The "Cadillac of Candlepin Centers" as we
we refer to it, is owned and operated today
by Kathleen VanCantfort & Nick Genimatas.
 

The sister / brother team definitely know a
thing or two about game. Of course, that's
no surprise! They grew up in the center that
their father co-founded a half century ago.

 

 

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    In 1954 a Greek businessman, Ernest Marinos, convinced his employee, Bill Genimatas, and a local doctor to invest with him into the rapidly growing game of candlepin bowling. They agreed to form a partnership and each contributed $5000.00 to secure the funding for a parcel of land located on the outskirts of town at 599 Lafayette Rd.
 

 
 

Bill Genimatas (left), proudly watched
Portsmouth Mayor, John Leary, cut the
ribbon on opening day in Sept of 1956.
 
 
 

 
    One decision which set the bowling center apart from others during the 50's was the choice of equipment picked during construction. The Greer pinsetter, a little known machine nearing mass production by the Greer Company was chosen for installation. At that time the Greer machine was installed in only one other center at Joe Sacco's Lanes in Cambridge, MA

    Nick remembered the machines as sophisticated monsters to work on "The tube board on that machine was a big thick piece of solid steel.... It was so heavy it needed a counter weight to help raise the darn thing back up after it set the pins." laughed Nick
 

A 50's view - masking units have come a long way since venetian blinds!
 

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    Shortly after the bowling center opened Nick's father began to take more interest in the candlepin industry itself.  The man who once knew absolutely nothing about the game joined forces with other proprietors from MA, ME & NH  who shared the same visions and eventually formed the World Candlepin Bowling Council  in 1960

    The W.C.B.C. became the first group to institute a rule book for the modern game of candlepins as we know today. The W.C.B.C. set lane specifications and sanctioned the World Championships in 1961. In 1964 the same group established the Candlepin Hall of Fame to honor the greats in the game both on and off the lanes.

    According to Nick, one bowling record, sanctioned by the W.C.B.C. which still stands to this day is the Women's World Record 10-string total of 1388 bowled by Hall of Famer, Stasia Czernicki, during the 1967 World Championships at the Bowl-O-Rama.

    "One thing I remember well about that year was the Silsby candlepin we used at that event"  Nick recalled "It was a good scoring pin....only problem was the caps broke quite often. I remember the guys out back replacing the caps on those pins while the World Tourney event was going on!"
 

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    In the late 70's the bowling center became a family venture after Bill Genimatas bought out his two partners and brought his kids, Nick and Kathleen, on board to help oversee the business

    At the same time a new tradition started when the Bowl-O-Rama became host of the Northeast Candlepin Bowling Classic (forerunner to today's Youth Candlepin Championships )

    Many in the bowling world may not know this but the annual youth showcase first began at Chris Anton's
Big 20 Lanes in Scarborough, ME

    We figured......well actually we HOPED to share a devious plans created by the Genimatas family to overtake the tournament from another bowling center rich in history....... BUT we came up with absolutely NOTHING!  Of course, considering the family we're writing about, even the National Enquirer would strike out in the bad gossip dept.

    "You know, back in 1978, My brother-in-law and I went to the Industry meeting in Woburn..... We  walked in feeling VERY intimidated because we were just starting out and didn't know anybody at the time....I remember Charles Bolton and Chris Anton and a few others being there.....  I just came right out and plain asked them if we could have the tournament.... they said sure and that was that .... it was really that easy!" laughed Nick

    Nick also mentioned that adult events were held in the Northeast Classic for a few years but the events just didn't last. One reason may have been the adult format itself where, unlike the youth event, bowlers qualified in their local houses to qualify for the finals.

    "I'm not really sure what led to the end of the adult events but I'm glad the youth portion of the tournament kept on going"  said Nick "I really look foward to the tournament every year.....the amount of great people you meet is just simply amazing."

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The Grand Re-opening celebration

       In 1980 the Bowl-O-Rama underwent a major transformation inside and out. Fourteen more lanes were added to the newly renovated bowling center bringing the total to 34. After 24 years of service the 20 original Greer machines were finally retired and Bowl-Mor pinsetters replaced them.

     "There's a funny story why the Bowl-Mor machines weren't originally installed here." laughed Nick  "Bowl-Mor required a $25.00 deposit on each machine ordered.... My dad and his business partners scrounged up everything they had for the initial down payment and they had absolutely nothing left....they couldn't afford the $500.00 deposit!"

     In the mid 80's the addition of the popular Scoreboard Restaraunt and Sports Bar in the Bowl-O-Rama Plaza provided plenty of new tasty reasons to visit the Family Entertainment Center. Six of the lanes installed just a few years earlier were covered over in favor of a new billiard room.
 

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TheBIGPicture

We never had the pleasure of meeting the Founding Father of the Bowl-O-Rama but after reading the articles about Bill that are proudly displayed at the service desk of the bowling center it's very easy to understand what a well respected businessman and person he was in the Portsmouth Community.

    A funny part of the interesting article was a story about the Genimatas family missing a wedding. WHY you ask? Because Bill spent a Sunday afternoon all dressed for church repairing a machine at his bowling center! He had PRIORITIES!

Ask around the candlepin industry today and many prominent figures have nothing but fond memories for the person they called a true friend.

"Bill was a true gentleman and a pioneer in the game of candlepin bowling" said Robert Parrella from Paramount Industries. "He was a very open minded person and was never afraid to try something new if it would better the game."
 
 

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The Secrets Of Success

    According to Nick, the major factor in the early success of the Bowl-O-Rama was the friendship and trust that developed among the three original investors. "They became very good friends......over the 20+ years they were together they always got along" marveled Nick "That is very rare to see in the business world today"

    Another great factor was the ability to roll with the changing times. Like many centers built in the 50's, the Bowl-O-Rama started out in a quiet undeveloped area with little or no competition around. Little did anyone know 50 years ago that Lafayette Rd, now known as the Route 1 By-Pass, would one day become a bustling multi-lane throughway with numerous entertainment venues, shopping malls, fast-food chains, restaraunts, health clubs, hotels and Industrial parks along it's route.

    "You know, when the bowling center was built Yokens restaurant was down the road and that was about it around here....The Portsmouth Circle or Route 95 weren't even around yet." laughed Nick "We were all by ourselves out here."

   Today League bowling percentages in many centers have dwindled from 70% to 30% of the overall business. With many other entertainment options available nowadays bowling centers have shifted their focus to becoming "Family Entertainment Centers" to survive.

    " Proprietors today are really in a retail business like everyone else now and we have to market ourselves like everyone else in order to survive" said Nick "Most people don't want to commit to leagues. They want to come in whenever they want to, so we always have to be ready to accomodate them no matter what."

    Last but certainly not least,  Nick gave much credit to his sister and business partner Kathleen.
"I know she's always there for me and she know's I'm always there for her" said Nick  "One very important thing I have learned is there's more than one way to do things and it's not just my way or the highway
...we always compromise!"
 

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From our own experience, ANYONE who walks through the doors at the Bowl-O-Rama
will be greeted by the most courteous and knowledgable staff ready to help at any time!
 

What else could a customer ask for?