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

For Sale: used pin decks. Buy one, get one FREE. 27” monitors for AccuScore Plus & XL Scoring. Also XL Scoring package. (641) 4141542.

FOR SALE: General Electric & National front end motors with gear boxes for AMF 82-70 pinsetters. Excellent condition! Call Brian (716) 715-3930 or Kevin (716) 807-2194.

Bidding has OPENED for a 40-lane center with A2s and AS-90 scoring and kitchen equipment.

You can bid on items individually or as whole units. Pictures and light show video can be seen at http://www.auctionbowling.com.

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

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CLASSIFIEDS

I could not have gotten my loan without him.

CENTERS FOR SALE

Bill Hanson All Star Lanes Fort Myers, Florida The leading source for real estate loans with low down payments

Ken Paton (503) 645-5630 www.kenpaton.com kpaton@kenpaton.com

LOCKER KEYS FAST! •Keys & Combo Locks for all Types of Lockers.

•Used locks 1/2 price of new

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 WISCONSIN: 12 lanes, auto scoring, Anvilane synthetics, 82-70s. Great food sales. Yearly tournament. Attached, large 3 bedroom apartment w/ fireplace. $550K. (715) 223-8230.

•One week turnaround on most orders.

•New locks All types

UPSTATE NEW YORK: 8-lane center/ commercial building built in 1992.

Synthetic lanes, new automatic scoring, kitchen and room to expand! Reduced to sell @ $375,000. Call (315) 376-3611.

All keys done by code #.

No keys necessary.

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.

WWW.FACEBOOKBOWLING.COM

E-mail: huff@inreach.com FAX YOUR ORDER TO US AT:

530-432-2933

CALL TOLL FREE 1-800-700-4KEY INT’L 530-432-1027 Orange County Security Consultants

For FLORIDA CENTERS Call DAVID DRISCOLL & ASSOCIATES 1-800-444-BOWL P.O. Box 189 Howey-in-the-Hills, FL 34737 AN AFFILIATE OF SANDY HANSELL & ASSOCIATES 60

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

BRIAN ESTES

(866) 961-7633 Office: (734) 469-4293

Toll Free:

Email: build@capitalbowlingservice.com

www.CapitalBowlingService.com

CLASSIFIEDS CENTERS FOR SALE

CENTERS FOR SALE

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.

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.

TEXAS, SE of Houston: 40-lane center in mid-sized market. Updated scoring, lanes, seating, masking units in 2007 plus remodeled bar. New roof. Includes RE. Bank owned. Ken Paton (503) 645-5630.

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.

SOUTHERN INDIANA (close to Indianapolis): 18-lane Brunswick center with lounge, liquor license & movie theater on 4+ acres. Turnkey business.

Owner retiring. Great investment!

(765) 349-1312.

ARIZONA, PAYSON: 16 LANES. Assume mortgage. Details @ http://rimcountry lanes.com/4sale.pdf. Bob (602) 377-6657.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA: 16-lane center w/ synthetic lanes, 82-70s, 19,000 s/f building w/ lots of parking. Newly remodeled bar & large kitchen. Owner retiring. (530) 598-2133.

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.

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.

CENTERS FOR SALE SOUTHWESTERN WYOMING: 12 lanes + cafĂŠ & lounge, 2 acres w/ 5 bedroom home. Full liquor & fireworks licenses.

Outside Salt Lake City area. Dennis @ Uinta Realty, Inc. (888) 804-4805 or uintarlt@allwest.net.

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.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA: 16-lane center REDUCED to $799,000 for quick sale.

Synthetics, 82-70s, 19,000 s/f + parking.

Newly remodeled bar, large kitchen. Owner retiring. Will consider selling only equipment or building. www.siskiyoulanes.com. (530) 598-2133.

NORTHWEST LOUISIANA: 12-LANE Brunswick center. REDUCED TO SELL NOW! Includes auto scoring, glow bowling, pizza, large dining area & video poker. Good income. Long Lease. Great opportunity. Call Mike (318) 578-0772.

WWW.FACEBOOKBOWLING.COM

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CLASSIFIEDS CENTERS FOR SALE CENTRAL ILLINOIS: PRICED TO SELL!!

8-lane center with AMF 82-70s, full service restaurant, pro shop. Plus pool tables, Karaoke machine, DJ system. Includes RE. (217) 351-5152 or toms-uvl@sbcglobal.net.

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

CENTRAL ALABAMA: Recently remodeled, split house w/24 synthetic lanes (16 & 8) in 28,000 s/f building in shopping center; Brunswick A2s & 2000 seating; AccuScore Plus; VIA returns & storage tables; systems for Cosmic; established leagues; snack bar, pro shop & game/pool table area. Nearest competition 28 miles w/ colleges & Honda factory within minutes. Need to sell due to health. Reasonably priced. (435) 705-0420.

MIKE BARRETT Call for Price List

SELL YOUR CENTER OR EQUIPMENT

(818) 789-2695

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS: 16-lane center— Brunswick A-2s & JetBacks, snack bar, pro shop & lounge with 1,400 s/f apartment above. On 2.84 acres. Includes business & real estate. Good location! (618) 488-7858 or (618) 606-5053.

MICHIGAN, Lake Odessa: 12-lane center with updated AMF scoring, 82-70 pinsetters and full-menu restaurant & bar. Indoor/patio seating across from public beach. R&E. Owner retiring. Call Patti @ Freshwater Properties (616) 260-6500 or patti@grar.com.

SOUTHERN NEVADA: Excellent opportunity for qualified person! 8-lane center with AMF 82-70s, Twelve Strike scoring. $60,000 for business and equipment only.

Long term lease available. Building being remodeled. Call Steve (702) 293-6072; cell (702) 414-5321; email: ljjaa1414@yahoo.com.

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.

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

FAST!

CENTERS FOR SALE

NE NEVADA: New 2001. 16 lanes, 19,200 square feet, 1.68 acres paved, sound & lighting, lounge w/ gaming, arcade, full service snack bar & pro shop. Call (775) 934-1539.

SELL YOUR CENTER OR EQUIPMENT

FAST! (818) 789-2695

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CLASSIFIEDS 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/

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

AMF 65-25 CHASSIS: Conversion, Repair, Replace & Exchange. Includes rewiring, requested repairs, conversion to MK 30 board system and converting chassis to new PR system where applicable.

TOTAL SATISFACTION GUARANTEED. References available.

CHASSIS DOCTORS (330) 314-8951.

WWW.FACEBOOKBOWLING.COM

SERVICES AVAILABLE Still sanding after all these years! If you still have wood, trust your lanes to Langlo Bowling Supply Inc. Next year, the Langlo name will be in the business for 100 years. Call Jeff Langlo (727) 919-4475. He has been on every job since 1971. Call for new synthetic. Call for repairs on wood & synthetic. Call for recoats.

Will go ANYWHERE!

MECHANIC WANTED A mechanic with 5+ years experience.

Salary DOE. (509) 953-5810.

POSITION WANTED Wanted: smaller Brunswick center in upper Midwest-- lease with option to buy. Over 30 years experience in ALL phases of bowling center operations. Ed (515) 771-7606.

MARSHALL ELECTRONICS • Foul Units • Electronic Scoring Repair • Chassis Boards • AMF Accuscore Plus • Curtain Wall Chassis - $285 • Brunswick Scoring We repair all types of monitor boards.

Call for a complete price list.

593 Loxley Drive, Toms River, NJ 08753

732-240-6554 • 800-782-9494

www.merepair.webs.com

SELL YOUR CENTER OR EQUIPMENT

FAST! (818) 789-2695

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CLASSIFIEDS

3

EASY WAYS

to place your Classified Ad in International Bowling Industry Magazine Call (818) 789-2695

Fax

(818) 789-2812

E-mail info@bowlingindustry.com IBI

June 2011

65

REMEMBER WHEN

1936

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B

ack in the day, Collier’s was known for its emphasis on social reform—child labor laws, women’s suffrage, meat inspection. Authors such as Ernest Hemingway, Winston Churchill, JD Salinger and Willa Cather made the pages of Collier’s, The National Weekly. Even cartoonists such as Joseph Barbera of Flintstone’s ilk can be found there during the 1930s. Nothing was left to chance. The illustrators knew the market and the message.

So here we are on December 12, 1936 viewing a very interesting cover of contrasts done by Robert O. Reid.

The game is bowling—duckpin AND tenpin. The message? Do we see competition of women moving into more high profile jobs? Why does the big, burly guy use a duckpin ball while our put-together woman lugs the big tenpin ball? Each is intent on achieving a goal or possibly the same goal yet our figures could not be more different.

No matter what the message the common denominator was bowling. In 1936 there were 251,000 ABC members and the WIBC hosted 15,886 members.

There were 3,343 certified establishments containing a total of 21,670 lanes. Everyone knew bowling, so what better way to bring the message home whatever it was. Want to take a guess? ❖