international bowling industry november 2014

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

PUBLISHER & EDITORScott Frager

[email protected]: scottfrager

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHERDavid Garber

[email protected]

OFFICE MANAGERPatty Heath

[email protected]

CONTRIBUTORSRachel GaleDavid Garber

Fred GrohPatty Heath

George McAuliffeMark MillerRobert Sax

Melissa Sobolick

EDITORIAL DIRECTORJackie Fisher

[email protected]

ART DIRECTION & PRODUCTIONDesignworks

www.dzynwrx.com(818) 735-9424

FOUNDERAllen Crown (1933-2002)

12655 Ventura BoulevardStudio City, CA 91604(818) 789-2695(BOWL)

Fax (818) [email protected]

www.BowlingIndustry.com

HOTLINE: 888-424-2695SUBSCRIPTION 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,12655 Ventura Boulevard, Studio City, CA91604 USA. If possible, please furnishaddress mailing label.Printed in U.S.A. Copyright 2014, B2B Media,Inc. No part of this magazine may be reprintedwithout the publisher’s permission.

MEMBER AND/OR SUPPORTER OF:

6ISSUE AT HANDThird Time’s The

Charm – AgainBy Scott Frager

8SHORTS

• BVL donationsincreased for 6thconsecutive year.

• IBMHOF launchesonline BowlingMuseum Store.

• A ‘Big Lebowski’wedding at Chop’s

Bowl in Omaha, NE.By Patty Heath

18CENTER STAGE

“Shock” Wavesin Wichita

At the newly renovatedRhatigan Center at

Wichita State University,the bowling lanes rock.

By Melissa Sobolick

24COVER STORYDuck Dynasty?

Duckpin bowling is poisedto make a big splash in theindustry, if Randy White has

anything to say about it.By Fred Groh

31BEYOND BOWLING

• IAAPA Preview• From “Trad” to“Rad” in Indiana

• “Beyond Bowling”Showcase

CONTENTS VOL 22.11

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48FEATURERolling with theRockersBrooklyn Bowl’s Las Vegaslocation is a hit on the Strip.By Robert Sax

56TRADESHOWScrapbookGolden Nuggets fromthe ECBCCBy David Garber

58TRADE SHOW NEWSAnd the Winner Is….Proprietors from Marylandand Pennsylvania arethe winners of the big$25k raffle.By Mark Miller

61INDUSTRY NEWSA New Day for thePWBABPAA and the USBCpartner to revive the PWBAin 2015.By Mark Miller

68REMEMBER WHENRetro Bowling BadgesBy Rachel Gale

62 Classifieds

67 Datebook

6 IBI November 2014

THE ISSUE AT HAND

I was reminded of a few things this pastweek. The old adage that bad things happenin threes and that they happenwhen you least expect them.And that it pays to beprepared—but that being a littlelucky can be very helpful, too.

It started with the discoveryof a significant bee colonyembedded in our center’s 40-feet-tall neon sign. It turns out that it’s veryhandy to have a beekeeper in your Rolodex.

Since we were already doing some work onthe sign, we had a bucket lift on-site to raisethe bee-man up to dispatch the little buzzersand put an end to our stinging problem. By

the way, the honey is still there for anyonebrave enough to retrieve it.

A few days later, our restaurant’s rooftopboiler decided it couldn’t handle the pressureanymore. It blew its top—the pressure reliefvalve—literally. The ill-prepared plumberswho responded didn’t have the right part andjerry-rigged a temporary fix involving a garden

hose. Not the best solution. Unbeknownst to me or my team, hundreds of gallons of

scalding water were released on theroof, burning a hole through theprotective elastomeric roof coatingand ultimately finding its way intothe center.

My team sprinted to the sceneand within an hour we had five50-gallon waste cans filled with

hot, steaming water ready for the center’s Jacuzzi—if only wehad a Jacuzzi.

Later the same week just after midnight, I was notified that ourscorer had lost contact with all 32 pinsetters. That forced an earlyclosure and created a very pressured GM (yours truly). We hadsenior leagues in the a.m. and a full-center buyout corporate event

early that evening.Hugo, our super-hero head mechanic, voluntarily recalled

himself from vacation in order to help us meet the crisis. Oncehe sniffed burning at an incoming electric panel, heimmediately called our electrician. Our electrical man rushedin to discover what was a fire in one of the subpanels wheretwo wire bundles had gotten too friendly (see photo). Not toworry, luckily. The electrical box did its job and put out thefire. The electrician inspected and repaired the other panelsand our center was quickly back up to full speed.

I’d like to take comfort in knowing that we’re “protected”for a while, now that we’ve had our third bad-news event. Butthen I just remembered another adage: Anything that can gowrong will go wrong. Thank you, Mr Murphy.

Let’s all play safe and make sureour teams are ready for it, whatever

”it” is this holiday season is upon us.

– SCOTT FRAGER, PUBLISHERAND [email protected]

Third Time’s the Charm—Again

11IBI November 2014

SHORTS

Online Bowling InstructionThe USBC Bowling Academy, developed in partnership with USBC and TN

Marketing, has introduced an online collection of instructional videos featuringTeam USA, USBC-certified Gold coaches and top professionals. New bowlersand old bowlers alike can tap into this site for instruction, lessons and adviceto improve their games.

The USBC Bowling Academy explores topics including equipment, lane play,spare shooting and the mental and physical games,plus exercises and drills. The videos were designed tohelp all levels of bowlers. Each topic features free andpremium content. Bowlers will be able to subscribe topremium content on a monthly or yearly basis.

“Bowlers are able to access the USBC BowlingAcademy through their computers, smartphones or tablets at any time,” USBCDeputy Executive Director Jason Overstreet said. “We think once bowlers takethe time to check out the website, they will be excited to learn more about howto improve their games.”

For further information, go to usbcbowlingacademy.com.

Fun and GamesPaintball is a game that you either love or abhor. Critics deride it as morally

obscene, going through the motions of killing another human being. Supporterscounter that the game is no more anti-social than tag, hide-and-seek or capture-the-flag. So, how does this tie into bowling?

On Aug. 17, 2014, The New York Times’s Sunday Magazine included an articlecovering “Who Made That?” In it was an overview of who actually participates inthe game of paintball. Now, here is where bowling comes in: 31% have collegedegrees, 78% are male (no surprise), 64% are between the ages of 13 and 34, and48% of paintballers go bowling.

Webber International University andColumbia 300 Partner-Up

Located in Florida, WIU’s bowling program has agreed to a new sponsorshipwith Columbia 300.

In recent years, Webber’s bowling program has built a strong relationshipwith Ebonite International, using the Kegel Training Center as the facility for itsbowling teams. Webber will now combine the Ebonite products and the Columbia300 brand with the goal of attaracting the highest-quality players for its program.

PBA, Bowlmor AMF PartnershipAgreement

The PBA and Bowlmor AMF have entered into an entitlement partnershipagreement that will make Bowlmor AMF an official partner of the PBA and officialhost of the 2015 Chris Paul PBA Celebrity Invitational Presented by AMF on Jan.8 at AMF Bow-O-Drome Lanes, a 40-lane center in Torrance, CA. The event willbe televised by ESPN on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 1, at 4:30 p.m. ET, leadinginto the most-watched television event on the sports calendar.

SHORT SHORTS

Lucky Strike, a nationally-acclaimed bowling andentertainment brand, joined the fight against breastcancer with an official kick-off of the Breastcancer.orgInitiative on Oct. 1 at Lucky Strike Philadelphia. As partof the initiative, all Lucky Strike locations nationwideraised awareness and funds through the sale of food andspecialty beverage items and a limited-edition charitybracelet throughout October’s Breast Cancer AwarenessMonth.

“Lucky Strike is proud to partner with Breastcancer.orgto raise funds and awareness for this important initiative,”said Steven Foster, founder and CEO of Lucky Strike,“and we are happy to be able to show our support forthe life-saving work of such a great organization.”

Breastcancer.org is the leading resource for breasthealth and breast cancer information and support, withmore than 7,000 pages of expert-reviewed informationand a robust, dynamic peer support community.

BREAST CANCER PARTNERSHIP

The International Bowling Media Association (IBMA)issued a press release stating that Global Manufacturing,a San Antonio, TX-based producer and distributor of highperformance bowling equipment, has announced alicensing agreement with QubicaAMFWorldwide. This agreementwill allow Global to marketand sell the AMF brand ofballs, bags, accessories,and Vacu-Jig pro shopequipment. Formally known as900 Global LLC, Global has been theofficial licensee for AMF consumer products since 2007.

Stephanie Darby, marketing communications managerof QubicaAMF, stated, “We are eager to work with GlobalManufacturing again and to rebuild the AMF300 brand.”

Bill Supper of Global Manufacturing shared, “We lookforward to creating a diverse product line of bowlingequipment intended to meet the needs of present andfuture bowlers.”

Global ManufacturingPartners with

QubicaAMF Worldwide

14 IBI November 2014

SHORTS

Switch has announced that SerhatKarma is its new vice president.Karma will be responsible for alldomestic and internationaloperations. Prior to his new position,he was the GM for SamanyoluOyuncak, an FEC operator,responsible for over 70 facilities infour countries. During his tenurethere, Karma brought the number of

FECs from 10 to over 70 in seven years. Before his entranceinto the FEC world, Karma was Senior Manager forcorporate client services at Turkcell, a mobilecommunication company.

Speaking about Karma, CEO Alain Winterhalter said,“His seven-year experience with Turkey and Europe’slargest FEC operator will be of great benefit to Switch’sfuture development.”

Serhat Karma

PEOPLEWATCHING

Chelsea and Jesse sealing their vows.Photo by Kent Sievers of the Omaha World-Herald

Oarland‘s Plank, a 50,000-square-foot venture combining an outdoorhangout for beer and bocce with indoor entertainment, has finally opened.Located in Jack London Square, the grand opening was held Oct. 10. Indoors,there are18 lanes of bowling, 40 high-definition TVs for sports viewing, videogames, plus a rooftop event space overlooking San Francisco Bay.

The Sunshine Bowling Center, a 28,000-square-foot center in Deland, FL,is getting a massive facelift, complete with a new national chain restaurant,a bar and boutique-style lanes.

Pete Longo Jr., who owns the 32-lane center with his family, indicated that$1 million has been dedicated to this renovation project.

The existing sports bar is being replaced with a Johnny Rocketshamburger restaurant to give the center a classic, all-American feel. Anew section, dubbed the Reign Entertainment Center, will be an upscale areawith a full bar, leather couches and eight boutique-style lanes. The otherlanes will be refurbished with new equipment, as will the center’s restroomsand locker rooms.

Presently the business employs 25 people, but with all the new area andrestaurant offering, that number could double.

EXPANSIONS, OPENINGS& NEW BEGINNINGS

The International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame(IBMHOF) announced the launch of its new online BowlingMuseum Store on eBay, where it will hold monthly auctions forbowling and other sports memorabilia. Proceeds from sales willbenefit IBMHOF in its mission to preserve the history of bowling.Items up for sale will rotate on a monthly basis, giving shoppersa new set of items on which to bid.

“It is only through the generous support of our patrons thatthe International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame is able tooffer these items for sale,” said Bob Gudorf, IBMHOF president.

The auction will take place in The Bowling Museum Store oneBay, where bidders will find descriptions of each item alongwith information on how to participate in the auction. For moreinformation or to inquire about donating items, contact JessicaBell, museum curator, at 800-343-1329 or [email protected]. To review the items currentlybeing offered go to www.ebay.com/usr/bowlingmuseumstore.

IBMHOF MUSEUM STORE GOES ONLINE

A ‘Big Lebowski’ WeddingThere are weddings and weddings in bowling centers and then

there is the Big Lebowski wedding. Chelsea Main and JesseMcNew of Omaha, NE, planned their nuptials around the Cohenbrothers’ classic film, The Big Lebowski. Jesse was a mega fan ofthe movie, and when he learned that Chelsea had never seen it,he immediately set up a viewing. It was then that Chelsea knewshe had met the man she would marry.

To keep the spirit alive, the couple married at Chop’s Bowl inOmaha. With friends and family as witnesses, Chelsea and Jessedeclared “I abide” to each other. Casey Logan, staff writer for theOmaha World-Herald wrote, “Some things you can control, somethings you’ve got to let be. That might be the yin and yang ofChelsea and Jesse. She’s a planner. He’s, well, he’s kind of the Dude.She wrote out her vows. He chose to recite his vows from his head.‘Thanks for doing a Big Lebowski-themed wedding,’ he said at theend. ‘That’s awesome.’”


Summer ends, autumn begins, baseball ends and football begins, butbowling and its activities go on and on.

Strikes For Kids, a non-profit organization that partners professionalathletes with youth organizations in their community, had a celebration partyfor the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks. ‘The Merriman Super BowlCelebration Party’ took place at ACME Bowl in Tukwila, WA. SeattleSeahawks’ All-Pro safety Earl Thomas and All-Pro running back Marshawn Lynchco-hosted this charity benefit. The event raised funds for The Earl ThomasGuardian Angel Foundation and The Fam 1st Family Foundation which isdedicated to uplifting and empowering youth in the Bay Area and throughout

the United States.Shaw Air Force Base and the 20th Force Support

Squadron in North Carolina extended Bowling 2Beat Breast Cancer at Shaw Lanes to its customersfor the entire month of October.

Pinz Entertainment Center in Studio City, CA, wasthe venue for It’s Showtime at the Apollo host/actressKiKi Shepard’s Celebrity Bowling Challenge. Themission of the event is to increase knowledge ofsickle cell disease, an inherited, non-contagious

blood disease that can be crippling, painful, and life-threatening. In the U.S.,one in 2,500 newborn babies have sickle cell disease and approximately 54,000multi-cultured babies are born each year with the sickle cell trait. Shepard’sannual bowling event began 11 years ago when she decided to turn herbirthday bowling celebration into an event to raise awareness for SCD, andit has continued to grow since its conception.

Also at Pinz, the T.J. Martell Foundation, which raises money for cancer,leukemia and AIDS research, hosted a SpareSome Time to Cure Cancer event during BreastCancer Awareness Month. The Celebrity RockN’ Bowl Tournament included a silent auctionof autographed pins donated by such stars asFleetwood Mac, Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Yes,Def Leppard, Whitesnake’s David Coverdale and Slash. In addition, a varietyof musicians—mostly hard-rock and heavy-metal artists—took part in thetournament.

Brigid’s Path, a new non-profit organization which will provide medical carefor drug-exposed newborns, held its first fundraiser at Poelking Lanes inMiamisburg, OH. “Bowling for Babies” was the event; the goal was to bringawareness to heroin’s effect on infants and to raise money to help provideshort-term care in a home-like setting for newborns suffering from prenataldrug exposure. The organization hopes to open its doors in summer 2015 andhouse 12 newborns and their mothers.

Byllye Lanes, Bradford, PA, held the 11th annual Child Abuse PreventionBowling Expo to help raise money for area agencies. A $20 donation paidfor bowling, food, entertainment and entry for prizes and cash giveaways. PBAbowling stars made appearances and answered questions, bowled andsocialized with the guests.

What is your center doing? Email Patty Heath at [email protected].

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SHORTS

Bowlers to Veterans Link (BVL)announced that the fundraisingcampaigns for 2013-2014 totaled$945,555.38, increasing for thesixth consecutive year andregistering a 35% upsurge since2008. While local and state USBCassociations were up 3.5%,bowling center donations jumpedmarkedly by 42%.

California continued to lead theway in state association fundraising

with $127,482.75. On the locallevel, the Nation’s Capital AreaUSBC took first place withcontributions skyrocketing from$15,319.00 in the 2012-2013 fiscalyear to $27,465.00 in 2013-2014.

Bowling centers nationwidestepped up with individual events.Illinois is credited with bringing inthe most dollars with New York aclose second. Individually, the topfive centers were Maple FamilyCenters, NY; Brunswick BowlingCenters, IL; Don Carter LanesGroup, IL; Mel’s Lone Star Lanes,TX; and Thunderbird Lanes, PA.

“We want to thank all of ourcontributors,” said BVL ChairmanJohn LaSpina. “We truly appreciateour wonderful leaders, but pleaseknow that each dime and dollarmakes a difference. We prideourselves on our fiduciarystewardship, and every bit of everydonation is appreciated.”

BVL DONATIONSCONTINUE

TO RISE

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Student CenterRenovations Shock Life

Back Into WichitaState Campus

By Melissa Sobolik

or some students it came just in time, but for alumni itcame a year or so too late; regardless, there is a new breathof life at Wichita State University (WSU). After nearly

three years of construction, the Rhatigan Student Center (RSC)has regained its prominence as the heartbeat of the WSU campus.

The $33 million renovation, deemed the “Rhatigan Renewal,”began in the spring of 2012 and was completed in the fall of2014. The renovation included the addition of 60,000 squarefeet to the existing building, a remodeled ballroom on the thirdfloor, and an overhaul of the lower level, which is home to the

F

“Shock” Wavesin WICHITA

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19IBI November 2014

Wichita State Shocker Bowling program. “At first, before the construction started, it was all

very exciting. Once the construction began though,it became a hassle. As construction furthered, it wasimpressive to see the changes and how fast theywere made,” said WSU senior Kenny Benoit. “Nowthat it is done, the RSC is truly a top-of-the-linestudent center.”

The RSC opened its doors in 1959, and has beenhome to the students and faculty at Wichita State formore than half a century. During that time, the buildingunderwent one addition in 1969. Although the RSChad been well maintained, it was time for an overhaul.

“The infrastructure desperately needed updating.We were looking at $12-to $15 million worth ofneeded improvements—all behind the scenes. Aftermuch consideration, our administration decided itwould be better to go all the way and create a brightnew student center, thereby giving our students andstaff something much more tangible and certainlymore enjoyable for their money,” said Rich Renellot,director of Shocker Sports Grill & Lanes, located in the

lower level of the RSC.The renovation was funded

through student fees and privatedonations. The concept offunding the center throughstudent fees dates back to 1946when the WSU Student Councilpassed the initial proposal forthe creation of the RSC. Eachsemester, $3 in student fees wascontributed to the funding. Afternearly a decade, construction on the $1.85 million project began.Crews didn’t waste any time and the RSC opened in September 1959,a few months ahead of schedule.

Just over 50 years later, in 2010, WSU gained student fee approvaland the Kansas Board of Regents’ support for a $33 million renovationon the building. Student fees increased by $6 per semester and in 2012,the Rhatigan Renewal project began. Just a mere two and half years later,a new state-of-the-art facility is complete.

“I think the upgrades are amazing. It looks like

President Emeritus Donald L. Beggs withhis wife Shirley.

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a student center where people actually want to hang out and enjoythemselves,” said grad student Amber Buckles.

One of the key features of the Rhatigan Renewal is the newly-named andrenovated Shirley Beggs Ballroom on the third floor, which has beenexpanded by nearly 25% to support larger events. The ballroom wasnamed after former First Lady Shirley Beggs, who was a frequent occupantand hostess at the event space. Also added to the third floor was HooverTerrace, which allows for a superb view of the Wichita State campus.

“My favorite part of the renovation is the architecture itself. It is beautifulfrom the outside looking in with all of the glass and modern architecture,”Benoit said. “The RSC is the place to be on campus for entertainment andsocializing—a place to get the college experience that many studentswant. It is a welcoming, busy, entertaining place to relax, eat, study, andenjoy yourself in the company of friends, students, and faculty alike.”

Often thought of as a “home away from home,” the RSC is indeed utilizedby many students. The second floor atrium opens up the RSC, allowing fora fun and relaxing environment, while the first floor is largely made up oflounge and dining space for students. The area grew by 6,500 square feetafter the renovation. In addition to the newly expanded interior space, twonew outdoor performance stages were also added.

“Everyone loves it. The entire building is so much more comfortable andinviting. I hear positive comments on a daily basis,” said Renollet.

The upgrades, expansion, andoverhaul didn’t stop after threelevels; one of the biggest changesto the RSC was the revamp of thelower level, which houses ShockerSports Grill & Lanes, multiple billiardtables, Lords & Ladys hair salon,and is home to the Shocker Bowlingprogram.

Although most of the RSC itselfremained open for business duringthe renovation, organizations andbusinesses within the RSC were shuffled around throughout the three-yeartime period, as was the Shocker Bowling program.

“We were chomping at the bit to get back into the space. It’s awesome.We’re lucky. We still haven’t gotten over it. You have to pinch yourself. Dowe really work in this beautiful area?” said Shocker Bowling’s head coachGordon Vadakin. “Things are still happening and stuff is still going on. It

will take a long time for me to get used to. Theoffice I’m in now is as big as the whole space wehad before.”

In addition to the expanded space in the lowerlevel, Shocker Sports Grill & Lanes received its newname along with a facelift. One of the mostnoticeable changes is the separate entrance to thelower level, allowing it to function as a free-standing business to the RSC. It’s open untilmidnight on the weekends and students nowhave a place to hang out and a reason to stay oncampus for entertainment.

“We are working hard to partner with ourdepartment of housing and residencelife to do all that we can to offer programsthat enhance our campus life andencourage residents to stay on campus,”Renollet said. “WSU is rapidly becominga living-learning community and the feeland atmosphere are very different thanbefore.”

The administration’s efforts haveproven to be successful as students nowhave expanded lounges, seating space,and a renovated bowling concourse area

in addition to the pre-existing bowling lanes andbilliard tables. The bowling program has alsobenefited from the renovation by gaining a largemeeting room, locker room, and pro shop availablesolely to its student athletes.

“There’s high traffic. The building is full. We’re


support needed in order to bring his visions to life. “Plans are well underway to develop a new innovation

campus, partnering with a private enterprise to provide avariety of laboratories, facilities and equipment that wouldcreate opportunities for innovation in a widely diverse number

of industries and disciplines,” saidRenellot. “With the completion ofour renovation, the RhatiganStudent Center is now poised tofully support our president’sinitiatives and we are ready to serveour campus community throughthis period of growth. It’s anexciting time to be a Shocker.” ❖

Melissa Sobolik graduated summa cum laude from Wichita

State University with a degree in business administration and

journalism. She was a part of the WSU bowling program for four

years. Melissa currently works as a recruiting coordinator at

Skywalk Group, located in Cedar Rapids, IA.

open later and longer and more days thanwe’ve ever been. [WSU president John]Bardo’s plans are the most aggressivechanges in history and it’s an exciting timeto be here. Things are popping,” said Vadakin.

The future of Wichita State looks bright and is in full swing,as plans to enhance the campus haven’t stopped after thecompletion of the RSC. Shocker Hall, a brand new residencehall located just a few hundred feet from the RSC, opened justin time for the 2014 fall semester. Bardo has more plans in theworks for the university and is having no problem gaining the

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25IBI November 2014

f Randy White is right about duckpins, the game whose range has been confined for 100years to the Northeastern seaboard will be nesting around the world before long.

White, principal of White Hutchinson Leisure and Learning Group of Kansas City,MO, is completing a duckpin FEC in Vietnam and is in full design of another near Seattle.

Growing up in the 1950s and ’60s in Baltimore, unofficial epicenter of duckpin bowling, Whiteremembers half the lanes in the city as duckpin. “Guess where all the families and open play bowlerswent. They went to the duckpin. Guess where the league bowlers went. The only reason we havetenpin bowling is because it was the official, sanctioned type of bowling for leagues.”

“Leagues and tournaments had all the priority,” he wrote in a manifesto on duckpin bowlingtwo years ago. “Bowling centers were designed and operated for sport and competitive bowling,not the casual bowling public. Open play bowling was only available when sport bowlers didn’t

By Fred Groh

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COVER STORY


need the lanes. In fact, the reason that you still seeolder tenpin centers with elevated concourses is so thesport’s spectators had a good view.”

White was never an avid bowler, but when he playedit was always duckpins.

“It’s easy to play!” he explains with a laugh. “Youdon’t have that stupid ball with the holes in it that dragsyou down the lane when you don’t let go of it right!”

And coiled in that remark is the way White is pitchingduckpins to his bowling clients round the world.

In his firm’s 24 years there have been more than 500in 32 countries. Three dozen projects included bowling,where White Hutchinson supplied feasibility studies, fulldesign, and assisted with management start-up,depending on the project.

White and his partner, Miles Hutchinson, opened thefirm in the middle 1980s as a real estate consultancy. Itwas a time of recession in real estate brought on byoverbuilding and federal tax code revisions, accordingto White, and he and Hutchinson specialized in evaluatingtroubled commercial real estate and developingturnaround or workout strategies for owners.

In January 1989 a bowling center owned by ashopping center client in Olathe, KS, a KC suburb,burned to the ground. The firm was asked to supervisethe rebuilding.

“After raising my hand and saying I’d do it, I realizedI hadn’t been in a bowling center since I was 16 years old.Which was probably a good thing,” White adds. “Werebuilt [Olathe Lanes East] and we broke all kind ofparadigms in the bowling industry. We had the firstcompletely level floors, the first cocktail seating, we up-

scaled the food, we had windows in the facility. And thebusiness doubled.”

Hutchinson and White quickly came to the conclusionthat developing projects was a lot more fun and rewardingthan working with bankers on the value of their collateral,and decided to move into project consulting, design andproduction. The timing was good. FECs were justappearing. And sprouting up around the first FECs,children’s learning and play environments, themedrestaurants, malls and zoos were just ahead for the firm.

White says he’s been “trying to push duckpin for yearsand nobody had the guts to do it [install duckpins] becausethe paradigm is, you’ve got to have tenpin.”

The two games differ little from an entrepreneurialstandpoint, he points out. The architectural requirementsare the same, the lanes being the same size. The capitalinvestment is “about the same.”

But duckpin is a better fit with today’s bowlers becauseit’s a more “social” basis for a bowling venue, White

believes.“Duckpin is so friendly. The ball, women can handle it, men can

handle it. It’s just a fun game, [like] bocce ball now becoming popularthroughout the country because it’s extremely social and extremelyapproachable. Tenpin bowling is the most unfriendly type of open playbowling there is.”

Bowling business people often miss that, White says. They “getstuck” thinking about their businesses because they focus on theentertainment, not the social experience.

“It’s no longer going out for the entertainment. People are goingout to socialize. All the entertainment does, all the food and beveragedoes, is facilitate socialization. People all over the world can’t socializeunless they have a drink in their hand, they’re eating something, orthey’re throwing a ball. The number-one motivation is, really, the socialaspect of it. Especially today, if you’re going to compete with the digitalentertainment world [and] get them out of the home.”

In the 2012 manifesto, “It’s Time to Reinvent the Game of Bowling”(whitehutchinson.com/news/lenews/2012_december/article104.shtml),White concedes that tenpin has tried to make itself more user-friendlywith lighter balls and bumpers. But he says his research finds that the“large, heavy, three-finger-hole ball” is “intimidating” to many people.

Also, an experienced tenpin player “can dominate the high scoring,so everyone isn’t on an even playing field” and “often takes thegame too seriously, diminishing the fun had by [the] entire group.

“Let’s say goodbye to that three-finger-hole heavy bowling ball typeof bowling and let everyone discover how much more fun bowlingcan really be,” the manifesto concludes. “It’s back to the future withduckpins. Let the ducks fly!”

White says the time is right for it.Six months before he posted the manifesto on his website, he was

contacted by Vietnamese entrepreneur Quang Man, owner-operatorof a large soccer complex in Da Nang City, next to the National

COVER STORY


Stadium where high-profile pro soccer is played. Quang wasthinking about building an FEC next to the stadium onanother side.

When the project opens (scheduled for next month), WhiteHutchinson will have been responsible for the feasibility study;the full-design intent, which takes the architecture to just shortof local permitting; the full interior design; specifying theequipment, furnishings and appointments in the facility; assistingwith F&B concepts, procurement, management start-up,marketing; and will send people to train staff on how tooperate the rides and the bowling.

Under pell-mell construction on a 24/7 schedule for the pastyear, the 157,000-square-foot project, named Helio Center, willinclude indoor ice skating, blacklight go-kart rides, children’ssoft-play and play-and-discovery center, 19 karaoke rooms, asix-station food court and four restaurants with display kitchens.And 14 open play duckpin bowling lanes plus a two-laneduckpin boutique.

c≠aFor years, duckpin expansion was hobbled by the folding of

the companies that manufactured pinsetters for the game.Bowl Mor, founded by Howard Dowd and R. Lionel Barrow,apparently intended to manufacture pinsetters for every bowlinggame. Doud and Barrow started with candlepin—and had fourworking machines in 1949—then moved on to duckpin, five-pin,nine-pin and tenpin. Development costs for the tenpin machineseem to have been too great and the company went Chapter11 in the late 1960s. A parts business was maintained for theduckpin machines for a few years; then that, too, stopped.

The other brand of pinsetter was the eponymous brain childof inventor Ken Sherman. The story is that Sherman, who put hisincredibly complicated machine on the market in 1953, turneddown an offer from Brunswick to buy the rights, at which Brunswickturned exclusively to tenpin. Sherman continued for a short timeafter Bowl Mor faded, and then also closed.

For 40 years, duckpin houses have had to fashion their own

replacement parts or buy for parts the rare oldmachine that suddenly pops up on the market.

Quang is not going to install Shermans, BowlMors or indeed any free-fall pinsetters in Da Nang.He will use string machines—particular machinesthat will be convertible from duckpin to tenpin andvice versa, allowing both games to be played on thesame lane according to demand. As a bonus, beingstring machines, they are mechanically simpler thanfree-fall machines (200 parts compared to as many as2,200) and cheaper (a third less than a brand-new free-fall machine).

Quang can’t decide to run duckpins in themorning and tenpin that night, explains DaveFrewing, president of US Bowling, which is supplying

the bowling for Da Nang. But two men can make the conversionon 14 lanes, going either way, in one or two days. Pin actionis the same as in free-fall machines because the pit built by USBowling is the same as in traditional tenpin layouts, he says. Thecompany sells the same pinsetter as a tenpin string machineand in its Rollerball small-ball game. It’s been in US Bowling’sline for six years.

The convertible pinsetter “removes the risk of pioneering,”White observes, “because if it doesn’t work you can switch totenpin very easily. However, I told [Quang] I predict withinone year he will switch to 100% duckpin.”

On White’s first trip to Da Nang to explore bowling withQuang, the two were touring a couple of new tenpin housesin Ho Chi Minh City when Quang turned to him and said,“You know, we Vietnamese we don’t really like this bowling.”

“Well, just look at the size of the Vietnamese and look at thatball. My client is maybe 5'2". The Vietnamese, the older ones,are all smaller.” White told Quang another form of bowlingcould be installed, and shipped him a duckpin ball to examine.

In a thorough inspection of the ball and later the game,Quang was impressed. He noted even the shape, sound andsight of the flying pins.

But he told us, “The main reason for us to choose duckpinfrom tenpin is the balls of duckpin. These balls are lighter, moresuitable for Vietnamese people’s physical condition than thetraditional heavy ones. Strong or weak hands, people canenjoy playing for hours without suffering from arm ache the nextday. The holes of tenpin balls sometimes hurt people’s fingers,too, while duckpin balls have no holes. Moreover, thanks to theball size, even a small kid can join their parents’ games to bringa better experience for the family.”

White adds, “They’re very social when they go out. Thenumber-one form of entertainment is private karaoke rooms,where they get together as a group. When you go torestaurants, half the people are in groups of 15, 20 or more.Bowling is a very social type of thing, so [duckpin] really fits in

COVER STORY


with the way they socialize.”White reports that he is starting work in a number

of countries where there is no bowling tradition.“Therefore you introduce the most friendly type, whichis duckpin.” When we talked to him most recently, hehad just returned from Jordan, where he is working ona mall entertainment center that will include 10 lanesof duckpin.

Closer to home, the ducks are flying to Puget Sound in Washington State. White’sproject there will open with 10 tenpin lanes including a 2-lane boutique. But duckpinswill do better: 12 lanes including a 4-lane boutique. All 22 lanes are being equippedwith the convertible pinsetter, and “Based on what we expect from consumerdemand, all lanes will be duckpin by the end of the first year,” White told us. The projectwill also feature a four-star restaurant, an arcade and laser tag.

Make no mistake, the string pinsetter will most likely limit duckpin to recreationbowling. Stan Kellum, executive director of the National Duckpin Bowling Congress(NDBC), the sanctioning and governing body, reports that experimental trials ofduckpin string machines have drawn a sour response from hard-core league players.They want to see free-fall pin action.

On the other hand, White thinks tenpin players can be won over to duckpins, aftera fashion. “Part of the [business] problem is you get serious tenpin bowlers showingup in a social group and all they want to do is the sport. [But] you put them in frontof duckpin and it’s a new game.”

In any event, if keeping the duckpin game alive is the goal, the number ofsanctioned U.S. duckpin houses is down to 47 (plus four or five that don’t certify) and

a total of 820 lanes (an additional 100+lanes are uncertified). NDBC membersnumber 4,800 adults and 1,700 youthbowlers, while non-member duckpinplayers are estimated at about 9,800.

And if Randy White is right aboutthe attractiveness of duckpin bowling,and his pitch for duckpins takes hold asdid his pioneering ideas at Olathe East,at least some of those numbers couldstart climbing. ❖

Fred Groh is a regular contributor to

IBI and former managing editor of

the magazine.


’m writing this at 30,000 feet, heading home havingconnected on a flight through DFW. Air travel has allowedme to connect with hundreds of industry partners and

customers in the last 10 days (Bowling University, East CoastBowling show, F2FEC conference planning, client visits). I’mabout to connect to the Internet, allowing me to communicatewith people worldwide. I’ll bet you have a smartphone,certainly some kind of cell phone, in your pocket. It can keepyou connected while in the office or on the beach, 24/7.

Connectivity promotes integration. So it is with the BEC.An BEC is more than just adding a game room, or laser tag,or a real restaurant. It is connecting all the attractions with thebowling centerpiece and molding them together into anintegrated experience for your guests.

“Beyond Bowling” is one way IBI is connecting readers withthe best ideas and practices in the BEC segment of thebusiness. We are happy to have David Garber join the IBI and“Beyond Bowling” teams. David comes to us with deep rootsin bowling, a passion for the health of the industry, and acommitment to its future. It is great to have him here.

IAAPA is a great place to sharpen your BEC ideas. Be sureto check out our second annual IAAPA preview article inthese pages for an advance look at what the show has to offer.There are few better places to find the products, theinformation and educational experiences necessary to masterthe skills of operational integration for multi-attraction venues.We hope you enjoy this edition.

According to George From David’s Desk

INTRO

I hey say you can’t go home again, but I have foundthat getting away and coming back make for a positiveexperience. I have been in the bowling business for

more than 25 years. I started as a top amateur player, followedby positions as a regional manager for bowling manufacturers,then as director of both coaching and Team USA for USBC,and finally in sales in the Las Vegas casino/bowling arena.

Last year, I took a hiatus from bowling to review where I hadbeen and to decide where my future might lie. I became aconsultant for Siesta Key Oyster Bar, or SKOB for short. Persquare foot, it is the highest-grossing restaurant in Sarasota, FL.What I learned working in that amazing place, which attractedboth tourists and locals, easily relates to the bowling industry.

People look for places to spend their dollars that givethem a one-stop shop. SKOB understood that. They offeredgreat food, cold drinks, live music, and a staff that appreciatedthe customers, which translated into guests returning dayafter day and year after year even though the competition wasfierce on the key.

In today’s market, bowling center proprietors are clearlygetting the one-stop shop message as they add laser tag, go-karts, redemption games and debit card systems to theirvenues. Of course, adding these types of amenities is great,but without a top-notch staff to attend to your guests, it canall be for naught. The most important thing to remember is thatpeople want to spend their money where they feel appreciated.

My year’s sojourn brought me back around to what Ilove—bowling. I learned that it’s a jungle out there dealingwith food and beverage, but in bowling centers that is onlya piece of what the business plan is about. Bowlingproprietors have a great opportunity to increase their ROIwith additions, but it really comes down to the fact that a top-notch staff can make the biggest difference.

Enjoy this quarterly issue of “Beyond Bowling.”

T

George McAuliffePresident, PinnacleEntertainment Advisors

David GarberAssociate PublisherInternational BowlingIndustry

PREVIEW: IAAPA

or those of you unfamiliar with the acronym ‘IAAPA,’it stands for International Association of AmusementParks and Attractions. The annual conference and

trade show, the IAAPA Expo, is often shortened to IAAPAand takes place this year Nov. 17-21 in Orlando, FL.

IAAPA members include amusement parks, water parksand other assorted amusement facilities worldwide along witha strong supplier sector. Because bowling-based FECs arethe fastest-growing model in IAAPA, the show has becomea “must attend” for many proprietors.

27,000 attendees are expected to descend on the OrlandoConvention Center for this year’s show. 1,000+ exhibitors willbe showing the latest products, from games and laser tag,to roller coasters, to all of the things that go into attractingand entertaining guests.

Trade Show

The trade show opens on Tuesday the 18th; theconference, a day earlier. Bring comfortable shoes. This is abig trade show floor—literally miles of aisles. I can tell you,having attended 26 IAAPAs, that those aisles are chock fullof ideas to help improve your business.

Some booths that would be worth your while:

BAYTEK GAMES, booth 1024Baytek is a class act among game manufacturers. If you

ever find yourself in Wisconsin, try to squeeze in a visit to thiscompany’s facility. If you do, you’ll feel the commitment ofthe people in this company to their customers and to theultimate players of their games. If you have a Baytek gameyou understand my point: their physical quality and reliabilityare second to none. And they consistently release games that

make money. “Big Bass Wheel,” “CrankIt,” and “Dizzy Chicken” are just fewexamples. Prize Hub is the innovativeautomated redemption center allowingfor redemption to be introduced tounattended locations or as a satellite to give guests an option inbusier centers.

Baytek will be showing their latest game, “Flappy Birds.”Based on the popular app (downloaded over 50 million times),Flappy Bird is now life-size. With Baytek’s usual skill they’vecreated a super attractive “videmption” piece with a huge verticalflat-screen monitor. Players test their skill by maneuvering the birdthrough pipes, avoid a “game over” when pipes are touched, andearn tickets with each set of pipes that the bird successfullypasses through. Players can compete for the daily high score orthe all-time high score.

BRUNSWICK, booth 4831One of the leading

providers of bowlingequipment and supplies,Brunswick offers today's investors a dynamic range of opportunitiesto achieve their goals. Brunswick is a leader as a single-sourceprovider with a long, successful history of supporting successfulnew bowling center development projects.

BMI MERCHANDISE, booth 824Beyond the hottest items, BMI's automated

reorder system (ARS) syncs with all leading POSsystems. The result is the world's most

efficient, just-in-time redemption inventory management.Locations utilizing ARS receive on-site set-ups and refreshes,virtual websites depicting digital plan-a-grams (which are easily

F

IAAPA Growing Resource for theBowling Entertainment Center

By George McAuliffe


IBI's annual insider's guide to the 2014 IAAPA trade show in Orlando.

See you at IAAPABooth #1031

followed for ez merchandising), and much more.

CREATIVE WORKS, booth 602Creative Works, the designers and builders of

entertainment venues, with over 20years of experience designing andtheming facilities worldwide, will beshowing their custom laser tag arenacapabilities along with their “LaserFrenzy” fully immersive laser tag experience. Rounding outthe booth will be “Cosmic Golf”; “Color Crush,” a compactgame installed on the wall; and “Reactor,” their arcadeshowpiece.

INTERCARD, booth 1031Debit card systems are the most powerful tool to enter the

amusement game market in my 36years doing business in that world,hands down. Of the 75+ bowlingentertainment center facilities we’vehelped to add a redemption gameroom in the last five years, we might have done tokens in one.All the rest were done with debit card systems. They provideguest convenience, labor savings, cash control, pricingflexibility, great reporting, and a long list of marketing toolsto help drive guest satisfaction and sales in your facility.Intercard is at the forefront of debit card installations in FECs.

LASERTRON, booth 3206Lasertron will be showing their brand new LT-12 Briefing

Video which comes in five different versions for their mostpopular game formats.Briefing Video #1 showsthe new “Choose Your

Own Power Ups.” It’s easy to activate and fun to play. TheLasertron team will be there to share the details on their latestinstallations and features.

LIVE OAK BANK, booth 4640Live Oak Bank is a lender that

specializes in providing financingsolutions to the amusementindustry with a keen focus within family entertainmentcenters, bowling centers, roller skating centers, small parksand water parks nationwide. Ben Jones, a former operatorand amusement park industry leader, is one of the stars ontheir team.

QUBICAAMF, booth 1039The new Highway 66, the world’s best-selling mini bowling

attraction ever, delivers the ultimate in state-of-the-art on-

lane entertainment and features eightnew and exciting themes to “wow”customers and maximize their overallexperience They will be showing theirnew newest attraction—The Suite Spot, the “ultimate attractionto maximize group and party business.”

REDEMPTION PLUS, booth 800We’ll have some surprises in store

this year in our newly designed booth.Rather than the same old productconversations (which we already haveevery day and our customers know to

see at http: redemptionplus.com), we will be listening to ourcustomers and talking about how we can help build their business.

Sure, we are a supplier of redemption merchandise. But wealso have over 100 years of amusement park operatingexperience on our staff. We have played a leading role inadvising on all aspects of operational development to many FECs,and we are in the unique position of working with almost 2,000amusement facility accounts on a daily basis. That puts us inposition to promote best ideas and practices and to share them.We believe we are in the business of “enriching lives throughinsights that empower.”

Education

As you can imagine when the whole amusement world comestogether, the connection power is enormous. If insights canempower, and they do, the communication among owners andoperators, suppliers and customers, is powerful indeed.

A wise man once said, “If you think you know everything, youcan’t learn anything.” There is a lot to learn on IAAPA’s conferenceschedule. As a long-time FEC developer, I often find insights fromthe world of amusement parks or water parks that help me or myclients stand out from competitors. Not to mention the manyseminars on general business practices like employee relationsand marketing.

Here’s what’s in store.

Laser Tag Symposium I. This first of two sessions featuresprominent laser tag operators discussing their experiences andanswering these key questions: How can your vendors createproducts that will work better for you? What do you need or wantfrom your equipment manufacturer? arena designer? POS system?The group will be creating a “wish list” from the industry to itsvendors.

Laser Tag Symposium II. Immediately following the operator-led session, this one features several laser tag providers on thedais, comparing features and benefits from the variousmanufactures side by side. They will answer questions posed bythe independent moderator. Hear what each manufacturer has



Eliminate rental shoes, increase profits and enhance your customers bowling experience

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Bowling Buddies Shoe Covers come in 3 sizes that will fit 97% of all shoe sizes. Visit our website to purchase a sample box and give them a try.

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to say about its features, benefits and future development in anopen, clear and accountable presentation format.

The Three Amigos. Industry veterans Rick Iceberg, BenJones, and George Smith will weave real world stories of“change or die” with quick-fire topics inviting audienceengagement and debate.

“Rookies & Newcomers.” This legendary, comprehensivecrash course for those newly arrived or planning an entry to theFEC business actually begins with a social event at a localamusement park, Fun Spot, on Saturday and carries through untilMonday. It is comprehensive and, unlike other independentconferences geared to newcomers, it is not a sales event. IAAPAdoes a great job of keeping the information factual, objective,and realistic.

Constituency Lunch for Birthday Parties. Four of the bestin the birthday party business—Beth Standlee, Frank Price,Dorothy Lewis, and Sheryl Bindelglass—moderate this discussionof all things birthday.

Growing Your Revenue with Adults. Four prominent thinkersdiscuss the possibilities, with a focus on amusement parkattractions. Jim Kessler, Mike Abecassis, Peter Starkel, andRandy White bring their unique perspectives to the discussion.

Redemption Roundtable. Moderated by the always

entertaining and insightful Michael Getlan, a panel ofexperienced operators discuss and answer questions on currenttopics in redemption in front of a (studio) audience. Panelfeatures Linda Fernandez of EK Fernandez Show, Hawaii; CourtHuish of Boondocks, Utah; and Clarence Mabel of The TrackRecreation Center.

I hope this preview helps to at least streamline someactivities from all of the possibilities offered at this show.Check the show program under the ‘IAAPA Expos’ tab atwww.iaapa.org. Please come by our booth, number 800, andsay hello. We will be continuing to improve “Beyond Bowling”in the coming year and would love to hear your thoughts onwhat you find useful. ❖

George McAuliffe is a 35-year family entertainmentcenter operator and president of Pinnacle EntertainmentAdvisors by Redemption Plus, an industry consulting firm(www.grouppinnacle.com). George has operated entertainmentcenters from 2,000 to 150,000 square feet, including redemptionand merchandise games, since 1983 and has assisted numerousbowling center owners develop their FEC side. He is a regularspeaker at industry conventions worldwide, and writes forRePlay magazine. He can be reached at 913-563-4370 or [email protected].

FEATURE

he dollars can be in the details. In the case of PauloTeixeira’s Strikes & Spares, lots of dollars earned bypaying attention to lots of details. The bowling

side of the Mishawaka, Indiana FEC averages better than$55,000 yearly for each of its 20 lanes.

The figure reflects income to Strikes and Spares BowlingLLC, 65% of business gross. A separate company forinsurance and other purposes, Michiana Interior SpeedwayLLC on the same premises, earns the other 35% of gross.When the latter is factored in, the figure “soars” above$55,000 per lane bed, Teixeira reports.

The two parts of the enterprise equally split the floorspace, 56,000 square feet in a former retail shoe emporiumthat had been vacant for five years when Teixeira and apartner took it over in June 2004.

Armed with a degree in mechanical engineering and anMBA, Teixeira had been a jack-of-many-trades in the design,construction and installation of heavy machinery in his nativeBrazil, specializing in stamping presses. At one time oranother he has been a project manager, production planningand control manager, plant manager and operations VP.

When U.S. auto magnate Lee Iacocca took the helm atChrysler in the 1980s andwent looking for financing,he found few eagerpartners Stateside. He didfind Teixeira’s firm in Braziland the presses it madethere. In ’86, the companymoved Teixeira and hisfamily to Columbus, OH,where he installed thepresses at Chrysler. Hestayed on for 12 years,rising to president and CEOof the firm, then moved tothe South Bend, IN area

and retired. Unsatisfied by life out of work, he decided to becomean entrepreneur in bowling.

Teixeira knew nothing about the bowling business; his partnerdid. But at opening, Strikes & Spares had only 20 lanes, 25 or30 arcade games, a snack bar and a bar. Teixeira was soonconvinced that “to survive, we needed to keep investing andmake it a little more broad, and that [thinking] was not thecase” with the partner.

In particular Teixeira wanted to put in blacklight mini golf.

T

How constant tweaking radically transformed a traditional 20-lanerinto a roaring FEC.

From ‘Trad’ to ‘Rad’

By Fred Groh

Paulo Teixeira


“At that time, around 2004, Brunswick started with theirZone concept,” Teixeira explains. “Their model was 32-40lanes with a very nice bar, maybe even a restaurant, arcadegames, a lot of billiards tables and complementary smallerattractions like laser tag.

“I was looking to the trends and what they were doing.Blacklight mini golf started to be a big hit. Lots of BrunswickZones were installing [that]. I could see that we needed togenerate more revenue in order to be a viable company. Idid not have the financial capability to do bigger things butI knew I needed to do something.”

Mini golf, he decided, would be a good move, “a thingI could afford.” It was a move his partner didn’t want to make,so Teixeira bought him out. They dissolved their venture,Teixeira formed Strikes and Spares Bowling, and he leasedanother 4,000 square feet of the premises. He fit nine holesof circus-themed golf into half the space and an adjacentbirthday party area in the rest of it.

The golf cost $120,000. He had payback in three years.“I always thought I should look to positive cash flow,” says

Teixeira, explaining the approach that radically changedhis traditional center into a spectacularly successful FEC. “Thebanks don’t like too much when you add more to yourdebt—your ratios don’t look good—but if you add $120,000to your debt but produce $30-, 40-, 50,000 in positive cashflow additional to what you have to spend to run thatattraction, I think this is a good decision.”

g g g

Just two years after putting in the golf, Teixeira decidedon another attraction in 2009. This time the spark was notthe bowling industry but his market. Discovering electric go-karts, “I immediately thought, ‘Gosh!’

“I saw that as a hit, especially considering that youattract a different crowd, especially in Indiana, which is

kind of a driving state or racing state,” home to the Indianapolis500. “It is a different crowd that otherwise would not comehere to bowl, but they [would be] attracted to the center to race.”

Electric City, as the 26,000 square feet were named, has a 50-foot oval for the youngest kids and a 700-foot track for olderchildren and adults. Laid out with two S’s, a straightaway and singlecurves, the big track was inspired by the Brazilian Grand Prix forFormula One, Teixeira offers.

In a single four-minute ride, the driver can do 8-14 laps on thelarge go-kart track, the cars running about 15 mph. Speed on thelittle track is about half that or slower, depending on how staff setsthe speed. In case of trouble, one, several or all the cars oneither track can be instantly turned off.

The small track is Teixeira’s special joy. “The little guys—fouror five years old—they cannot do anything anywhere they go, andhere they come and can drive. They are so excited. After theycome out of the first curve, they are smiling from ear to ear. It’sso nice to see little kids like that.”

He rounded out Electric City last year with eight bumper cars

Go-karts ready to roll at Electric City (note logo on rear fender of the yellow kart).Formula K manufactured the karts, designed and installed the tracks.

Free-form floor plan dispenses with the usual concourse along the lanes. Instead, this serpentine walkway passes the arcade and snack bar (on the left), leads to thebowling counter (behind camera), then winds around to mini bowling, a birthday area, and entry to the vehicle attractions.

41IBI November 2014

in a 24×32-foot space. They attract the same age groups asthe go-karts.

Capitalized at $300,000, the go-karts delivered payback intwo years. The bumper cars did even better: costing $100,000,they were paid back in a single year—“the best investment I everdid.” Vehicle-attractions revenue divides 70% from the big go-kart track, 25% from bumper cars, and 5% from the little karttrack, Teixeira reports.

He was right about the anchor potential of the go-karts,currently estimating 100,000 customers yearly for them. And“so much less investment, and produce so much, compared tothe bowling. But you need a big anchor like [bowling].” Teixeirahas learned well the FEC lesson that propinquity produces profits.

“People come here and [find] that we have all these thingsunder the same roof. It’s very convenient, and they spend a lotof time here. And if they spend a lot of time, they end upspending money [for] food and drink, which is right beside thearcade games,” which are not far from the bowling lanes.

g g g

Teixeira has been just as careful in his thinking about the smallerparts of the business, from signage to a smartphone app:

In 2009, he decides he needs his facade to show his two newattractions. Starting with CAD, he and his son, Mario, devise acheerful exterior that leaves no doubt that go-karts (yellow-on-black signage) and mini golf (white on blue) are found within.

2011: a new website (at www.StrikesAndSpares.us). Teixeiradevotes an entire page of the site to pitching leagues thatcustomers form for themselves. (“You tell us the rules and how

much time you want to spend with us.”) Other pages boomthe FEC for fundraising, offer parties and packages for thego-karts as well as bowling, and advertise free games throughKids Bowl Free.

2012: online reservations debut (through his Brunswickscoring).

2012: cell phone app launched. “We thought this was ahot thing to have, [but] we will probably discontinue becauseit did not produce too much result. Today with Facebook,the app is not so important as it was.”

2013: new menu in the snack bar, upgraded presentationfor the food. The project was led by Mario, who has workedthe business since it opened. Recently returned from gettinghis MBA at Florida International University, he has theresponsibilities of an operations manager of Strikes & Spares.

The core of the original business and still the main anchor.


2013: two lanes of QubicaAMF Route 66 mini bowling are installed, unusual inincorporating at Teixeira’s request the company’s BES X bowler entertainment suite.

2013: redemption arcade revamped. Sweeping change-out of games by the supplierplus new games wherever Teixeira could build-out a few feet of floor space. “Í can’t affordto have any square feet without producing any dollar revenue, so we looked togetherfor areas where we could install more machines.” Current total, about 45. Teixeira reports$250,000 games income.

This year, new lane monitors.“I can tell you that there is no day that I don’t use something I learned throughout

my career—you just have to see opportunities to use what you know—and tried to bringup this business to the next level,” says Teixeira, taking stock.

“I’m a small center with 20 lanes,so it’s tough to have, for instance, bigleagues. I ended up becoming a morefamily entertainment center. So it’svery good to have other attractionsbesides bowling [for] families whocome here not so much because of thebowling.

“I always try,” he continues, andrestating his credo, “to see if it’spossible by adding such-and-suchattraction to generate positive cashflow to keep running the businessand improving and reinvesting in thebusiness.

“I‘m trying to keep up the centerwith newest technology, keep up theproperty always in very, very goodshape. I think it’s extremely important,especially dealing with families. I wantto have a center that’s very clean,smelling good when they go to therestroom; the food is the same thing orbetter than we buy for my own house.”

g g g

Word has gotten around. Teixeira figures his marketing area

as Greater South Bend, population aquarter-million. Customers come fromas far away as Chicago when in thearea for college sports at Notre Dame,but the university and the town ofGranger, each about five miles distant,are the source for most of hiscustomers.

He does a lot of business with NotreDame, he says. Each year, thegraduating class is treated to a weekof special activities after finals. Thisyear, students and parents wereinformed in the printed program thatTuesday night all would be welcomeat Strikes & Spares. The entire centerwas rented for four hours, 10 p.m. to2 a.m. Four hundred students jammedthe place. ❖

Fred Groh is a regular

contributor to IBI and former

managing editor of the

magazine.


SHOWCASE

FLAPPY BIRD APP FLIES HIGHONCE MORE

Downloaded over 50 milliontimes, the Flappy Bird app, releasedas a free app in 2013, became largerthan life. Although removed fromapp stores in early 2014, Bay TekGames negotiated a licensing agree-ment with GEARS Studio and hasproduced a skillful ticket redemptiongame.

Bay Tek’s Flappy Bird draws atten-tion with its large, bright screen anda game play that has participantsflocking back for more. Pressing thered button on the front of the con-sole maneuvers the bird through theopenings in the pipes, scoring tickets; hitting one of thepipes or the ground ends the game. Players can compete fordaily or all-time high scores. The recognizable Flappy Birdartwork, a 42” monitor, and colorful lighting are a great addi-tion to any game room.

For more information, visit Bay Tek Games atbaytekgames.com or call Jenna Woepse at (920) 822-3951,Ext. 1708.

ARS – A PROVEN REDEMPTIONMERCHANDISING SOLUTION

BMI Merchandise has created a proprietary system thatencompasses all facets of redemption management, includ-ing on-site set-up, bar coding, weekly scan/sales activity,updated redemption area plan-a-grams and more. ThisAutomated Reorder System (ARS) is a proven application inuse at leading national and regional FECs including MainEvent, Brunswick Bowl, Royal Pin, Head Pinz and othermulti-unit bowling chains.

ARS reads a location’sPOS usage reports weekly,creating reorders shippedto arrive ready to be placedon display. This way loca-tions always receive thehottest branded, licensedand most innovative mer-chandise. Each item is selected to drive arcade revenue.

ARS is one reason BMI received the 2013 AmericanAmusement Machine Association’s (AAMA) Supplier of theYear award at the March 2013 Amusement Expo. For moreinformation contact Dave Schwartz, V.P., Sales & Marketing at(732) 363-0212 or [email protected].

A PIRATES’ QUESTLaser tag shook off its ‘fad’ persona long ago and has

become one of the most profitable add-on attractions withinamusement facilities around the country. Jeff Schilling, presi-dent of Creative Works, has been in the laser tag industryover, designing, building, operating and marketing laser tagworlds.

One of Schilling’s latest cre-ations is Pirate Quest Laser Tagat Woodland Bowl, Indianapolis.The over-5,000-square-foot,multi-level arena exhibits amaz-ing 3D blacklight murals andprops. Players are taken into asalty pirate’s port surrounded by candle lit halls and burningpirate ships. Players enter a vesting area to suit up and pre-pare to enter this swashbuckling world. There are nets, ropes,sails, anchors, a torch-lit ramp and storefronts that line theport. Props provide great eye-candy against the vibrant col-ored walls and maze obstacles throughout the space.

No space is the same. Imagination is the only limitation.With the growing pressures of competition, it is more impor-tant than ever to stay current and to continue to fine-tune yourbusiness. To find out more about what Creative Works can dofor your business, contact Creative Works at (877) 843-6348.

BOWLMOR AMF SELECTS DEBITCARD SYSTEM

Intercard Inc., a leading provider in cash managementsolutions for the amusement industry, based in St. Louis,MO, has been chosen as the debit card provider forBowlmor AMF’s Bowlero in San Antonio, TX. The formerAMF Country Lanes, Bowlero has undergone a completetransformation, featuring new lanes, a larger arcade area

and upgraded food and bev-erage options. BowlmorAMF now operates morethan 300 centers in NorthAmerica, 20 of which hostthe Intercard system.

“We’re very excited to beworking with Intercard,which is the only company

that has live, proven models in our industry that can handlethe sheer number of sites we have now, and the many newsites we have planned for the future,” said Steve Veach,director of amusement operations, Bowlmor AMF.

Jason Mitchell, North America sales manager, Intercard,Inc., said of the One Card Cashless Solution, “Guests will beable to purchase anything, anywhere, in the facility withtheir Intercard play card.”

SHOWCASE

NEW OFFERINGS FROM QUBICAAMFWith the merging of AMF Bowling Products and Qubica

Worldwide in 2005, QubicaAMF has brought innovation toboth the bowling and amusement businesses. At this year’sIAAPA show in Orlando, FL,two new products will beintroduced, New Highway66 and The Suite Spot™.

The New Highway 66, astand-alone, coin operatedattraction, takes QubicaAMF’s best-selling mini bowlinggame to a new level, maximizing the customers’ experi-ence. It is available in eight fun, new themes and deliversthe ultimate visual appeal, along with state-of-the-art on-lane entertainment.

The Suite Spot™, premiering atIAAPA, is uniquely designed forgroup and business parties. It exclu-sively combines the state-of-the-arton-lane entertainment for minibowling, with a unique, relaxing andsocial environment, along with salesand marketing training for staff.

For more info, visit IAAPA Booth 1039 or go towww.amusement.qubicaamf.com.

NIFTY PRIZE PACKSBirthdays are for everyone, especially children… of all

ages. Entertainment centers’ revenues are greatlyenhanced by top notch parties. Redemption Plus ofLenexa, KS, knows how to make any party, especially abirthday party, an occasion to remember. Flashy and funprize bags add value to party packages and generate rev-enue through upsells. Each resealable bag has an assort-ment of fun toys, novel-ties and candy. Howmany parties do youbook each week? Howmany attendees perparty? Visualize what animpact that could makein a year!

Bag of Smiles prizepacks are a top pick byboth parents and kids.Request your free sam-ple at RedemptionPlus.com/prizebag or call (888) 564-7587.

GET IN SYNCSync™ is Brunswick’s revolutionary new scoring and

management system, coming in 2015. Sync™ is all-new toits core. Built from the groundup, it features enhanced man-agement tools covering cloud-based Customer RelationshipManager (CRM), which includesemail addresses from reserva-tions, check-ins and on-laneoffers. It can target in-centermarketing which displays in-game ads with tempting photoson score sheets that also featurea new “Specials” button that’s clickable at any time.

Stylish new consoles combine aesthetics with ultra-dependable, trouble-free performance. Choose betweena keypad or a capacitive touchscreen, available inpedestal- and table-mounted models. Other featuresinclude better on-lane displays and simpler, smartergames, ideal for kids’ parties.

Sync™ is a complete, streamlined, easy-to-use system.Make way for Sync™. For more in depth information go towww.brunswickbowling.com/the-one.

LASERTRON TURNKEY PACKAGESLasertron prides itself on being a “one-stop shopping”

experience, combining the laser tag experience with man-agement and operational systems. With over 25 years in thebusiness, Lasertron’s latest offer is the LT-12 game system,durable and of the highest quality, with cool, playable LEDor blacklight arenas, complete with a POS system, newcloud kiosks and online scoring. The software is easy to useand offers players a multitude of game options.

Once a client, always a client. FunFuzion, NewRochelle, NY, has been part ofLasertron’s family since1999. Most recently, theyupgraded their existingattraction which was single-level to a split level arena incorporat-ing the LT-12 while re-using most ofthe original arena parts. In Pigeon Forge, TN, Lazerport, aclient since 1994, also upgraded from Lasertron’s LT-10 tothe LT-12.

For more info on Lasertron products, go to www.lasertron.com or email Ann Kessler, [email protected].

IBI November 201446

FEATURE


ROLLING WITH

THE ROCKERS

IN VEGAS

FEATURE

49IBI November 2014

he hit formula behind Brooklyn Bowl is as simple as a classicthree-chord rock song. “It’s a live music venue with somebowling lanes and great food,” says co-founder and veteran

music promoter Peter Shapiro. “We knew it would be fun. What wedidn’t realize is just how well it would work.”

Shapiro and partner Charley Ryan opened the original BrooklynBowl in 2009 in the nascent hipster enclave of Williamsburg,

Brooklyn. “We thought [the concept] would be fun and coolbut I don’t think we’d anticipated we’d have Kanye West,

Paul Simon, Elvis Costello, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs—youname the band—playing,” said Shapiro in live musictrade publication Pollstar. “It’s been an amazingexperience. We’ve built a great venue that canstand on its own.”

Brooklyn Bowl has attracted critical acclaim aswell as customers. Rolling Stone magazine hascalled it “one of the best clubs in America,” andZagat Guide readers ranked it "Best Music Venue—

New York City" for three consecutive years as wellas "Best Bowling Alley" and "Best Brooklyn Venue."In January 2014 the partners opened a second,

larger Brooklyn Bowl next to the O2 Arena, the premierlarge music venue in London, England. The 40,000-square-

foot, 12-lane venue has already featured such hot acts as Pharrellof the megahit song “Happy.”

At the same time, severalmajor Las Vegas players visitedWilliamsburg to woo Shapiroand Ryan. They eventuallyagreed to become one of thefirst tenants of The Linq Hoteland Casino, a venture ofCaesars Entertainment that

combines a retail, dining andentertainment promenade with a

2,256-room hotel and casino.Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas opened inMarch 2014.

“It’s at dead center 50-yard line onThe Strip under the biggest Ferris

Brooklyn Bowl's latestlocation on the Strip isa big hit.

By Robert Sax

T

Peter Shapiro

FEATURE


wheel in the world,” says Shapiro of the high-visibility location. The Sin Cityversion of Brooklyn Bowl cranks the original concept up to “11” with threefloors spanning 80,000 square feet and 32 lanes of bowling on two levels. Asmany as 2,500 concertgoers can enjoy live music from their choice of thegeneral admission area, comfortable lanes, a luxurious bowlers’ lounge orprivate boxes.

We’re not talking about tribute bands or B-listers, either. The roster of artiststhat have played at “The Bowls” is impressive. The rock, roots, alternative andjam acts that have appeared at the Las Vegas location alone includes Elvis Costello& The Roots, Phil Lesh & Friends, Jane’s Addiction, Tedeschi Trucks Band,Steve Winwood, Wu Tang Clan and Questlove.

Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas is already a hit, says Sameen Ahmad, vice presidentof development and marketing for The Bowls. “It’s pretty phenomenal. The bestway for me to put it is the amount of local attraction we get here,” says Ahmad.“We see the same faces again and again, and that’s something very uncommonfor The Strip. I’m constantly being thanked by peoplethat work on The Strip [because ] they have a newplace to hang out.”

Las Vegas may not tout its family-friendlinessthey way it used to, but it’s still a family affair atBrooklyn Bowl. “We are open to all ages until 8p.m.,” says Ahmad. “In [Brooklyn] we have a lot offamilies, especially on the weekend during footballseason. Dad’s watching the game, Mom’s drinkingmimosas with friends, and the kids running aroundon the concert floor or bowling.” She expects asimilar family crowd in Las Vegas once footballseason kicks off.

The one Las Vegas staple that’s not available in thehouse is gaming, and Shapiro likes it that way. “It’snot in a casino. I think that’s an important elementto creating vibe,” he says. “It helps to have your own

building and not be in the basement of acasino.” Those craving that kind of action willfind it close by at The Linq Casino, however.

A Long Strange TripAs with other contemporary bowling

entrepreneurs like Daniel Hurd ofTavern+Bowl and Steven Foster of LuckyStrike, Shapiro didn’t start out in bowling.He began his eclectic career makingdocumentary films about the legendary rockband The Grateful Dead, and went on toproduce the IMAX concert films U2 3D and AllAccess. He is also a founder of the JammyAwards, a riff on the Grammy awards thathonors jam bands like The Dead and Phish.Shapiro then became a successful promoteron New York’s live-music scene, including astint running Tribeca’s legendary “activistnightclub” Wetlands Preserve.

When the gentrification of LowerManhattan caused the closing of WetlandsPreserve, Shapiro and Ryan began looking forsomething new. They opened the original23,000-square-foot Brooklyn Bowl in 2009 inthe former Hecla Iron Works, a landmarkbuilding in a neighborhood in transition. “Wedidn’t realize when we found the space sevenor eight years ago that Williamsburg would bethe next thing. That’s just [dumb] luck.”

According to Shapiro, Brooklyn Bowl fills acrying need in Las Vegas for a regular livemusic venue. “Las Vegas has a lot of DJsnow. There isn’t a lot of live music,” he says.

FEATURE


“If you look at the top 20 venues, only Brooklyn Bowl is open every weekend for livemusic. My love, and what Brooklyn Bowl represents, is live music.”

Of course there are big pop stars like Celine Dion, Shania Twain and Rod Stewartat the big showrooms. The Hard Rock Hotel has blue chip bands like Crosby, Stillsand Nash, and House of Blues offers a lot of tribute acts. But for serious music fanswho want less glitz and more rock, Brooklyn Bowl is clearly the place.

First-class musical acts deserve first-class presentation, and Brooklyn Bowl givesthe bands and the fans the very best in sound and video. The audio-visual consultantsare Technomedia, who have handled projects for Universal Studios and LegolandFlorida, and SIA Acoustics, which has developed sound systems for the San FranciscoJazz Center and baseball’s Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

The heart of the sound is a live-performance audio system by world-renownedd&b audiotechnik of Germany. For music watchers, the venue includes two 90-foot4mm high-resolution LED walls over the bowling lanes, with 16 live visual feeds and60 LED digital signage displays, all designed and integrated by Technomedia. Thesystem provides a way to stream sports, videos and live performances throughoutthe venue.

Rolling for RockersWith all the love that’s lavished on the music, you might expect bowling to take

second billing but that’s not the case. There are 32 Brunswick-equipped bowling lanesinside the venue; 16 upstairs and 16 downstairs. To keep the bowling noise to aminimum, Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas uses Brunswick StringPin pinsetters. “You don’thear the bowling at all” during a concert, says Shapiro.

Each bowling lane can accommodate up to eight people with sofa seating androom to dance around during the concert when you’re not bowling. There’s also anelevated bowlers’ lounge where guests can watch the show on huge high-definitionprojection screens over the lanes. Open bowling is the norm, but a monthly leaguenight is popular with people who work on The Strip.

Blue Ribbon FareGreat food is an important part of what Shapiro calls “a full dining, social and concert

experience under one roof.” As at the original and London branches, the BrombergBrothers’ Blue Ribbon Restaurants provides the “rockin’ comfort food” that leansheavily on Southern fare. The menu features favorites like mac ’n’ cheese, oyster po’boys, fried catfish and Blue Ribbon’s iconic fried chicken, which was celebrated on

the Food Network show “The Best ThingI Ever Ate.” Beverages include authenticegg creams made with ingredientsimported from the old country (Brooklyn).

Diners, bowlers and concertgoers canenjoy five on-site bars that feature craftbeers on tap, cocktails, premium liquorsand fine wines. This is Vegas, so high-rollers are accommodated. If you didwell at the tables you can order a bottleof 2002 Dom Perignon rosé champagnefor $3,500. It’s a magnum, so you willhave plenty to share with you’re yourfellow bowlers.

Life After VegasShapiro says there will be more

Brooklyn Bowls and that a plan to opena location in Chicago is “underdiscussion.” He doesn’t have a numberon how many places The Bowls wants toopen in the future. “We are focused onmaking Vegas and London work, but wedefinitely have some exciting thingsplanned. If a great opportunity comes infront of us, the right location, the rightbuilding, the right vibe, the rightneighborhood, we’re looking at it.”

As Shapiro and Ryan have discovered,“Live music and bowling go really welltogether.” Like a three-chord song, it’s asimple yet powerful formula for success—if you know how to rock it. ❖

Robert Sax is a writer and PR

consultant in Los Angeles. He

grew up in Toronto, Canada, the

home of five-pin bowling.

TRADESHOW


he 2014 ECBCC saw a nice increase inparticipation, which added good energy to thethree-day event. Attendees were provided

much needed insight into increasing youth bowling;marketing to your clientele; value of redemption; andthe benefits of creating a good experience for guests.It also produced two $25,000 winners of capital andconsumer products from Brunswick and QubicaAMF.Thanks to all who made the show a success. ❖

T

Beth Standlee with TrainerTainment

Frank and Susan Pastizzo, Warm Up the Workplace, Inc.

Mark and Diane Voight, Community Bowling Centers

Jack Moran 2015, chairmanJohn LaSpina, 2014 chairman

Redemption Plus seminar

Johnny Petraglia, PBA Hall of Famer

Giro Chierchio showing off bowling art work

IBI HAS BEEN THE

OFFICIAL MAGAZINE

OF ECBCC FOR

18 STRAIGHT YEARS

By David Garber

57IBI November 2014

Joey Jewell and Sean Clancy, Youth Development Team for IBC

Fred Kaplowitz and Wally Hall, luncheon keynote

Jack Moran and Jim Doty, seminar, "Converting Centers: Pitfalls

and Results"

George McAuliffe with Redemption Plus

Jack Moran and Lisa Ciniello

Jane and Rodney Farrell with Jane Farrell Turf and

Flagship Carpets

Peter Hakim with Isalnd Bowling Supply

Carvel Ice Cream

TRADESHOW

TRADE SHOW NEWS


hough most attending this year'sEast Coast Bowling CentersConvention at the Golden

Nugget Hotel and Casino in AtlanticCity, NJ, likely knew about the Oct. 8Great Eastern Golden Giveaway contest,none probably thought they'd win it.

That's a major reason why the ownersof Thunderhead Bowl in Taneytown,MD, and Maplewood Lanes in SouthMontrose, PA, were surprised to learntheir names were drawn.

While Thunderhead Bowl owner MarkKraus was in attendance, he didn't at firstrealize his center earned the $25,000 incapital improvement products fromQubicaAMF. Maplewood proprietorMike Spadine was home running his 10-lane center and wasn't told by motherJudy and her friend Lucille that theirentry had won the $25,000 fromBrunswick until several days later.

“They were going to surprise me,”said Spadine, who bought his center fromhis mother and father, Leroy, in January.

TBy Mark Miller

Jay Buhl, Senior VP of Sales for QubicaAMF; Denise Kraus, winner of $25,000 in product from QubicaAMF; PatCiniello, President QubicaAMF

TRADE SHOW NEWS

59IBI November 2014

“I'm pretty happy,” Spadine said. “Ican do a lot with it.”

“I was talking to another vendorand it was one of those thingswhere you lose your train ofthought because you hearsomething,” said Kraus, whose 28-lane center, originally built in 1977,is split between 16 tenpin and 12duckpin lanes. “My wife [Denise]was sitting down in one of theseating areas and I look over ather and she looked over at me. Itwas quite a shock to say the least.”

Kraus bought his center for asecond time in 2013 after originallyowning it from 2000 to 2008. Littlehad changed since he previouslyhad it so this time he developed atwo-year plan to implementchanges in the 1990s seating andscoring systems on the tenpin sideand 1960s equipment on theduckpin side. His new QubicaAMFequipment will help him beginexecuting that plan.

“Things that didn't seem apossibility now seem a possibility,”Kraus said. “I don't know whatwe're going to do but [QubicaAMF sales manager] EricWeimer will come here and we'll throw some ideas aroundand see what makes sense. We'll utilize it to make adifference with something the bowlers notice. It's a more-than-generous gift. It's a real shot in the arm for a centerthat needs it.”

Spadine plans to utilize the prize as a down paymenton remodeling his ball return and seating areas. Hisplans include installing cushioned couches and placinghardwood on the bare concrete floors to eliminate anannual sweating problem.

“Bowlers want to see changes,” said Spadine, a PBAtour member in the early 1990s who spent more than adozen years as head foreman for a tree company beforeinjuring his back and buying Maplewood. “They get boredif it's the same. We need to keep upgrading.”

"We are pleased to provide a $25,000 certificate thatthe winner can redeem for select Brunswick products,”said Brunswick president of Bowling Products BrentPerrier. “The East Coast Bowling Centers Convention hasbeen one of the premier bowling trade shows for a longtime and this program is another excellent example of

the innovative things they do to draw attendees to the show. Weare extremely proud to support this event and participate as thePremier Platinum Sponsor."

"QubicaAMF was proud to be part of the $50,000 EasternStates Bowling Convention giveaway and happy to help the Krausfamily upgrade their center with our $25,000 gift certificate," saidQubicaAMF Worldwide president Pat Cinello.

"QubicaAMF is thrilled to support the East Coast Bowlingproprietors, the convention, and the convention committee'sinitiatives,” said Jay Buhl, QubicaAMF senior vice president sales,the Americas. “We strongly believe in the future of bowling, andthe need for proprietors to continuously invest and transition theirbusiness for future growth. We are pleased we were able to not onlysupport the convention committee, but also help a proprietorfurther invest in their business and drive growth." ❖

Dan Borgie, VP of Modernization Sales for Brunswick; Lucille Polons, winner of $25,000 in product fromBrunswick; and PBA Hall of Famer Johnny Petraglia

Mark Miller is a freelance writer, editor, and public relations specialist

from Flower Mound, TX. He's the author of Bowling: America's Greatest

Indoor Pastime available at Amazon.com or directly from him at

[email protected].

INDUSTRY NEWS

61IBI November 2014

emember all those Saturdays parked in front of the television watching ABC-TV'scoverage of the PBA tour? Thanks to BPAA and USBC, for nine consecutive weekseach of the next three years, that day will mean top-flight bowling again.

The organizations are combining financial resources to resurrect the ProfessionalWomen's Bowling Association tour starting in 2015. The plan is to hold at least eightregular events at nationwide centers culminating in a PWBA Tour Championships as aninth event. The 2015 tour will run weekends from July 10 through Labor Day.

The initiative was developed by a joint task force of members of the BPAA and USBCboards of directors, each of which approved the proposal.

“It's an exciting time for women's professional bowling but more importantly the futureof our sport,” said USBC executive director Chad Murphy during an Oct. 15 mediaconference call. “The PWBA's return is part of an ongoing effort to solidify the sport andbuild further top-of-mind awareness in the minds of the non-bowling public. Our youngfemale athletes will now aspire to bowl more competitively and truly love the sport. Ourplans are to build a robust, exciting professional tour that will support the growth ofwomen's bowling in the future.”

“We see the excitement in high school bowling. You see what's going on with thecontinued growth of women's college bowling. This is just a natural,” added BPAAexecutive director Frank DeSocio.

No membership money will be used by either organization to fund the project. Murphysaid USBC will allocate funds received from existing sponsorship agreements and USBCMember Rewards partnerships while DeSocio said BPAA is designating money from itsreserve funds and proceeds from its Smart Buy program.

Each event will be open to all female bowlers and will feature a minimum prize fundof $60,000, with $10,000 going to the winner. Between 32 and 48 players will take partin all eight events with additional players choosing specific stops based on geography.

Details including sites, schedules, sponsorships, product registration, membership duesand entry fees will be announced later. ❖

R

A NEW DAYFOR THE PWBA

By Mark Miller

Mark Miller is a freelance writer, editor, and public relations specialist from Flower Mound,

TX. He's the author of Bowling: America's Greatest Indoor Pastime available at Amazon.com

or directly from him at [email protected].

BPAA and the USBC partnerto revive the PWBA in 2015.


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MANAGER WANTED

Don't miss your chance to grow with anIndustry Leader! Looking forExperienced, Service-Oriented GeneralManagers for our U.S. bowling retailcenter locations. Please check us out atwww.brunswickcareers.apply2jobs.comfor more details on our current openings.Act Now! Apply Today!

Experienced, self-motivated manager neededfor mid-sized center in So. California.Competitive salary & benefits. Respond [email protected].

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Get Redline Foul Lights atwww.joystickscoring.com or call Werner @(888) 569-7845. Sold exclusively in Canadaby JD Bowling Services (800) 346-5781.Home of Bowlingtrader.com, your FREEbuy & sell site.

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CENTERS FOR SALE

NEBRASKA: 8-lane Brunswick center withbar, game room and restaurant. Activeleagues. Call (402) 335-2095.

GEORGIA: Busy 32-lane center, real estateincluded. Great location in one of fastest–growing counties in metro Atlanta. 5 yearsnew with all the amenities. Excellentnumbers. Call (770) 356-8751.

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

LARRY DOBBS APPRAISALS. (214) 674-8187. [email protected].

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.

CENTRAL ILLINOIS: PRICED TO SELL!!8-lane center with AMF 82-70s, full-servicerestaurant, pro shop. Plus pool tables,karaoke machine & DJ system. Asking$125,000.00 with RE. (217) 351-5152 [email protected].

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

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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.

16-lane center in Southern Coloradomountains. Great condition. 18,000 s/fbuilding w/ restaurant & lounge. Pavedparking 100+ vehicles. Establishedleagues & tournaments. $950,000 ormake offer. Kipp (719) 852-0155.

OKLAHOMA: 16-lane center w/ large lasertag, only arcade in area and thriving lounge.Steltronics SuperElex w/ 42” flat screens andrefurbished A2s. Completely upgraded andremodeled. Owner financing and option topurchase shopping center for viable buyers.Business for sale apart from real estate.(719) 251-1616.

NEW YORK, Lowville (home of QubicaAMFpin production): new, established 12-laneQubicaAMF center with all amenitiesincluding soft-serve window, state-of-the-artkitchen, bar & arcade. 16,640 s/f buildingwith parking 150+. (315) 376-3611 or (315)486-4325.

TEXAS: 24-lane center with limitedcompetition and good upside. Building &equipment in good condition. Real estateincluded. Owner retiring. Ken Paton (503)645-5630.

MISSOURI (east of Kansas City): 8 lanes.Excellent building. Divorce forces sale. Alloffers considered. (816) 415-9186.

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11-15Brunswick TrainingVector Scoring MaintenanceMuskegon, MI(800) 937-2695, Option 2www.brunswickbowling.com/service-support/training

13-19USBC Queens-Sr. QueensAshwaubenon BowlGreen Bay, WI(800) 514-BOWL (2695)

JUNE15-19Brunswick GS-Series PinsetterMaintenance SchoolMuskegon, MIwww.brunswickbowling.com/service-support/training

67IBI November 2013

DATEBOOK

NOVEMBER2-3Illinois State BPA Fall MeetingTimber Creek Inn & SuitesConvention CenterSandwich, ILBill Duff(847) [email protected]

11Indiana Bowling CentersAnnual MeetingLafayette, INwww.indianagobowl.com

17-21IAAPA Attractions Expo 2014Orange County Convention CenterOrlando, FLJulie Sullivan(703) 836-4800, Ext. [email protected]/iaapa-events

19-20BCA of OhioFall Seminar & MeetingDoubletree HotelColumbus, OHPat Marazzi(937) 433-8363

JANUARY 201511-15BPAA Bowling SummitHyatt Regency San AntonioSan Antonio, TX(800) 343-1329www.bpaa.com/bowlingsummit

12-16Brunswick TrainingGS-Series Pinsetter MaintenanceMuskegon, MI(800) 937-2695, Option 2www.brunswickbowling.com/service-support/training


22BCA of OhioExecutive Board MeetingDoubletree HotelColumbus, OHPat Marazzi(937) 433-8363

FEBRUARY2-8USBC Masters TournamentAshwaubenon BowlGreen Bay, WI(800) 514-BOWL (2695)[email protected]/Masters

MARCH9-13Brunswick TrainingGS-Series Pinsetter MaintenanceMuskegon, MI(800 937-2695, Option 2www.brunswickbowling.com/service-support/training


24-26AAMA-AMOA Amusement ExpoLas Vegas Convention CenterLas Vegas, NVwww.amusementexpo.org

IBI November 2014

REMEMBER WHEN

68

n September 9, 1895, the AmericanBowling Congress (ABC) was born in NewYork City. During this meeting, theforefathers of our beloved sport

established the fundamental playing regulationsand equipment for the game. Only men wereallowed to join the ABC at the time. But in 1916,a group of 40 women formed the Women’sInternational Bowling Congress (WIBC) in St.Louis. The WIBC and ABC were partnerorganizations for over 80 years.

For many years, the ABC and WIBC hadseparate bowling leagues. The champions ofthe leagues earned these patches as remindersof their achievements in the sport.

Our thanks to Jay Johnson, collector andleague bowler at Pinz Entertainment Center inStudio City, CA, for sharing these collectibles. ❖

OBy Rachel Gale

international bowling industry november 2014

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