Author Topic: Lane 1 (Read 8430 times)

bowlingforfun · « **on:** February 29, 2004, 12:11:09 AM »

Do any of the pros use lane 1 ball? If so who?

Bjaardker · « **Reply #1 on:** February 29, 2004, 10:43:40 PM »

Ever company has a pearl resin, solid resin, pearl particle, solid particle & darn nead every RG & diff covered now days.

There really isn't anything a pro would get from Lane#1 that they couldn't get from somewhere else.

The reason I say this is that as far as I know Lane#1 doesn't have incentive money on the line for pros to use their equipment.

I know if I were a pro I would use whoever was willing to pay me if I win.

Saw Mill · « **Reply #2 on:** February 29, 2004, 11:00:16 PM »

If I ever were to go pro, I would take the deal that Richie offered Walter "greedy" Ray Jr.; free equipment!! I could care less about incentive money, as long as I or my sponsor had my fees and expenses covered. The money I would win would be enough. I would have loved to see what I believe is the best stuff, in the hands of a WR, but his greed and self centeredness got it the way. When WR approached Richie at the Bowling Expo, all he could say is, "what can you do for me?" When Richie said free equipment, that was not enough. If I could get a sponsor, I would try a at the PBA a shot, then Lane 1 would be someday be on the Big Show.

Dave
--------------------
If You Are Not Using a BuzzSaw, All You Get is SAW-dusted!!

Jeffrevs · « **Reply #3 on:** March 01, 2004, 06:36:45 AM »

quote:
If I ever were to go pro, I would take the deal that Richie offered Walter "greedy" Ray Jr.; free equipment!! I could care less about incentive money, as long as I or my sponsor had my fees and expenses covered.

There's the flaw in your comment Dave.........first of all, it's "couldn't care less"

...........but,......the flaw is that Lane1 said 'free equipment'....then you said , as long as I have a sponser to pay my fees and expenses...but that's NOT what Lane1 offered him........I'm NO WRW fan, but I don't blame him........he's the best bowler in the world,....give 'em a little

--------------------
JEFF
Rebuilding my game one mid-to-upper-500 series at a time !!

Leftyhi-trak · « **Reply #4 on:** March 01, 2004, 11:57:08 AM »

Sorry Saw way to clique in your answer. If I'm the best bowler on the tour and make a lot of shows what does free equipment do for me? What does it do for you being the supplier?? Think about it,the upside would be all Ritchies. Walter gets probably all his equipment comped and if I'm a ball company if he asks me I would comp him one. Your chances to get a ball shown on TV is damn near free advertisement. I'm sure if you asked Phil (Dynothane) he didn't complain when Walter or Norm Duke used his equipment on the show. It is not the Walter's of the tour that need the incentive money its the guy who only makes one show a year or is in the bottom end of the points list. A couple of thousand can mean the difference between staying or going sometimes.

I guess I would be greedy to. I hate it when people pay me money to make stuff look good. I garuntee that a few extra Phenom Unleasheds have been sold because he is throwing them primarily every week.

DON DRAPER · « **Reply #5 on:** March 01, 2004, 10:54:47 PM »

walter ray williams, jr., greedy ? when it come to winning money and pba titles yes, i'm sure he wants as much of this as possible. what touring pro wouldn't ? the best player on the planet for the past 15 years deserves more than free equipment. hell, even i've been given free balls.

michelle · « **Reply #6 on:** March 04, 2004, 09:17:13 AM »

The ultimate question is what was the figure that he was asking for from Lane 1 or any other company? Let's face it, if he is still asking six figures, most companies are going to tell him to take a hike, especially the smaller ones. One of the interesting tidbits in the Track bankruptcy filing was that Amleto was the only bowler they listed as actually being under professional contract...that suggests to me that are not a lot of salaried contracts out there, and that most may be more of the incentive/equipment variety.

As to the network exposure, the show is 90-120 minutes long, but most bowlers are not on for the entire amount of time, so it negates the 15 hours of advertising time.

On the issue of free equipment, some may downplay it, but to be competitive at that level, there are several who drill up a lot of new equipment on a weekly basis...that is a big difference from the upper echelon league or local tourney bowler that might get the occasional comp. Even to someone with a previous record like WRW can end each week with a hefty tab on the truck, and I don't know how long the PBA lets those tabs run before requiring payment...they may want a check at the end of each week. Perhaps someone with PBA national experience can chime in...

DON DRAPER · « **Reply #7 on:** March 04, 2004, 09:07:52 PM »

michelle, i guess i missed this----track declared bankruptcy ? when ? how bad was it ?

michelle · « **Reply #8 on:** March 04, 2004, 09:26:54 PM »

Greg, supposedly it was an administrative manuever, and there was some discussion back in early January. Probably under the Track boards...set your preferences back 90 days and you can probably find it.

Columbia was the largest creditor listed in the matrix with the others primarily being attorneys that had handled certain matters pertaining to Old Track (back when they were based in Ohio). Supposedly it is not going to impact Track's presence in the bowling marketplace...

In some of those older threads, I also posted the Cause Number in the Bankruptcy Court (San Antonio)...

lane1lefty · « **Reply #9 on:** March 04, 2004, 09:27:35 PM »

Lane 1 is used quite frequently on the senior tour, mostly at the regional level. As far as Waleter goes, I personally don't care if he rolls Lane 1 or not. That isn't what made me buy the products. I tried one, I liked them, end of story. As far as price goes, haven't we already beaten this horse enough to kill it a few times? Why does noone ever complain about Brunswick? After all, they are the creators of the Quantum, the 1st ball over the $200 plateau. Face it, in the 90's most of us said we'd never pay $200 or more for a ball. Most experienced league bowlers will do it in a second. I mean why not? A good driver will cost $300 or more, do golfers complain about Callaway,Taylor Made, etc? No, they buy in their price range. If you can't afford Lane 1 that is understandable, but don't insult a company strictly on the basis of price. If that were the case, we can talk high end cars next. Why own an Acura over a Honda, they are after all the same company. It's about personal choice.

shark300 · « **Reply #10 on:** March 04, 2004, 09:47:30 PM »

Great point lane1lefty, I personally tried lane 1 2 years ago and love them.I run a summer league which at the end everyone gets a ball.Anyway I get tired of people on this site bashing them because of price or whatever.Plain and simple I like their balls and don't care how much more they cost, if you don't who cares!!!!!!I will throw any companies ball, this is the first year I have no honor scores and i've been throwing storm,dynothane,lane1,brunswick,and even an ebacrap.Is it because my ball choice no, because i'm throwing the ball poor, period.Got rid of my crutch this year and started slow and now can't get average back up.Oh, on walter storm sells tons of balls why because of weber mostly , that's the guy i'd love to see throw lane 1, not walter.I know that will NEVER happen too.

bamaster · « **Reply #11 on:** March 04, 2004, 10:29:38 PM »

Most of the talented bowlers on Tour who are not already on staff can get their equipment comp'ed. It isn't that hard, if you have the game. Make matchplay on your own and you can pretty much get anything you want.

Re: Lane 1 Tour staffers, this isn't the first time this question has been asked and won't be the last. Walter is an exception because he's so good. Yes, he asks for a salary if you want him on staff. Last year he threw Dyno-thane and Columbia as a free agent, no salaries, but he did get incentive money for using the equipment on the shows. If Lane 1 can't pay an extra $5-10K for television exposure then they don't deserve to be there.

The very simple truth of the matter is... you almost NEVER see Buzzsaws being used by the touring pros even during qualifying. Forget the show, let's talk about the bowlers who are trying to bowl the very best they can... to knock down the most pins that they can... to make a check... to make matchplay... to make the show... to win. During qualifying, free agents have to throw something and if it's not given to them they almost all have sponsors who will buy them anything they want... to knock the most pins down... to win. Price is of no concern to bowlers who are trying to win. Price is irrelevent for a bowler trying to make the exemption for next year. The only thing that matters is a ball that will help them bowl their very best.

The real question, knowing all this is... why aren't Buzzsaws being thrown?

My answer? Because regardless how the Lane 1 disciples here feels, the bowlers who are trying to make a living against the very best do not believe it is a better product. Not that it's a bad product, but that it is not in any way superior. To me, it is absolutely that simple.

Flame on!

Tony
http://www.allBowling.com

bamaster · « **Reply #12 on:** March 04, 2004, 10:46:09 PM »

quote:
Why does noone ever complain about Brunswick? After all, they are the creators of the Quantum, the 1st ball over the $200 plateau.

Huh? EVERYONE complained about the price of the Quantums. The truth got out quick that it was just another Brunswick ball and last I heard the company is no longer in business.

quote:
Why own an Acura over a Honda, they are after all the same company. It's about personal choice.

Not a fair analogy. Acura is owned by Honda but they are very different comapnies. An Acura may be built in the same factory on the same platform sharing a majority of the sme mechanical parts. However the features like GPS, heated seats, wood trim, chrome wheels, etc.. is where most of the price comes from.

Like why would anyone buy a completely crappy vehicle like the Hummer H2? It's a Chevy Tahoe in disguise that gets 12 mpg. Yes, there are some features they try to justify the price difference, but it's mainly IMAGE. They can justify the price because it says H2 on the car and not Tahoe.

Lane 1 knows people are willing to pay for "implied quality" and for exclusive status. Designer jeans have been doing this forever. Versace, Armani, Prada, etc... they all sell casual denim in the $300 range. And they get it because the buyers believe it to be better... and exclusive. Yes it's ridiculous. But it's not because they are not good jeans, it is because they are not any better.

/end rant

Tony

WSUstroker · « **Reply #13 on:** March 04, 2004, 10:52:12 PM »

Lane1lefty- last time I checked, golf wasn't exactly the sport played by the common man. Most courses around me cost a fair amount of money per 18 holes. Golf is not a cheap sport by any means, and a lot of people that play have money to spend on expensive golf clubs. I am in no way suggesting bowlers are cheap people, but I would rather spend 150-225 on a good ball and spend 8-10 bux on practice than spend 350 on a new driver and then spend 35 dollars to use it, especially when golf is a 5-6 month a year sport up here in MN. If I can get a ball that will do the same as a lane 1 for $50 cheaper, I am all for it.
--------------------
Dan Chambers
Winona State University Bowling

tburky · « **Reply #14 on:** March 05, 2004, 10:27:16 PM »

Here is another perspective to look at. I do not buy equipment after seeing a pro throw it on tv. My ball driller and I get information prior to the release of a ball. I look at the stats and block and cover and see if it fits my game. I buy some balls based on that information. I use these balls for testing purposes before I decide if they fit in my arsenal or not. Sometimes I don't care for the ball and sell it to someone else and not buy another one that I sold. Other times, I conclude that a different layout will work with that ball and put it in my arsenal. The question becomes this. How many people run to their proshop on Monday to buy the ball that Walter Ray or whoever threw on tv. I may be wrong on this but it is not as many people as you think. The way I see it that ball works on the tour lane conditions and for the pro that throws it and 9 times out of 10 (figure may be high) it may not work as well on a house shot for the average league bowler. Furthermore, if I was a manufacturer, instead of spending high dollars for certain pros, that money would be well spent comping balls to the regional players. A majority of the regional bowlers bowl leagues back home during the week throwing the same equipment they use in regionals. By doing this, many bowlers would personally see how the ball rolls and more than likely would go and buy the ball through their proshop because they saw it used by a regional pro during the league. JMO

Edited on 3/5/2004 11:23 PM