Remembering Al Blough’s contributions to bowling in Berks and beyond

(Originally published June 18, 2021 for the Reading Eagle) — It’s 11 a.m. on a weekday morning — a clear summer day — yet, inside Berks Lanes in Sinking Spring, the distinctive sound of bowling pins crashing into one another fills the dimly lit building.

There may not be a more fitting tribute to Albert Blough than the enthusiasm local residents have for the sport he’s lived and breathed for more than six decades.

“I’m looking back and thinking, when I started working in 1958, what a lucky break I had,” Blough said, balls thundering down wooden alleys all around him. “Because working in the bowling industry and with bowlers, man, I’m working with the best people in our society.”

After a long and storied career, Blough’s run as owner and operator of Berks Lanes, Hiester Lanes in Reading and Limerick Bowl in Montgomery County is about to come to end.

He has agreed to sell the businesses to Bowlero Corp., the world’s largest operator of bowling entertainment centers, in a transaction that could be finalized this month.

Blough, 85, plans to transition into a sort of semi-retirement, though he stressed he wouldn’t have made the deal had he not felt the centers were being placed in good hands.

“I had no intention of selling,” Blough said, “but Bowlero came out of nowhere.

“They’re serious about league, they’re serious about tournaments, and they’re serious about the bowling business.”

Even in bidding the industry farewell, it serves as an example of how perhaps no individual has done more to preserve and grow bowling’s popularity in Berks County and throughout the region than Blough.

Building a bowling empire

Famously, Blough purchased his first alley, Garden Spot in Strasburg, Lancaster County, with a down payment of just $1 in 1967.

His affinity for the game began shortly after he graduated from Juniata College, though, when his father and two business partners named him manager of the former Colonial Hills Bowling on Route 222. A few years later, the ownership group purchased Berks Lanes, putting Blough in charge of two alleys and teaching him a valuable lesson.

“I got a raise,” Blough said. “I didn’t get a raise in between, so I then realized here’s how you get raises — you take on more responsibility.”

When the ownership group declined to buy Garden Spot, Blough wound up going into business for himself. In 1972, he took over Colonial and Berks. Then, in ’74, he scooped up Pine Lanes in Schuylkill County and Limerick Bowl in quick succession.

Blough wasn’t merely buying properties, either. Going back to his days as manager, he was actively building up his clientele.

“We taught thousands of people how to bowl,” Blough said. “We had learn-to-bowl classes and held them constantly. They could join a league or just open bowl, but they knew then how to bowl.”

Business was booming. In 1979, Blough built a racquetball club, leading him down a different path with what eventually became Colonial Hills Fitness. And in the 1980s, he was able to acquire liquor licenses for the bowling alleys, another way to expose new or casual players to the recreation.

He also oversaw multiple expansions of both Berks Lanes and Limerick Bowl, increasing both from 24 to 48 lanes over time. He even briefly operated a bowling center in the Cayman Islands, Stingray Bowling, from 1999 to 2004.

“It was just constant building and growth all the time,” Blough said.

Blough later sold Garden Spot and Pine Lanes, while Colonial Hills bowling was demolished to make way for the expansion of Route 222.

When Bowlero comes to town

Bowlero’s interest in Blough’s remaining alleys is another testament to the way he was able to maintain participation in the sport.

Bowling experienced a dramatic decline from its height during the 1960s and ’70s, with alleys in Berks County and across the U.S. closing in droves in recent years. Yet, Berks Lanes, Hiester Lanes — which Blough rescued in 2008 and expanded — and Limerick Bowl all remain successful.

Blough attributes the high engagement to a focus on league play and children’s programs, as well as his dedication to reinvesting in updating his facilities.

“I’ve always managed to keep the bowling centers looking fresh,” Blough said. “If you go in a lot of bowling centers, that’s where they fall down. They worry about taking that money and paying down their bank loan, but then their place doesn’t look like it’s been taken care of.”

He was unaware Bowlero representatives were scoping out his properties, but they would later remark on their fine condition.

“They just came and looked at the place,” Blough said, adding he initially heard from Bowlero via email while he was on vacation. “I sent it to my legal guy and asked him to read it. He said, ‘You better look at it.’ Why? They made an offer to you.'”

Advertising itself as a bowling alley, party venue and sports bar, Bowlero will undoubtedly “tweak” the experience at Blough’s properties.

However, the company — which owns the Professional Bowlers Association, the sport’s major sanctioning body — shares Blough’s devotion to league play, while simultaneously keeping with his mission of having broad appeal.

“I went to friends of mine in the industry, people I respect in the business, and they said ‘You’re gonna have to take that offer,'” Blough said. “They want my staff to continue and they have the money to back it up, so they’re not buying something and things start deteriorating.

“That affected my decision.”

Blough’s legacy

While the bowling centers and their respective bars are going to Bowlero, separately, Blough also sold Flying Hills Fitness Center to Bressler’s Inc., a Lancaster County-based towing equipment company. The gym will be closed and converted into a manufacturing center.

Blough is holding on to Colonial Hills Fitness Center, though, so he won’t be entering a full-fledged retirement.

Still, giving up the alleys is “bittersweet,” he said, noting the support from his wife, Jane, has helped him come to terms with the decision.

While he can recall his first 300 game in 1963 like it was yesterday and will debate how the evolution of the bowling ball transformed the sport, ultimately, it sounds as though it’s the people he’ll miss the most.

“The nice thing about it is it’s a color-blind sport,” Blough said. “We don’t care what you are, who you are. As long as you love the game of bowling and want to come out and compete, it doesn’t matter if you’re an executive or a grease monkey.”

He also thanked his workers, offering a bit of advice to fellow business owners.

“I was lucky in being able to find really good employees,” Blough said. “Your whole business depends on the quality of employees and people who represent you to the public, and I always had good people.”

In 2018, Blough was honored by the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America with the V.A. Wapensky Award for his years of service to the industry and the local, state and national levels.

His contribution to the sport, particularly in this region, is bigger than any single honor can encapsulate.

“I want to be remembered as someone who brought a fun thing to the area and taught thousands of people to love the game of bowling,” Blough said. “And to let them know I am truly always indebted to the people in this area for their generosity, their kindness and the good sportsmanship that they show when they come out here to compete.”