international bowling industry- april 2010
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The World's Leading trade Magazine Devoted Exclusively to the Business of Bowling.TRANSCRIPT
4
6THE ISSUE AT HAND
Apollo O-Yeah!By Scott Frager
8NEWS FRONTStu Upson talks
about USBC’sfinancial health.
Peoplewatching.
12CENTER STAGE
The furniture is alightand patronage hasbeen on fire from
opening day forZagreb’s new center.
14OFF THE CLOCK
Hello, dollyTami Nobiletti’s
hobby is absolutelynot for kids.
18COVER STORY
The heart ofthe matter
You can’t sleep allthe time when you’re in
the hospital. You havea lot of time to think.
By Fred Groh
30
CONTENTS
22COMPASS POINTSWalking and ridingand camping andtaking pictures on thestill-wild side of Africa.By Gregory Keer
26BACKSTORYWhat was your firstjob, Tom Martino?
28BOWLING STARSReally, how manybowlers have you metwho were better?By Bill Mossontte
30THE ATTIC TRUNKNew York, New York:it’s a hell of a(bowling) townBy Chuck Pezzano
46REMEMBER WHEN1948A year when you couldbuy a bowling ball in ajewelry store.
36 Showcase
38 Datebook
39 Classifieds
VOL 18.4THE WORLD'S ONLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY TO THE BUSINESS OF BOWLING
IBI April 2010
18
22
PUBLISHER & EDITORScott Frager
[email protected]: scottfrager
MANAGING EDITORFred Groh
OFFICE MANAGERPatty Heath
CONTRIBUTORSGregory KeerBill MossontteChuck Pezzano
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANTVictoria Tahmizian
ART DIRECTION & PRODUCTIONDesignworks
www.dzynwrx.com(818) 735-9424
FOUNDERAllen Crown (1933-2002)
13245 Riverside Dr., Suite 501Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
(818) 789-2695(BOWL)Fax (818) 789-2812
www.BowlingIndustry.com
HOTLINE: 888-424-2695
SUBSCRIPTION RATES: One copy ofInternational Bowling Industry is sent free toevery bowling center, independently ownedpro shop and collegiate bowling center inthe U.S., and every military bowling centerand pro shop worldwide. Publisher reservesthe right to provide free subscriptions tothose individuals who meet publicationqualifications. Additional subscriptions maybe purchased for delivery in the U.S. for $50per year. Subscriptions for Canada andMexico are $65 per year, all other foreignsubscriptions are $80 per year. All foreignsubscriptions should be paid in U.S. fundsusing International Money Orders.POSTMASTER: Please send new as well asold address to International Bowling Industry,13245 Riverside Drive, Suite 501, ShermanOaks, CA 91423 USA. If possible, pleasefurnish address mailing label.Printed in U.S.A. Copyright 2010, B2B Media,Inc. No part of this magazine may be reprintedwithout the publisher’s permission.
MEMBER AND/OR SUPPORTER OF:
6 IBI April 2010
THE ISSUE AT HAND
Apollo O-Yeah!
�THIS MONTH AT www.BowlingIndustry.com
Spectacularcenters in acontinuous slideshow...the cutting-edge look of ourindustry.
I love the Olympics, even though the Winter Games have not been my favorite. This year, however, the Gamesbecame really memorable for me by opening my eyes–in more ways than one.
I’ve always relished the competition between countries. I love the athletes, their skills, their grace under pressure,and their sportsmanship. I enjoy learning about the host country and the far-flung sports that are a part of the Games.
On the other hand, I always poked fun at the curlers. It’s simple and easy, right? How hard can it be to glidea piece of granite (“stones,” as I learned they’re called) across a field of ice? And what’s up with their argyleuniforms? It gives them a clown-like look, not like the serious athletes who win places in other sports at the Games.
Those were my thoughts until this year. Then I happened to get into a conversation with family friend Zachary Rubiner.He’s an 11-year-old who taught me a lot about the sport of curling and about sports humility. More on this in a minute.
I don’t think there’s anyone this side of Greece who enjoys the Winter Olympics as much as my mom. Thisedition of the Games was especially enjoyable for me because both parents, Barbara and Bob, were in town visitingfrom Kansas during the opening ceremonies and the first week of the competition.
Until their visit, I used to laugh at the flamboyance of the skaters, both iceand speed. I admired their talent, for sure, but just couldn’t wrap my headaround the sport of it. Having Mom and Dad around to help with colorcommentary definitely gave me a better understanding of the events and putme in my place about my own, not-so-refined sporting skills.
Their visit also led me to my favorite sport this year, men’s speed-skating.To watch American Apollo Ono was eye-opening. To understand something ofthe strategy, skill, power and raw endurance needed to pull off his amazingperformances was, well, awe-inspiring.
As I watched the Games, I was reminded that just as these athletes canwin or lose by mere thousandths of a moment or fractions of a point, business success can be told in one quarterat a time as well as in million-dollar mergers.
And from my folks and Zachary, I re-learned the lesson that it’s okay to enjoy a sportthat doesn’t make the daily news. It’s okay to admire athletes that don’t have multi-million dollar sponsorships from major consumer brands. And it’s okay to respect asport that isn’t mainstream.
Now, if we can only get Mom, Dad and Zachary together with the InternationalOlympic Committee, bowling will become a gold-medal sport.
.
– SCOTT FRAGER, PUBLISHER AND [email protected]
8 IBI April 2010
: What is USBC’s current situation? Stu Upson, E.D.,USBC: The financial situation is solid but we needto be very careful moving forward. I say that
because we have to start balancing our budget every year andbuilding up reserves, which we haven’t been doing consistentlyin the past.
It was unbalanced last year? Correct. It’s been up and down.One year positive, one year negative, and there’s a lot of varyingfactors. [Editor’s note: In FY ending July 31, 2009, USBC reportedan operating loss of $5m and a one-time benefit of $1m on $52mtotal revenue. In the preceding FY, the operating loss was $0.9mwith a one-time benefit of $0.4m on $51m total revenue. Figuresrounded from audited financial statement of Jan. 25, 2010.]
This year our challenge has been that we forecastedmembership correctly but our tournament entries, both theOpen Championships in Reno and the Women’s Championshipsin El Paso, are down about 10% versus what we had forecast,and down 10% versus previous years.
It’s been the economy, we think. We talk to a lot of citiesabout their convention business and they’re all down 15,20%. So the big picture: we’re not doing too badly. We stillhave a lot of people showing up for these tournaments, butit’s below forecast.
Is Chapter 11 probable? No, absolutely not. We have plentyof money. If we’re smart, we have plenty of money to not onlysurvive but start building financial strength again. We have aplan to do that.
We did some restructuring earlier this year where we reducedsome staff. Thirteen positions were eliminated. We trimmed alittle bit in several different departments so no one departmentwas affected more severely than the others. Everybody tooka little bit of the pain.
But we built up staff in other areas—all in an effort tobalance the budget. We’re going to have a balanced budgetfor this year. We’re going into the budgeting process for nextyear, where we will have a surplus.
How did USBC get into this financial condition? Two things,I believe. First, the economy is hurting us, like it is everybodyelse. That’s not an excuse but it’s a reality. People aren’t
traveling to tournaments,people aren’t spending asmuch money as they havein the past.
Number two, we have abuilding up in Greendale,WI, which we are trying tosell. When we moved downhere to Texas, the plan wasto sell the Greendalebuilding, and the marketthere, as in most places inthe country, is not ripe for asell. So we’ve got a buildingthere, which is on the market for $5.5m, which nobody wantsto buy right now, and we’re not standing on being able to sellthat for probably a couple of years. We’re also looking atleasing options.
Was the Clash of Champions cancelled because of your financialsituation? Yes. The original plan was based on sponsorship andthe sponsorship money isn’t there so it was a money-losingventure. We decided to put it on hiatus for this year.
Any other tournaments you will cancel? For this year [2010-2011], no. We are looking at everything for next year [2011-2012]. I say that in a very broad scope, not just tournaments.We are doing an evaluation right now as part of our budgetingprocess for the next fiscal year. We are looking at everyprogram. I think at our convention [April 28-May 1, Reno]we’ll be able to let the delegates know what we’re looking atprogram-wise. I think it’s safe to say that there will probably besome programs that we are currently doing that we will put onhiatus for next year.
Everybody seems to think alcohol will now be allowed attournaments in order to raise money from alcohol sales. I woulddisagree. Yes, we will make money on it, but that’s not thereason we are doing it. We think that most bowlers who go outto our championship event prefer to have the ability to ordera Pepsi, a cup of coffee or an alcoholic beverage. We’re tryingit for a year. We’re only testing this right now at the Open
IBI
NEWS FRONT
STU UPSONANSWERS READERS AND RUMORS
Is USBC headed for Chapter 11? Booze on tournaments lanes?
SMART funds going for USBC needs?
10 IBI April 2010
NEWS FRONT
Championships. We are investigating possibly doing it at theWomen’s Championships; we’re talking to the convention andvisitors people there. Just those two right now as a test. We’ll talkto the bowlers to see how they like it, but the feedback we havegotten from most of the people has been extremely positive overthis position.
Obviously there’s a very vocal group who think it’s a mistake andI understand their position completely. But this is an effort, by meand my group here, to try to make the tournaments more appealingand a better experience for everybody who attends. Because ifpeople go and they have a better time, they’re going to come backand they’re going to bring more teams with them next year. That’sthe driving force behind this position. Yes, on top of that we hopeto make some incremental revenue.
What’s your long-run game plan for “building financial strength”?We have to get our membership declines under control. Everybodyknows we’ve been declining 5 or 6% every year, and this yearwe’re looking at exactly the same. We are in the process of lookingat our membership products, trying to make them more appealingto a broader range of bowlers. That process [must] be all-inclusive–not just the staff here in Arlington, [but also] the states,the locals, the proprietors, the bowler: what do they want? [We want]to create a new membership structure which we would be in aposition to introduce for the 2011-2012 season.
Perhaps because of rumors about USBC’s financial condition,questions are popping up about SMART, the program for holding andinvesting scholarship money for young bowlers. Is SMART moneyinvested or parked? Somewhere in between. It’s invested veryconservatively. It’s a mix of stocks and bonds and cash. We’retrying to find the right balance between having a decentreturn–certainly nothing that’s high-risk–but we also want to be safe.We don’t want to lose value.
[Editor’s note: About 70% of SMART investments are currently100% insured by both FDIC and SIPC, according to USBC CFOSusan Merrill. The investments include CDs and Treasury bonds, allof which are 100% insured.]
Do youth bowlers get a share of increases in the portfolio value?The providers do, so yes. If there are any gains at the end of theyear above and beyond the basic value that a provider gives andany other monies we get on the side, [the gains] go back to theprovider and the provider has the ability to pass those funds on tothe scholarship kids.
‘Provider’? The proprietor, the association, the league, thetournament operator—anybody who is physically putting themoney into the smart account on behalf of the kids.
The SMART funds are completely safe in that they’re not co-mingled with USBC funds; they’re in separate, protected accounts.We don’t use the money for anything. They’re SMART funds, notUSBC funds. There are a lot of rumors going around that we havebeen using the funds ourselves or co-mingling them. That isabsolutely false. ❖
New Director of Youth at BPAA isChad Murphy, who will have chargeof managing and developingprograms to grow the sport amongyoung people. He comes fromEbonite, where he was brand managerfor Columbia 300.
Jamie Brooks, our cover profile inMarch, was named for USBC’sProprietor of the Year Award.Throughout his career, Brooks hasfocused on league bowling and in-center coaching instruction, and hasbeen a consistent promoter ofsanctioned (now USBC) tournamentsand supporter of bowling programs inhigh schools near his centers.
Other recognition awards for the year went to Minnesotastate and local association leader Harry Stewart and toCalifornia local leader and bowling writer Tina Martin.
Dean Ryan, manager of Ft. MeadeLanes at the U.S. Army garrison at FortMeade, MD, has been named 2009Army Coach of the Year. Ryan, whohas coached the All Army team for thepast seven years and led the team tovictory over the Air Force in 2009, alsocoaches the All Armed Forces Teamthat competes against civilian teams.
Also on the coaching front, NormStrehle has been inducted into theWashington State BPA Coaches Hallof Fame. Strehle has been coachingjuniors since 1976, has taught highschool club teams for 21 years, andcoached in Special Olympics for 25years, the past five as head coach.He has taught thousands ofyoungsters to bowl through local parks and recreationdepartment programs.
Kelly Kulick was one of about 250women attending an InternationalWomen’s Day reception at the WhiteHouse on March 9. The event washosted by President Obama and FirstLady Michelle Obama. Kulick said shedid not have a photo op with theObamas but did meet the president.
Chad Murphy
Jamie Brooks
Dean Ryan
Norm Strehle
PEOPLEWATCHING
Kelly Kulick
IBI April 2010
CENTER STAGECENTER STAGE
12
Bowling 300 Zagreb. “We know every other bowling
place is named like this but we stillthink this is a strong number andthat it brings luck.”
Marko Macek, who is an investorin the center but not a bowler, saysthe prospect of hosting the 46thQubicaAMF Bowling World Cup inOctober was a lure in building thenew center.
But the payback began as soonas Bowling 300 opened late lastyear. “We have an impressiveentertainment center that bringstogether sports and fun andpeople of all ages,” a delightedMacek says.
They also have, in the city ofZagreb, Croatia’s first tenpinbowling center. ❖
Bar to the left, reception desk and shoes against the “Bowling” wall. Colorschange at the bar and in ambient lighting.
CENTERSTAGETrg Bana Jelacica, city’s main square.
IBI April 2010
CENTER STAGE
13
Red-and-black seating in the Media Room, where patrons have Internet access, watch TV or just talk.
Snack bar on the left,eight billiard tablesstraight ahead.
Through the window, 32 glowinglanes. The house also has four
lanes of QubicaAMF’s Highway 66small-ball game.
14 IBI April 2010
ami Nobiletti’s dollhousesare not kid stuff. Give one toan eight-year-old, somethingis bound to get broken, and
too much work has gone into them.About a year’s worth, for the
country store (this page and top ofpage 16). Starting life as a miniaturelog cabin, it turned up in a corner ofan auto junkyard the owner hadn’tvisited in 15 years. Somebody pickingover the rusty skeletons unearthed abattered old trunk. It had to be priedopen. Inside, the little cabin was allcedar and in scale at one inch to afoot. Nobiletti thinks it’s at least 25years old and was originally a displaymodel in a store, but nobody knowsfor sure.
The country store she turned it intois one of a trio of dollhouses in thecraft room at Nobiletti’s house (whichis not in 1-inch scale). It’s the only oneshe’s finished, which she explains bysaying, “A dollhouse is like your ownhouse. How many years does it take toreally decorate it the way you want?”
At least 26 years in the case of hertwo-story Victorian farmhouse (page16), because she’s had it that long,but she’s been bearing down the pastthree years. The roof filigree (not inphoto) is carved out of balsa wood inhearts and bows “just because it’s adollhouse and it should be overdone,
T
OFF THE CLOCK
A bit of ease for the farm folk round about: the latestnewspapers and canned goods, china and children’s toys,and a warm stove if you stop in on a cold morning. Alsomail, since the store is the local post office, too.
“I try to do as much by hand as I can. The only thingI buy, because I don’t have the attention for it, is dishes.You make a lot of that out of clay you bake. It’s somethingI avoid.”
Cans on the shelves are made with wooden dowels.“The labels you can buy. I cheated; I got a magazine andprinted them. I made over 300. [Vegetables:] I bought someand I made some. They’re all individual.”
Hello,
dollyHello,
dolly
16 IBI April 2010
OFF THE CLOCK
you know? Dollhouses are fairytales.” She also has a shell–roof and
walls–that she’ll turn into an EnglishVictorian residence in stucco and brick.
She started into the hobby whenshe was about 18. When she finishesall three houses, some years hence,she could sell them for around $4,000apiece in today’s dollars but she plansto “save them.” Both her kids wantone. They’ll get it–with a caveat.
“When I’m gone, if I see your kidsplaying with them, I’ll come back andhaunt them.” ❖
The Victorian farmhouse under construction. Eachshingle was individually placed. Nobiletti is creating thesiding (still to be applied) and doors. The house isopen in the back. Dollhouse shells are bought foraround $750.
The bed started life as a kit of unfinished wood. The green fabric wasChristmas ribbon. The doll is a quarter-century old, purchased in CapeCod from the doll-maker, who was in her late 70s, hand–made all thelace, and painted the face.
“I’m a pack rat,” says Nobiletti, who draws on the resources of hercenter, Family Bowl in Plant City, FL. “Caps to spray bottles in the bowlingalley are the size of a stool. I have an awesome group of seniors. They dotatting, a very fine crocheting. They might make eight inches that doesn’tgo with anything; eight inches can outline a whole room of curtains.”
Some furnishings are gifts. “I love that because I can look at a roomand say this person gave me this and this person gave me that. That meansa lot to me.”
A platform of old cedar was added to create a floor and porchesfor the country store. In the front, folks can set a spell in therocking swing.
Everything in scale: 1 inch to 1 foot. Dollhouse hobbyistsalso work in 1/2 to 1.
18 IBI April 2010
he plan was to fly down fromPortland on Friday and rent acar from Phoenix to Tucson.Son Billy was coming in fromL.A. and everybody, includingdaughter Elizabeth, a student
at U of Arizona in Tucson, would be togetherfor Parents Weekend at the school.
Fred Schreyer says the plane was five or 10minutes into the flight and still ascendingwhen he felt the pain.
Not like a jolt, he says, picking over his
T
COVER STORY
COVER AND STORY PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDY TEMPLETON, ANDY TEMPLETON PHOTOGRAPHY
FRED SCHREYER (RIGHT) AND KIRK VON KRUEGER,PBA VICE PRESIDENT AND TOUR DIRECTOR, AT THE PBA
ONE A DAY DICK WEBER OPEN IN JANUARY. IT WAS HELDAT FOUNTAIN BOWL, FOUNTAIN VALLEY, CA.
The heartof the matter
By Fred Groh
You can’t sleep all the time when you’re in thehospital. You have a lot of time to think.
19IBI April 2010
COVER STORY
words, but like a clench. Like a lock–up of the muscleunder his shoulder blade. He settles on ‘cramp.’ “It feltlike a cramp. Exactly, like a very severe cramp.”
Schreyer did not know what a heart attack feelslike, never having had one. He was wrong about thelocation, too. He thought he would feel it in theheart area if one ever happened. Instead, the crampswung around his side and up his chest to end abovehis breast.
“Gosh, honey, my back’s really hurting. Can you rubit?” That to wife Randi in the seat beside him. “She’svery good at giving back rubs.”
It didn’t work in this case, though. The seat belt sign was still on but Schreyer was too
uncomfortable just to sit. He flashed for a flightattendant. No, he didn’t think this was an emergency.“Well, do you think you’re having a heart attack?”“Well, I don’t necessarily think so. I just know I’mvery uncomfortable.”
“She goes on the PA system to ask if there’s anymedical personnel on the flight. Quite a few callbuttons go off, and a guy sitting a couple of rowsbehind me comes up, sits down and asks me what’sgoing on. I tell him and point him. He feels it. He says,‘Wow, you really do have a knot back there, but I doubtit’s a heart attack.’”
To this day, Schreyer doesn’t blame the VancouverGP for making a mistake. He doesn’t blame AlaskaAirlines for not turning the plane around or asking ifhe wanted to go back. He got something of a kick outof the overhead oxygen mask they released for himat his seat when he started getting clammy. With themask’s spotty performance, he was thinking, “Boy, Ihope I never need one of these in an emergencybecause I’m not getting anything,” meaning oxygen.
Schreyer was not at all panicked. He was thinkinghe didn’t want to ruin the trip. Something had to bechecked but he’d do it in Tucson. He was justuncomfortable.
✻ ✻ ✻
Two hours later, the pain fluctuating but alwaysthere, paramedics standing by at the airport had notrouble figuring out what was happening. Schreyer hadbeen wheeled off the plane before the otherpassengers, jabbed with an IV and given nitroglycerinto open the blood vessels. That had stopped the pain.
They were taking some tests and Schreyer wasasking whether he could get on with his drive to
Tucson. “They’re looking at me like, ‘You’re not driving anywhere.’ Theguy said to me pretty quickly that he thought I was showing all the classicsymptoms of a heart attack. I’m just thinking, ‘Wow, is this reallyhappening? I can’t believe this is happening!’
“Randi stays with me. She’s on the phone when we get off, to talkto [Billy, their son]. He had flown in on a different airline. He came overand picked up my wife’s bag, maybe we both had checked a bag, I can’tremember. She had prepped him for it. ‘Your dad’s okay but he’shaving a little incident and he’s with the paramedics.’”
They all took the paramedic van immediately to the ER at St. Luke’s.✻ ✻ ✻
They give you a local anesthetic. They make an incision in the groinarea and come up through the veins to the artery. A tiny balloon isinserted into the clogged artery, then inflated to force the artery wallopen. Metal mesh stents–two in Schreyer’s case–are put in to hold theartery wall open permanently, then the balloon is collapsed.
Schreyer had landed at 9:45. His angioplasty took about an hour. Itwas 11:30 when he was wheeled into intensive care.
After five days, monitored to be sure his body had accepted thestents and that he was not reacting against medication, Schreyer wasdischarged from ICU and the hospital.
He and Randi went over to the home of Randi’s sister, who lives intown, cleaned up, and were on a plane back to Portland that night.
Within two weeks, he was back at the PBA president/CEO’s deskfull-time.
✻ ✻ ✻
“I definitely had some periods in the hospital where I was reflective.
CHECKING TV COVERAGE ATTHE WEBER OPEN.
20 IBI April 2010
COVER STORY
My wife was there. We kind of sent [the kids] down to Tucson, said, ‘Gohave some fun and come back’; they came back on Sunday and spentthe day. So I had company.
“But you’re also by yourself a lot. It’s not like you’re sleeping all thetime. You’ve got plenty of time to think.”
✻ ✻ ✻
A year before Fred Schreyer’s Oct. 16, 2009 heart attack, the countrywas in the first months of the downturn and he was thinking a lotabout PBA business. He was still marching toward his goal–to move PBAinto self-sufficiency, then growth–but economic upheaval in the countryhad tilted the road upward.
On the personal side, his wife was turning 50 and a big birthday tripwas in the planning stage. Their son had graduated from college andthere was some discussion about his settling in L.A. Elizabeth, theirdaughter, was a freshman in college.
Schreyer was giving an occasional thought to how much longer hewanted to work. “I never thought of myself getting old. You just live andthen all of a sudden, ‘What’s going on here!’” He wanted to get to thepoint where he and Randi could do more traveling and he could playmore golf, “but those [were] just kind of general feelings, never muchmore specific than that.”
A year and a half later, and six months after his heart attack, life hasnot changed terribly much. Conducting business at PBA is “doing a lotof things differently” and Schreyer has been thinking about how thechanges have been received and how effectively they’re working. Hefocuses on the sales side of the company. But he doesn’t charge anyof this to the heart attack.
Personally, he says he feels good. He hasn’t dramatically changed hisdiet, which was pretty heart-healthy anyway. He always tried to maketime for workouts and finds he’s lost about 10% of his stamina since theattack. That, he says, he’s trying to get a handle on.
“You’re curious: how hard can you push yourself? At what point do
you stop worrying about what’s going on [in yourbody] and ‘just do it’? How much of this is just gettingolder and how much is an after-effect of the incident?”
Does he dwell on the attack? Yes and no. “It is something [I] think a lot about because people
are nice, always asking how you feel. People alwayswant to talk to you about it. Less so with the passageof time but still, you’re thinking about what you can do,how you feel. Any time you have a little ache or painyou go, ‘What is that? Is that another incident?’ Itmakes you more sensitive to the little aches or pains.”
Feel more mortal? “Without question, yes. Yes.“My first wife had cancer and I watched her die in
a 13-month period. That’s really a hard, painful thing.[But] it’s one thing when you know you’re dying or youwatch yourself die or you watch someone die. With aheart attack, the suddenness of it— you think, ‘I’m 56,I’m taking pretty good care of myself, and it doesn’tmatter.’ That’s the part where you go, ‘Wow! Thiscould have been all over—just like that.’
“And then you say, ‘God, I would have lefteverything a mess.’ You wouldn’t have done any of theplanning you think you need to do before you die.”
A lot of the mess in his case would have been infamily matters, Schreyer says. He still had insurancepolicies showing his deceased wife as beneficiary.His will needed updating.
But in business, too. “How do things go on withoutyou? Have you prepared a transition? How much is inyour head and how much is committed to writing?”
Contemplating the disarray, was he more concernedwith finishing things or with preparing things?
“I don’t know you’re ever finished so I guessprobably more preparing, although in some wayspreparing and finishing almost become the same fromtime to time. It’s anticipating, having certain things insome type of order. That there’s—maybe that’s becauseit’s my personality—some logical transition. Thatwhatever happens after you move on is fairly orderlyand not overly complicated and difficult.”
More struck by the situation or more goaded intoaction, into actually doing something, like making plans?
“Initially it was more to start making plans anddoing things to prepare. With the passage of time, it’smore [being] struck by the situation.”
The situation strikes him deeply, because he saysit again: “You think you’re more or less doing theright things and just like that, something can happen.”
Did he change priorities, then?“You certainly say you’re going to do that, and
WATCHING THE PLAY WITH TRACY WEBER, PETE’S WIFE.
21IBI April 2010
COVER STORY
you want to do that, and effecting change is alwaysmore difficult than saying [it], but definitely it makesyou look at things a little differently.
“It makes me think more that things aren’t justopen to how long [you] are committing to this orthat, figuring you’ll get to it when you get to it.”
He thinks more in terms of time-spans, he says. Heis more conscious of how he spends his time. Hefeels a greater sense of–“‘urgency’ may be over-stating it–just making the completion of things morea priority. More to take action, not to defer action. Toget things done, to move ahead, to accelerate thepace at which things happen, not to just let things playout at their own pace.”
Business accelerates on its own, he says, so mostlyhe has picked up his speed on the family side. Whenhe got home to Portland, he sat down with his lawyer.And he’s more involved with his son these days,“maybe pushing him a little to get more direction inwhat he’s doing.” He’s also more appreciative offriends and family, “even though that sounds a littletrite; I think it’s really true.”
But he never made out a bucket list. It hasn’t beenwhat you see in the movies, Schreyer says: “‘Gosh, I’vealways wanted to do this but I didn’t, and now I need
to.’ Nothing like that for me.”Is he a different person today? “It’s funny. As much as I’d like to say yes—you kind of feel you’d like
to say, ‘Yes, it changed me to the core’–I think if I’m being honest I’mnot sure I would say yes. I think I’m pretty much the same person. I hopeI’m a little more sensitive [to] what’s going on and more in tune withthat, but I don’t feel it changed who I am, really. It’s definitely had animpact on how I think of things.”
What, then, does it all come to? What is the lesson in having andsurviving a heart attack?
“That’s always the big question,” Schreyer says. “More thananything, I think it highlights your mortality. It makes [you] aware thatit could all be over tomorrow and if that happened–I don’t believe inan afterlife, so it won’t mean anything to [me] when [I’m] gone–butwould you be happy with the way you lived your life? You don’t wantto be overly trite, but have you lived a good life? Have you done thingsthat you’re proud of? That make your kids proud?
“I don’t think I have any better answers to the mysteries of life andhow to live your life than anybody else does, but what I walk away withis: you shouldn’t take things for granted. You just can’t think you’re hereforever. Life can be very fleeting and there are no guarantees. There iscertainly a–I don’t know if ‘randomness’ is the right word—but there isan element of life that is very unpredictable.
“You shouldn’t assume that there’s always time to do what youwant to do.” ❖
22 IBI April 2010
owling at Double Decker Lanes in Rohnert Park,CA, can feature its share of wildlife. Just askanyone who’s rolled and danced on glow nightsor witnessed the kid chaos of an eight-year-old’s
birthday party at the center. But the kind of unfetteredrecreation Susan and Jim Decker see at their bowlingcenter in the north of the San Francisco Bay areais a far cry from the natural wonder they witnessedin East Africa.
The Deckers love to travel, especially with theirfamily. A few years ago, Susan and Jim packed upthe kids and made the trans-global trek to Kenyaand Tanzania to experience the animals, thepeople, and the land most people only see inNational Geographic or on the Discovery channel.
While the Decker family had taken a number of activetrips around the U.S., including a journey to Florida, wherethey took in a bowling convention and some scuba divingin the Keys, this was Jim’s first time leaving the U.S. TheDeckers live in the wine country near Santa Rosa, eight
miles from their center, which is one hournorth of San Francisco.
Susan was a bit more traveled, havingseen a lot as a child and as a collegegraduate who toured Europe. “I’d gone toAfrica with my family when I was 13,”
Susan explained, “but I didn’t remembermuch of it. My mom had studied differentcultures and wanted to bring all thegrandkids, this time, to experience Africabefore it changed too much.”
COMPASS POINTS
BY GREGORY KEER
23IBI April 2010
COMPASS POINTS
Susan’s mom handled all the arrangements,using a New York-based tour service called 2Afrika(www.2afrika.com), run by safari specialist KennethHieber. All the Deckers had to do was grab theirtwo sons (Kyle and Jamie, who were 11 and 14years old at the time), join the grandparents andSusan’s brother’s family on the plane, and enjoythe nearly three-week mid-summer adventure.
The party of 10 landed at Nairobi JomoKenyatta International Airport, stayed in the Kenyancapital for a spell, then headed out on safari.
“We were always on the go,” Jim said. Becauseof their size, the extended family formed their owntour group, with two vans carrying five people ineach vehicle, though the guides were in constantradio contact with other vans that were part of theexpedition, especially when animals were sighted.
“Most of our time was spent on reserves,”Jim continued. Among the reserves the Deckersvisited in Kenya and Tanzania were Maasai MaraNational Reserve, Amboseli National Park, andSerengeti National Park. “We would have onenight at a lodge, then traveled all day–about 40miles in vans on dirt roads–to get to the nextgame reserve.”
The rewards of all that driving were considerable. “We saw animals daily,” Jim recalled. “They
came out in the mornings to feed and that’swhen the vans would stop for us to observe. Wesaw lions, giraffes–three different kinds. Therewas an elephant in the road and we had to wait20 minutes for it to move so we could drive on.We saw rhinos, leopards, cheetahs, hippos, andcrocodiles. My father-in-law is really into birdsand the guide pointed out a lot of them.”
“If a tour guide did not know an answer aboutan animal, they’d look it up for us,” Susan added.
One of the observations Jim found most
interesting was the response–or lack thereof–from the wildlifetoward their onlookers. “The animals are oblivious to the vansand don’t get frightened.”
Despite the docile appearance of the creatures, the guideskept the tourists protected. “We never got out of the vans,except at lunch time or a break when we were safely away fromanimals,” Jim pointed out.
“If we got out near a river, the guides had huge guns toprotect us against the crocodiles,” Susan said.
When it was time for the humans to rest, the tour would stopat oases amidst the arid expanse of the game preserve. “The reststops were like Disneyland adventure towns,” Susan said. “Therewould be monkeys stealing napkins, but everything was otherwisevery formal and fancy in the British style. You’d forget you werein the middle of a safari in Africa.”
The accommodations consisted of comfortable huts acting
JAMIE, SUSAN, KYLE AND JIM.
24 IBI April 2010
COMPASS POINTS
as hotel rooms. “At night, you could hear critters onthe roof.”
Once again, the hosts put safety first. There wasfencing around the lodges. “You could not go for awalk,” Susan said. “There were guards armed withslingshots who escorted you around at night outside. Wenever felt afraid, though we did hear about somebodywho got killed by a lion the day before we arrived.”
Animals and exotic-yet-fancy lodging were not the
only high points of the trip. The Deckers wereimpressed with the people of the villages they visited.In particular, they met members of the Maasai, a semi-nomadic group indigenous to Kenya and Tanzania.Despite efforts to fully modernize the Maasai, the
people have maintained many of their traditional ways.“How the Maasai live was interesting to our sons,” Jim said. “The
people seemed low-key and, overall, happy.”Susan had another side to the story of people-watching. “We also
saw a lot of poverty,” she said. “For our safety, the guides kept usseparated. There were some people begging and checking us out asmuch as we were checking them out.
“Still, the kids came back appreciating what they have,” Shepointed out. “It gave them a sense that you don’t need a lot to behappy. They learned that we are all pretty much the same.”
While we all live under the same sun and moon, the Deckers foundthe sky itself quite different.
“I had an overall feeling of peacefulness,” Susanmused. “There was this clean sky in which you could seea zillion stars at night. The sky goes on forever there.”
The Deckers basked in the natural beauty of EastAfrica, which was made especially enjoyable by the highelevation (5,000-feet-plus), relatively constant temperature(70-75 degrees Fahrenheit), and sparse rain.
Jim was also taken in by being at the Earth’s equatorand visiting Tanzania’s Ngorongoro Crater, a huge volcanic calderawhich is home to 20- to 30,000 wild animals.
After nearly three weeks on the odyssey with family and animals andnature, the Deckers felt fulfilled. “It was a good bonding experience forall 10 of us,” Jim said.
ARRIVING, VISITING, DEPARTING. VILLAGERS WERE AS CURIOUSAS THE TRAVELERS WERE.
25IBI April 2010
COMPASS POINTS
The adventure, it turned out, would have even deeper meaning.“A couple of months after we returned from the safari, my
mom was diagnosed with a [recurrence] of her breast cancer.This safari was the last big thing she did before she passed away.”
Susan said that her mom wanted the family to continuetraveling together. Since the safari, the group has taken anAlaskan cruise, a ski trip to Whistler, British Columbia, and abicycle trip through Germany for Susan’s dad’s 80th birthday.In this way, the Deckers have created a traveling tradition tolast for several lifetimes.❖
Gregory Keer is an award-winning columnist, teacher, screenwriter,and guest expert in national media. Read more of his work at hisonline parenting magazine, www.FamilyManOnline.com.
26 IBI April 2010
BACKSTORY
When I was a young boy ingrammar school I canremember working for myfather. He had his ownproduce business. I would doclean–up and take out thegarbage and stock things. Myfather was very tough on mebut he instilled in me a strongwork ethic and clean workinghabits [and] the value of adollar: you had to work forwhat you earned, and you hadto work hard to get furtheralong in life.
My first job out of high school in 1960 was for a printingcompany called Nevins. I was just a stock boy. I attendednight classes in accounting at college after work. My familydidn’t really have the resources to send me to college on a full-time basis, so I put myself through school. It took me 10 years.
My work habits at that job were the ones I learned at myfather’s business. My attitude there was to enjoy what I wasdoing and make the effort to do things right the first time. Itwas never so much a job as it was a learning experience. I wasvery dedicated to every job I had. I was always dependable.And with every job, Ilearned somethingmore about myselfand how to improvemy work habits. ❖
At left, accepting theLandsgraf award for
industry contributionsfrom the MetropolitanBowling Writers at last
year’s East Coastconvention. Presenter is
IBI contributor ChuckPezzano. Photo by Ron
De Roxtra.
High school, 1960.
WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB,TOM MARTINO,BPAA TREASURER?
Bill Mossontte is owner of Mission Hills Bowl, Corbin Bowl,Empire Bowl and Valencia Lanes in Southern California and isa big Zane Parker fan.
28 IBI April 2010
ack in the early 1990s, whenyou had to do more to scorewell than to just make sure youdidn’t foul, I was having all sortsof problems with the lane condition
at Mission Hills Bowl. The bowlers didn’t care that we had woodlanes, an old lane machine, and that my personal belief was ifyou hit 9 you should get 9. They just wanted to score.
Well, this probably wasn’t an unreasonable request seeingthat they were the customers. My problem was that no matterwhat we did, the scoring didn’t seem to get better. What dowe do now?
I was out on the concourse one night taking my beating fromthe bowlers like a man when I heard the desk announce, “ZaneParker, 289-239-279, 807.” Finally! Maybe this would get mesome relief. After all, if Zane could score, there had to be a shot.
I went to Ron at the desk and asked who Zane Parker was,thinking he was a new bowler to Mission, as I didn’t know him.
Ron said there was no Zane Parker. What?He explained he was tired of hearing about the lane
condition so he made up a name and announced a score. Hesaid if the bowlers complained, he would tell them they shouldgo watch Zane and play there. Brilliant! Game on.
Every night we announced scores by Zane Parker. We puthis scores in our column in the Bowling News. We made up flyerscongratulating him. We would ask people if they had heard whatZane shot last night. The bowlers soon calmed down. I love itwhen a plan comes together.
One night, a bowler–let’s call him Mike–after hearing thatZane shot 279 in the final game, wanted to know what lane he
was on. Ron told him 23 and 24but that Zane had just left the building. In fact, he pointed
to the rear door and said, “There he goes.” Mike started towalk fast to the rear door but couldn’t catch him.
The next night, Mike came down to watch Zane eventhough it wasn’t his regular league night. He just wanted to pickup some tips. Unfortunately, Zane didn’t bowl, as he was sick.
Mike called the next night and asked Ron if Zane wasbowling. Ron said yes but that he had fallen on the approachand hurt himself and had gone home.
The next time Mike asked about Zane, we told him his jobtransferred him to Las Vegas and he wouldn’t be continuing inhis leagues.
Over the next several weeks after Zane’s transfer, I wouldhear bowlers recounting different stories about him. Onebowler even commented that he was the best bowler that everbowled at Mission Hills Bowl, and that he would know. Hebowled three leagues with him. ❖
B
BOWLING STARS
Really, how many bowlershave you met whowere better?
Have an offbeat way of handling bowler problems?Post it on www.BowlingIndustry.com.
THELEGEND OFZANE PARKER
� BY BILL MOSSONTTE
30 IBI April 2010
ove it or hate it, New York, New York isthe hub of the universe in many ways,and over the years the Big Apple hasbeen big-time in bowling history.
The Dutch settlers of Manhattan Island broughtbowling with them. In 1732, a vacant space ofground near what is now Lower Broadway was anopen area used for parades, markets, meetingsand bonfires, and a portion was slightly enclosed andused for a bowling green. The area still bears thename: Bowling Green.
Bowling developed as a ball-and-pin game andby the 1840s, it was one of the most popular gamesin town. Bowling alleys were featured on almostevery block, boosted by citizens from Germany andthose with German ties.
But the pins were large and placed too closetogether, and there was no limit on the size andweight of balls, so the game became too easyand too monotonous. Scores of 300 wereprevalent, especially because you needed only 10strikes in a row.
In the 1860s, balls with finger holes wereintroduced, bowling clubs began to make waves,tournaments were devised, and lovers of the gameknew there was much work to be done.
��
In 1875, a select group of 27 bowlers andstudents of the game–representatives of bowlingbuffs from New York City and Brooklyn–met inGermania Hall in the Bowery and started theNational Bowling Association (NBA).
An expert committee was charged with reviewingthe almost non-existent rules and specifications.They agreed to a 60-feet distance from the bowler’send of the alley to the center of the headpin spot,required dead wood to be removed, and nullifiedballs that bounced from the gutter to knock pinsdown. Pin and ball specifications were designedto more reasonable measurements to ensure amore competitive challenge, though widespreadobservance of the rules would take time.
Much of this early research and developmentwas used in the founding of the American BowlingCongress (ABC) in 1895. That happened in NewYork, too. Dr. Henry Timm, Louis Schutte, ThomasCurtis, W.W. Ward and Samuel Karpf led a groupthat after four meetings at Beethoven Hall came toan agreement on playing rules, scoring, the buildingof alleys, and equipment guidelines. Curtis was
LTHE ATTIC TRUNK
New York,New York
It’s a hell of a(bowling) town
� BY CHUCK PEZZANO
31IBI April 2010
THE ATTIC TRUNK
elected first ABC president and Karpfwas secretary.
The New York Bowling Association(NYBA) was formed in 1902 and CharlesEbbets was named first president. If thename sounds familiar, you’re right. Hewas deeply associated with baseball.The Dodgers home park, Ebbets Field,was named after him.
There were stormy battles for yearsbetween the ABC and the NYBA, whoclaimed that the ABC denied Easternbowlers opportunities for majortournaments.
In 1909, the NBA, the NYBA, and theUnited Tournament Company put on abig, big show, a tournament championshipat the first Madison Square Garden.Estranged from the New York association,the ABC did not participate.
The National Bowling Tournamentwas a three-week event on lanes builtjust for the tourney. Though primarilyfor men, it also featured a women’sworld championship and a juvenile worldchampionship for bowlers 20 and under.The latter two events were hosted by theNew York Evening World, and thenewspaper donated diamond medalsto the women and youth champions.
Talk about class. Special music wassupplied by a live orchestra and a newsong, “Set ’Em Up on the Other Alley,”was played before every afternoon andnight session.
A ticket for the entire three-weekevent, 36 sessions, was available for sixbucks. All the hotels gave special rates,
as low as a dollar a night, and meals could be purchasedfor a reasonable 50 cents and up.
��
A once-only happening came in 1937 when New YorkCity’s Coast Artillery Armory hosted the 37th ABCChampionships, drawing 4,017 teams, the largest entryever up to that time.
Most important was the press coverage from thehighest-circulation newspapers in the world, includingspecial features by such noted columnists as Dan Parker.
One of the event’s biggest boosters in entering thetournament, then supporting it, was former heavyweightchampion of the world, then owner of a restaurant,
Jack Dempsey. When the city was awarded the tournament, Dempsey wasthe first to send a paid entry ($85) for his tourney team, headed by top starMort Lindsey.
“I used to do quite a bit of bowling while preparing for my fights and I thinkit’s corking exercise. It sharpens the eye and straightens the legs,” said thefamed boxer.
Dempsey also said he could probably practice and average 200. Thoughsome had their doubts, nobody challenged him.
��
When bowling was booming in the ’50s and ’60s, the New York City areacould boast more than 60,000 bowlers in league play. In the early years ofthe century, the NYBA stretched as far as Newburgh, NY, 55 miles away. Therewere more than 12,000 league bowlers in Manhattan, while areas such asWestchester and Long Island peeled off to form their own groups. Thesedays, the numbers, though not as large as in the past, are among thehighest in the nation when you combine the city, Long Island, Staten Islandand Westchester.
Hundreds and hundreds of bowling centers, from board plank lanes inbasements to 50-plus-laners have graced the area.
It is said that there’s a tragic story behind every shining light on Broadway.It’s not only said, but true, that there are more stories about bowling thanever can be told. Here are a few more vignettes.
� ABC Hall of Famer Joe Thum was a bowling man of the world. As aproprietor he erected a 24-lane center at the turn of the 20th century, wastold he was crazy, and called it the White Elephant to needle his critics. He
Boxer/restaurateur Jack Dempsey registered his team early forthe 1937 ABC Championships.
THE ATTIC TRUNK
Pages from the official programNational Bowling Tournament of 1909
Before 1905, balls were made of lignumvitae, an ironwood. Rubber balls appeared in1905, with the Evertrue, provenanceuncertain. Brunswick’s Mineralite released in1914, five years after the tournament, was arubber-compound ball that scored big on thelanes and with the bowlers.
Natty Brunswick champs of 1908.Their shirts read ‘BBC’ for
Brunswick-Balke-Collender, thecompany’s name from 1884 to 1960.
On the reception andentertainment committee (listed
below photo) were Joe Thum,bowling man of the world (second
column); Charles Ebbetts, namesakeof the Brooklyn Dodgers’ home
field (third column); and Col. JacobRuppert, New York Yankees owner
1923-1939, during its first poweryears (third column).
THE ATTIC TRUNK
was a pioneer in promoting bowling for women and familymembers and operated a clean center that was as up-to-dateas possible.
Thum took teams to Europe and brought overseas teamshere and was one of the major forces in gaining world attentionfor bowling during the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. He died thatyear, but he lived long enough to know one of his dreams hadbeen achieved, bringing the 1937 ABC tournament to his city.
� The first telecast of bowling in the country came in 1947. Itwas coordinated by bowling writer Pat McDonough of the WorldTelegram, who often bowled with Babe Ruth. Bill Landgraf,pioneer member of the New York Association, tournamentpromoter and ABC Historian, was scorer, and the announcer hostwas sportscaster Win Elliot.
Two year later, Jimmy Powers, sports editor of the Daily News,teamed with broadcaster Al Cirillo to telecast matches on theEastern network of ABC. From then on, bowling has beenfeatured regularly from New York, as often as three times weekly.
� The Metropolitan Bowling Writers Association has beenaround for half a century and has had members from everynewspaper–regular working press who reached more than 10million readers with their columns. The MBWA hosted andhonored the bowling world’s biggest names and broke someof the top stories in history–among them, Don Carter’smillion–dollar contract, the first by any athlete–at its luncheonsand dinners that still continue.
It was one of the first sportswriting groups to elect a female
The field at the old Madison Square Garden.
First prize in individualcompetition was$241.40. The bowler in500th position tookhome $4.23.
34 IBI April 2010
THE ATTIC TRUNK
president (Pearl Keller) and encourage women to enter thebowling writing field.
� When Sammy Davis Jr. was starring on Broadway, heoften bowled at Times Square Lanes. John De Martino,manager of the small but classy center, fitted Davis for abowling ball, and Davis liked it so much he bought bowling ballsfor any of his cast who wanted to bowl.
� Many baseball players have been involved as bowlingproprietors. Gil Hodges, player, manager and Dodger icon wasan early proprietor. His close friend, BPAA past president andBPAA Hall of Famer John La Spina operates the popular GilHodges Lanes in Brooklyn, one of La Spina’s six-center chain.
John McGraw, Giants manager for decades, was an avidbowler in the Baltimore area and is given credit for naming thesmall–pin game duckpins. And Yankee greats Yogi Berra and PhilRizzuto owned a bowling center across the river in New Jersey.
� The Rev. Charles Carow, a Catholic priest, was a leader inthe fight to remove the “white only” restriction in the ABC rules.The battle was won in 1950. Carow was deeply involved inbowling, having expanded Catholic Youth Organizationparticipation from 14 teams in 1940 to 262 teams eight yearslater. He served as a director on the New York BowlingAssociation board, gave speeches everywhere–and his heartfeltefforts were rewarded with his election to the ABC Hall. His
Chuck Pezzano has written between one and five bowlingcolumns a week for more than 50 years. Author of 13 books, 500magazine articles and more than 6,000 columns, he has beeninvolved in more than 1,000 national TV shows, was a PBAfounder and won the first intercollegiate match gametournament while a student at Rutgers.
efforts were emphasized when one of bowling’s keener officials,Tom DeChalus, became the 88th president of the ABC in2001, the first black to achieve that lofty position.
� For many years a handwritten thank-you note wasdisplayed at Bowlmor Lanes signed by Ida McKinley. She wasthe wife of the slain President William McKinley.
� When the lavish Chelsea Piers center was opened forbusiness, one person asked where they were going to get thepeople to bowl there. One of the managers at the high-techlanes simply said, “A million people live within walking distanceof the center.”
Martin Michel, the current association manager for New YorkCity bowling, is a bowler, writer, lover of bowling, and historianwho provided much of the source material for this piece.
“Bowling has been an important part of New York history foras long as we have had a history–hundreds of years–and throughall the ups and downs, we always look forward,” said Michel.
Amen. ❖
LANE CLOTHBrunswick Red Edge Lane Cloth8460QC is the newest addition tothe Brunswick line of Red Edgelane cloths. 8460QC uses thesame heavy-duty material foundin the 8460XL blue cloth, butfeatures a new quick-change plastic core. This newly designedcloth will save you time and scrub your lanes clean. For moreinformation, contact your product specialist today.
BOWLING PINEnhance your customers’ bowling experiencewith the new Bowlopolis® Bowling Pin fromQubicaAMF. This customizable pin adds excite-ment for birthday parties and other specialevents. It also complements the Bowlopolis®
environment offered with our BowlersEntertainment Center (BES) and centers thatpurchase the Bowlopolis® program from BPAA.For more information, contact your local QubicaAMF salesrepresentative, or call us today at 800-333-0527.
ROOF COATINGLook familiar? A leaky roof canbe a proprietor’s worst night-mare. While a new roof maynot be in the budget, anIndustrial Roof Coating Systemfrom Benchmark Roofing willrestore and preserve your original roof, saving you valuabletime and money. For a complimentary roof inspection andfree report on the current condition of your roof, contactBenchmark Roofing at 888-431-5352.
HOUSE BALLSAre your open bowlers alwayslooking for the right ball? They’ll findit with the Rite Ball System for houseballs from Done-Rite Pins andCapital Equipment. 12 weights from5 to 16 pounds. 12 colors. 31 drillingpatterns. Wider bridge betweenfinger holes for increased comfortfor your open play customer. Formore information, call 800-222-2695.
36 IBI April 2010
SHOWCASE
PROJECTORSNow at The Lighting Store, big sale onprojectors from Sanyo for a big impacton your customers. Sanyo’s PLC 200,2200 ANSI lumens, 3-year warranty–reduced from $899 to$599.99. Also on special: big-screens. For more information,call 888-746-5483, 641-791-3397,or email [email protected].
LANE MACHINESPECIALHas your older SanctionTechnology lane machinefrom Kegel seen better days? Thought about trading it in?Through May 15, 2010 only, Kegel will give you $2,500 abovenormal trade-in value for your old machine, just as long as it’s inoperational condition, when you purchase a K+, KustodianIon or Kustodian Walker. For more information, contact Kegelat 800-280-2695 or your local authorized Kegel distributor.
MINIATURE GOLFA pump house that ricochets theplayer’s ball in unexpected direc-tions is one unusual feature of 18holes of Castle Golf worked outby proprietor Mike Larson inteamwork with Castle designers.Since the course opened at South Lanes Family Fun Center,Three Rivers, MI, “There’s always somebody out thereplaying,” says Larson. For more information on what Castlecan do for you, call 800-688-4542 or visit www.castlegolf.com.
DATA SECURITYNew option from New CenterConsulting, Inc.: back up yourXenix legacy systems onto anyWindows computer for automat-ic security or back it up offsite on a web-based service. If yoursystem crashes, NCC can rush you a brand-new back-upPentium III Xenix computer, built with all your own dataalready intact. Contact Glenn Hartshorn directly at 248-375-2751 or go to www.upgrademyscoring.com.
38 IBI April 2010
Mary Thurber, 913-638-1817.
27-July 1Bowl ExpoLas Vegas Hilton, Las Vegas. 888-649-5585 orwww.bpaa.com.
JULY12-14Independent Bowling Organization Trade Show& Convention.Held in conjunction with the GMBCOA. Valley PlazaResort, Midland, MI. Scott, 888-484-2322 orwww.ibo-Show.com.
28Bowling Centers of Southern California AnnualGolf TournamentBlack Gold Contry Club, Yorba Linda. VictoriaTahmizian, 818-789-0900 or [email protected].
SEPTEMBER17-19Wyoming Bowling Family Jamboree Sponsoredby Wyoming Bowling CouncilSheridan Holiday Inn, Sheridan. Charlene Abbott,307-324-3161 or [email protected].
21Kentucky BPA annual membership meetingand electionsLocation TBA. Jack McCarthy, [email protected].
23Bowling Centers Association of Ohio executiveboard meetingEmbassy Suites, Columbus. Pat Marazzi, 937-433-8363or [email protected].
OCTOBER3-5West Coast Bowling ConventionHarrah’s, South Lake Tahoe, CA. Sandi Thompson,925-485-1855.IBI is the official magazine of the convention.
11-15East Coast Bowling Centers ConventionTrump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, NJ. BPAA,888-649-5586.IBI is the official magazine of the convention.
APRIL6Illinois State BPA board meetingMarriott Hotel and Conference Center,Bloomington-Normal. Bill Duff, 847-982-1305 [email protected].
MAY17-19Bowling Centers Association of Ohio conventionand trade showHoliday Inn, Perrysburg (Toledo). Pat Marazzi,937-433-8363 or [email protected].
24Illinois State BPA board meetingHoliday Inn & Suites, Bloomington. Bill Duff,847-982-1305 or [email protected].
JUNE1-3Kansas State BPA conference with exhibitorsAdams Pointe Conference Center, Blue Springs, MO.
DATEBOOK
39IBI April 2010
CLASSIFIEDS
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AMERICAN-MADE PINSETTER PARTS– HIGHEST QUALITY. Visit us on theweb at www.ebnservices.com or calltoll free (888) 435-6289.
USED BRUNSWICK PARTS, A2 parts andassemblies. Large Inventory.www.usedpinsetterparts.com.
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on the web: bowlingscorer.com email: [email protected]
AS80/90 • BOARD REPAIR • FrameworxSERVICE CALLS WORLDWIDE • PRE-SHIPS • WE SELL
NEW KEYPADS • FRONT DESK LCD MONITORS
40 IBI April 2010
CLASSIFIEDS
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EQUIPMENT FOR SALE
NEW & USED Pro Shop Equipment.Jayhawk Bowling Supply. 800-255-6436 or jayhawkbowling.com.
Pinsetter Parts New from ALL majormanufacturers. HUGE IN STOCK inventory.USED Brunswick Scoring parts, AS90cameras, processors, lane cables,monitors, and PC boards. Order online @888SBIBOWL.com or (888) 724-2695.The Mechanics Choice!
AMF scoring packages with orwithout LCDs. (712) 253-8730;www.complete-bowling.com.
AMF package complete: 8 lanes, 82-70s & AccuScore Plus. (641) 414-1542.
24-lane Brunswick A-2 package. Automaticoverhead scoring. Brunswick 2000 returns;wood approaches. In operation through2003 season. Available immediately. Makeoffer. (906) 786-1600. Ask for Denis.
Buy or Sell @www.bowlingyardsale.com; one-stopshopping for bowling equipment — fromlane packages to dust mops!
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41IBI April 2010
CLASSIFIEDS
CENTERS FOR SALE
UPSTATE NEW YORK: 8-lane center/commercial building built in 1992.Synthetic lanes, new automatic scoring,kitchen and room to expand! Reduced tosell @ $375,000. Call (315) 376-3611.
WESTERN COLORADO: 12-laneBrunswick center with A-2s, wood laneswith synthetic overlay, 11,000 s/f buildingon 1+ acre. Business, equipment & realestate $740,000. Possible owner finance.(970) 625-0680.
CENTERS FOR SALE
EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA: 6-laneBrunswick center, bar & grill, drive-thruliquor store in small college town. Also, 3apartment buildings with 40 units, goodrental history. Call (701) 330-7757 or(701) 430-1490.
16-lane center in Southern Coloradomountains. Great condition. 18,000s/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, autoscoring, Anvilane synthetics, 82-70s. Greatfood sales. Yearly tournament. Attached,large 3 bedroom apartment w/ fireplace.$550K. (715) 223-8230.
SOUTHERN INDIANA (close toIndianapolis): 18-lane Brunswick centerwith lounge, liquor license & movietheater on 4+ acres. Turnkey business.Owner retiring. Great investment! (765) 349-1312.
SOUTHERN NEVADA: 8-lane center.Only center in town of 15,000. 30minutes from Las Vegas. AMF 82-70s,newer Twelve Strike scoring. R/E leased.Will consider lease/option with qualifiedperson. REDUCED TO $175,000. CallSteve @ (702) 293-2368; [email protected].
CENTRAL IDAHO: 8-lane center andrestaurant in central Idaho mountains.Small town. Only center within 60-mileradius. Brunswick A-2 machines;Anvilane lane beds; automatic scoring.(208) 879-4448.
CENTERS FOR SALE
WWW.BOWLINGDIGITAL.COM
42 IBI April 2010
CLASSIFIEDS
WWW.BOWLINGDIGITAL.COM
SOUTHWEST KANSAS: well-maintained8-lane center, A-2s, full-servicerestaurant. Includes business and realestate. Nice, smaller community. Ownerretiring. $212,000. Leave message (620)397-5828.
MINNESOTA: AMF 12-lane center incollege town of Crookston w/ full bar, autoscoring. Totally remodeled 2005. Additionalproperty for expansion. Possible contractfor deed. Call Steve (218) 759-0037.
SE WISCONSIN: 12-lane Brunswickcenter including building, real estate & 7acres. Raised dance floor, grill, pro shop,arcade, tanning room and more.Reasonably priced. Owner retiring.(920) 398-8023.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA: 16-lanecenter w/ synthetic lanes, 82-70s, 19,000s/f building w/ lots of parking. Newlyremodeled bar & large kitchen. Ownerretiring. (530) 598-2133.
WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA: One ofthe top five places to move! Remodeled 32-lane center. Good numbers. $3.9 gets it all.Fax qualified inquiries to (828) 253-0362.
UPSTATE NEW YORK: State-of-the-art16-lane center with 82-70s in collegetown. 3.5 acres prime commercial. CallBob (585) 243-1760.
NE NEVADA: New 2001. 16 lanes, 19,200square feet, 1.68 acres paved, sound &lighting, lounge w/ gaming, arcade, fullservice snack bar & pro shop. Call (775)934-1539.
UPSTATE NEW YORK: State-of-the-art16-lane center with 82-70s in collegetown. 3.5 acres prime commercial. CallBob (585) 243-1760.
PENNSYLVANIA: 20-lane AMF center on6 acres, 1 acre parking lot, full bar, recentlyadded 13,200 s/f outdoor beach bar, sandvolley ball court & entertainment stage.(724) 301-2318.
NEW YORK STATE: Thousand Islandregion. 8-lane Brunswick center w/ cosmicbowling, auto scoring. Established leagues+ many improvements. $309,000. Call Jill@ Lori Gervera Real Estate (315) 771-9302.
CENTERS FOR SALECENTERS FOR SALE
FAX YOUR ORDER TO US AT:530-432-2933
Orange County Security Consultants10285 Ironclad Road, Rough & Ready, CA 95975
•Keys & ComboLocks for allTypes ofLockers.
•One weekturnaroundon mostorders.
•New locks -All types•Used locks1/2 priceof new
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CALL TOLL FREE 1-800-700-4KEYINTʼL 530-432-1027
43IBI April 2010
CLASSIFIEDS
CENTRAL ILLINOIS: 8-lane centerwith AMF 82-70s, full service restaurant,pro shop. Plus pool tables, Karaokemachine, DJ system. PRICED TO SELL.Includes RE. (217) 351-5152 [email protected].
SOUTHWESTERN WYOMING: 12 lanes+ café & lounge, 2 acres w/ 5 bedroomhome. Full liquor & fireworks licenses.Outside Salt Lake City area. Dennis @Uinta Realty, Inc. (888) 804-4805 [email protected].
GEORGIA: busy 32-lane center, realestate included. Great location in one offastest growing counties in metro Atlanta.5 years new with all the amenities.Excellent numbers. Call (770) 356-8751.
SW WISCONSIN: 10 lanes, newautomatic scoring/sound. Bar/grill. Greatleagues, local tournaments, excellentpinsetters. Supportive community. 2 acresoff main highway. $299,995.(608) 341-9056.
NW KANSAS: 12-lane center, AS-80s,Lane Shield, snack bar, pro shop, game &pool rooms. See pics andinfo @ www.visitcolby.com or contactCharles (785) 443-3477.
NE MINNESOTA: Food, Liquor & Bowling.Established 8 lanes between Mpls & Duluthw/ large bar, dining room, banquet area. Twolarge State employment facilities nearby.High six figure gross. 3-bdrm home included.$1.375m. Call Bryan (218) 380-8089.www.majesticpine.com.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA: 16-lane centerREDUCED to $799,000 for quick sale.Synthetics, 82-70s, 19,000 s/f + parking.Newly remodeled bar, large kitchen. Ownerretiring. Will consider selling only equipmentor building. www.siskiyoulanes.com. (530)598-2133.
CENTERS FOR SALE
MANAGER WANTED
Chain looking for a manager with experiencein league formation & special events incentral U.S. area. Respond w/ resume toBox 505 @ [email protected] or fax(818) 789-2812.
WWW.BOWLINGWEBDOCTOR.COM
MECHANIC WANTED
Head Mechanic—AMF 82-70s—inKentucky. Call Dennis (502) 722-9314.
818-789-2695SELL IT FAST IN IBI
POSITION WANTED
Brunswick “A” mechanic, 12+ yearsexperience, AS-80/AS-90 scoring systemexpertise. Former owner/GM. Willing torelocate. Contact me at (308) 380-8594.
MANAGE TO OWN--SMALL CENTER.Started 28 new leagues in less than 5 years.Reliable & honest. Excellent references. CallAndy (507) 527-2551 or Matt (507) 696-1151.
(818) 789-2695
Sell YourCenteror Eqpt.Fast!Fast!
44 IBI April 2010
CLASSIFIEDS
ForFLORIDA CENTERS
CallDAVID DRISCOLL& ASSOCIATES
1-800-444-BOWLP.O. Box 189
Howey-in-the-Hills, FL 34737AN AFFILIATE OF
SANDY HANSELL & ASSOCIATES
The leading source for real estate loans with low down payments
Ken Paton(503) 645-5630
I could not have gotten my loanI could not have gotten my loanwithout him.without him.
Pat RinaldiPat RinaldiRinaldi's Riverdale BowlRinaldi's Riverdale Bowl
Riverdale Park, MDRiverdale Park, MD
SERVICES AVAILABLE
Drill Bit Sharpening and Measuring BallRepair. Jayhawk Bowling Supply. 800-255-6436 or Jayhawkbowling.com.
AMF scoring component repair.(712) 253-8730.
KEN’S BOWLING EQUIPMENT – AMFscoring, pin decks, masking units &Brunswick power lifts.(641) 414-1542.
SELLING, BUYING or FINANCING aCenter? RC Partners can help–we are notbrokers. (616) 374-5651; www.sell104.com.
INSURANCE SERVICES
BOWLING CENTER INSURANCE.COM.Helping you is what we do best! Property;Liability; Liquor Liability; Workers Comp.Bob Langley (866) 438-3651 x 145;[email protected].
Insuring Bowling Centers for over 30years. Ohio, Illinois & Michigan: Property& Liability, Liquor Liabiity, WorkersCompensation, Health & PersonalInsurance. Call Scott Bennet (248) 408-0200, [email protected]; MarkDantzer CIC (888) 343-2667,[email protected]; or KevinElliott.
(818) 789-2695
SELLYOUR
CENTEROR EQPT.
FAST!
WWW.BOWLINGDIGITAL.COM
45IBI April 2010
CLASSIFIEDS
2021 Bridge StreetJessup, PA 18434570-489-8623www.minigolfinc.com
MINIATURE GOLF COURSESIndoor/Outdoor. ImmediateInstallation. $5,900.00 & up.
PROPRIETORS WITH AMF 82-70S.S. & M.P. MACHINES
Save $$ on Chassis & P.C. BoardExchange & Repair!
A reasonable alternative forChassis and P.C. Board Exchanges
MIKE BARRETTCall for Price List
Tel: (714) 871-7843 • Fax: (714) 522-0576
BUY SELL
AMF • BRUNSWICK EQUIPMENTCOMPLETE PACKAGES
WORLDʼS LARGEST NEW – USED SPARE PARTS INVENTORY
Danny & Daryl TuckerDanny & Daryl TuckerTucker Bowling Equipment Co. Bowling Parts, Inc.609 N.E. 3rd St. P.O. Box 801Tulia, Texas 79088 Tulia, Texas 79088Call (806) 995-4018 Call (806) 995-3635Fax (806) 995-4767 Email - [email protected]
www.bowlingpartsandequipment.com
AMF and some BRUNSWICK PC boardrepair/exchange. 6-month warranty, fastturnaround. Call or write: WB8YJF Service
5586 Babbitt Road, New Albany, Ohio 43054Toll Free: 888-902-BOWL (2695)
Ph./Fax: (614) 855-3022 (Jon)E-mail: [email protected]
Visit us on the WEB!http://home.earthlink.net/~wb8yjf/
WWW.BOWLINGWEBDOCTOR.COM
CLASSIFIED AD FORMCLASSIFIED AD FORM
FAX THIS COMPLETED FORM TO (818) 789-2812OR CALL US AT (818) 789-2695
Signature: xmonth year
Deadline for each issue is the 1st of each month, one month priorto issue. (Example: To run in the September Issue, we would needyour ad copy by August 1st)
Write your ad here or fax separatesheet with this form:
Choose Category: ❒ Equip. for sale❒ Equip. wanted ❒ Centers for sale❒ Help wanted ❒ MiscellaneousOther____________________________
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THE WORLD’S ONTHE WORLD’S ONLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY TO THE BUSINESS OF BOWLINGLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY TO THE BUSINESS OF BOWLINGTHE WORLD’S ONLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED EXCLUSIVELY TO THE BUSINESS OF BOWLING
INTERNATIONAL
IBI April 201046
REMEMBER WHEN
e don’t know how long it’s been since a bowling ballwas advertised in a mass-market non-sportsmagazine, but here it is in the late ’40s. Completewith testimonials from Andy Varipapa, Joe Wilman,
Catherine Fellmeth, Buddy Bomar and Ned Day. Not to mentionthe little miss in the corner with her very own Junior Mineralite.
Prices for the ball started at $21.95, by the way.And note that you could buy it in jewelry stores.
The ’48-’49 season was played on 50,145ABC/WIBC certified lanes in 6,097 bowlingcenters. BPAA claimed 1,335 members with16,222 lanes. ❖
W1948
