E-dition No. 1,080 • Friday, October 11, 2019
Editor: Bob Johnson (bjibob@aol.com)
Hall of Fame Writer Pearl Keller Passes Away
Pearl Keller, a PWBA and USBC Hall of Fame member, passed away on Oct. 2 in Brighton, Mass. She was 95.
Keller was inducted into the PWBA Hall of Fame in 1997 in the Builder category, and two years later joined the USBC Hall of Fame for Meritorious Service.
A trailblazer for women’s bowling, Keller teamed with Jean Fish to start the Women’s All-Star Association in 1971. WASA conducted tournaments specifically designed for high-average women bowlers, and drew the best amateur and professional bowlers from throughout the country to its events.
Keller served as WASA Executive Director for more than 30 years. In 2001, the organization had a membership of 325 and awarded more than $85,000 in 17 tournaments.
Keller also paved the way for women bowling writers. A bowling columnist for 27 years for Gannett Westchester Newspapers, the largest newspaper chain in the country, she was one of the first women writers admitted to the Bowling Writers Association of America.
She joined the BWAA in 1973, and held many leadership positions before she was elected the first woman president of BWAA in 1992. She also served as president of the National Women Bowling Writers for six years.
Keller won numerous writing awards, including the BWAA’s Mort Luby Distinguished Service Award, the NWBW Alberta E. Crowe Award and the Murrey International Bowling Writer of the Year Award.
Keller, who lived in Chappaqua, N.Y., for nearly 50 years, served bowling on the local, state and national levels.
She was on the Women’s International Bowling Congress Board of Directors from 1984-1999, and was a longtime board member of the Westchester Women’s Bowling Association and New York State Women’s Bowling Association.
The WIBC recognized her work as an innovator with Joyce Deitch Trailblazer Award in 2002.
Born on Dec. 19, 1923, Keller graduated from Yale University in 1947 with a bachelor’s degree in music (piano major), and spent a year teaching piano at the Perkins School for the Blind. She did graduate work toward a Master’s degree at Texas Christian University and was a graduate assistant in the school’s music history department.
Keller is survived by her four children, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Services are pending.
New Office Location for CDE Software
CDE Software is relocating.
Effective Oct. 21, the company will be moving to a new location in the greater Seattle area. CDE’s new address will be: 14220 Interurban Ave. S, Suite 140, Seattle, WA 98168-4662.
The company’s phone numbers will remain the same, and according to CDE President Lance Rasmussen, CDE’s vast collection of bowling pins also will be making the move.
To accommodate the move, the company’s office will be closed from Oct. 16-20.
Jackpot Classic Celebration to End on the High Seas
As part of the 25th anniversary of the Washington State Bowling Proprietors Association’s Jackpot Classic, bowling will be taking to the high seas.A once in-a-lifetime opportunity to cruise the Southern Caribbean while bowling with Parker Bohn III, Daria Pajak and Danaka Heekin is being offered. Only 28 doubles slots remain for this unique vacation/exploration, which will serve as the grand finale of the WSBPA’s Jackpot Classic promotion.
Participants will set sail Jan. 10-17, 2021, from San Juan, Puerto Rico, on board Norwegian Cruise Lines.
“Our thanks to 900 Global, Brunswick and Norwegian Cruise Lines for their cooperation,” said Greg Olsen, Executive Director of the WSBPA.
For further information, contact Olsen at: greg.olsen@wsbpa.org or 206-762-6752.
FloSports Expands Viewing Options With Android App
Austin, Texas-based FloSports has expanded its distribution with the release of an Android app, giving subscribers more ways to live stream their favorite sports, including FloBowling.
“Since our first live stream in 2006, we have been obsessed with the drive to give underserved sports the love they deserve,” said Mark Floreani, CEO and co-founder of FloSports. “We live and breathe the sports we cover. It is time for our brand identity to fully represent the competitive spirit that is core to our DNA.”
Over the past year, FloSports has been on a fast growth trajectory, achieving more than a 125 percent year-over-year increase in net subscribers.
In May, the company announced a Series C funding round of $47 million, to continue investment in rights to grow coverage of underserved sports.
In June, FloSports launched new Apple TV, Roku and Fire TV apps.
Last month, FloSports acquired DirtonDirt, the home for Dirt Late Model racing.
“We are continuing to see a shift in viewership from desktop and mobile browsers to mobile and TV apps, said Floreani. “Through our apps, we give consumers a superior viewing experience and easy access to all of the live events we cover. And we’re not done yet. In the next few months, we will be releasing casting support, which allows consumers to cast live events from their mobile devices to LG, Samsung and Vizio TVs, Roku and Fire TV.”
FloSports streams more than 10,000 live competitions per year and offers a growing library of more than 2,000 hours of exclusive content. To access live and on-demand coverage of FloSport’s entire network of sports products, visit FloSports.tv and become a monthly or annual PRO subscriber.
To download the new FloSports app for Androids, use this link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=tv.flosports&hl=en_US.
Dexter Continues as High School All-American Team Sponsor
Dexter Bowling will remain the title sponsor of the annual Dexter High School All-American Team through the 2022 season after renewing its partnership agreement with International Bowling Campus Youth Development.
Since the 2005-06 season, Dexter has worked with IBC Youth each season to select five male and five female student-athletes for the award. Selections are determined from a nationwide pool of applicants and are based on high school bowling accomplishments, academic achievement, recommendations, extracurricular and community involvement, and submitted essays.
“Over the past 14 years, the Dexter High School All-American Team has become one of the most prestigious honors a youth bowler can receive,” Dexter Bowling Vice President, Tyler Jensen, said. “We are excited to continue the partnership with IBC Youth to showcase high school bowlers who excel on the lanes, in the classroom and in their communities.”
Those selected to the Dexter High School All-American Team each receive a $1,000 scholarship. In addition, one team member is selected as team captain and receives the $500 Dexter Bud Clapsaddle Scholarship. The award is named for the former Dexter Bowling vice president who oversaw selection of the first 12 Dexter High School All-American teams.
IBC Youth will continue to recognize the Dexter High School All-American Team each year at the Junior Gold Championships.
Dexter Bowling also will remain the exclusive sponsor of the Intercollegiate Team Championships Coach and Player Lunch as part of this extended agreement.
“Dexter Bowling has been a valued partner of the IBC Youth high school and collegiate programs for many years and we’re thrilled to continue the relationship,” said Gary Brown, IBC Youth Development Managing Director. “The recognition of youth bowlers through the Dexter High School All-American Team is an important part of pushing bowling to the forefront of sports in which students can compete when they reach high school.”
Business Briefs…
* Hayman Matti and Lance Sitto have acquired Plaza Lanes, a 40-lane bowling center in Plymouth, Mich. Sandy Hansell, founder and lead broker at The Hansell Group — a nationwide organization of commercial real estate brokers specializing in bowling and family entertainment centers — served as the broker. In another transaction, Brian and Sara Strickland and Robert Hughes have acquired Summit Lanes, a 24-lane center in Lee’s Summit, Mo. The Hansell Group’s Mike Monroe served as the broker.
* Sea Dog Brewing is taking over the Easy Day restaurant and bowling center on Broadway in South Portland, Maine. According to the Press Herald, Sea Dog will continue to run its existing South Portland brewpub, about 3.5 miles from Easy Day. The new Sea Dog brewpub will maintain the 10 bowling lanes at Easy Day according Jim Bunting, Director of Operations for Sea Dog Brewing. More: https://www.pressherald.com/2019/10/07/easy-day-bowling-center-to-become-sea-dogs-second-south-portland-brewpub/.
* When Stratosphere Trampoline Park in Eldersburg, Md., closes at 5 p.m. on Oct. 20, it will stay closed for several months for remodeling. When it reopens, it will be rebranded as Stratosphere Social. The “age-inclusive hangout space” will include a new bar and restaurant, bowling, an XD theater, virtual reality games and an arcade, according to a news release. Eldersburg is located northeast of Baltimore, about 45 minutes away by car. More: https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll/news/cc-stratosphere-social-20191009-gpt3cqb6ivanfefd7vgllozs6i-story.html.
* Sunset Lanes in Ontario, Ore., was on the verge of closing its doors over the summer until a new owner stepped in to, ahem, hash out a unique business idea to keep things rolling. When all of the changes are implemented, it won’t be a completely traditional bowling center. The new owner, Joe Dunne, plans to combine the bowling operation with a second business — a new marijuana dispensary. Dunne says he plans to rename the center… and the imagination runs wild with possibilities. Read more here: https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/sunset-lanes-ontario-remodel-renovate-add-pot-shop-marijuana-dispensary-business-bowling-alley-lanes/277-f98f0b79-aa00-457b-b73b-66112834c491.
* The Big Bend Bowling Alley in Ritzville, Wash., will close in a few months if a new owner can’t be found, owner Todd Young told The Journal newspaper. Young said he needs to return to North Carolina to see his ill father and attend to a carpet store that he owns, but wants to find a way to keep the center open for the community. Ritzville is located in east-central Washington, and had a population of 1,673 as of the 2010 census. Young said he is actively seeking a buyer for the business. Full story: https://www.ritzvillejournal.com/story/2019/10/10/news/ritzville-bowling-alley-to-close-if-new-owner-isnt-found/20784.html.
* Jay Vinroe was arrested in Butler, Pa., after failing to pull over for a traffic violation and leading police on a high-speed chase that ended when Vinroe crashed his car into Sherwood Lanes. The bowling center was occupied at the time, but nobody was hurt. Report: https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2019/10/07/butler-man-runs-from-police-crashes-into-sherwood-lanes/.
* The Alley Lanes and Lounge has opened in Santa Fe, N.M. The Land of Enchantment’s art-centric community had been without a bowling center since Silva Lanes closed in 2010. That left those with a desire to bowl facing a drive of more than an hour to Albuquerque. Now, Santa Fe has a bowling-focused venue that’s patterned after BOL Vail in the Colorado ski resort town. The owners are Joey and Hannah Padilla, who have run a pet care business called Santa Fe Tails for more than 10 years. Learn more about The Alley here: https://thealleysantafe.com/.
Other News You Can Use…
* The Youngstown State women’s bowling team will host its first tournament in program history this weekend as it welcomes seven teams to Holiday Bowl in Struthers, Ohio, for the Columbia 300 Penguin Classic. The Penguins will begin their fourth season as an intercollegiate program on Friday at the tournament, which will conclude on Sunday. All 13 of YSU’s matches at the tournament will be streamed live on the YSUsports YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/ysusports). More: https://www.ysusports.com/sports/wbowl/2019-20/releases/penguin-classic-preview-1009.
* The Des Moines (Iowa) Public School District has introduced something new to its sports and clubs programs: unified club sports. At Roosevelt High School, disabled and non-disabled students can play on the same school-sponsored team together — for unified bowling. Read about this groundbreaking program here: https://whotv.com/2019/10/10/des-moines-roosevelt-unified-bowling-team-first-of-its-kind-in-district/.
* As the Phantom Radio Trivia Contest continues, the guest this week is Darren Andretta. To test your own knowledge of tenpin trivia, go to: https://kegel.squarespace.com/phantomblog/2019/10/9/darren-andretta-phantom-radio.
* CONTACT: Please send business news, event information, etc. to Bob Johnson at bjibob@aol.com. For breaking business news, visit bcmmag.com or bowlersjournal.com, and “Like” Bowling Center Management and Bowlers Journal International on Facebook. BJI Cyber Reports are now archived at bcmmag.com. Please remember that the Cyber Report is a B-to-B publication and not intended for consumers.
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