The Cornerstone The Foundation Newsletter Volume 15, Issue 2 February 2011 "The crisis is upon us, friends. Our sport is in trouble. Many of you, that love the game as we do, will look at the crisis like a friend who is in trouble and needs our help. We must not shrink from the task before us, we should welcome it. It is 'our' generation that has been called to the challenge. If not now, when? If not us, who?" The Foundation “One World, One Game” __________________________________ Letter from the Editor Changes Every year comes changes in the industry. Some of the changes are positive, happy and expected while others are often unexpected and unpleasant. This year seems is certainly no exception. USBC Research Manager Jim Jaryszak passed away on December 30 unexpectedly. Jim was with USBC for more than 11 years and was instrumental in many important discoveries for the sport of bowling. He is survived by his wife, Renae and daughter, Rayann. Jim was a great man. I personally only met him a few times but I found him to be extremely helpful to work with on the occasions when we communicated. He was always willing to go out of his way to lend a helping hand. He will certainly be missed by all who knew him. Hall of Famer John Archibald also passed away. He died on January 3 at the age of 85. Archibald was a veteran bowling writer who won more than 50 bowling writing awards during his career. Some more positive changes include some recent promotions within Kegel. Chris Chartrand, formerly the VP of Sales and Marketing, was promoted to President of the company. Chartrand officially assumed the position late in 2010. He will be responsible for Kegel’s strategic direction and daily operations. As a result of Chartrand’s promotion, Gus Falgien has been promoted to VP of Sales and Marketing. Falgien was hired by Kegel in 2002 and has recently been Global Sales and Technical Support lead. Lastly, Erin Wall has been promoted to Marketing Coordinator. She will be developing a more educational marketing approach for Kegel by bringing together Kegel’s staff or technicians, chemists, coaches and bowlers to share their knowledge of the sport. Wall joined the Kegel staff in 2009. Surely more changes are to come and one can only speculate about what those changes may be and the impact they will have not only on the companies they directly affect but on the industry itself. Here’s hoping that the changes we see will be positive and will encourage learning and growth in our industry and our sport. 42nd Backhaul Direct Hoosier Classic expects record 136 teams for 2011 event Columbia 300 Staffer Chris Barnes to appear on Saturday and Sunday Backhaul Direct announced that the 42nd Annual Backhaul Direct Hoosier Classic, presented by Columbia 300, is expecting a 130 team "sellout" based on a full field of 80 men's teams and 50 women's teams.
The tournament, held from February 19-20, 2011 at Western Bowl in Indianapolis, is the most sought-after regular season title of the collegiate season. A $6,000 men's first place check and $3,500 women's first place check will be awarded to the teams who can handle three (3) difficult lane patterns during the event.
The three (3) patterns will be applied using Kegel's Kustodian Walker and Kustodian Ion lane machines during the event thanks in part to their sponsorship of the 2011 tournament.
"When you think of the Backhaul Direct Hoosier Classic, you think of excellence", says Greg Harris, President and CEO of Indianapolis based Backhaul Direct. "This is the most competitive field of the year as we only allow one team from each school in each division…bring your best and compete against the rest!"
For the second consecutive year, Columbia 300 will sponsor the Columbia 300 Friday Night Eliminator on February 18, 2011 at 7:00 PM open to all USBC Collegiate and USBC Youth bowlers.
The $30.00 entry fee guarantees a shot at a $500.00 first place prize for any bowler and is contested on the demanding U.S. Open lane condition. The top high school bowler, regardless of place of finish, will receive a scholarship award of $200.00.
During the Eliminator, Columbia 300 will be presenting its popular Demo Days program on 8 adjacent lanes to the tournament. PBA star Chris Barnes will headline the demo days open to competitors, family, friends, and spectators. Barnes will be on hand Friday night and all day Saturday to sign autographs, take pictures, and talk about Columbia 300's new releases, the World Beater and Ransom.
"We are extremely excited to continue to partner with Backhaul Direct for the Hoosier Classic," stated Columbia 300 Brand Manager Bugsy Kelly. "This tournament is building a great tradition and is known for its challenging conditions. Columbia 300 is very happy to be on board with such a great event." Illinois coach Steve Lawson named Kerm Helmer Horizon Award winner Steve Lawson of Mahomet, Ill., who has been involved in collegiate and youth bowling for more than three decades, has been named the 2011 United States Bowling Congress Kerm Helmer Horizon Award recipient by the USBC Youth Committee.
The award is named for the longtime bowling coach at Erie Community College to recognize leaders in the youth bowling community who have displayed the courage, determination and ability to develop far-reaching programs of national scope that provide fun and exciting opportunities. Helmer was selected posthumously for the inaugural award in 2003.
Lawson, 58, worked at the University of Illinois until he retired in 2002. He has been involved in collegiate bowling as a coach at Illinois and continues to volunteer with the program. He also has been a sectional coordinator for USBC Collegiate.
He has been heavily involved with the Pepsi State Championships in Illinois and the USBC Junior Gold Championships. He currently serves as a director on the Illinois USBC Youth board.
"To say what this award means to me is very difficult," Lawson said. "I knew Kerm for nearly 30 years. He was a competitor (as collegiate coaches), a colleague and as a mentor as members of various committees; most of all, he was a friend. To have my name and his in the same sentence just is beyond words."
Lawson has been responsible for event statistics at the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships and USBC Junior Gold Championships. He said he worked toward making bowling similar to other sports in the way that competitors keep track of scores. In the early days, that happened with paper standings sheets after every game "which ultimately drove me to develop some of the things we see today onsite that I am involved with."
In nominating Lawson for the award, National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association president Karl Nickolai lauded Lawson for learning the latest technology to make scoring at the ITC "efficient, up to date and professional in appearance."
"He is an integral part of the team that makes the ITC the first-rate experience the collegiate athletes have come to know and anticipate each year," Nickolai said.
Lawson was a longtime officer in the NCBCA. After he stopped coaching at Illinois because of schedule conflicts, he continued to volunteer as NCBCA Secretary-Treasurer and also took responsibility for maintaining the NCBCA All-America awards program.
He also became involved in the Bowling Writers Association of America, serving as chairperson for the BWAA Collegiate Team Poll.
Lawson will receive the Kerm Helmer Horizon Award at the 2011 USBC Convention, which will be held at the Gaylord Texan hotel in Grapevine, Texas, June 29 through July 1. Scott Boyle, Shannon Pluhowsky take titles at 2011 USBC Team USA Trials Scott Boyle of Salida, Calif., and Shannon Pluhowsky of Kettering, Ohio, pulled away for victories at the 2011 United States Bowling Congress Team USA Trials.
Boyle led the men's field with a 36-game total of 8,180, an average of 227.2, while Pluhowsky shot 7,933, an average of 220.3, at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center in suburban Las Vegas.
There wasn't much drama in either of the two left-handers victories. Boyle won by a 150-pin margin over Walter Ray Williams Jr. of Ocala, Fla., while Pluhowsky topped Liz Johnson of Cheektowaga, N.Y., by 103 pins.
"This means the world to me because everything I have ever worked for - all the hard work and practice - have finally paid off," said the 19-year-old Boyle, who attends Modesto Community College. "I was able to get off to a good start today and just stayed mentally focused. This is surreal."
Boyle lurked near the top of the standings all week but had trailed Mike Fagan of Patchogue, N.Y., who led each of the first three rounds. Boyle finally pulled into the lead by shooting 2,064 on the 38-foot Atlanta lane pattern.
Pluhowsky, meanwhile, had the highest total in Friday's final round, finishing with 2,019 to jump into the lead and take home the title.
"This week was really a chance for me to learn a lot about the new equipment I'm throwing and to get some practice on the patterns that we see throughout the year at Team USA events," Pluhowsky said. "I felt like everything was pretty good physically, and every day I got a little better."
The top three men and top three women in the final standings who were not already selected to be on Team USA earned automatic spots on the 2011 Team USA roster. Williams, Pluhowsky and Johnson all were selected in November, so they were not eligible for the automatic spots.
Joining Boyle on the men's team was third-place finisher EJ Tackett of Huntington, Calif., and Mike Fagan, who finished fourth. On the women's side, Brenda Padilla of Mansfield, Texas, Brittni Hamilton of Webster, N.Y., and Kim Yioulos of Rochester, N.Y., all earned the automatic spots by finishing third through fifth, respectively.
The National Selection Committee picked Diandra Asbaty of Chicago, Bryanna Caldwell of Tucson, Ariz., Jarret Mizo of Honolulu and Steve Smith of San Diego to round out the final roster for Team USA in 2011.
The top two boys and top two girls finishers who are 20 years or younger before Jan. 1, 2011 also earned automatic spots on Junior Team USA. Boyle, Tackett and Yioulos all earned spots on both Team USA and Junior Team USA. Elise Bolton of Merritt Island, Fla., took the second girls spot.
The National Selection Committee polished off the Junior Team USA 2011 roster by adding Tyler Herrman of Harrisburg, Pa., TJ Baral of Palm City, Fla., Samantha Kelly of Hoffman Estates, Ill., and Jessica Earnest of Vandalia, Ill., to the team.
Members of Team USA and Junior Team USA will compete in international competitions through 2011, including the Women's World Championships, Pan American Bowling Confederation Men's Championships, the Pan American Games, QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup, PABCON Youth Championships and Tournament of Americas.
Kegel Fights Breast Cancer with Pink Lane Machine Kegel joins the fight against breast cancer with a pink lane machine to be auctioned off at Bowl Expo, bowling’s largest industry event. In 2006, Virginia Wright founded the Beverly J. Wright Memorial Tournament in honor of a dear friend and long-time active bowler in the community. Each year, the tournament is held at Cypress Lanes in Winter Haven, FL, and Wright has been able to donate thousands of dollars to Susan G. Komen Bowl for the Cure to fund breast cancer research. Thanks to the effort and enthusiasm of Wright, Kegel has decided to take their support for her tournament one step further. Kegel is currently building two pink lane machines that will be used at the Women’s US Open in Euless, TX. Wright joined the employees of Kegel on January 12, 2011 at the Kegel facility in Lake Wales for a signing of one of these machines. In addition, Kegel will be building two more pink machines for the USBC Women’s Championship in Syracuse, NY and the USBC Open Championship in Reno, NV. Wright has fought hard to raise money for her cause and her reaches are now stretching across the country. In June 2011, the signed pink lane machine will be showcased at Kegel’s booth at Bowl Expo, held in Grapevine, TX. The fate of the other machines is undetermined, but it is likely they will be used to continue to raise money and awareness for breast cancer in 2012. The donated machine will be auctioned off at the Salute to Champions Silent Autction and the funds raised will be split between the Susan G. Komen Foundation and the Bowling Hall of Fame. It is estimated that this machine could raise $15,000 for each charity. Chris Chartrand, Kegel President, says, “The Bevery J. Wright Tournament is an amazing event run for a great cause. I’m honored to be a part of it and offer support in any way I can.” The donation to fund breast cancer research will be made in the name of Kegel and the Beverly J. Wright Memorial Tournament. About Kegel Founded in 1981, Kegel has spent three decades researching the sport of bowling while offering products, services, and systems to enhance the sport. The company is based in Lake Wales, Fla. where it operates its manufacturing, quality control, software development, chemical production and packaging, technical support, Kegel Connection Pro Shops, Foundation300 and its world renowned Kegel Training Center. Kegel remains the only ISO 9001 certified manufacturer in the bowling industry. For more information, please visit www.kegel.net. Ohio bowler's 900 series now official By: Matt Cannizzaro; USBC Communications Matt Latarski of Medina, Ohio, is part of a bowling family, and he had his relatives by his side when he became the 17th bowler in history to roll a USBC-approved 900 series.
Latarski tossed 36 consecutive strikes in the Sunday Morning Trio league at Roseland Lanes in Oakwood Village, Ohio, on Nov. 28. He is the second bowler from the Buckeye State to accomplish the feat and will join Lonnie Billiter Jr. of Fairfield, Ohio, in the record books. Billiter's 900 came on Feb. 13, 2006.
"This is all pretty overwhelming and still hasn't sunk in yet," said Latarski, whose 900 was the 18th overall and third one of 2010. "I may have struck one time in practice, so I made an adjustment when the lights came on, and it worked."
The league also includes Latarski's grandfather (Ron), father (Kevin), uncle (Kurt) and older brother, Mike, who had to work and missed the historic occasion. Together, the group has combined for 24 perfect games and eight series of 800 or better.
"We root for each other, and they've always been there to support me, whether I bowl good or bad," Latarski said. "We are competitive, but we really just want everyone to have a good time and bowl well."
With five 300 games already to his credit, the 23-year-old right-hander was somewhat familiar with the pressure, but with six 299s also on his record, he knew that even a seemingly-perfect shot wasn't a guaranteed strike.
"I've had trouble finishing off 300s before, and after the second one, I couldn't believe what was going on," Latarski said. "My buddy told me to stay calm and finish it off. Before I knew it, I was getting closer, and about the seventh frame, it started to sink in. I shot my first 300 when I was 16, and I was pretty nervous then, but that doesn't even compare to this."
The 18-team trios league and the neighboring league both stopped to watch Latarski polish off his perfect series. He instantly became a local celebrity and spent time in the days that followed doing newspaper, TV and radio interviews.
Latarski, who carried a high average of 232 last season, now has eight USBC-certified perfect games, while his previous-high series was 812. His latest success was achieved with a 14-year-old bowling ball he acquired from his father last year while trying to get out of a slump.
For now, Latarski will focus on his job as a line cook at the restaurant inside the Blue Herron Country Club in Medina, but his time in the spotlight also could be the first step toward realizing his dream of becoming a professional bowler.
"This is the greatest thing ever," Latarski said. "I never thought I could achieve something like this. To do something I love and achieve this is unbelievable."
The first USBC-approved 900 occurred Feb. 2, 1997 when Jeremy Sonnenfeld rolled three consecutive perfect games in Lincoln, Neb. There has never been a 900 on Sport Bowling lane conditions.
PBA Plastic Ball Championship
The Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour’s third annual Mark Roth Plastic Ball Championship (March 2-6) at AMF Thruway Lanes in Cheektowaga, N.Y., will benefit a family of charities supported by the bowling industry through the sale of specially logoed bowling balls to the bowling public.
The Plastic Ball Championship was originated by the PBA in 2009 as a unique competition which required all PBA Tour players to use identical “throwback” polyester bowling ball technology. It returns as a special fund-raising event that will support Bowlers to Veterans Link (BVL), Bowl for the Cure (benefitting Komen for the Cure’s battle against breast cancer), the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame, the new YES youth bowling initiative, and other charities supported by The Bowling Foundation.
The official charities of bowling will benefit from the sale of exclusive “plastic” bowling balls created by: On The Ball Bowling. Each ball will use the same technology, but will feature a unique cover design with the logo of the participating charity. Bowling fans can pre-order their choice of balls featuring the BVL, Bowl for the Cure, IBM/HF, YES and Bowling Foundation logos, or a 6th ball which features the logos of all charities serviced by The Bowling Foundation. The multi-logo ball will be used as the official ball of the Plastic Ball Championship.
PBA Hall of Famer Johnny Petraglia, who will bowl in the Plastic Ball Championship on a PBA Commissioner’s Exemption, will be the spokesman for BVL; PBA Tournament of Champions winner Kelly Kulick will represent Bowl for the Cure; USBC and PBA Hall of Famer Parker Bohn III will represent the IBM/HF; Bill O’Neill will be spokesman for YES, and Australia’s Jason Belmonte will be spokesman for the overall group of Bowling Foundation charities.
“We are excited again to be part of this great charitable endeavor. The PBA rallied the industry last year for Mark Roth and this year we can expand that reach through The Bowling Foundation,” said Brad Handelman, president of ontheballbowling.com/Strikeforce. To order the special bowling balls, visit ontheballbowling.com.
The tournament will get underway on March 2 with a 7-game Tour Qualifying Round where non-exempt players will compete for a minimum of 10 spots in the 64-player field. The 64-player field will bowl 14 qualifying games on March 3 with the top 32 advancing to round-robin match play on March 4. After a 9-game morning round, the top 16 will bowl 9 games in the evening to determine the top 4 for the live ESPN stepladder finals at 1 p.m. on Sunday, March 6.
The Mark Roth Plastic Ball Championship is named in honor of the PBA Hall of Famer who dominated the plastic ball era, winning a PBA-record 8-titles in 1978 followed by 7-titles in 1979. Roth’s total of 34 PBA Tour titles ranks 4th on the all-time list of PBA champions behind Walter Ray Williams Jr. (47), Earl Anthony (43) and Pete Weber (35). A special new Mark Roth ball will be designed by ontheballbowling.com for use in the pro-am portion of the tournament.
The inaugural Plastic Ball Championship, held in Wheat Ridge, Colo., in 2009 was won by Jeff Carter of Springfield, Ill. Last year’s event, the first held in Roth’s honor, was held in West Babylon, N.Y., and was won by non-member Brian Ziesig of Levittown, N.Y.
Sports Stars and Celebrities Bowl with PBA Stars Lil Wayne, Nelly, Reggie Bush Join Chris Paul PBA Celebrity Invitational Field
Hip-hop giants Lil Wayne and Nelly, along with New Orleans Saints running back Reggie Bush joined five PBA champions and host Chris Paul of the New Orleans Hornets for the 3rd annual Chris Paul PBA Celebrity Invitational at Riverboat Lanes on the New Orleans Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base. This pro/celebrity doubles event, which supports Paul’s charitable CP3 Foundation, will air on ESPN on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 6 at 4 p.m. ET, for the third straight year as part of the PBA’s TV schedule. The Show was taped in December.
Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour stars participating were PBA Hall of Famers Pete Weber and Norm Duke, former PBA Rookies of the Year Jason Belmonte and Rhino Page, and former PBA Player of the Year Wes Malott, all members of Storm Products Pro Staff.
“The Chris Paul PBA Celebrity Invitational has grown to be one of our most anticipated events every year,” said PBA Deputy Commissioner Tom Clark. “Chris and his superstar friends love bowling with our stars and the PBA is proud to partner with the Paul family on behalf of the CP3 Foundation, which continues to brighten kids’ lives.”
In the doubles competition, Weber paired with fellow St. Louis native Nelly, Duke teamed up with Lil Wayne, and Malott and Bush were an imposing pairing. Belmonte and Paul partnered in an effort to defend their title. The teams competed in a stepladder finals for the unique Chris Paul PBA Celebrity Invitational trophy. Page took on the four celebrities in a new “Super Clash” shootout to kick off the festivities.
Paul founded his CP3 Foundation in 2005 as a tribute to his late grandfather and the Winston-Salem, N.C., community where he grew up and starred at Wake Forest. The foundation has provided funding for activities ranging from a scholarship program to food drives to recreational support programs for underprivileged children in both Winston-Salem and New Orleans.
Paul, an avid bowler who frequently refers to bowling as his “second-favorite sport,” is on his way to another NBA All-Star season. Both Lil Wayne and Nelly are Grammy-award winning artists with new recordings currently at the top of the Billboard charts. Former USC star Bush helped the Saints win their first Super Bowl title earlier in 2010.
“What better way to get ready for the big game on Super Bowl Sunday than to watch this spectacular PBA event earlier in the day on ESPN?” Clark said. “Not only are the bowlers and celebrities great personalities, they share a love of the sport of bowling and competition at the highest level.”
___________________________________________ Membership Report We have members in all 50 states,
and the District of Columbia We have members in 49 countries, including the United States: Argentina Australia Bahrain Belgium Brazil Canada China Columbia Costa Rica Denmark Ecuador Egypt Finland France Germany Great Britain Greece Guam Guatemala Ireland Israel Italy Japan Korea Latvia Malaysia Mexico The Netherlands N. Ireland Netherlands Antilles New Zealand Panama Philippines Puerto Rico Peru Qatar Scotland Singapore Slovenia South Africa Spain Sweden Switzerland Thailand Turkey U.A.E. Ukraine Venezuela Corporate Sponsors
The problems that exist in our Sport are “industry-wide” problems that must be addressed by the entire Industry. The Foundation does all that they can to help, but we can NOT do it alone.
The Foundation has well over 1000-Members who have joined-in to assist. Some Members (Founding and Charter) have paid to show their support. Some Members (Associates) have just lent their “voice”. ALL of the members are important. Even though The Foundation has NOT actively solicited bowling-related companies for help, some realize the importance of our “Mission” and have come forward with donations. We recognize the following companies for their loyalty and support to bowling. KEGEL KAT Travel I.B.P.S.I.A. EBN Services Storm Bowling Classic Products Bobs’ Business, Inc. Vincennes University BowlersParadise.com Virtualtournaments.com Wichita State University David Driscoll & Associates International Bowling Industry Magazine Stars and Strikes Bowling Newsmagazine _________________________________________ Please send change of address or email address to the address below, to ensure uninterrupted subscription to the Cornerstone newsletter. The Cornerstone, The Foundation’S Newsletter The Foundation c/o Kegel 6800 US 27 North Sebring FL 33870 Phone: 863-382-2643 Email: savrsprt@yahoo.com The Foundation “One World, One Game”
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