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An Insiders view of Larry at work |
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I was fortunate to sit down with Brunswick
Product Specialist Larry Verble when he visited the tour stop
here in Cheektowaga. Larry is very passionate and very involved
in the sport of bowling in all aspects. Larry is a PBA regional
member with several regional titles (I don't want to guess and
be wrong at the number). Larry is also closely involved with the
Research and Development department at Brunswick. (I guess he
throws it more like a league bowler than the others...just
kidding Larry). Larry's passion goes much further than that as
it is very obvious he just loves the sport of bowling.
Brunswick is very fortunate to have found
Larry, he is a fine mix of open mindedness, experience,
creativity, and kindness. That mix is perfect to travel the
country and share information that will grow the industry in a
positive direction.
I asked Larry if he would shard some of his
opinions with us:
BI: As a product
specialists what is your main responsibility?
Larry: Our main responsibilities
are to visit our distributors and pro shops to provide them
information about all Brunswick Consumer Products. Also to
obtain information on how Brunswick can better serve our
distributors, pro shops and consumers.
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BI: Do you still get to bowl as much
as you would like?
Larry:
I guess the politically correct
answer would be, especially if my boss sees this, is yes I do.
In fact my boss, Tony Mendiola, encourages me to bowl more than
I do.
BI: What can we expect to see in the
near future as far as ball technology is concerned?
Larry: Being
that I am able to work more closely with our R & D department
than any of my fellow Product Specialist’s, I do get to see and
“test” some new technology. But, much of that info is
classified. I will say that Brunswick has THE ABSOLUTE BEST R &
D team in the industry. And I feel that it is a privilege to
work so closely with them.
BI: What is the percentage of higher
average bowlers that use 15 and 16 lb balls?
Larry: From
my perspective it is approx. 75% 15lbs., 20% 16lbs. & 5% 14 lbs.
The move towards the lighter weights can be mainly attributed to
the strength of the current coverstocks and cores.
BI: How many balls do you think a
bowler should have in their arsenal?
Larry: That
is very dependant on the type of player you are. If you are a
lower rev. type player (i.e.Walter Ray Williams), your arsenal
doesn’t need to be quite as large as a higher rev. player (i.e.Tommy
Jones, Robert Smith, Mike Fagan).
BI: What are the most important
aspects of bowling if a bowler wants to become a professional?
Larry: You
can’t beat experience on different lanes conditions and
different pressure situations. Experience as much of both as you
can. Plus, NEVER STOP LEARNING!!!!!!!!!!
BI: Where does a bowler get the kind
of knowledge and experience they need to compete at the
professional level?
Larry:
Nowadays, there are many different ways to obtain the knowledge
and experience necessary to compete. You start in competitive
leagues, move on to Sport condition type leagues, Mega-buck type
tournaments, etc.
BI: How important are bowling balls
to the professionals?
Larry: They
are paramount. You can’t compete at a high level without a full
range of equipment for your particular style.
BI: When buying a ball what are the
most important considerations?
Larry: For
your league type player, matching the players’ game to the
center he/she is bowling league. For the tournament player, they
need a full arsenal. Very much like a golfer has 14 clubs in his
bag. You don’t want a bag full of drivers. You have to have a
wide variety of clubs to play the shots you need in a round.
Same with bowling. You don’t want a bag full of one type of
ball, but a full range of reactions.
BI: What does it take to get on
staff with a company?
Larry: It is
VERY DIFFICULT. When choosing a person to be on staff, we have
to take a look at how someone can affect ball sales. Very
accomplished players who operate, owner and/or work in pro shops
have a distinct advantage. They are directly involved with the
ball buying public. Just being a good player with boatloads of
accomplishments doesn’t guarantee contract offers.
BI: How many product specialists
does Brunswick have?
Larry:
Currently we have 6 full time Product Specialists that have
assigned geographic territories. Plus, Johnny Petraglia as sort
of a floating Product Specialist. Johnny will travel wherever he
is needed to help each of use with whatever we need. Be it trade
shows, equipment demonstrations, coaching…….whatever we need,
Johnny can handle it.
BI: In your opinion what are the
biggest road blocks the sport of bowling needs to overcome?
Larry: The
current leadership in our governing body
needs to stand up for the SPORT OF BOWLING and have a plan of
attack to restore integrity to our sport instead of conducting
“witch hunts” to find the quick fix. We didn’t loose bowlings
integrity overnight, we are certainly not going to restore it
with “assumptions” and just visual observations. We need hard
data to prove or disprove what certain individuals believe is
the “real problem” with the SPORT OF BOWLING.
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