Combine badminton, tennis, and ping-pong and you get Pickleball, a sport increasing in popularity, especially among seniors.

“Perhaps no organized sport since baseball, football and basketball matches pickleball’s seduction of so wide a swath of the population,” Peter T. Kilborn reported for The New York Times in 2014. “Last year pickleball was admitted to the National Senior Games, the first new sport in 20 years.”

The sport was invented in 1965 in Washington and more than 200,000 people in the U.S. play it on 9,863 courts.

A pickleball court is 20 feet by 44 feet with a net that hangs at 34 inches in the middle. A non-volley zone extends seven feet from the net on each side. It is played with a ball similar to a Wiffle ball and paddles that are twice the size of ping-pong paddles. Points are only awarded to the person or team serving, and games play to 11 points (win by two).

“As more retirement locations have adopted pickleball as an integrated sports activity for their population of residents, we have a seen an explosion of new court construction throughout the United States – especially in the southern states,” The USA Pickleball Association reported. “Tennis, racquetball, and ping pong players love the competitive nature of the sport and regularly participate in local, regional, and national tournaments.”

Pickleball’s popularity doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon, and it may just be a good source of alternative revenue for a venue, perhaps by hosting a large tournament.

(Image: Michael Martin/Creative Commons)

The IAVM family lost another long-time member in Bill Luther, CFE. He was a past president (now known as chair) in 1979 and a Charles A. McElravy Award recipient in 1984. Our thoughts and condolences are with his family and friends.

“Bill was the District V vice-president when I initially joined IAAM in the late 1970s, and he helped work through some challenges with ‘allowing’ me to join due to some of the rules in place at the time,” said Frank Roach. “Later, of course, we worked together during his time in both Huntsville and Norfolk to do deals for events I was booking in his venues. Bill was tough when he had to be but a creative deal maker when the situation called for it. I don’t know anyone who was more dedicated to the success of this organization than was Bill.”

Bill was employed by the City of Norfolk in the late 1980s and managed seven facilities concurrently including Harbor Park, the AAA-facility for the New York Mets and later the Baltimore Orioles. He also managed the Opera House and the Concert Hall and Arena and the Douglas MacArthur Memorial Museum.

“At the time, the idea of building a ballpark downtown was a very controversial project,” John Rhamstine, CFE, told The Virginian-Pilot. “Bill was a big part of that project, negotiating a new lease with the (New York) Mets, overseeing the construction of the ballpark and then working to make sure everything was running properly.”

Bill retired in 2000 as director of civic facilities and worked as a consultant until 2009 and then returned to Spartanburg, South Carolina, where he worked as the manager of the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium starting in 1967.

“My most memorable quote from Bill was after he retired as director of public facilities for the City of Norfolk, and the city manager called to ask if he would be interested in overseeing the restoration of a historic theatre property that the city had acquired,” said George Cook. “When he indicated an interest, the city manager asked that Bill send a letter confirming his interest and setting forth the cost for his consulting services. He did, and about two days later, the city manager called and said, ‘Bill, we did not even pay you that much as director of civic facilities.’ Bill said, ‘I know, but you did not pay any attention to me then; I thought that if I charged you more, you might listen.'”

Bill was a U.S. Army Veteran (World War II) and graduated from Appalachian State University. He was also an active member of Saint Paul United Methodist Church, a Boy Scout leader, and a youth football coach.

“Bill Luther was a friend as well as my ‘landlord’ at Scope when we brought hockey to Norfolk,” said Blake Cullen, former owner of the Hampton Roads Admirals. “He was always helpful in putting new ideas across. He will truly be missed.”

Bill is survived by his wife of 58 years, Doris; his son, B.J.; and his daughters, Ola Snow and Debbie Teagan.

Memorial Service info:

Sunday, August 21, 2016
St. Paul’s United Methodist Church
1320 Fernwood Glendale Road
Spartanburg, South Carolina
Lunch 1 p.m.
Receiving of Guest 2 p.m.
Service 3 p.m.

(Top image: Jim Walker/The Virginian-Pilot)

I wrote about beacons in my first post for the Front Row News blog. Major League Baseball (MLB) had just announced a partnership with Apple to offer location-based information for At the Ballpark app users. Now, almost three years later, location-based technology is widespread throughout MLB stadiums and many other sports venues.

According to a report from Proxbook, a directory of proximity companies, 93 percent of MLB stadiums use beacon technology. The same technology is used by 75 percent of NFL stadiums, 53 percent of NBA arenas, and 47 percent of NHL arenas.

“Beacons and proximity technologies are not only helping to sell more tickets. They are redefining how sports teams communicate with fans, increasing revenue from merchant sales as well as seat upgrades,” Proxbook wrote in the report. “Proximity technology also opens up brand new sources of income from enabling sponsors to interact with fans and monetize hyper-accurate visitor segments through advertising.”

One stat that stands out is organizations that have used location-based technologies “have seen an ROI as big as 40x from incremental merchant revenues alone within one season.”

“Events and conferences are also quick to adapt proximity, as the majority of top event organizers already have an app in place, therefore, adding location and proximity features is a natural addition,” Thomas Walle, CEO and co-founder of Unacast, wrote in the report. “It has become more common to use beacons or other proximity sensors for indoor navigation, smart check-ins, intelligent networking, and agenda updates. Proximity marketing has proven to enhance the attendee experience significantly.”

Please visit Proxbook to download the free, full report.

(Image via Flickr: Steven Martin/Creative Commons)

The 2016 Arena Management Conference is quickly approaching, and we look forward to experiencing some of the following great sessions with you in Tampa, Florida, September 18-20.

Innovations in Arena Technology
Hear about some of the latest technological innovations being used in the arena business from parking automation to arena digital signage, video integration, connectivity, data analytics, smart sensor technology, and more.

Moderator: Jeff Davis, director/general manager, UTA College Park Center
Panel: George Baker, founder and CEO, ParkHub
Jay Parker, national sales manager, Daktronics Inc.
Aran Rush, assistant general manager, Golden 1 Center
Jeff Volk, vice president, Alpha Video

The Arena Manager’s Role for Improving Food and Beverage
Learn how successful venue managers have positively affected their foodservice department’s performance. Attendees will leave with five takeaways that can improve their bottom line while upgrading their customer service.

Moderator: Chris Bigelow, CFSP FCSI, president, The Bigelow Companies Inc.
Panel: Steve Cahoon, Centerplate, Wesley Chapel, Florida
Tom Kaucic, director of operations, Levy Restaurants/Amway Center, Camping World Stadium, Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre

Duck & Cover: Venue Security 2016
Our panel of venue safety experts will discuss a variety of topics that include: Magnetometers (best practices, expense, expectations, guest communication, back of house deployment), staff training, emergency situations (active shooter, explosive event, riots), wait times vs secure environment, police department relations, and recent safety and security incidents at venues.

Panel: Jason Allen, sales manager, US Testing Equipment
Joe DeGeorge, event director, Verizon Arena, Little Rock
Vincent Foderingham, vice president, risk management, Feld Entertainment Inc.
Eric Hart, CFE, president & CEO, Tampa Sports Authority

The conference will also offer several town halls and roundtable discussions, as well as our keynote speaker Steve Griggs, CEO of Tampa Bay Sports and Entertainment. Registration is open. See you soon in Tampa!

This chart illustrates the APPI Energy proprietary database that updates supplier prices daily across all service territories. Prices are per kilowatt hour, for reference only.

IAVM members are gaining more control over their venue’s energy budgets and avoiding the risk of potential price spikes. Electricity and natural gas prices are near historically low levels today. Venue managers are advised to closely examine supply prices. If your venue is currently locked into an energy supply contract, you can compare and lock in prices now for a supply that begins when your current contract expires.

How many electricity suppliers do you evaluate when considering supply prices and supply contracts?

If you evaluate only a few suppliers, how do you know if the prices the suppliers provide are high, low, or average? What if you leave money on the bargaining table? Would you know? For a venue with an annual energy consumption of one million kilowatt hours, the cost difference between the lowest and highest supplier prices could be more than $10,000 per year.

From 2013 to 2016, the Energy Research Council (ERC) conducted a survey series of 1,138 executives who are involved with electricity procurement for companies with fewer than 500 employees, and with average monthly electricity bills less than $30,000. ERC assessed the respondents’ understanding of deregulated energy markets and energy management strategies. Survey results were that more than 80 percent of executives evaluate only two or three electricity suppliers before making a selection. Evaluating only two or three suppliers is likely an inadequate approach on which to base a long-term business decision and commitment. The majority (56 percent) of ERC survey participants responded that they want help evaluating, ranking, and selecting energy suppliers.

The last time they purchased electricity, less than half of ERC survey respondents renewed their incumbent supplier. Why is that? Eighty-eight percent said “price” was their primary reason for switching suppliers. Given that reality, why would any buyer base a decision on a limited number of prices from just a few suppliers, particularly when abundant price discovery from many suppliers can be obtained?

IAVM has endorsed consulting firm APPI Energy to provide data-driven procurement solutions that reduce and manage energy costs for members on an ongoing basis. Every day, the team of energy experts identifies the wide range of energy supplier prices across the U.S. and the lowest prices available among many vetted, competing suppliers. To take advantage of this program, contact 800-520-6685 or info@appienergy.com.